Post by bowtothebill23 on Dec 19, 2013 22:20:23 GMT -6
Welcome to the 1991-1992 Sim League version of Contenders vs Pretenders. This is yours truly, BowToTheBill23. Being done with exams and being off for 17 days, there will be a few days (at least) where I'll be bored and have nothing to do, so that means I'll write a couple of sim league articles. If you enjoy reading about the sim league and can stand my writing, you're welcome. If you hate me, well sorry, don't read it. So in this article, I'll look at some of the top teams in the playoffs and tell you whether they are contenders or pretenders. My definition for a contender is a team that not only has a legitimate shot at making a Finals run, but also is underrated and possibly being overlooked. My definition for a pretender is a team near the top of the standings who is considered a contender by some, who, in my opinion, does not have a legitimate chance at a title run. It does no good for me to sit here and tell you the Hawks are contenders, while my Warriors are pretenders. We all know that already. We'll go conference by conference looking at each. So let's start
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Obvious contender: Atlanta Hawks. Best record, defending champion, nothing more needed to be said.
Obvious Pretenders: Whoever gets the 7-8 seed. Not gonna happen sorry. Whoever makes it won't even have a winning record and are looking square in the face at a first round matchup vs Hawks/Knicks.
Orlando Magic: Pretender- Here's the deal. To beat the Hawks, you gotta be able to do a couple things. First, a MUST, you have to rebound. The Hawks are the best rebounding team in the game. You can't give them second chances on offense. Then you have to be able to score. You're not going to be able to completely stop them on the offensive glass, and it's very hard to defend all their guys (the Hawks have 5 guys scoring at least 13 per game). You've gotta put up some points on them. And 3rd, you have to at least slow them down at a couple positions. The Magic just aren't a good matchup for any of the other top 6 teams. They can't rebound enough to keep up with the top 3 teams in the East, and lack the overall offensive to keep up with the Bucks. Glen Rice gives them a nice start and may be worth a game against a top Eastern team, but don't look for the Magic to make much noise.
Milwaukee Bucks: Contender- Quailman picks up right where he left off from last sim league, building a team that can score. But what makes this team a contender as opposed to the Magic are his bigs. Kevin Willis and Robert Parish are each great defenders down low and great rebounders. He could really bother the top 3 down low, slowing down the bigs and making for less easy buckets. And this team has the offensive firepower to keep up with anyone. Before Wilkins went out, the team was 34-23. While it's still unclear this team is talented enough to take down the Hawks, they may have done enough to push themselves past the Knicks, who eliminated them last year.
New Jersey Nets: Pretender- The Nets have really overachieved this year, taking a team with the talent of a 6 seed and propelling them to a top 4 seed. But this team has benefitted so far from a few circumstances: 1) playing in the East 2) playing in the Atlantic 3) Playing 4 more home games than away 4) winning close games. They play in the weaker conference and probably the weakest division. But credit to them, they took care of business going 17-5 in their division and 31-16 in their conference. But against the West where the teams are tougher (like the teams the Nets will face in the playoffs), the Nets are a mere 13-12. They're winning by only 3.4 points per game. They lack rebounding and scoring. They've been a nice regular season story, but could be 1-and-done in the postseason.
Indiana Pacers: Contender- To some, this is a given. But all we've been hearing about are the Knicks and Hawks and even a little about Nets. The Pacers, in my opinion, have the best shot out of anyone in this league of taking down the Hawks. They can rebound everywhere. They have scoring everywhere. They have some really nice defenders. And they took the Hawks to 7 last year with a less talented roster. I will go out on a limb and say the Pacers will represent the East in the Finals. This team is that good. Injuries/foul trouble are the only knocks against this team, but they are really talented at the top of their roster.
New York Knicks: Pretender- I gotta have one really bold, out there statement. So here it is. The Knicks have the surefire MVP in David Robinson. But I was trying to look at them compared to the Pacers and Hawks, and they are the Jr. of those two teams. They've got good rebounding, but not as much as those 2. They've got good scorers besides Robinson, but instead of having them in the 13-18 point range, they're in the 10-15 point range. Besides Robinson, they're not really stopping the Hawks at any other position. I put them on a similar level as the Bucks. I can see them maybe pushing one of those teams to 6, maybe 7 games. But it's hard to see them winning those series.
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Unlike the East, the West has no truly dominant team. But also unlike the East, there will be no gimme series. Even a 1 vs 8 matchup will be highly competitive. So in the West, we're just looking for overall talent and matching up with other teams as opposed to just 1.
Obvious Contenders: Dallas Mavericks, Los Angeles Lakers, Sacramento Kings- The Mavs are the defending Western Conference Champions and have been absolutely on fire since the trade deadline. Darth was great in the playoffs last year adjusting. The Kings have probably the MVP of the West in Karl Malone. They bolstered their already insane defense with Nate Mcmillan, and they were only 1 game from the Western Conference Finals last year. And ah, Balls is back. After taking a year off, the Lakers gathered the most talented team top to bottom in the West. And all is right with sim league again.
Obvious Pretenders: San Antonio Spurs, Golden State Warriors: The Spurs shocked everyone this year, coming out strong and likely securing a playoff birth. But this team will lack the talent overall to compete with the top teams in the West. It hurts to say this, but my Warriors have no shot at a playoff run this year. They don't have the defense to lock people down, nor do they have enough scoring threats to outscore teams like Lakers. Kemp could go crazy and maybe even win a first round series. But anything beyond that would be fantasizing.
Memphis Grizzlies: Contenders- Do I think there's any chance the Grizzlies win the West? No. But, they are being really overlooked IMO. I could even see them making the Western Conference Finals in certain scenarios. This team goes 7 deep. That's not much, but those 7 can all play 30 minutes a night without hurting the team. They are highly athletic and can score really well inside. Daugherty gives them the inside presence on offense, defense, and on the boards. Against a team with less depth, if players struggle staying on the court, the Grizzlies can turn the series into a rout.
Phoenix Suns: Pretenders- After a blistering start, Inner was making Quail look like a moron for calling him out on the podcast. But Quail was right and the Suns have come back down to earth. Make no mistake about it, Hakeem may be the best player overall in the game right now. But there's no one else worth a damn come playoff time. With the overall talent of teams like Lakers and Mavs, and with teams like Warriors and Kings who can slow down Hakeem, you've gotta have other options. The Suns have none. The other "scorers" on the Suns are scoring with terrible efficiency. And this team doesn't have the defense or rebounding elsewhere to make up for it. I'd be surprised if the Suns make it out of the first round.
Utah Jazz: Contenders- Like the Pacers, some might feel this is another given. But all we're listening to is those top 3 talk about the race for the 1 seed. This Jazz team can compete with all them. They have the best player in the game and reigning MVP in Michael Jordan. Over their last 17 games, they are 14-3. They outrebound their opponents. And even outside of Jordan, they have 3 other guys to score 13 a game. They added depth with Perkins and Barros. They are also an underrated defensive team, ranking 9th in defensive efficiency. They've got the best perimeter defender in Jordan (your 2 is not scoring on him). This team deserves to be right up there with the top 3 right now. They still have the talent to make a push and get Jordan a ring.
And that concludes our contenders vs pretenders column. If you enjoyed it, look out for columns on playoffs, draft, offseason soon. If you hated it, sorry for making you read so much. Comment on your pretenders/contenders. Agree or disagree? Peace out. #SLOE
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