Post by cop5414 on Oct 29, 2024 20:42:41 GMT
Western Conference Early Season Power Rankings
14. Oklahoma City Thunder
Projected Lineup:
C: Ralph Sampson
PF: Evan Mobley
SF: Jalen Hood-Schifino
SG: Korie Korbett
PG: Penny Hardaway
6th man: Jason Crowe Jr.
Easy pick here and I'm certain carmelo115 is happy to be here. A GM who normaly has the tendency to flip rosters like no other, it's probably a surprise to most that he hasn't turned this team into a Westsrn Conference contender yet. At least there is a couple of shiny new toys to play with in rookies Penny Hardaway and Ralph Sampson. Their ratings I gind both interesting and I'm not sure if either will become that superstar he might be looking for, or maybe I'm just being offput by that C+ outside and Penny is a guaranteed future top 3 PG. One move I do see happening later this season however is Evan Mobley moving to a contender. I say the Jazz, Pelicans, or Hornets make that move if they can "low" cost.
13. San Antonio Spurs
Projected Lineup:
C: Bryson Tiller
PF: Koa Peat
SF: Matas Buzelis
SG: John Starks
PG: Nate Robinson
6th man: Hank Gathers, Ousmane N'Diaye
Full disclosure, I had something else totally written, but I'd completely forgotten we'd already recieved a new Spurs GM in the last season. Anyhow this team oddly suffers from a problem I'd state most teams have the opposite of, which is back court struggles. Koa Peat and Bryce Tiller, both signing of the former interim GM ripkobebryant, are a good front court duo. Maybe not elite status but an acceptable pair for any playoff hopeful team. I do wonder if the rookie Hank Gathers eventually moves into a starter role this season. I mean he's already got the rebounding and defensive ratings so it could be completely justified. Good enough results and consideration to Anicet Lavodrama's arrival next season, could justify trying to move Tiller or Peat later in the year.
12. Golden State Warriors
Projected Lineup:
C: Bam Adebayo
PF: Dennis Rodman?
SF: Brandon Miller
SG: Doug Christie
PG: Aaron Rowe Jr.
6th man: Pacome Dadiet
I honestly hated the Rodman pick. Not that I have anything against what should be an elite defensive/rebounding player, also with that draft note kind of cooks. But they'd been better suited picking World B. Free, Rasheed Wallace, Hank Gathers etc. I'd probably go as far down as Toni Kukoc as who should've gone before. It's a rebuilding team however, that'll need to wait at least three season to offload those undesirable contracts like the $73M expired Bama Adebayo, the infamous Brandon Miller contract, and Aaron Rowe Jr. who unbeknownst to me, landed a 5 yr for $125,000,000 bag. Don't know what the dude was before TC, but yeesh. Happy to see Pacome Dadiet become more servicable than Josh Leonard though.
11. Houston Rockets
Projected Lineup:
C: Paul Oyasuri
PF: Alonzo Mourning
SF: Jamal Mashburn
SG: Austin Reaves
PG: Codi Miller-McIntyre
6th man: Timo Saarelainen, Vin Baker
The bachelor party resulted in Jamal Mashburn, and I did just state I hate Dennis Rodman before everyone not named Toni Kukoc, but after looking at those post TC ratings, that's another name to kick fown the list. Althought, you can't hate that rebounding. Rockets GM hunt54 has gone on record to say he would've taken Rasheed Wallace in his stead. Sure maybe that doesn't fit their needs considering they've already got top prospects Paul Oyasuri and Alonzo Mourning manning the frontcourt, but adding a third opens up trade options for maybe a great PG from a team that was looking to rebuild/retool. This season should result in another year in the lotto, problem is I'm not sure they'll find themselves at a top 5 suitor when the season ends.
10. Los Angeles Lakers
Projected Lineup:
C: Dikembe Mutombo
PF: Nikola Jokic
SF: Toni Kukoc
SG: J.J Andrews
PG: Darryn Peterson
6th man: DaRon Holmes II
I'm finding the league to be more competively balanced across both conferences this season, so I don't believe we'll see the traditional sub-.500 7th and 8th seeds in the West. Otherwise this is likely a team I could comfortably see sneaking in. But I generally have some hangups on teams without a legit PG. High turnovers, low assists are okay, but Darryn Peterson is no De'Aaron Fox. Can't score, can't steal, and still can't hit the three. Peterson is servicable, but likely the anchor of a squad filled with other impressive and growing talents like FA signing J.J Andrews, sophmore Dikembe Mutombo, and the rookie Toni Kukoc. They are also supported by the legendary Nikola Jokic and the recent FA signing DaRon Holmes II who they stole away from their L.A counterpart. I like the Holmes signing, well at least the first three years of the signing. After that, even if TC doesn't kill him, it'll probably be about at least $10m too much. I can see this team as a 39-43 win team if they stand pat.
9. Los Angeles Clippers
Projected Lineup:
C: Alexandre Sarr
PF: Isaiah Jackson
SF: Ron Holland
SG: Cameron Carr
PG: Donovan Mitchell
6th man: Darius Garland
This is a team I've thought to have been forced to participate in the playoffs for part of the last three seasons. They've been in a desperate need of a rebuild in my opinion, but what probably doesn't help this much needed resolve is the other GMs likely offering unenticing garbage in return for a player like Ron Holland. To be candid though, maybe they don't exactly need a full rebuild at this point, but if they could find themselves in that #6-8 lotto spot they could grab something decent to support this roster. Either way they've got like +$90m coming off the books next season and they'll have plenty of money to play with come FA.
8. Minnesota Timberwolves
Projected Lineup:
C: Jaden Toombs
PF: Rasheed Wallace
SF: Franz Wagner
SG: D.J Wagner
PG: Cade Cunningham
6th man: Joson Sannon
Years after suffering the likes of Jalen Suggs, Cade Cunningham despite any reasonable upholds is probably the most legit PG they've had in the past decade. I've never seen him as a PG capable of leading a team to a ship and his contract is far too expensive, but I appreciate the move for this season. But these contracts are trouble, someone will need to be dumped next season it by process of elimination it might be D.J Wagner if no one in the league feels like being generous. Should be a fun season for them nonetheless, but like many of the non-contender teams what seperates them is the lack of skilled bigs on the roster. I just do hope Rasheed Wallace is allowed more than 20mpg.
7. Denver Nuggets
Projected Lineup:
C: Shawn Bradley
PF: Manute Bol
SF: Tajh Ariza
SG: Jalen Green
PG: Earl Boykins
6th man: Flory Bundiga, Jason Richardson
Got to be a pain to the Hornets to see their long term project Earl Boykins shine like he has. It's also got to be a pain to the Pistons to see Jalen Green walk and score like he does (not that I think it'll hold up without hurting the team). This team is in a good spot for the future, but will still be held back by the lack of rebounding. Yes, +57rpg is good but it the allowing 60rpg that hurts. This team looks set in the long term, but what they'll need to find are bigs that can provide more points on the put backs. The C inside grades across the board isn't a luxury in this leag unfortuneatly.
6. Dallas Mavericks
Projected Lineup:
C: Khaman Maluach
PF: Zion williamson
SF: Drake Powell?
SG: Caleb Love?
PG: Scoot Henderson
6th man: Jarrett Allen, Dash Daniels, Caleb Foster
I'm certain it was advertised as such, but the 2029 draft looks to be going down as one of the weakest of all time. Or tied with the 2028 class. Paul Oyasuri seems to be the only possible superstar in the making with the rest being designated to key role players. The former #1 overall Eddie Jones experiment ended for the Mavs this offseason as they shipped him to Atlanta along with a 2032 1st for Khaman Maluach and Dash Daniels. Eddie Jones is by no means a lost cause but as the seasons go by he seems more and more like your run of the mill SG. I don't know if I really like the move, but Maluach is a strong young defender of the post and cheaper than the likes of th Pistons Felix Okpara who they moved several years back. I don't have much confidence in their scoring, but I wonder if its a matter of toying with the DC, it'd be intersting to see what a balanced or even inside focus with Zion could play out. If there's one thing I really appreciate about the roster its all the money that come off the books in expiring money. Good see some major moves next off season.
5. Phoenix Suns
Projected Lineup:
C: Alexander Belov
PF: Baba Oladotun
SF: Jeremiah Profit
SG: Kendall Gill
PG: Ja Morant
6th man: Stephen Castle, Taylor Hendricks
It's tough seeing the name Taylor Hendricks after the game last night. Yuck. Back to our reality, the Suns have been on a warpath in an attempt to reestablish them selves as Western Conference suitors. The two big additions is the former Timberwolves center Alexandre Belov and the surprising hardware lackluster PG Ja Morant. Also can't ignore last season's addition in Baba Oladotun whose scoring ability I'm still waiting to fully develop. My biggest concern however to the overall scoring production they'll find. Don't get me wrong 112 ppg in the preseason great, but to only have 32 year old Ja Morant score more than 17ppg is a little concerning. Kendall Gill and Jeremiah Profit are great profits, but maybe it'd be nice if they could bring in an expiring like Shaedon Sharpe to work as a gap year and provide Ja Morant more support.
4. Portland Trailblazers
Projected Lineup:
C: Shaquille O'Neal
PF: Paolo Banchero
SF: Jayson Tatum
SG: Kobe Bufkin
PG: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
6th man: Kevon Looney, Michael Finely
A bit ambitious of me, having a team that missed the playoffs last season with essentially the same roster. I might be putting a bit too much of stock into the TC of Shaq, but I kind of view the 2030 team like the 2029 Atlanta Hawks. As in it just never really came together, with a few small injuries to key players of Shai and Kobe Bufkin, along with 13 games missed by Jayson Tatum. Who knows if they'll be efficient enough or strong enough defensively to reach contender status, but they can rebound and have the wings a point guard that can all pu up 20+. The depth I'd call solid as well, definetly on the frontcourt and the slightly dissappointing prospect Michael Finely.
3. Vancouver Grizzlies
Projected Lineup:
C: Ivica Zubac
PF: Jalen Duren
SF: Mackenzie Mgbako
SG: Monte Leyva
PG: Trey Alexander
6th man: Xavier Booker
I didn't notice that Trey Alexander had moved in. But I'm not sure if it really changes my opinion of where I go them. What recent retiree player Jalen Brunson brought to the table was effiecient quantity scoring. He was never by any other definition elite in any other statistical category at his postion. Now Trey Alexander can put up +23 a night and has shown he can create steals and assists at a higher rate than Brunson ever did, but the looks like he shoots about 100 points less efficient. I can't pull up team pages or stats from last season, but I'm just wagering the Grizzlies shot above at least .450 last season and if that drops signifigantly, I don't thine Monte Leyva will be enough to carry the scoring alone.
2. Utah Jazz
Projected Lineup:
C: Victor Wembamyama
PF: Rick "McNasty" Mahorn
SF: Nguyen Tran
SG: Luka Doncic
PG: Egor Demin
6th man: William J. Hudson
I mentioned it at the top of the article, but if they can find a way to land Evan Mobley at the trade deadline or hell maybe go try to snag Isaiah Jackson from the Clippers if at all possible, they'll be more favorable in the post season. Of course missing a 4 isn't exactly the only issue with this roster. It's the overall depth that honestly extends nowhere outside maybe a PG Cole Anthony. There are several teams across the league with players with contracts below $10m expiring that'll provide several minutes. Like Ousmane N'Diaye on the Spurs or maybe a Cam Scott (Lakers) or Tru Washington (Heat). None of those types of names could replace a starter, but they'd likely be better than the Derrick White's, and Reggie Smith's of the world.
1. Sacramento Kings
Projected Lineup:
C: Nic Claxton
PF: Aiden Sherell
SF: Keegan Murray
SG: Brandon Podziemski
PG: De'Aaron Fox
6th man: Garway Dual, Kanaan Carlyle, Desi Barmore
As it stands the Kings should be the far and away favorites of the west. I don't believe the gap is a seperation of talents across the board rather than the key missing position on each of the Jazz, Kings, and Grizzlies rosters. It's easier to overcome "missing" talent at the SG position when you've got one of the top 2 greatest PGs of all time in De'Aaron Fox still paired with the aging but still great defensive star Nic Claxton. Other spots on the roster are filled with same solid contributors in Keegan Murray, Aiden Sherell, and Desi Barmore. There also exists a good mix of solid and replaceable within the team quality of players that won't doom the rotation if one were to go down for an extended period of time. If this were to be a league power rankings I'd likely slot them behind the 76ers and Magic. Sort of meaning they probably have the 3rd highest odds as it currently stands to take back the crown. If they can, I would like to see them make some sort of move for a more legitimate scoring option at SG, because if the Grizzlies and Jazz can find a way to fill their gaps, come postseason it might be more of a toss up.
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