Central Division Preview

1. Chicago: First place in this division is a toss-up between the Bulls and the Pistons. But having Deng, Hinrich, Nocioni and Gordon who continue to improve every year, I have to give this team a slight edge in winning the Central Division crown. And if Tyrus Thomas is willing to learn, he could be a force in the L. But Paxson overpaid for Ben Wallace. You have to respect his defense, but the man is not getting any younger, and you have to wonder if he fits in with these young guys. The Bulls are good, Luol Deng is on the verge of stardom, but they are missing one thing to be the best team in the East: Kobe.

2. Detroit Pistons: All summer long people were talking on how Dallas was beat by Golden State. I thought Cleveland beating Detroit was equally as bad. I hope these guys had some sleepless nights this off-season, and that they will return with a chip on their shoulder that wasn’t there last season. I missed certain poise when I watched the Pistons-Cavaliers series. One of the best defensive teams looked as if they were struck by lightning, when LeBron lit them up by scoring 25 points in a row, and winning Game 5 of the ECF series, one win separated of getting to the Finals. The Pistons have all the goods to go very deep into the playoffs, once again. Rodney Stuckey was a good pick in the draft (although he won’t play ‘til December because he broke his hand), Rasheed worked hard and is in excellent shape, and even though they won’t have Webber, the rest is back once again. And when Rip Hamilton gets healthy, they’re still one of the top teams in the East, now they just need to go out there and do it.

3. Cleveland Cavaliers: Wild guess here. Hell, the Bucks have a better team than the Cavs. But then again, there’s no LeBron in Milwaukee. And that’s why I ranked the Cleveland Cavaliers third. But besides LeBron James, this team basically sucks. There isn’t a single player in the NBA that is more frustrating to watch than Drew Gooden. Can he be the Boozer replacement and put up 20 and 10 every night, or will he forever be the underachieving power forward who will never show what he really can do? And then you have ‘Z’. Sleepwalker Ilgauskas is still around, at least that’s something. But there’s no true point guard, no real shooting guard, and no…. I could go on for a while. The only thing Larry Hughes is being consistent in, is being inconsistent. And that basically sums up the ’08 season in Cleveland.

4. Milwaukee Bucks: The Bucks spent some serious bucks to keep Mo Williams on their roster. They probably felt the “heat”, and did everything they could to keep Mo’ Money. Williams, combined with Michael Redd, are a backcourt duo who might average 40 points a night between them. They also prevented Charlie Bell from going to Miami, and Charlie V, when healthy, can be more than a decent player. Not sure if Bogut can get better, but just in case they brought in another big man: Yi. The young man from China can score, can play, but can be stopped. Bu the Chinese Government. Bastards. For patriotic reasons I just hope Dan Gadzuric finally will get some regular minutes again. I like it that they brought Desmond Mason back, but I really haven’t got a clue what this team will do this season.

5. Indiana Pacers: Is Jermaine O’Neal still there at the end of the season? Will Bird let him fly away to the Nets? New coach Jim O’Brien won’t have a relaxed season where he can sit back and let his players play. This bunch will be very unpredictable. Danny Granger is one of the few bright spots on the roster, but this year will be one who won’t get into the history books of Pacer fans. At least Reggie Miller isn’t playing for the Celtics, so that’s a positive.