End of week burn: Olympics talk, 8th in the West, rumors and more
Blazers Blog —
... The four-letter network is doing some forecasting for each conference, placing the Blazers No. 8: Oden, Oden, Oden. That's the story in Portland, where the rookie big man is working out to rave reviews after his microfracture recovery. With Brandon Roy leading a young, exciting team and Jerryd Bayless setting the summer league afire, expectations are through the roof in Blazerland ...
And The ESPN Experts Say......
Bullets Forever —
... Twenty-five of ESPN's best and brightest recently got together to collectively decide how the NBA will shake out in the upcoming 2008-2009 season.
The consensus dictates that the Wizards will get 43 wins and finish 7th in the East. So far, SportsNation says this prediction is on the money. What say you?
Predictions: EAST | WEST ...
Does ESPN like the Houston Rockets??
The Dream Shake —
... My lunchtime Interwebs browsing brought me over to ESPN... where I saw these predictions/projections for 2008/09. Funny this is -- I can't really come up with much of a legitimate argument to say why ESPN is misguided or flat out wrong in this analysis. They predict the Rockets to get homecourt advantage and be competitive in the typically ultra-competitive Western Conference. Hard to complain about that kind of praise. I mean, they did short-change us by 6 wins (predicting only 53) - even though I did a painstaking game-by-game analysis already and determined ...
Let's All Take A Moment And Be Thankful ESPN's NBA Coverage Doesn't Suck
Hardwood Paroxysm —
... lucky. Because ESPN.com's NBA coverage isn't just passable, it's really pretty good. And even the TV coverage is improving. Sure, we get the occasional Steven A. Smith meltdown over Kobe, but Jalen Rose is surprisingly insightful, Jon Barry doesn't act like he's just trying to say things to get people riled up, and even Walton's mellowed. But the ESPN.com crew is downright rational and provides good insight on a consistent basis. What made me come to this conclusion is the new ESPN preseason predictions that went up today (hat tip: The Dream Shake). I expected ...
ESPN "experts" project the Western Conference - Nuggets 10th
Pickaxe And Roll —
ESPN "experts" project the Western Conference - Nuggets 10th
Even with the Marcus Camby trade and a midseason Allen Iverson trade that I firmly believe is on the horizon I think projecting the Nuggets to only win 39 games is preposterous. Considering that 39 ...
The forecast: First place
Lakers Blog —
Not sure that qualifies as actual "weather," but it does represent a preseason poll taken of various ESPN folks. The question: How do you picture the West shaking out next season? The general consensus: With the Lakers at the top, sporting 55 wins. Obviously, this opinion is based in part on the notion of Andrew Bynum being healthy. But hey, at least "the experts" believe in the potential for a return to the Finals (if not a trophy). Interesting notes: Houston, with their newly Artest-ed lineup, sits at #3 with a bullet. Denver misses the playoffs, with Portland taking ...
Minnesota has a different look this season -- and they got new uniforms, too. By acquiring...
Canis Hoopus —
... ESPN's Summer Forecast has the Wolves 13th in the West. Hat tip to Hardwood Paroxysm
Wolves Updates 08/30
TWolves Blog - Minnesota Timberwolves News and Articles —
... hosts a Wolves Mailbag in which he answer questions sent in by fans. In ESPN's Summer Forecast , the sites hoops writers predict the Wolves will finish 13th in the conference. Minnesota has a different look this season -- and they got new uniforms, too. By acquiring sharpshooter Mike Miller and rookie big man Kevin Love for draftee O.J. Mayo, the Wolves have put some nice new pieces around Al Jefferson. But the improvement will be incremental at best. ...
Labor day weekend links
Mavs Moneyball —
... ESPN makes some VERY conservative picks as to how the West will end up, with the Lakers only winning 55 games and Dallas coming in at 7th behind Phx and ahead of Portland and winning 45. ...
ESPN Panel: 34 Wins
Sactown Royalty —
ESPN Panel: 34 Wins
Seems about right.
Realistic Expectations
Rip City Project | A Portland Trailblazers blog —
The Worldwide Leader with realistic predictions? I've knocked them in the past but ESPN actually used their brains for once and deserve a pat on the back. ...
79.2% of people are absolutely insane
All That Jazz —
... ESPN.COM recently asked their 25 member NBA staff to rank the teams from top to bottom in each conference. The Jazz managed to snag the 4th over-all spot and are predicted to win 51 games next season. If this was a prediction for 2006-2007 ...
ESPN Doesn’t Get It, Part XVIII
RedsArmy.com - The Voice Of Celtics Fans —
... I’m not expecting another 66 win season. But if the Pistons were able to sleep-walk their way to 59 wins last year, I think the Celtics can do the same. Yes, the Big Three will get more rest. And some of that “drive” will be lacking, at least in the regular season. But what about the improved play of Rondo, Perkins, Powe and Big Baby? That’s got to be good for something. For those who care, here’s the Western conference predictions. ...
39 Wins... Yea, You're Probably Right
The Nugg Doctor - A Denver Nuggets Blog —
... (Boulder-CO) Here's a little ditty that should be able to dust the cobwebs off around here. The posting has been lean lately because I haven't had a whole lot of positive things to say so far through this off-season's transactions and I would rather give the new guys, and a few of the returning faces, a chance to surprise me before confirming my previous suspicions. ...
OK, Now ESPN's Just Trying to Piss Off Sheed
Upside and Motor —
Photo from Getty Images. ESPN's "consensus" predictions on the season came out about a week ago (West, East), but today they unveiled the winners of each conference finals. 25 experts were polled, and each conference cleanly came out in a three team race. Out West, it's between the Lakers (14 votes), the Hornets (8), and the Rockets (3). In the East, the title's up for grabs for the Celtics (17 votes), the Cavs (6), or the Sixers (2). My first thought is this: there is no way in hell we're going to have a repeat Lakers-Celtics ...
Turmoil to Follow
ESPN.com - TrueHoop —
Not too long ago, 25 ESPN writers, editors and contributors weighed in on a number of topics concerning the upcoming season. One issue discussed was which team was most likely to descend into turmoil. You know the story. The Isiah Thomas Knicks. "The Ship be Sinkin'" Knicks. The Jail Blazers. The Clippers for a decade or two. It happens sometimes. Things start poorly, continue worse, and then ... everyone seems to start agreeing that the team is falling apart. There is an unofficial code in ...
Phoenix Suns Season Preview - The Final Word
Fanster.com —
... installment of our five part Phoenix Suns 2008-2009 season preview series. Part 1 took A Look Back at the past season and era while the 2nd part examined the Suns Off Season moves. Part 3 explored The Players in depth and part 4 evaluated The Competition. This final part puts it all together and gives our predictions.
Many people think they know what the Suns are about. Other speculate on our team’s chances. But only the Most Trusted Name in (Suns) News can delivery the goods.
Our ...
Phoenix Suns Season Preview - The Final Word
Bright Side Of The Sun —
... the final installment of our five part Phoenix Suns 2008-2009 season preview series. Part 1 took A Look Back at the past season and era while the 2nd part examined the Suns Off Season moves. Part 3 explored The Players in depth and part 4 evaluated The Competition. This final part puts it all together and gives our predictions.
Many people think they know what the Suns are about. Other speculate on our team's chances. But only the Most Trusted Name in (Suns) News can delivery the ...
Random Thoughts: Season Previews
Hornets247.com Blog —
... This season, however, I haven't been able to respond with outrage to the predictions being made for the Hornets. In fact, the've been so favorable I almost cringe when I see them. High expectations can backfire dangerously - just ask the Phoenix Suns Fans. ESPN predicts the Hornets to finish second in the West, and the Hornets received the ...
