Wait til Next Year (Western Conference)

Where do we go from here?: A look ahead to 2011-2012 season(whenever that starts)

We continue our look ahead with a look at the Western Conference Playoffs

Western Conference

1.       San Antonio- Expect the Spurs to stay status quo, despite the real need for youth and athleticism. The Duncan succession plan has to start eventually so don’t be surprised if Spurs drop an offer to Restricted Free Agent Marc Gasol of Memphis just to be a little scare into Memphis. San Antonio needs depth on the wings and at point guard. Popovich doesn’t appear to be big on George Hill and with Tony Parker the most movable piece, do not be surprised if a move is made and the Spurs become a player for Deron Williams in Summer ’12. Jamal Crawford would give the Spurs the explosion they lack.

2.       Los Angeles- The 4-0 drubbing by Dallas and retirement of Phil/hiring of Mike Brown has many thinking the sky is falling in Laker Land. While their demise is exaggerated, moves do need to be made.  The popular theory is Howard in Summer ’12 but in the meantime, LA has to get quicker in the backcourt and have real pop off the bench. The Lakers lack the cap space to sign Howard so can the Buss family be convinced to move Bynum?  In the best scenario, Odom becomes the starting SF and Ron Artest can be moved on. The successor to Fisher has to happen and making a move for Atlanta’s Kirk Hinrich or Detroit’s Rodney Stuckey would be a nice fit. Two wild card names to add bench scoring: J.J Barea and Leandro Barbosa, two undersized by quick guards who both gave the Lakers fits in the past

3.       Dallas- The Champs of the NBA are in a very interesting position. J.J Barea, Caron Butler, Tyson Chandler, and DeShawn Stevenson are all unrestricted free agents.  Chandler is probably the highest priority because of what he brought on the defensive end. Butler is a wild card coming off two major injuries.  Roddy Beaubois returns and could be a tradeable asset. J. Kidd likely to return next season and Dirk appears to be entering another prime. If Butler isn’t all the way back, Dallas could use a slasher to complement their passing and shooting game. Rudy Gay becomes an interesting name if Grizzlies resign Gasol, the salary cap may make Gay available. Expect Dallas to focus on adding youth

4.       Oklahoma City- The best AAU team in the league only has one restricted FA in Daequan Cook. So in order to achieve the next step and make a Finals, the Thunder have to simply get older and mature. Durant, Harden, Westbrook and Ibaka are all 23 and under. The growing pains of the Dallas series will serve them better long term. The roster moves are small for this team , the big steps come will be if Durant can improve his off-the ball and post game and Westbrook settles down.  Adding a steady hand like a Shane Battier wouldn’t hurt but the internal maturity is the biggest key.

5.       Denver-  The Carmelo trade made Denver a feel good story but a 4-1 loss to Thunder in opening round, including three close losses, showed how much he was missed. The Nuggets were like many of George Karl’s Sonics, good balance but no closer. J.R Smith is expected to move on which will allow them to resign Aaron Afflalo. Nene is a tough call for Nuggets management but with K-Mart’s contract off the books, I would expect them to resign him. Ty Lawson should be the #1 at point guard which could allow them to package Raymond Felton , Wilson Chandler, Birdman, and the draft picks to bring in another scorer (Danny Granger, Rudy Gay?)

6.       Portland- Too many cooks spoiled the broth and Portland has too many of the same player. Batum, Fernandez, Roy, Wallace, Wesley Matthews make for a crowded wing position group and having not won a first round series since the JailBlazers days, its time to change the mix in Rip City. Brandon Roy’s great game 4 vs Dallas doesn’t disguise that his best days are behind him. Can you find a contending team who might be willing to take a chance on him and get something in return. With Marcus Camby close to retirement and Greg Oden’s bad feet and luck out the door, Portland could use another young big to pair with LaMarcus Aldridge.

7.       New Orleans- Chris Paul has said all the right things about New Orleans but reality eventually hits that winning there is too tall a task. David West can become an unrestricted free agent , along with Carl Landry. What can Hornets do to keep Paul or is it too late? Trading Paul for Westbrook makes great talk for sports radio but not likely. So Hornets have to try to entice Nene or Marc Gasol with dollars available if West leave. Marcus Thornton, who Hornets traded for Landry, is a restricted free agent is a viable option. The Hornets management might be under more pressure than any other management to satisfy its best player.

8.       Memphis- The People’s Champs surprised by beating the Spurs 4-2 in round one and pushing OKC to a seventh game. The Grizzlies face a potential tough decision. Z-Bo resigned for big dollars under the assumption that Marc Gasol would be signing as well. Assuming Gasol is in the fold, what happens to Rudy Gay especially if the CBA is as restrictive as we think. A healthy Gay would be a superior trade piece to have and OJ Mayo’s resurgence could see his stock rise.  Popular veteran Shane Battier is expected to walk with Xavier Henry stepping in.