...........with the other bottom dwellers for the worst record in the league!
I say we have virtually little to no chance of making the playoffs, even with a healthy Rondo.
There are way too many upcoming teams looking to make a push in the playoffs.
The Hawks have Horford and Millsap; arguably around the same level last year. Last year they were a mid-playoff seed.
Toronto has Lowry, DeRozan, Gay, and a really good prospect in Valancuianas. They're not tanking and they have enough talent to go pretty far. People were already calling them dark horses to steal the 8th seed last season. They're one of the most athletic teams in the NBA, and they have the potential to be very good at defense.
Detroit has far superior talent than we do. Josh Smith is quite underrated; either way, they have enough talent to get into the playoffs. Drummond has been looking good in the Summer League. Monroe is still pretty young. Then you have Brandon Knight, Caldwell-Pope, and Singler - how will Josh Smith fare with a team to call his very own?
Cleveland just signed Jack and Bynum and are looking to be one of the deeper teams in the NBA. So much young talent that could have breakout seasons. Waiters, Thompson, and Bennett. Topple that with Kyrie Irving. They are also motivated to play well; they don't want Uncle Drew leaving. Remember - Lebron James's Cavs had losing seasons his first few seasons with the franchise. This year, however, Kyrie's supporting cast is going to be utterly excellent and better than Lebron's ever was.
The Bobcats fixed their interior scoring problem. Al Jefferson is so, so, so much better than Byron Mullins. They also added Zeller. A Walker/MKG/Jefferson core is potent to do some real damage. They've made themselves the laughingstock of the league - you don't think that they've heard all this and are looking to prove everyone wrong? Kemba was a winner in college. MKG was a winner in college. I think this is the season the Bobcats turn it around.
The Wizards have John Wall, Bradley Beal, Otto Porter, Nene, and Okafor in their starting line-up. That's a dangerous team influxed with veterans and talented, young players. Everyone is near complimentary to everyone else. Martell Webster, Chris Singleton, Kevin Seraphin, Trevor Ariza, and Jesse Eisenburg's twin highlight their supporting cast. And that is a pretty good supporting cast. If John Wall has a break-out season, they make the playoffs without a doubt. Even if he doesn't, they'll still be pretty good.
Could we please tank? Pretty please? I don't think our team is capable of going head to head with some of these upcoming squads looking to make a name for themselves next season. They're done rebuilding - they want to push forward and gain some post-season minutes.
The only teams I see in the Eastern conference going the wrong direction (other than the Celtics) are the Bucks (who are still playoff-contending) and the 76ers. The Magic are pitiful already.
On another note, I think that it was a great idea that Danny traded Pierce and KG. Do you guys understand how devastating it would be to try to run it back, only to fall short of a playoff birth? Oh my goodness. Danny, thank you so much.