My NBA Team Love/Hate List

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I know it’s hard to believe, but the wait is almost over. The NBA season is almost here. The preseason has already started, but the regular season kicks off on October 22nd, and I can’t explain how excited I am for this season. I am super excited for the 2019-2020 season because I, along with many other fans, believe this will be the most exciting season the NBA has seen in years. The NBA has parity for the first time since the Big Four teamed up in Boston in 2008. Before the season officially begins I want to give you a preview of what to expect this season. To start off, here is a list of a few teams I like, and a few teams I don’t like.

NBA Team Love/Hate List

Love:

1. Los Angeles Clippers

The Clippers are undeniably the best team in the NBA. Their acquisitions of Kawhi Leonard and Paul George this offseason catapulted them to the forefront of the NBA. Both Kawhi and PG are elite shot creators and having guys who can create their own shot gives you a huge advantage in the playoffs because it keeps your offense from being stagnant. The Clippers also have a lot of depth. Here is the Clippers’ roster:

Kawhi Leonard

Paul George

Lou Williams

Patrick Beverly

Ivica Zubac

Montrezl Harrell

Landry Shamet

Maurice Harkless

JaMychal Green

Jerome Robinson

Sindarius Thornwell

Johnathan Motley

Patrick Patterson

Rodney McGruder

Obviously, this isn’t the final roster and some guys may not make the team, but this is an insane squad. The Clippers have nine guys who can play provide valuable minutes in a playoff game. That’s a lot especially considering the Bucks made it to the Eastern Conference Finals last season with a seven-man rotation. This team has two things that are key to playoff success in the modern NBA; shooting and guys who can create their own shot. If only they had more of an offensive threat at point guard. The Clipper’s best quality is their defense. They have a plethora of good defenders including Kawhi, Paul George, Patrick Beverly, Maurice Harkless, Montrezl Harrell (solid defender), and JaMychal Green. Load management for Kawhi and PG will probably hurt the Clippers' seeding, but they are still the best team in the league.

2. Milwaukee Bucks

I really like the offseason moves the Bucks made by signing Kyle Korver, Wesley Matthews, and Robin Lopez. Korver and Matthews will improve their shooting and depth. Like I said earlier, the Bucks could only play seven guys in the playoffs last year. With these signings, their offense becomes more lethal and they become a deeper roster. Losing Brogdon is a bummer, but paying him $20 million to look lost on offense in the playoffs is not worth it. I would’ve kept Brogdon only if the Bucks could get rid of Eric Bledsoe, who was absolute garbage in the playoffs last year. Obviously Giannis is this team’s best player and Is the primary reason the Bucks are on my love list. If he improved his shooting this offseason, may God help us all because the Bucks will wipe the floor with everyone. Mike Budenholzer is the biggest problem this team has. His offense was a big poo-poo platter last year and got exposed by Kawhi Leonard. Post up Giannis and use him in pick and rolls and you might just win a title.

3. Utah Jazz

Like the Clippers, the Jazz got exponentially better this offseason. They added Mike Conley and Bojan Bogdanovic to a team that won 50 games last year in a tough western conference. Donovan Mitchell will be glad to hear that he no longer must carry the scoring load for the Jazz. Conley is a great two way point guard and Bogdanovic just came off a season in which he averaged 18 ppg. The Jazz still have Rudy Gobert who is one of the best defenders in the NBA and will give them an advantage against teams who don’t have a good rim protector like the Warriors and Celtics. Emmanuel Mudiay is an underrated pick-up and gives the Jazz a strong group of point guards. Mudiay averaged 14.8 points and 3.9 assists last year for the Knicks and showed the potential to be a solid starting point guard.

Hate:

1. Philadelphia 76ers

I already wrote a piece on why the 76ers are overrated, which you can read here: https://www.thewiresports.com/post/the-issue-with-the-philadelphia-76ers

2. Boston Celtics

The Celtics’ roster is not a championship caliber roster, at least not yet. They can become one of the best teams in the league with a big trade at the deadline, but for now they’re stuck with a roster that I just don’t like. Kemba Walker is a better fit with this young team than Kyrie Irving, and could be more successful than Irving was last year if he plays like an above average facilitator. I must say I like how the Celtics replaced Terry Rozier with a much cheeper player in Carson Edwards. Edwards is a much better shooter than Rozier and will be one of the steals of the 2019 draft if he improves his playmaking. My main issue with the Celtics is their crowded SF group. They have Gordon Hayward, Jayson Tatum, and Jaylen Brown. It’s going to be extremely difficult to give each of these guys enough touches. I think the Celtics need to sell high on Hayward and trade him for a rim protector and/or shooters. That would fill the void on defense that Al Horford left and give the Celtics shooters which will help spread the floor. The Celtics really need to find a guy who can protect the rim (Tacko Fall is too much of a liability on offense) because Enes Kanter is basically swiss cheese on defense.

3. Toronto Raptors

Sadly, the Raptors are in the same place they were before they traded for Kawhi Leonard. They’re a middle of the pack team with unrealistic goals of competing for a title. They’re still a good team, but I don’t know if Pascal Siakam is ready to take that next step to become an all-star caliber player. If Siakam can step up and carry the scoring load, then the Raptors have a chance to contend. However, I don’t see it happening without Kawhi on the floor. Also keep in mind that Kyle Lowry is aging and Danny Green, one of their best shooters, left in free agency. I think the Raptors are a top 5 seed, but they’re a pretender not a contender this season.

These are three teams I like and dislike going into the 2019-2020 NBA season. I hope you enjoyed, and be on the lookout for my list of teams you might be sleeping on!