Throwdowns > Closed

J-Business said 12/01, 03:18 PM
These are the top 5 teams in the NBA as of now.

1. Dallas Mavericks
2. Miami Heat
3. OKC Thunder
4. LA Lakers
5. Chicago Bulls

The Mavericks - The defending NBA champs and respect has to be given. They're returning Nowitzki and other key parts. They'll add a player or two and most likely re-sign Tyson Chandler

Miami Heat - Will be tough and most likely be the number one team in the league by mid-season. They'll add a center but will still stay away from picking up a point guard. All said, this will be the team to beat by mid-season but for now, #2.

OKC - Played Dallas very tough and they're a young and up and coming team. Last season's WCF was a learning experience and it's made them better.

Lakers - Kobe has had time to heal his body, Gasol has cleared his mind. They're both going into the season with something to prove and they'll once again be one of the top teams.

Chicago Bulls - They're a great team in all aspects but the Miami Heat simply have their number. With that being said, there aren't 4 other teams in the NBA better than them, and in some circles they'd be higher.

J-Business said 12/02, 04:13 AM
Being that we agree on the top 4 teams, I guess it comes down between the Lakers and Knicks.

For one, NY does not have Chris Paul and it's not a guarantee that he'll be there even during this season. If there's one thing we've learned, it's that teams will hold on to a player as long as possible to get the max out of a potential trade.

That definitely will not happen during this short regular season.

The Lakers on the other hand are bringing back the core of their team, which won the title the previous year.
Being eliminated early in the playoffs and the lockout helped Kobe, Pau Gasol and Bynum get healthier and they will come out the gate very strong.

The Knicks on the other hand looked completely lost in the playoffs and weren't even competitive. On paper they have potential but I'm not sold on how Carmelo and Amare's on court chemistry

Add to this their current point guard Chauncey Billups is old and hearing trade rumors, and it's likely they will not start out strong.

Maybe by mid-season after some trades, they'll be one of the top teams, but there's no way possible they are top 5 at the beginning of the season.

J-Business said 12/03, 03:41 AM
So you're saying that even without Chris Paul, the Knicks are better than the Lakers?

Based on what?

They were swept out in the 1st round and the last two games weren't even competitive.
On top of that, they played little to no defense and Carmelo and Amare lacked cohesion on the court.

Chauncey Billups was thoroughly outplayed
Also, you can't really compare the trade rumors between Billups and Bynum.

For one, Bynum has been hearing them for years and is still there.
Billups never wanted to get traded in the first place and made this known.

The Lakers also are a proven commodity and with the exception of last season, they've proven time and time again that they'll be around when it counts.
Kobe will be Kobe
Pau Gasol and Bynum will definitely bounce back
Ron Artest (MWP) will be valuable on the defensive end
Fisher is old and will most likely make way for an easily accessible young guard

The Knicks on the other hand are unknown. In theory, their "young legs" were supposed to make them competitive against the Celtics but we see how that turned out.

There's simply no way possible the Knicks are a top five team at the start of the season