In a way, the NBA Draft marks the beginning of the new season. With that said, I think it'd be nice to look back at a short, but still terrific, 2011-12 NBA season. Before every season, I make predictions for the upcoming years in way of standings, playoffs, and awards. Of course, the great thing about sports is that something unexpected happens every year that makes fans look like an idiot.
How the heck did they get that good?!?!
Credit: Jack Dempsey, AP
To start off, there were three teams that I underestimated that I probably shouldn't have. I thought the Indiana Pacers would improve, but considering how bad their record was in 2011, I didn't think they would make it to the upper echelon of the East. I pegged them to finish with a 35-31 record, which was 7 wins less than they actually accomplished. The other team I missed on was San Antonio. They had lost in the first round, they were old, and Tony Parker had even said the best days were behind them. I gave them a 4th seed and 42 wins, but as they always do, the Spurs made it to the top with a West-best 50 wins. Finally, there was the Denver Nuggets. I felt their lack of superstars, plus their loss of JR Smith and Kenyon Martin would cause them to fall to 31-35. Yet, by winning 38 games, Denver made the playoffs and George Karl had his TWENTIETH straight season without a losing record.
Now, the one team I think NO ONE expected to be good had to be the Utah Jazz. After the departure of Deron Williams and Jerry Sloan, the Jazz absolutely sucked. I expected much of the same this past season and had them tied with New Orleans with the worst conference record at 18-48. However, Al Jefferson and Paul Millsap had borderline All-Star seasons and the Jazz doubled my projection.
You couldn't have done just a little bit better...?
Credit: Streeter Lecka, Getty Images
With the subtraction of Tyson Chandler, I thought Dallas would suffer a little, but I thought the acquisition of Lamar Odom would make up for that. I thought changes to the core of Dallas and age would cause them to dip a little bit to a 44-22 record, but I didn't expect them to be fighting for their playoff lives. Another team that frustrated me, and probably many others, were the New York Knicks. They ended the 2010-11 regular season strong, so I thought they were bound to get it together this year. Unlike some ESPN experts, I didn't have them winning the Atlantic (I had them a game behind Boston), but I felt they would get the 4th seed with a 42-24 record.
Every year, it seems that I pick Portland to be a dark horse contender, but they always let me down and this year was no difference. I had them at 40-26 (I actually had them with more wins in an earlier draft), but everything just seemed to go wrong for them this season. I had Golden State contending for the playoffs, but just missing at 32-34, but Stephen Curry missing over half the season had them closer to the cellar. Finally, I knew Charlotte would be bad, but did anyone think they would be that bad?
Making me look good!
Credit: Ronald Martinez, Getty Images
Of the 30 teams in the league, there were 7 teams that either had the exact record or were within one game of my projections for them. These teams were Chicago, Philadelphia*, Milwaukee*, Oklahoma City*, LA Clippers, Houston, and Sacramento*. All the ones I starred had the exact same record I projected.
My crowning achievement, and probably everyone's crowning achievement, was having the Oklahoma City with a 47-19 and losing in the NBA Finals. The only thing I missed with them was that they didn't get the first seed.
Coming up in the clutch!
Credit: Robert Mayer, US Presswire
They say stick to your first instincts, and that's what I should have done. Prior to the season beginning, I had an NBA Finals of Miami over Oklahoma City in 6. Unfortunately, before the playoffs began, I changed it to Chicago over San Antonio. Oops. Aside from being right about the Finals, there wasn't really much else I did get right. I did have Miami beating New York in 5, but I had them matched-up in the second round and not the first. Also, I had the LA Clippers, Dallas, and Chicago all making the second round as well.
Not getting awards for my awards pick...
Credit: Mike Segar, Reuters
There were two awards that I actually did get right: LeBron James for MVP and James Harden for 6th Man of the Year. I feel like picking James for MVP is kind of the safe thing to do, so I don't really get brownie points for that. The Harden was exactly rocket science either because he's a young guy who played great after Jeff Green was traded at the end of the 2010-11 season.
For Rookie of the Year, I picked Kemba Walker. Why? I don't know. I don't really follow college basketball. Considering Dwight Howard was the 3x defending DPOY winner, I had him winning again this year, but Tyson Chandler was a worthy choice. However, I still think Howard should have won. For Coach of the Year, I pegged Frank Vogel, and though he had a great year, Gregg Popovich definitely deserved the award. Finally, I selected Serge Ibaka for Most Improved. I'm just waiting for him to become the next Dikembe...
Check-in for the remainder of my season review:
Part I: Looking back at my preseason predictions
Part II: Top NBA Memes
Part III: Top "Wow...Look at this!" moments
Part IV: Top NBA Teams
Part V: Top NBA Players
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