BDL’s 2014-15 NBA Season Previews: All 30 team previews, collected in one spot
It’s been 136 days since the San Antonio Spurs put the finishing touches on their five-game demolition of the Miami Heat to win the 2013-14 NBA championship. Since then, we’ve seen a new decision that knocked over the dominoes that shifted the balance of power in the Eastern Conference, a foot fracture that could tilt the brutal West, a long overdue change in L.A., and more movement — of players, coaches, front-office staffers and everything else — than you can shake a stick at … except in San Antonio, of course, where the Spurs brought back their entire O’Brien-winning roster in pursuit of the repeat title that’s thus far eluded them.
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It’s been a long summer and early fall, and our seemingly interminable wait is now over. The 2014-15 NBA season tips off tonight, with looming monster/2014 FIBA World Cup star Anthony Davis and the New Orleans Pelicans hosting the Orlando Magic, the Spurs (and their fans) getting their rings before taking on the retooled Dallas Mavericks, and Dwight Howard leading the Houston Rockets back to Hollywood to square off with the once-again-healthy Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers. It ought to be a pretty fun night.
We’ve spent the last month preparing for tonight, putting together in-depth looks at all 30 NBA teams — how we left them last season, what they did on their summer vacations, their big moves, big questions and all the storylines and subplots to keep an eye on this coming season. They’re all collected here, in case you missed any, would like to take another look, or just want to study up before the opening buzzer. You can also find our predictions for the season ahead — our picks for the 2014-15 champion, who’ll win each major individual award and more — right here.
The links below point to each team’s season preview, along with predicted records and playoff seeding.* Dig in, enjoy, and feel free to tell us where you think we’ve gone wrong — today, tomorrow, all season long and always — on Twitter, Facebook and Tumblr.
* NOTE: A few of the Western Conference records listed below differ from those that appear in the team-by-team previews, many of which were published before Kevin Durant suffered the Jones fracture that will keep him out for the first six or so weeks of the season. That, as you might expect, led us to juggle a few things.
Now, let’s get to it:
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Atlantic Division
1. Toronto Raptors — 50-32
2. Brooklyn Nets — 38-44
3. New York Knicks — 37-45
4. Boston Celtics — 28-54
5. Philadelphia 76ers — 15-67
Central Division
1. Cleveland Cavaliers — 60-22
2. Chicago Bulls — 57-25
3. Detroit Pistons — 32-50
4. Indiana Pacers — 28-54
5. Milwaukee Bucks — 20-62
Southeast Division
1. Washington Wizards — 48-34
2. Charlotte Hornets — 46-36
3. Miami Heat — 43-39
4. Atlanta Hawks — 41-41
5. Orlando Magic — 25-57
Which would mean, playoffs-wise …
1. Cleveland
2. Chicago
3. Toronto
4. Washington
5. Charlotte
6. Miami
7. Atlanta
8. Brooklyn
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Northwest Division
1.** Oklahoma City Thunder — 55-27
2.** Portland Trail Blazers — 55-27
4. Denver Nuggets — 36-46
4. Utah Jazz — 24-58
5. Minnesota Timberwolves — 20-62
Pacific Division
1. Los Angeles Clippers — 59-23
2. Golden State Warriors — 58-24
3. Phoenix Suns — 47-35
4. Sacramento Kings — 35-47
5. Los Angeles Lakers — 27-55
Southwest Division
1. San Antonio Spurs — 57-25
2.** Dallas Mavericks — 50-32
3.** Houston Rockets — 50-32
4. Memphis Grizzlies — 45-37
5. New Orleans Pelicans — 44-38
Which would mean, playoffs-wise …
1. L.A. Clippers
2. Golden State
3. San Antonio
4. Oklahoma City/Portland**
5. Portland/Oklahoma City**
6. Dallas/Houston**
7. Houston/Dallas**
8. Phoenix
** depending on tiebreakers
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