The “Buzz”: Basketball Roundtable is back. We are ready for the NBA Stretch Drive and as always we pose several basketball related questions to our panel of life-long NBA fans for their candid opinions. We invite anyone to participate by answering the same questions in the “Comments” section at the bottom of this article. In this edition, our panel consists of our LWOS basketball experts Tracy Price (@tpriceLWOS), Jeff Hall (@lwosJeff), and Ben Kerr (@lastwordBKerr).
1) The NBA world is abuzz with rumors that Phil Jackson will become president of the New York Knicks. Can the Zen Master of coaching make a successful transition to the front office ala Pat Rielly? Can he do it in New York with James Dolan?
Tracy: As a huge Los Angeles Lakers fan, it pains me greatly to see Phil Jackson become president of the New York Knicks. That said, I think that this is a brilliant move on New York’s part, and may be what they need to finally put an elite team together. With Jackson running things, I think that New York will definitely become a much more desired destination among high-profile free agents this year and in years to come, assuming that James Dolan steps back and actually let Jackson call the shots.
Jeff: One would have to think that when Phil Jackson signed this deal, that he got full control of all moves. I am sure he will have to run a couple decisions past James Dolan, but my guess is that Phil Jackson will have the ability to do whatever he wants to make this team better.
And I think he can. New York City is the mecca of basketball, and with Phil Jackson bringing basketball credibility back to the Knicks, they should have no problem luring some big names. He knows how to deal with star talent, and has a track record of winning in the NBA. He may not be able to do it overnight, but you have to remember that we are just one year removed from this team being the number two seed in the East. It may not take much to bring this team back to respectability.
Ben: Phil Jackson is obviously one of the smartest minds in the game. There is no doubt about that. I do believe that the transition from the front office to coaching is one that can be made and made effectively, just look at Pat Rielly. However, the big problem here is Dolan. I just feel that this is an owner who is a little too hands on, and I’m not sure Phil Jackson will get the power he needs to make them in to a title contender. Can he get them back to the playoffs? Sure. But true contention is tough. His name value in attracting free agents should help though.
2) The Brooklyn Nets and Chicago Bulls seem to be playing great basketball at the right time of the year. The same can’t be said for Indiana and Miami over the last week. Has anything changed in the Eastern Conference Playoff picture as a result?
Tracy: While Miami and Indiana are definitely not playing at the level they both were early in the season, I fully expect them to get back on track before the playoffs, and don’t believe that either one of these teams will be upset in a 7-game series by the Brooklyn Nets or Chicago Bulls, before they eventually end up playing each other in the Eastern Conference Finals.
Jeff: Nothing has changed in terms of playoff seeding as Miami and Indiana will still finish at the top. Every team has a losing streak at some point in the season, and this is just that time for the Heat and the Pacers. In a seven game series Chicago can’t score enough, Brooklyn is too old, and the Raptors/Wizards are too inexperienced to defeat either of the top two seeds. However, it won’t be cake walk to the Eastern Finals.
Ben: I can’t see Brooklyn pulling the upset, however, the Bulls are the scary team to me. With that defence they can really put a scare into a team. They need just a little more scoring though. If Derrick Rose comes back, I think they could pull one upset. Even then, I can’t see them beating both teams though. Don’t get me wrong, I would still favour Indiana or Miami over the Bulls, I just don’t think the long odds from earlier in the year have shrunk a little.
3) Here is the Philadelphia 76ers remaining schedule (Sixers Schedule) Do they win a game before the end of the season? If so, predict where.
Tracy: It’s amazing that the Philadelphia 76ers can drop 21 consecutive games and still not own the NBA’s worst record. The most winnable games remaining on their schedule come against the Detroit Pistons, who they play once, and the Boston Celtics, who they play twice. Unfortunately, I am not convinced that they will win another game this season. Sixer fans do have something to look forward to however, with rumors running rampant that 2013 1st round draft pick Nerlens Noel plans to play his first NBA game on April 4.
Jeff: Yes, they will win at some point. Beno Uzoh got a triple double at the end of the season in a Raptors win a few seasons ago, so there will very likely be a game where the Sixers NBDL players, will be playing another team’s NBDL players and the Sixers will come out on top. They should win at home on April 14 against the Boston Celtics.
Ben: The team shows few, if any signs of life and that has some believing they may not be able to win another game this year. 21 straight losses is pretty unbelievable. The law of averages says that they have to win a game sometime. Even a tanking special can’t be this bad, can they? I think they get it done, but picking where is tough. Put me down for them beating Detroit on March 29th at home though as the Pistons are really struggling too right now.
4) With their season essentially done, the Lakers have officially announced that injured stars Kobe Bryant and Steve Nash will not play again this year. What does this team need to do in the summer to avoid another disaster of a season next year?
Tracy: I’m not sure that anything good has or will come of this injury-plagued season for the Lakers, other than guaranteed lottery draft pick they will get. The good news, however, is that they only have three players under contract next season (Kobe Bryant, Steve Nash, Robert Sacre) and will have plenty of cap room to work with during the offseason. Along with drafting a prospect such as Andrew Wiggins, Jabari Parker, or Joel Embiid, they could also target a free agent point guard such as Eric Bledsoe or Kyle Lowry.
Jeff: Right now the Lakers have only three contracts on the books for next season – Kobe Bryant, Steve Nash & Robert Sacre. Chances are they are going to have a Top five pick in the NBA draft, and they should use it on Dante Exum to solidify their point guard situation for the next decade. They probably won’t be able to lureLebron, so my guess would be to sign Chris Bosh to replace Paul Gasol and then maybe go after a guy like Luol Deng to fill the small forward spot. Exum, Bryant, Deng, Bosh & Sacre is not terrible and they can fill out the rest of their roster much like the Miami Heat with one year deals. Lastly, I would find a new coach as the D’Antoni era did not go well in Lakerland.
However, if I was running this team, I would tank one more season. They could head into the 2015 offseason with another top five pick, Nash’s contract off the books and Kevin Love being a free agent. Just not sure if Kobe would want to go through one more bad season…
Ben: This team has to blow it up and rebuild. Sadly I don’t think that is going to happen. Once again they will go all in to try and get one more championship with Kobe. I just don’t think it will happen though. At this point in his career, if he truly wanted another title, Kobe needs to be willing to accept the role of being a secondary star instead of the bright light, and I’m not sure he knows how to do that.
5) Okay, Bracket time…. Give me your final four and who will win the title.
Tracy: I have Arizona, Louisville, Michigan State, and Kansas in my final four, with Kansas eventually defeating Arizona in the National Championship game.
Jeff: I haven’t done my research yet, so these picks are subject to change by Thursday. My Final Four is Michigan State, Florida, Louisville, Arizona. Michigan State to win it all!
Ben: Give me Florida, Villanova, Michigan, and Arizona. And I’ll take Villanova to win it all. Wide open this year.
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