Pacific Division Preview

 

The Pacific Division, made up of the Los Angeles Lakers and Clippers, Phoenix Suns, Sacramento Kings and Golden State Warriors, was a bit of a wash as a Division last season with the Clippers taking the title with a �losing� record of 40 wins and 42 losses, which saw them place in the Play-Ins, only to be shipped out for the fast finishing Suns. This year, the division has been one of the movers and shakers and is projected to be a tougher draw overall.

 

Team to beat: The guard has changed in the Pacific Division. Last year you�d have suggested it was the Clippers division to lose, and that rang true, but this year you look within the same city and see the Lakers and how they have overhauled the roster through the offseason. They�re not a finished product just yet with only 12 rostered guys and one 2way player, but the top end talent is now immense and the starting line up is one that you can see mixing with basically anyone in the league. Kevin Durant is here. Donovan Mitchell, a boon. The near MVP Andre Drummond made his way to town and they still have their budding #1 pick superstar, Cade Cunningham. It�s going to be a fun year in LA as this division is theirs to lose.

 

Key story line:
The incumbent: Los Angeles Clippers � 40-42.
The Clippers won the division despite taking a fall from the previous years, as everyone expected, sans the Giannis Antetokounmpo era in LA. No one can trade Giannis and get better�maybe not for a few years even. But, the Clippers are going to try and are on the right path, and the important thing is that they opened the floor for movement, growth and fun, while Giannis was simply not quite getting them there. The kids now have another year of growth, but are still not expected to hold this slot as the division winner given the massive improvements the Lakers made to their roster. Look for Poole to be more than anyone, except Andrew, expects though in LA this year.

The New Order: Los Angeles Lakers � 16-66.
The Lakers were down right bad last year, as evidenced by their record which was good for worst in the league by a considerable margin (6 less wins�big). That was under a roster that saw 4 games out of Cade and subsequently saw it blow up with Porzingis and Randle heading out soon after that news and a swathe of others too. The new order of things though is, that the roster of �cade and not much else�, but a lot of picks, has been flipped on it's head entirely now sporting Kevin Durant, Donovan Mitchell, Cade still, Andre Drummond, a healthy Danilo Gallinari, their 82 game hero last year, Immanuel Quickley and key bench guys like Kris Dunn and Nick Richards. If Oladipo ever graces the court, they add even an extra element. They were the bottom last year, they are the new order of things this year.

The Continued Rise: Phoenix Suns � 33-49.
The Suns started last year as a full rebuilder but in true Laddas fashion, they made some moves and went on a tear down the stretch to fly into the final Play-In spot, to then also make the playoffs. This rise was no fluke. They utilised young players with 2k upside, and they turned kids and picks into talent and they continued to do so throughout the offseason. This team won�t have the same transformation that the Lakers will have on the win column, but it will still be a much better year for what is now a very talented win now team with a brilliant smattering of prolonged success throughout the roster also. Karl-Anthony Towns and Zach LaVine highlight the charge and growth is already being shown from the darling of the Suns Jaden McDaniels, and the flier upside pick last year in Sharpe. Add a scoring bench guy in Sexton and free agent talent in Wood, Micic, Brown and McDaniels and this is a bonafide deep playoff contender.

Rocky, the Never Give Up Fighter: Sacramento Kings � 24-58.
The Kings are the team here that you know are always going to do everything in their power to put wins on the board, even when the odds are stacked against them. They had a pretty horrible year last year where it started poorly, so they shifted focus and finally sent out incumbent stars Vucevic and Hield, but couldn�t right that ship. They were as always one of the most active teams on the trade market trying to get that leg back up but it slumped as the year went on and they finished on a 7 game losing streak. This year, they come in having shifted gears again despite how few trade chips they had to be able to move and the roster reads like a who�s who of gritty role players looking to hold the fort while the rebuild is on and the draft picks come on sweeping through, but they aren�t coming. Klemm will get the most out of these guys, or he will shift them out for guys to fill holes and fix the holes he sees develop, and claw for every possible win. Losing is not an option in Sac with Klemm at the helm, but it does unfortunately seem to be a continued developing trend. I expect some surprises along the way but they probably have a similar year to last.

The Full rebuild: Golden State Warriors � 30-52.
The Warriors beat the Kings last year, despite the GM vanishing and the team struggling, but this year definitely again feels different. In the end, they only beat the Kings because they finished on a 5 game win streak versus the Kings 7 game losing streak, led by NSL Hall of Famer, Zach LaVine. But, LaVine is no longer in town. The full rebuild button has been pressed and the Warriors are now in asset collection mode. Thanks to the old GM, they own none of their own 1^st round picks until 2050 which makes it annoying to watch those losses that will inevitably pile up, pile up, but they have already started stocking the pick chest back up and have started turning the roster over into pieces to continue to flip. I wouldn�t be surprised to see more than half this roster move before the year is out and it probably should, starting with the star player in Khris Middleton, who simply does not fit that timeline anymore. They�ll show grit and try and stay in games but the top end talent isn�t there so it means the game plan will have to be immaculate. They have no issues trying to win though, since it only makes not having their own pick hurt less with every W.

 

Five best players:

1) Lakers � Kevin Durant. Shock horror, the enigma himself is the best player in this division. He�s been an elite NBA and 2k guy for his entire career, carrying teams almost by himself so as long as he stays healthy then it should be him that wins his team the division title with greater aspirations in tow.

2) Suns � Zach LaVine. Controversial? Possibly. Incorrect? Not in my opinion. LaVine has been an NSL staple stud for years now. He�s the #2 NSL scorer of all time behind Giannis because he generally stays on the court and when he does he threatens 30 every single night. He�s also the undisputed man in Phoenix, as he has been most of his career in the NSL, so he will put up a monster year.

3) Lakers � Donovan Mitchell. Donny is great, obviously, as one of the premier scorers in the league. Somehow he just doesn�t seem to have the same effect on games overall as someone like LaVine for whatever reason but that doesn�t mean he�s not a stud. He�ll rival LaVine in scoring and will beat him surely in weeks when KD misses. Easy choice for top 3 in this division.

4) Suns � Karl-Anthony Towns. The big man in Phoenix, he�s still one of the best in the division even if he�s had a bit of a down time with injuries and fit in the NBA. He�ll put up a double double as a matter of course and might see some rebuffed ratings through the year too which could see him reach the heights he once was at.

5) Warriors � Khris Middleton. Yeah this could be seen as a snub to others, but Middleton even in his reduced NBA and ratings state, still is a number producer and big time 2k scorer. He�s going to make some contending team happy this year when they trade for him because of it. His contract is more affordable now too. He�ll put up 20+ for the Warriors who are starved of anyone else to put those scoring numbers up and he�ll come out smelling of roses because of it.

It can be a cop out, but honourable mentions that might make me look silly are obvious guys like Cade Cunningham, Jerami Grant, Immanuel Quickley if he starts and of course, MVP candidate, Andre Drummond.

 

Sleeper: For me, I think the sleeper player in this division is going to be a King. We�ve already seen the hand of most of the players on teams in their roles through the pre-season, but the Kings have had two new additions in FA which we are yet to see a role, and both will be thrust into big time minutes on a team begging for production. With Bojan out, Kyle Kuzma�s arrival couldn�t have come quick enough and he will have the lions share of the ball and shots. In Cleveland, he was always tempered by the GM on a deep roster. Here, he has free reign.



The consolation sleeper I think is Derrick Rose. He�s always been a 2k guy, and he�s healthy and playing again in the Kings team who obviously have a star in Conley, but he will be on that chopping block fast and furious.

 

Breakout star: Jordan Poole for me, with an honourable mention to Shaedon Sharpe. Poole was brought in for Barrett since the rule changes meant that the Clippers suddenly didn�t have a PG, so, they got Jordan. He�s going to play and start at the one and he�s going to have a big year being a 2k special on a Washington team that will give him all the rope he can get also. Or will they sour on him? Regardless, the pre-season results scream break out for his play making as much as anything.

 

Most Impactful newcomer: Oh boy�I could really cop out here and go with the obvious, Kevin Durant, but I have spoken about him already. I�m going to speak of the man who has been a little forgotten in the rest of the wash down of the big moves at least 3 of these teams have made through the offseason, Andre Drummond. The Lakers are obviously going to be studs with Durant and Mitchell as the poster children, but big men are still the staple here and Andre is simply a literal man amongst boys in this area. In the pre-season he�s averaged 16 points and 20 rebounds�with 1.5 steals and 2 blocks. You could make a case for him being the best player in the division if you wanted on his 2k prowess. He�s going to be the difference between a division winning Lakers or a team that�s leaning on Nick Richards and struggling.

 

Prediction: This Division could very legitimately produce 3 playoff teams this year in the West and that�s a massive call. From 1 last year, to 3 this year, in a western conference that went from strength to strength adding talent this offseason. The Lakers could win it all. The Suns are going to trouble everyone. The Clippers are growing and finished 7^th pre-play ins with less overall talent last year. These guys are going for it. �The others� have no reason to try and lose either though and while they�re not on the same talent level, they could very well put together game plans to fit the personal to win more games than the rosters suggest also. There�s no point Utahing it out here, go get those wins and showcase your trade bait guys! It�s going to be a fun division and I look forward to seeing how it plays out.

1: Lakers, 60+ wins.
2: Suns, 55+ wins.
3: Clippers, 40+ wins.
4: Kings, 20+ wins.
5: Warriors, 20+ wins