There is a lot to see in the east, and the west is also worth looking forward to.
In the past four years, due to the existence of the Warriors, the Western Conference has been considered a hell mode, and the ultimate dream of every team is to reach the Western Conference Finals.
As long as you reach the Western Conference Finals, you will be successful!
As for defeating the Warriors and advancing to the finals, that is an impossible task!
However, under Deng Fang's layout, the Warriors' lineup will undergo considerable changes every year, which also leaves room for other teams to imagine.
Last year's lineup couldn't beat it, is there a chance this year?
We were swept last year and won one game this year. This is also progress, right?
Losing to the Warriors in a row, no matter how much you talk about the experience of the team’s senior players, you should have pretty much summed it up, right?
Therefore, although the Warriors are extremely powerful and seem invincible, the teams in the Western Conference have not given up and have been working hard.
The main challengers are the Spurs and Thunder.
Relying on a stable core and smart management operations, the Spurs have successfully transformed in the past three years and have always occupied the first group in the Western Conference, eyeing the Warriors' throne.
The Thunder relied on their draft strategy and relied on Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook to dominate the world, and they also broke into a new world. Although the Thunder was trapped in salary constraints, their loss of strength was limited.
Although the strength gap with the Warriors is not small, the two teams have been working hard and never gave up.
In addition to these two teams, the Clippers and Rockets cannot be underestimated.
The reinforcements made by the Clippers and Rockets in the offseason are likely to change the pattern of the Western Conference.
The Clippers had 56 wins and 26 losses last season, but their performance in the playoffs was unsatisfactory. The team's starting lineup in the new season is more competitive. The arrival of Doc Rivers has given people hope of improving defense.
There are definitely bigger ideas for the season.
The Rockets unexpectedly made the playoffs last season, and Daryl Morey's years of hard work finally paid off: the Rockets successfully recruited Dwight Howard.
Last season, the Rockets were hot on offense, but their biggest weakness was defense. Howard was a three-time Defensive Player of the Year, and the combination of the league's No. 1 center and No. 1 shooting guard is exciting.
The Spurs, Thunder, Clippers, and Rockets are all very strong and have the potential to challenge the Warriors. Although the possibility of winning a series is not very high, there is always greater hope for two more teams.
Besides the Clippers and Rockets, other teams are also busy.
The Nuggets' record of 57 wins and 25 losses last season exceeded expectations. However, due to the team being swept in the playoffs, the Nuggets, who originally had the best regular season record in the NBA, actually made major changes during the offseason: General Manager
, the best head coach, all the team’s defensive aces left the team, and they also inexplicably traded away Costa Koufos, and only introduced Randy Foye and Nate Robinson to replace Andre Iguodala’s departure.
The Nuggets' overall competitiveness will drop a notch.
The Grizzlies have made small moves to improve their strength. They are still a strong challenger in the new season, but the team's biggest shortcoming - offense - has seen little improvement. In today's world that advocates offense, there is also little hope for the new season.
The six teams of the Warriors, Spurs, Thunder, Rockets, Clippers, and Grizzlies have basically locked up six positions. Among the remaining two positions, the Nuggets are still alive and should be able to get a playoff spot.
.The remaining position is one where there is too much and too little. The Timberwolves, Mavericks, Trail Blazers, Pelicans, and Lakers all have opportunities to make a comeback.
The Timberwolves were regarded as the team most likely to reach the playoffs last season, but they were ruined by injuries. This year, the Timberwolves spent a lot of money to strengthen their wings, with the goal of reaching eight.
The Mavericks failed to complete Cuban's Plan A, but they also accepted Monta Ellis and Jose Calderon in the offseason. With the Western Conference's competitiveness declining, the Mavericks still have a good chance.
The Trail Blazers have maintained the starting lineup from last season and appropriately strengthened the league's worst bench lineup, but the team's defense is too poor and may hold the team back.
The Pelicans made a big move in the offseason, recruiting two great defenders, Tyreke Evans and Holiday. Coupled with the growth of Anthony Davis, the Pelicans may be the most unpredictable team in the new season.
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As for the Lakers, after Howard leaves, they can only count on the health of their three future Hall of Fame veterans, especially Steve Nash and Kobe Bryant.
In short, there is a lot to see in the west.
This situation is exactly what Deng Fang wanted.
Don't dare to do anything. The situation of a pool of stagnant water is not the result Deng Fang wants.
Soon, training camp ends and preseason begins.
The preseason is very simple for the Warriors, just training and determining the lineup.
For other teams, offensive and defensive tactical drills take a long time, and even the regular season may not be ready for a while.
But this will not be the case for the Warriors, because the Warriors' tactics are very simple, which is three-pointers plus a basket!
We have the most accurate three-point shooters in the NBA and the strongest forward, so we use the simplest and most effective tactics!
Of course, as before, Deng Fang also divided the team into two groups, and the two groups competed against each other!
The group of players is: Curry, Clay, Barnes, Hayward, Bogut, plus Rush and Draymond Green.
The second group of players are: Barbosa, Iguodala, Middleton, Tucker, Yao Ming, plus Azubuike, Yi Jianlian, and Speights.
Due to the strength of the Splash Brothers, Yao Ming was assigned to the second group.
With Lowry on the court before, it didn't matter if the backup center was weaker, as long as he could take advantage of the situation.
Now that Lowry is gone, Barbosa, who focuses on scoring, has come. Without Yao Ming, the Warriors' second lineup will be a little weak.
Therefore, Deng Fang placed Yao Ming in the second group to make the strength of the two teams more balanced.
Of course, the more important reason is that Deng Fang wanted to give Bogut more time to cooperate with the Splash Brothers and find a feeling.
Bogut is the future hope of the Warriors at the center position.
Although Bogut's independent offensive ability is more than one level behind Yao Ming, his defense and rebounding are not bad, and he is also very good at supporting and pick-and-roll.
With Curry present, that's enough!
And with Yao Ming on the second team, the Warriors' offense won't be overwhelmed. If the outside is not good, they can still give the ball to the inside.
The competition between the two teams is very fierce. Whether it is in-team training or pre-season games, they are all working hard!
You're ahead by 30 points. Let's give it some slack?
nonexistent!
Sorry, our opponent is not you, but another group of our teammates!
If they beat you by 20 points, we can't beat you by less than 20 points!
The Warriors fought the hardest throughout the preseason!
The energy is just like playing in the playoffs!
No matter how you look at it, it doesn’t look like a team that just won four championships!
Isn’t it said that if you win too many championships, you will get tired of it?
Doesn’t it mean that the team’s morale will drop after three consecutive championships?
Why is it different here with the Warriors?
This is unscientific...
After the pre-season, after two days of rest, the new season officially begins!
