Central teams keep coming up short
The Central Division has produced the Eastern Conference champion in three of the past four years. But only one team, the 2003-04 Detroit Pistons, was able to come away with the trophy.
The latest victim was Cleveland, which was swept by the San Antonio Spurs last June after defeating Detroit in the conference finals. This year's opponent for the Western Conference could well come from this division again.
The Chicago Bulls are a year older and a year wiser, the Cavaliers will be eager to finish what they started and the Pistons hope a retooling of their roster will allow them to remain among the conference's elite teams.
Standing pat
A season after knocking off the Pistons to reach their first NBA Finals, the Cavaliers did nothing by way of off-season moves to improve themselves. They also had no draft picks.
So when the Cavs report to training camp, it will be the same team. That is, of course, if they can get the contract situations resolved with restricted free agents Sasha Pavlovic and Anderson Varejao. Both played key roles in the team getting to the Finals.
But Cavs star LeBron James simply didn't have enough help to prevent a sweep by San Antonio once they got there. In addition to needing some outside scoring, the Cavs need bench firepower.
Daniel Gibson stepped his game up during the playoffs when Larry Hughes was injured. Shannon Brown, their first-round draft pick a year ago, must do the same this season. And the Cavs, who were unable to work out a trade for Mike Bibby over the summer, are still in the market for help at point guard.
A youth movement
By no stretch of the imagination are All-Star guards Chauncey Billups (age 31) and Richard Hamilton (29) old. But the Pistons realized the need to upgrade their depth in the backcourt. So they used the draft to pick up not one, not two, but three guards. First they nabbed Rodney Stuckey, a quicker version of Billups. Then, they grabbed Arron Afflalo with their second first-round pick before taking Sammy Mejia in the second round.
Not done there, the Pistons signed free agent Jarvis Hayes. So with Lindsey Hunter and Flip Murray still present, the fight for playing time will be intense.
Coach Flip Saunders, who has yet to lead Detroit back to the Finals, has vowed to use his younger players more, something he failed to do in each of the last two playoffs. So look for the likes of Jason Maxiell and Amir Johnson to see the court more often.
Depth will have to be a key if the Pistons are going to keep up with younger teams like Chicago.
Bulls ready for next step
Chicago showed last year that it has a deep and talented roster. What held the Bulls back was playoff experience, which showed in their second-round matchup with Detroit.
But you can only keep a good team down for so long. Ben Gordon and Luol Deng are on the brink of becoming All-Stars for years to come. Gordon, who struggled against Detroit, is still a deadly shooter from the outside. And Deng's improved outside game has made him a complete player.
Point guard Kirk Hinrich makes them a threesome difficult to contain. Look for second-year guard Thabo Sefolosha to see increased time.
With veteran Ben Wallace anchoring the middle, the Bulls went out and got veteran Joe Smith to replace P.J. Brown. That will allow them to bring in youthful energy off the bench in second-year forward Tyrus Thomas and rookie Joakim Noah. The Bulls also added rookie seven-footer Aaron Gray.
If the Bulls continue the strides they've made the last two years, this could be the season they not only win a division title, but a conference crown could also be in their immediate future.
East meets Midwest
Milwaukee wasn't the first place Chinese sensation Yi Jianlian had in mind when he decided to make the jump to the NBA. It fact, it was nowhere on his wish list of cities to play in.
That didn't stop the Bucks from using their No. 6 overall pick to grab the versatile 6-11 player. The Bucks can't wait to see how Yi stacks up alongside center Andrew Bogut. If he can develop into a player difficult to guard, it's going to make it hard for teams to contain their backcourt of Michael Redd and Mo Williams.
In addition to convincing Yi to sign with the Bucks, Milwaukee was able to retain free agents Williams and Charlie Bell, while also signing Desmond Mason -- who will begin his second stint with the Bucks -- and Royal Ivey.
Milwaukee's biggest issue has been staying healthy. Last year, injuries to Redd, Williams and Charlie Villanueva, who the Bucks traded for before last season, prevented them from ever developing any consistency.
Also in the mix: Coach Larry Krystkowiak will begin his first full season as head coach.
Going nowhere
Jermaine O'Neal doesn't want to be there. And can't you blame him. The Indiana Pacers are clearly in rebuilding mode, but the problem O'Neal has is that they have nothing to rebuild with right now.
Take away the Pacers only All-Star in O'Neal and there's a big drop-off. Danny Granger had a solid second season last year. The oft-injured Jamaal Tinsley is an OK point guard. Troy Murphy and Mike Dunleavy were no better in Indiana than they were at Golden State. In fact, the Warriors made the playoffs after getting rid of them. The Pacers did not.
Last year's rookie, Shawne Williams, of Hamilton High School and the University of Memphis, rarely got off the bench.
The Pacers hired former Boston and Philadelphia coach Jim O'Brien to help clean up this mess. If the Pacers truly want to rebuild, they are going to have to do what Minnesota and Philadelphia eventually did: trade away their franchise player for as many players and/or draft picks, as they can get. Because this team is going nowhere right now.
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