2007-2008 NBA Blog Previews: Southwest Division

by Atma Brother ONE on Oct 12, 2007 3:25 PM PDT in NBA

The 2007-2008 NBA Season is quickly approaching and the Southwest Division is up next for the 2nd annual NBA Blog Previews.

The only Southwest flights that matter land in OAK, SFO, or SJC.

I don't think too many people will argue with me that the Southwest Division is the best division is the NBA. It's home to the Texas 3-Step and they've sent a representative to the NBA Finals for three straight years. Will they be able to go for the 4peat? Let's look at the candidates:

Dallas Mavericks- As long as they don't have to play 20,000 on 5 again, I don't see why not.
San Antonio Spurs- Unfortunately for anyone with a pulse and the league's TV ratings, they've got a great shot.
Houston Rockets- Unless they can figure a way to somehow earn a playoff BYE in the first round of the playoffs, TMac, Yao, and the rest of these guys are going BYE BYE.
New Orleans Hornets- Nice, fun team to watch, but no.
Memphis Grizzlies- Um, hell to the no.

I'd say the Southwest Division has a 2/3 chance of going for the 4peat. The West is going to be between the Mavs, Spurs, and Suns.

Check out these previews of the Southwest Division by these fine bloggers. They know their teams like we know how much the Dubs OWN the Mavs:

San Antonio Spurs
Spur of the Moment
Pounding the Rock

New Orleans
Hornets 24/7
The New Orleans Hornets Fan

Memphis
Shades of Blue

Houston
HoopsBlogging

Dallas
Showboating

Archives
CelticsBlog NBA Page

Shout out to Jeff Clark of the mighty CelticsBlog for organizing the festivities.

This is how I see the Southwest Division going down:

Dallas Mavericks- We OWN these guys (just in case you weren't paying attention), but I'd rather see them win this division and rep the West in the NBA Finals than the San Antonio Snores any day.
San Antonio Spurs- Please wake me when this nightmare is over. I can't stand watching their flopping.
Houston Rockets- Adelman will have them playing a much more entertaining brand of basketball, but they still probably won't be able to win a playoff series.
New Orleans Hornets- After George Shinn and crew pillaged these good people of $14.5 million dollars for a practice facility, I hope they at least get to watch a winning ballclub. Seriously, do the Hornets' ownership have any class at all?
Memphis Grizzlies- The good news for all two Grizz fans out there is that if Pau Gasol keeps growing out his beard, the Spanish Fly can be their mascot too. That wasn't a joke. That's really all the good news that there is for this ballclub.

What's your prediction for the Southwest Division?

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Comments

werd?

Where's the lack of respect for Memphis come from? They went to the playoffs 3 straight years in a row before last year. I'm not writing them off. They'll be competition this year.

http://westcoastbiased.blogspot.com

by coma @ Golden State Of Mind on Oct 12, 2007 4:45 PM PDT reply actions

is there a rule

that prevents an entire division from making the playoffs? =P

Questions? Complaints?

(AIM: JetForze; email: Jon.d.ma@gmail.com)

by OptionZero @ Golden State Of Mind on Oct 12, 2007 9:02 PM PDT reply actions

Glass-Half-Full moment...

The "stacked-ness" of the this division probably means the griz & hornets got harder sched than the dubs...

THIS IS OOOAKLAND!!!

by Tim N Chris Burger on Oct 13, 2007 11:23 AM PDT up reply actions

Atma logic

The Mavs will finish first because I like them better than San Antonio.
The Spurs will finish second because they're boring.

Ah, if only teams rose and fell based on how much we liked them! We could all will the Warriors to a championship, and Atma could use his powers to knock down those annoying Patriots, Red Sox, and Celtics a few notches...

Amazing how much talent there is in the Southwest division. I think the Spurs are by far the best-built for the playoffs, but all those teams have 50-win talent if things fall into place for them. Just for fun, I'll say:

Houston (55-27)
San Antonio (54-28)
Memphis (46-36)
New Orleans (42-40)
Dallas (41-41)

by Sleepy Freud on Oct 13, 2007 3:57 PM PDT reply actions

I agree

about you opinion on Atma Logic. Not to say that Zorgon Logic is much different....

Tony.psd = Da Man

http://adonalobsessed.blogspot.com/

by Zorgon on Oct 13, 2007 9:46 PM PDT up reply actions

Um no

Haha I think you're reading way too much into this. These aren't some extensive previews for each division. It's my attempt to hype the blogger previews while giving some entertainment value (well at least I'm entertained).

I still think that if the Mavs didn't face the Warriors last season they would've won it all. I think they could've and still can beat the Spurs in a first round series. I think they'll have a better regular season record than the Spurs this year too.

We'll see...

by Atma Brother ONE on Oct 13, 2007 9:49 PM PDT up reply actions

Wow!

You got balls my brotha!

If War brings peace Dubz wit' it den!

by gsdubz on Oct 16, 2007 10:08 PM PDT up reply actions

My Predictions....

1. Houston Rockets
Houston has gotten what they've searched for ever since they started the Yao-TMac experiment....A good Point Guard. Once "Stevie Franchise" can get back into the flow (and hopefully pass) this team will be very, very scary. Not to moention I belive they have a very good prospect (if Motumbo or Yao goes down) in Luis Scola.

2. San Antonio Spurs
Ah, the Spurs. They're out to prove something this season. They want to prove that they're a dynasty and can finally win 2 championships in a row. But, they won't finish first in the regular season standings, simply because. Manus bald spot will get bigger.

3. New Orleans Hornets
Does anyone remember that this team, before Peja went down, had a 10-3 record. For 3 or 4 of those games, they were missing David West. That shows you how strong this team can be when all together. If they can stay uninjured half the season, they should pull a very decent record, especially with rookies Adam Haluska and Julian Wright coming in. Hilton Armstrong is looking POB-esque out there, watch out for him. I'd love to see them go head-to-head.

4. Dallas Mavericks
They added Trenton Hassell, Eddie Jones and Brandon Bass. Who cares? I guess they want to shoot more...or something. This team is still totally reliant on Dirk, and they need to get in some supplemntary stars (not more role players) to stay competetive. I mean, Dirk goes down, and then what? Season's over.

5. Memphis Grizzlies
They're good, just not there yet. They'll probobly make the playoffs, which is just insane.

Tony.psd = Da Man

http://adonalobsessed.blogspot.com/

by Zorgon on Oct 13, 2007 10:06 PM PDT reply actions