2012-2013 preview: New York Knicks

Eastern Conference #5: New York Knicks (50-32)

Point Guard: Raymond Felton, Jason Kidd.
Shooting Guard: JR Smith, Ronnie Brewer, Iman Shumpert.
Small Forward: Carmelo Anthony, Steve Novak, James White.
Power Forward: Amar'e Stoudemire, Kurt Thomas.
Center: Tyson Chandler, Marcus Camby.

          I know, I know. It doesn't seem possible. The Melo-Amar'e duo was supposed to transform the Knicks into title contenders, but instead they struggled to consecutive first round playoff exits at the hands of Lebron, Dwayne, and the Miami Heat. Since Amar'e and Carmelo joined New York, the Knicks have gone 77-71. Not exactly what people expected or hoped for. Of course, injuries have plagued them since they joined forces and they've never been able to find a groove together. Adding Tyson Chandler to the mix messed up Amare's game, and the clashing egos of two of the NBA's leading scorers were hurting the team. Yes, they were both top-10 scorers the season before they moved to NY.

Yeah guys! That's right! I'm pretty freaking awesome.

          In short, nothing really happened they way they expected in New York. Why should that change now? Because they have a new identity. It may not seem like it at first, but this is a totally different team than they were two years ago.

2012-2013 preview: Philadelphia 76ers

Eastern Conference #6: Philadelphia 76ers (47-35)

Point Guard: Jrue Holiday, Royal Ivey.
Shooting Guard: Nick Young, Jason Richardson
Small Forward: Evan Turner, Thaddeus Young, Dorell Wright
Power Forward: Spencer Hawes, Lavoy Allen, Arnett Moultrie
Center: Andrew Bynum, Kwame Brown.

          Everyone knows (hopefully) that Dwight Howard wasn't the only All-Star who switched teams when the Lakers traded for him. The Sixers sent Iguodala to Denver and got Bynum in return, which sets Bynum up to finally become a number one option on his team as long as he can stay healthy. He's 24 years old and just finished his first full healthy season while making the All-Star team and is the second best center in the league behind Howard. The question for the Sixers will be if having a dynamic main player will have any effect on how they play. They lost Iguodala in the trade and Lou Williams to the Hawks after not resigning him even though he led the team in scoring with 15 PPG while playing only 26 minutes a game. They added Nick Young, who's basically the same player as Williams (nearly identical stats) but plays on the wings more.

          Adding Bynum will also take a lot of the pressure off Hawes and Allen to play like solid starters even if they aren't. Hawes is expected to play at Power Forward alongside Bynum, and while Hawes isn't that great of a player, he did average a 10-7 with 49% shooting in 25 minutes. Bynum is also used to playing with another 7-footer, so this should hopefully work out well for both of them. Bynum will be able to take on a bigger scoring role, which he will likely embrace, while not having to be the sole big man on the court, and Hawes, who has openly stated he would play better alongside another big man at Center, will be able to play in the position he's the most comfortable in. They've also lost Elton Brand though, which would normally be a problem but Bynum seems like he could make up for Brand's production and then some.

2012-2013 preview: Milwaukee Bucks

Eastern Conference #7: Milwaukee Bucks (42-40).

Point Guard: Brandon Jennings, Beno Udrih.
Shooting Guard: Monta Ellis, Doron Lamb
Small Forward: Mike Dunleavy, Luc Richard Mbah a Moute
Power Forward: Ersan Ilyasova, Drew Gooden, John Henson.
Center: Samuel Dalembert, Ekpe Udoh, Larry Sanders, Joel Pryzbilla.


          This is a risk I'm taking here. The Bucks finished 31-35 last season, and got rid of Andrew Bogut, Carlos Delfino, and Stephen Jackson while adding Monta Ellis, Samuel Dalembert, and a pair of rookies in John Henson and Doron Lamb. So the first question would be why I expect them to do better than last year. Here's why...

2012-2013 preview: Chicago Bulls

Eastern Conference #8: Chicago Bulls (40-42)

Point Guard: Derrick Rose, Kirk Hinrich, Marquis Teague, Nate Robinson.
Shooting Guard: Richard Hamilton, Marco Belinelli.
Small Forward: Luol Deng, Jimmy Butler.
Power Forward: Carlos Boozer, Taj Gibson, Vladimir Radmonovic.
Center: Joakim Noah, Nazr Mohammed.

Miss me yet?

Things aren't looking pretty for this team without Rose. Kirk Hinrich will be taking over at Point Guard, and most of the scoring will have to be done by Hamilton, Deng, Boozer, and Noah. This is my highly optimistic forecast for Chicago, with the assumption that Rose may come back and win them a few games before the season's over. Noah and Boozer aren't bad at all, and they're certainly a formidable duo, but they aren't as good as they should be. Boozer has been a disappointment for Chicago since he left Utah and Noah has struggled with injuries throughout his career. If they can both stay healthy and increase their production they could be great this year. With Rose out, that will mean more shots for everyone, but particularly for the guys who step up the most. Those are obviously some big shoes for Hinrich and Teague to fill, even if it's temporary.

2012-2013 preview: Atlanta Hawks

Eastern Conference #9: Atlanta Hawks (38-44)

Point Guard: Devin Harris, Jeff Teague.
Shooting Guard: Lou Williams, Anthony Morrow, John Jenkins.
Small Forward: Kyle Korver, DeShawn Stevenson.
Power Forward: Josh Smith, Ivan Johnson, Mike Scott.
Center: Al Horford, Zaza Pachulia, Johan Petro.

Two All-Stars will try and keep Atlanta in the playoffs

Atlanta's best years are over. They peaked two years ago with a 53-29 record and the 3rd seed in the East, and now it's over. They finished 40-26 last season and then traded their leading scorer, Joe Johnson, to the Nets for a bunch of role players including Anthony Morrow and Johan Petro. Now their star is Josh Smith and he'll be supported mainly by Al Horford, Lou Williams, and Devin Harris. Exciting. Smith is assuredly a fantastic player, averaging 18.8 points, 9.8 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 1.7 blocks, 1.4 steals, shooting 46% in 35 minutes and playing excellent defense. He's the youngest player to reach 1,000 blocks, doing it before he turned 24 years old, and he's only 6'9".