With the Draft and most Free-Agency signings under wrap, it’s time to take a look at some of the teams that hope to take a step forward in the upcoming season.
Denver Nuggets: With the 7th pick in the 2016 NBA draft, the Denver Nuggets selected sharpshooter Jamal Murray. Adding some more youthful talent to an already young core group of players. Last season we saw the growth of Nikola Jokic and Emmanuel Mudiay. Now add Jamal to that list and also the return of Wilson Chandler, the Nuggets can have a scary team next season. Danilo Gallinari was a beast last season leading the team in scoring, putting up 19.5 points per game, while Nikola Jokic continued to develop every game, as he showed Nuggets fans in the process what type of player he can end up being. And that’s without even talking about the Nuggets top pick in last years draft in Emmanuel Mudiay who continued progressing as the season came to a close. After the All-Star break he seemed more confortable taking control of the offense, and he also started to develop some confidence in that jump-shot, raising his shooting percentages from 34% pre All-Star break to 39.3% post All-Star. An his three-point shooting percentage raised in the second half, as he hit 27.2% of his three-point attempts in the first half of the year, compared to the 36.4% he shot from behind the arc in the second half of the season. So lets hope each player can continue their individual development, and if they can, maybe things bounce their way this year and you see the Nuggets in the Playoffs come April.
Boston Celtics: The Boston Celtics ranked 5th in the Eastern Conference playoff rankings last season with a record of 48 wins and 34 losses. That was with an offense that ranked 5th in the NBA in scoring, averaging 105.7 points per game. Now with the addition of Al Horford you’d hope too see that win total go up, since the team finally got that "Star" player they have been looking for. With Al at the helm, the team adds another All-Star to the roster, forming a nice duo with him and point guard Isaiah Thomas. Putting up averages of 15.2 points per game last year (which would have been second on the team in scoring,) look for Al’s scoring numbers to go up with more touches and a more prominent role on the offensive end of the floor. And here’s to hoping him and IT can get that team past the first round, as they look to make a deep run in the playoffs this upcoming season.
Atlanta Hawks: The Atlanta Hawks made it to the second round in the Playoffs, only to lose to the reigning champion Cleveland Cavaliers in a four game sweep that ended the Hawks season cutting it short. Now as the team made some drastic changes to it starting five, they hope that it can help get the team over the hump. With the signing of Dwight Howard and trade of Jeff Teague, the team hopes these moves can help keep the franchise moving in the right direction, especially now with the change at point guard. Jeff Teague is gone and Dennis Schroeder is officially the franchise point guard. No longer does he have to look over his shoulder, and instead he can just play. And if his play in the playoffs was any indication of what’s to come, then the fans can expect a better player then Jeff Teague ever was. He put up 27 points and 6 assists in the first game against the Cleveland Cavaliers, and he put up 21 points and 6 assists in the final game. Now whether he can put those type of numbers up on a consistent basis remains to be seen, but one things fore sure he is going to get every chance to succeed, so now it’s time for him to show the team that they made the right decision in handing the keys over to him.
New York: The New York Knicks backcourt last year was dreadful, and you can expect that when you have Jose Calderon and Sasha Vujacic starting at both guard positions. The former averaged 7.6 points per game, while the latter put up averages of 4.9 points per game and 2.4 rebounds. Now with the additions of Derrick Rose, Brandon Jennings and Courtney Lee the team finally has some pieces to look forward to seeing in action. With Derrick Rose you have a former MVP who will consistently attack the basket (something the team lacked.) After a brutal first couple of months of play, in-which he suffered an orbital fracture, which forced him to play seeing double vision. He got right back on track, playing as the Derrick Rose of old. In January he put up 17.6 point per game on 47% shooting from the field, and after the All-Star break he put up averages of 17.4 points per game on 46.8% shooting. Now it just comes down to health with Derrick, if he can stay healthy, the Knicks got a steal.
