The 2015-16 NBA season is just a few days away and of course, with the season coming around the corner, the 2015-16 NBA preview is going to be a fitting step towards the start of the regular season.
We’ll be taking a look at the different NBA teams and ranking them in tiers. There will be five tiers in total, coupled with the teams projected starting lineup, record, finish in the conference and a small 2015-16 NBA preview for each team.
First up, tier 5, otherwise known as ‘Better have your Draft Pick’.
These teams will be bottom feeders in their respect conferences and they will be contending for the services of one of the top picks in the 2016 NBA Draft like Ben Simmons, Skal Labissiere or Brandon Ingram. These teams either took a dramatic step back for one reason or another, elected to rebuild or they are on their way back down to the bottom.
30. Philadelphia 76ers
Projected Starting lineup: Tony Wroten, Nik Stauskas, Robert Covington, Nerlens Noel, Jahlil Okafor
Key bench players: Kendall Marshall, Hollis Thompson, Isaiah Canaan, Jakarr Sampson
Record last year: 18-64 Eastern conference finish last year: 14th
Projected Record: 20-62 Projected Eastern conference finish: 15th
The Philadelphia 76ers are just going to be a bad team this season. They don’t have a lot of talent beyond their two young big men in Jahlil Okafor and Nerlens Noel. Robert Covington is a nice three-point shooter and a possible stretch four option but their backcourt isn’t anything to be excited about. Hopefully for Nik Stauskas, aka Sauce Castillo, he can start going in the right direction to having a somewhat successful career after a less than stellar rookie season.
Do they have their 2016 draft pick?
Yes, and they also have the rights to the Miami Heat’s pick, if it’s not inside of the top 10, the Oklahoma City Thunder’s pick, if it’s not inside of the top 15, and the right to swap picks with both the Sacramento Kings and Golden State Warriors. So yea, the Philadelphia 76ers are in a good place for the 2016 NBA Draft.
29. Portland Trail Blazers
Projected Starting lineup: Damian Lillard, C.J. McCollum, Al-Farouq Aminu, Ed Davis, Mason Plumlee
Key bench players: Gerald Henderson, Noah Vonleh, Mo Harlkess, Meyers Leonard
Record last year: 51-31 Western conference finish last year: 4th
Projected Record:25-57 Projected Western conference finish: 15th
You got to feel bad for Damian Lillard. He’s my favorite to lead the league in scoring, as well as shot attempts and possibly the lowest efficiency. You can’t blame him though, he has NO ONE around him to help him contend once again in the Western Conference. The Blazers will have the most dramatic drop in recent memory and will quite possibly be splitting their wins in half from last season. They have lost four out of their five starters from last year, the same starting lineup that was statistically the best lineup in the NBA for the first half of last season. Yea, it’s going to be bad in Portland. On the bright side, C.J. McCollum is a strong candidate for most improved player but this season will definitely be a step towards a rebuild in Portland.
Do they have their 2016 draft pick?
Their 2016 pick is 1-14 protected and is all projections go as planned, they won’t be losing their pick in the 2016 NBA Draft.
28. Denver Nuggets
Projected Starting lineup: Emmanuel Mudiay, Randy Foye, Danilo Gallinari, Kenneth Faried, Jusuf Nurkic
Key bench players: Wilson Chandler, J.J. Hickson, Gary Harris, Jameer Nelson
Record last year: 30-52 Western conference finish last year: 12th
Projected Record: 25-57 Projected Western conference finish: 14th
Danilo Gallinari is mad and he’s upset and he’s bothered by the fact that no one believes in him. Well, some might believe in him but I don’t believe in his team. The Nuggets are going to be one of two teams in the Western Conference to start a rookie point guard in a conference that boasts either an All-Star or perrenial All-Star on any given night. According to Matt Moore of CBS Sports, the Nuggets new coach, Mike Malone, won’t cave under pressure and he will let his young players get the burn they deserve. Young guys getting playing time also means they are not expecting their record to be good. Gallo and Wilson Chandler re-signed with the Nuggets in the offseason with interesting deals that extend their contracts a few more years while the younger guys like Emmanuel Mudiay and Jusuf Nurkic develop. Will Kenneth Faried get shipped out of Denver before the year ends? It could happen but only if the Nuggets get another future draft pick or young talent in return.
Do they have their 2016 draft pick?
Yes, but with some weird protections. If the Nuggets finish worse than the New York Knicks, courtesy of the Carmelo Anthony trade, the Nuggets will keep their pick and instead, the Knicks pick will end up with the Toronto Raptors. The Nuggets also have the rights to the Houston Rockets, Memphis Grizzlies and Portland Trail Blazers picks but they are all with protections.
27. Charlotte Hornets
Projected Starting lineup: Kemba Walker, Jeremy Lamb, Nicolas Batum, Cody Zeller, Al Jefferson
Key bench players: Jeremy Lin, Marvin Williams, P.J. Hairston, Frank Kaminsky
Record last year: 33-49 Eastern Conference finish last year: 11th
Projected Record: 25-57 Projected Eastern conference finish: 14th
Going into the 2015 preseason, the Charlotte Hornets were a sexy pick to make a return to the NBA playoffs. They were healthy, added some talent in Jeremy Lin, Spencer Hawes and Frank Kaminsky and Al Jefferson was looking poised to have a great season in his contract year. Then, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist got injured and will be lost for just about the entire season. To put it simply, last season the Hornets were 28-29 when Kidd-Gilchrist played, 5-20 when he was out. Kemba Walker hasn’t made any major strides in his progression after coming out strong last season just to end up getting injured. Maybe he will be getting a feeling of rejuvenation with his former college teammate Jeremy Lamb joining him in Charlotte but don’t expect the Hornets to be contending for anything this season.
Do they have their 2016 draft pick?
Yes. They don’t have any protections or anything of the sort. It’s their pick to keep and they better hope it’s in the top five.
26. Brooklyn Nets
Projected Starting lineup: Jarrett Jack, Joe Johnson, Bojan Bogdanovic, Thaddeus Young, Brook Lopez
Key bench players: Shane Larkin, Thomas Robinson, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, Andrea Bargnani
Record last year: 38-44 Eastern Conference finish last year: 8th
Projected Record: 28-54 Projected Eastern conference finish: 13th
The Brooklyn Nets moved on from Deron Williams this summer and the collective of fans and members of the organization alike breathed a sigh of relief. They also re-signed Brook Lopez and Thaddeus Young this summer on some pretty good deals especially considering the impending cap increase in the next few seasons. But, that’s all they really did this summer. They made the playoffs last year essentially due to a Chris Bosh blootclot, a Paul George broken leg and a nagging Carmelo Anthony knee injury. They snuck in as an eight seed under .500 basically by default. They have some new youth to build with in Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, Thomas Robinson, Shane Larkin and Chris McCullough. McCullough may end up missing a big majority of the 2015-16 season but that’s alright. The Nets are seeing him as their 2016 first round pick because unfortunately, they don’t have their own pick.
Do they have their 2016 NBA Draft pick?
No, thanks to the Paul Pierce/Kevin Garnett trade a few years ago, their 2016 first round pick belongs to Boston outright.
25. Minnesota Timberwolves
Projected Starting lineup: Ricky Rubio, Zach LaVine, Andrew Wiggins, Karl-Anthony Towns, Gorgui Dieng
Key bench players: Shabazz Muhammad, Kevin Garnett, Kevin Martin, Nikola Pekovic
Record last year: 16-66 Western Conference finish last year: 15th
Projected Record: 28-44 Projected Western conference finish: 13th
The Minnesota Timberwolves are rebuilding their franchise after they shipped off Kevin Love last season. They’re moving in the right direction and while they may night be at the exact bottom of the NBA standings, unfortunately for them, they’re in destructive Western Conference. The young Timberwolves fell last season, primarily due to injuries, but the players they missed aren’t anything to be afraid of in he NBA. They’re young, fun and probably a top five league pass team and maybe they will have the most vine highlights this season but winning a lot of games? No way. The one positive going for the Wolves is that they have three great veterans in Kevin Garnett, Andre Miller and Tayshaun Prince who will help out the youth in Minnesota, much like the Nuggets vets will help out their young talents. They’re not expected to win right now, so don’t bank on it.
Do they have their 2016 NBA Draft pick?
Yes, but it’s heavily protected 1-12. So hopefully for Minnesota, they won’t be too good because if they are, they will lose their pick.
