Vermillion

I don't know agree with the choices of Denver and Milwaukee in the playoffs.

I'd like to see if KMart can hold his own against the forwards of the West before I start ranking them a top-5 West team. Camby's a good defensive center, but his lack of height coupled with KMart's would give the Nuggets one of the most undersized frontcourts in the league, which is suicidal especially in the West. Yes, Melo is a talented player, but I just don't see them making it over deeper, better teams like San Antonio, Minnesota, Sacramento, Houston, Memphis, Utah, even Dallas, Phoenix, and Portland. They admittedly have a decent team, but their problem is that they are in the West, which makes it harder to grab a playoff spot.

Sad to say, even though Milwaukee is one of my top-5 teams, I just don't see them making the playoffs, much less being a top 6 team. Even if they have one of the more decent backcourt starters in Redd and Ford (whose performance is doubtful because of injury), that doesn't really help their terrible, terrible lack of a good and big frontcourt, especially if they decide to play Desmond Mason in the SF spot and the brittle Van Horn at the PF position. They've also lost valued subs in Skinner and Jones. I try to be optimistic about this team, but I realistically can't see them making the playoffs unless they can fully utilize a running game.

That said, all bias aside, I see Philadelphia and Orlando as playoff teams, with the former as one of the top teams in their division. With young, talented players in Dalembert, Green, Iguodala, and Korver playing alongside GRobinson, Thomas, and the still great Iverson, I see the Sixers making noise in the relatively weak East. Though I question the ability of the frontcourt of Orlando, I see that their depth is one one of the best in the league. Francis should get back into his 20-6-6 groove with Mobley backing him up both offensively and defensively, Cato should be one of the more polished big men in the East, and I like what I've seen from Howard and Nelson. If Grant Hill can get back to his old form, then Orlando should have a good forward rotation with Turkoglu providing some decent help.

That said:

EAST

1. Detroit
2. Indiana
3. Miami
4. Philadelphia
5. New York
6. Orlando
7. Chicago
8. Cleveland

9. Boston
10. Toronto
11. Washington
12. New Jersey
13. Milwaukee
14. Atlanta
15. Charlotte

WEST

1. Minnesota
2. San Antonio
3. Sacramento
4. Memphis
5. Houston
6. Dallas
7. Utah
8. Phoenix/ Portland

9. Phoenix/ Portland
10. Denver
11. LA Lakers
12. LA Clippers
13. Golden State
14. Seattle
15. New Orleans

__________________
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"If you've ever seen Iverson play in person, you know that his improvisational skills are amazing. Baron Davis calls him unguardable. He's a killer on the fast break. One on one, even one on two, when the guy they call the Answer is on a one-way trip to the basket, you better just foul him. People can hate all day about the number of shot attempts. But, damn, give him props for even getting them up. He's small enough to have every shot contested. That 39% shooting sounds terrible to the regular reader, but have you seen these NBA players lately?"

-SLAM issue #68, April 2003

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FAVORITE TEAM: Denver
OTHER FAVORITES: New York, New Orleans, Charlotte, Memphis, LA Lakers, Philadelphia, Indiana, Boston, Houston
TOP 5 FAVORITE PLAYERS: Allen Iverson, Adam Morrison, TJ Ford, Carmelo Anthony, Chris Paul (and OJ Mayo)
OTHER FAVORITES: Samuel Dalembert, Michael Redd, Salim Stoudemire, Rajon Rondo, Gilbert Arenas, Emeka Okafor, Kobe Bryant, Randy Foye, JJ Redick, Marcus Camby, Kyle Lowry, Andre Iguodala, Sasha Vujacic, Acie Law, Thaddeus Young, Joakim Noah, Javaris Crittenton (rookies: Mayo, Beasley, Speights, Batum, Hickson, Weaver, Rose, Gordon, Gallinari)