After the Bulls are the Wizards. The Wizards ushered in the return of John Wall this season. Their lineup was finally put together. They made great efforts in the second half of the season and eventually ranked fifth in the Eastern Conference.
The sixth place in the Eastern Conference is the Nets. The Nets performed very well at the start of the game and were once ranked second among the Eastern Conference teams.
The Nets made the biggest move in the offseason. They paid a huge price to acquire Garnett and Pierce from the Celtics, plus Lopez, Deron Williams, Joe Johnson and others.
The Nets lineup is quite strong!
Therefore, before the start of the season, the betting company even ranked the Nets' championship odds to second place!
The first one is of course the Warriors.
But when we arrived on the field, we discovered that the situation was not what everyone thought.
The Nets performed really well in the first few games of the season, but as the season progressed, trouble began for the Nets.
The first trouble is injuries!
What do veterans fear most?
It’s just an injury!
People no longer rely on their muscles and bones for strength. As we get older, we are prone to injuries, not to mention the extremely intense NBA arena.
Garnett was injured, Pierce was injured, Deron Williams was injured, and most importantly, Lopez was also injured and only played 17 games!
You know, Lopez was an iron man when he was with the Warriors and almost never missed a game due to injury!
What you need to know is that although Garnett has a great name, although Deron Williams is the nominal boss of the Nets, and although Joe Johnson has a strong scoring ability, the Nets' scoring leader is Lopez!
As soon as Lopez was injured, the Nets' inside pillar collapsed!
Originally, Billy King wanted to rely on Garnett and Pierce to realize the Nets' dream of winning the championship, especially Garnett, but he didn't expect that the effect after the two came was very different from what he imagined!
Pierce is a little better, with three-pointers and singles. Although his defense is a lot worse, he can still make some contributions on the court.
Garnett is no longer good. Garnett's biggest role on the court is defense, especially switching defenses and assisting defense. But as he gets older, Garnett's defense is no longer good.
What you need to know is that Garnett has long been no threat on the offensive end, and now he is no longer good on the defensive end, so he has no effect on the court!
Lopez's injury originally put a strain on the Nets' inside line, but now that Garnett can't toughen up, the Nets' inside line is suddenly in decline.
Coupled with the ineffectiveness of Deron Williams and tepid Joe Johnson, the Nets' record took a sharp turn.
Fortunately, the Eastern Conference is not very competitive. In addition, several star players are still strong and not lacking in skills. In the end, the Nets' ranking remained at sixth place in the Eastern Conference.
As for the Hornets and Hawks, there's not much to say. Both teams took advantage of the Eastern Conference to reach the playoffs.
If placed in the West, only the Pacers and Heat in the East can make the playoffs!
The west side is very different from the east side.
The first is the Warriors. The Warriors' record is finally fixed at 71 wins and 11 losses, far ahead and ranking first in the league.
Followed by the Spurs, the Spurs have a record of 62 wins and 20 losses, ranking second in the league.
Although it is much worse than the Warriors, the Spurs' record is actually quite impressive.
Ranked third is the Thunder.
The Thunder lost Westbrook for nearly half of this season, so Durant had to be both a father and a mother. He played nearly 40 minutes, and his number of shots increased a lot, averaging 32 points per game.
!
The final result was that Curry missed out on the scoring title for the first time since entering the league.
There is no way, Curry only plays less than 30 minutes per game, and takes several fewer shots than Durant. In this case, he can't compare to others.
Therefore, at the end of the season, Durant's calls for MVP became more and more loud.
Deng Fang didn't take this seriously.
Although Durant's scoring average is a few points higher per game, and although the judges like the new and dislike the old, in the competitive arena, strength still has to speak for itself!
My record is so much higher than yours, and my efficiency is much higher than yours, but my scoring average is a few points less than yours, so I can’t compare to you no matter what!
Under Durant's leadership, the Thunder's final record was 59 wins and 23 losses, ranking third in the league.
After the Thunder are the Rockets.
The Rockets welcomed Harden last season, and attracted Howard to join this season. Their strength suddenly increased, and they ranked fourth in the Western Conference under the leadership of both internal and external cores.
The fifth place in the Western Conference is the Trail Blazers. They have the same record as the Rockets, but they are ranked behind because of their disadvantage in divisional matches.
The Trail Blazers and Rockets are similar, both have dual cores inside and outside. The Rockets have Harden and Howard, while the Trail Blazers have Lillard and Aldridge.
On the surface, it seems that the Rockets are much better than the Trail Blazers, but in fact, when they met in the middle of the season, the two teams were almost the same, and the Trail Blazers even had the upper hand.
The Grizzlies have not changed much. They are still the black and white bears. One is offensive and the other is defensive. With the help of capable players like Conley and Tony Allen, they have established a firm foothold in the fiercely competitive Western Conference and won a playoff spot.
The Mavericks are ranked seventh in the Western Conference. The core of this team's inside is still Nowitzki, and the core of the outside is replaced by Monta Ellis.
Norvis basically focuses on offense and neglects defense, especially Monta Ellis. Coupled with the defensive colanders Calderon, Devin Harris and others, even having a defensive hero Marion is of no use.
Fortunately, the Mavericks head coach Carlisle was very good and eventually led the Mavericks to seventh place in the Western Conference.
The Clippers are eighth in the Western Conference.
Historically, the Clippers ranked behind the Thunder this season and had a pretty good record. However, the Clippers and the Warriors are in the same division. They met the Warriors four times this season and lost miserably. They also failed to win any of the three games they met the Spurs. Instead, the Rockets
Winning one game each against the Warriors and Spurs directly led to the Clippers' ranking falling.
Coupled with the critical moment at the end of the season, Paul was injured and missed more than a dozen games, and the Clippers suddenly dropped to the eighth position in the Western Conference.
Historically, this season the Warriors ranked sixth in the Western Conference, and the Clippers ranked third in the Western Conference. The playoffs were a showdown between the two teams. In the end, the Clippers eliminated the Warriors 4:3, which directly led to the resignation of Mark Jackson and Steve Kerr.
s arrival.
No matter how miserable Cole was, the fact is that the Warriors dynasty in history was born only after his arrival.
I wonder if it was God's will. Under Deng Fang's leadership, the Warriors ranked first in the Western Conference, while the Clippers just dropped to eighth in the Western Conference. The playoffs are still a duel between the two teams!
It's not that enemies don't get together. Historically, it was precisely because of the victory over the Warriors this season that Lao Li repeatedly threatened the following season - "The Warriors won the championship because they were lucky. If they met us, they would not be able to reach the finals!"
So when the two teams meet this time, Deng Fang will not let go of the opportunity for revenge!
