2015-2016 CHAMPIONS: San Antonio Spurs
They’ve reloaded with LaMarcus Aldridge and David West. Tim
Duncan, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili, Kawhi Leonard, Danny Green, Boris Diaw and
Patty Mills are all back. They’re just too good not to win it this year,
presuming there are no major injuries.
EASTERN CONFERENCE CHAMPIONS: Cleveland Cavaliers
Lebron James will lead his team back to the Finals but his
supporting cast will be found lacking against the Spurs. Ironically, they would
have won last year had Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love been healthy. This year, it
won’t make a difference.
FINALS MVP: LaMarcus Aldridge
Aldridge completes his transition to the new Tim Duncan as
the Big Fundamental reprises David Robinson’s role as the calming presence of
this championship team.
REGULAR SEASON MVP: James Harden
After last year’s near miss, the Beard will stop at nothing
to make sure he is a lock for this award. Expect a bunch of 40plus pint games
and a couple of 50 point games from Harden, as he puts distance between him and
LBJ/Curry/Davis.
COACH OF THE YEAR: Scott Skiles
Skiles will have the young Magic running, defending and grinding
their way to the 7th-8th seed of the Eastern Conference.
While they won’t have a chance against either the Cavs, their big in-season
leap will earn Skiles the nod as the year’s best coach.
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Anthony Davis
The big man keeps getting better year after year. He’s going
to own this award for about the next 6-8 years.
SCORING CHAMPION: James Harden
Harden will average about 29.7 ppg, as he tries to bury his
MVP competition under an avalanche of points.
REBOUNDING CHAMPION: Anthony Davis
Again, his year-on-year improvement will allow Davis to get
even more boards, especially with the Pelican’s new, faster offense generating
more possessions and more opportunities for rebounds.
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: Karl Anthony Towns
The Wolves’ rookie will have lots of opportunities to play
and will benefit from Minessota’s high octane offense. The Wolves should also
be a darkhorse for an 8th seed in the highly competitive West, which
will make Towns look even better. Runner up Jahlil Okafor will suffer by
comparison because his Philadelphia Sixers won’t improve enough to boost his
stock.
UPSET OF THE PLAYOFFS: Chicago Bulls
The Bulls will be unlucky enough to face the Milwaukee Bucks
in the first round and will struggle against the youth, length and versatility
of the young Bucks. Butler will become the new face of the Bulls, Rose will still
score buckets but won’t be able to turn the tide, and Mirotic will be more
effective than either Joakim Noah or Pau Gasol.
TEAM OF THE FUTURE: Minnesota Timberwolves
They’ve got a bevy of budding superstars in Andrew Wiggins,
Zach LaVine and Karl Anthony Towns. They’ve got solid young rotations players
like Shabazz Muhammad, Adreian Payne and Giorgui Dieng. Their on-court leader,
Ricky Rubio, is just 25 and Nikola Pekovic (29) is still youngish. In 2-3
years, this Wolves team will be a legitimate contender for the Western
Conference crown.
MOST DIFFICULT FIRST ROUND MATCH UP: Milwaukee Bucks
They start a 6’6” point guard who’s also a ROY awardee in Michael
Carter-Williams. They’ve got the league’s only active player who can play all five
positions in 6’11” Giannis Antetokuompo. They’ve got 2 interchangeable rebounding
bigs who are solid down the blocks as well as on the defensive side of the ball
in Greg Monroe and John Henson. They’ve got a lights-out shooter in 6’7” Khris
Middleton. And then there’s the sensational 6’8” Jabari Parker, who was making
a case for being the ROY last year, until he got injured. Basically, the Bucks’
starting lineup will have, a 6”6” former ROY, a 6’7” shooter, a 6’11” Pippen
clone, a 6’8” scorer and a 6’11” post scorer and rebounder. That’s what you call
“Daaaaaaamn.”
And now, let the season begin.
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