Which team has a better chance to make the Playoffs: Kings, Blazers or Lakers?

[SHAQATTACK]

Boogie , Rondo and Karl nuke ..  Ticking time bomb .....will ignite by mid season.

[Csfan1984]

I'm going Blazers for pure chemistry.

Odd you say that considering they lost Aldridge, Batum, Wes, Lopez, AA, etc.

That I know. It's more of a knock on the other teams.

[indeedproceed]

On talent it should be the Kings in a landslide.

But I'd go Blazers. Lillard is the most galvanizing leader of the group, and the other players on the team are going to get in line (and if you follow Dame's Twitter, they already have).

Lakers are just flat terrible.

No way can the Kings sustain a high enough level of play to make the playoffs. Implosion eminent

[Moranis]

Lakers

and the reasons being....?

The Kings just can't get it together and I'm not sure Rondo is what they need to get them over the hump.  The Blazers are just terrible aside from DL.  Which leaves the lakers.  They are adding Kobe, Russell, Randle, Williams, Bass, and Hibbert.  I think they have a pretty solid starting 5 and a solid bench.

PG - Russell/Clarkson
SG - Bryant/Williams
SF - Young/Black
PF - Randle/Bass
C - Hibbert/Sacre

I just see that lineup if all goes well as the best opportunity for making the playoffs.  I really like what Bass and Williams bring to the second unit and obviously Randle and Russell have immense talent.  That team isn't going to be a running team, so Hibbert anchoring the middle makes a great deal of sense. 

That said I don't expect any of the three to make the playoffs, just think the Lakers have the best shot at it.

[Celtics18]

I like the Blazers.  I think Al Farouq Aminu and Ed Davis are going to end up being surprisingly strong additions to their team. 

[KGs Knee]

None of them will make the playoffs.

Portland- Lillard is the only real player on that team, the rest are mostly scrubs.

Lakers-  They have a good group of role players (Hibbert, Bass, Williams) and good young talent (Russell, Clarkson), but they have no star player (Kobe is a washed up has been).  That's not a winning formula.

Sacramento- This team will likely be the best of the bunch, but I doubt they're good enough to make the playoffs in the loaded WC.  Too many other good teams ahead of them, and really, the Kings aren't the best fitting collection of talent.  I'm not particularly enamored with the Cousins, Gay, Rondo troika, I don't believe their talents complement each other well (not enough outside shooting).

[Eja117]

I think the Kings are motivated and ready to try to make a move with Rondo. I think there are some guys that want to prove some people wrong and want to taste the playoffs.

Last year an injury totally derailed OKC. They just need one team to have something like that. If Dirk goes down. If Anthony Davis goes down. If maybe one more key guy on Utah goes down. Anything like that and I think the Kings are in

[loco_91]

I'd rather bet on the Kings to keep their heads cool than on the Lakers/Blazers to magically turn untalented and/or washed up players into significant contributors. That said, I think the Lakers have some slight playoff equity... betting against Kobe is never a sure thing, and Russell could have an unexpectedly great rookie year.

[Eja117]

If Kobe has a bounce back year Duncan style at the age of 36 after two years of injuries I'm calling shenanigans and for the FBI, CIA, NSA, and NASA to test him for every conceivable PED imaginable from goat wiz to fetal tissue injections to illegal Satanic deals on a daily basis

[bballee]

The first one to switch to the Eastern Conference

[Tr1boy]

Can you guys imagine Cousins blowing a short fuse in one play and Rondo taking baby steps to midcourt in another,  with George Karl expression = shoot me

[Tr1boy]

None of them will make the playoffs.

Portland- Lillard is the only real player on that team, the rest are mostly scrubs.

Lakers-  They have a good group of role players (Hibbert, Bass, Williams) and good young talent (Russell, Clarkson), but they have no star player (Kobe is a washed up has been).  That's not a winning formula.

Sacramento- This team will likely be the best of the bunch, but I doubt they're good enough to make the playoffs in the loaded WC.  Too many other good teams ahead of them, and really, the Kings aren't the best fitting collection of talent.  I'm not particularly enamored with the Cousins, Gay, Rondo troika, I don't believe their talents complement each other well (not enough outside shooting).

I agree on the Kings analysis.  They could really use a KG type leader

Even David Lee would of been a good pickup for them for both on and off the court

[freshinthehouse]

Of those three I'd choose Sacto, but I'd def put money down that not one of of those teams make the playoffs this year.

[Moranis]

If Kobe has a bounce back year Duncan style at the age of 36 after two years of injuries I'm calling shenanigans and for the FBI, CIA, NSA, and NASA to test him for every conceivable PED imaginable from goat wiz to fetal tissue injections to illegal Satanic deals on a daily basis

They are adding enough that Kobe doesn't have to have a crazy bounce back year for them to be good enough to sneak into the playoffs.  They are adding two high draft picks (Russell, Randle), a defensive anchor (Hibbert), and quality veterans (Bass, Williams).  Then you add in Kobe, Young, Clarkson, Sacre, and Black, and you have the makings of a pretty solid team.

I think they clearly have the highest upside just based on the shear talent added to the roster.  I mean the Lakers only won 8 less games than the Kings, I'd have to think they added a lot more than the Kings did by adding Rondo.

[fairweatherfan]

If Kobe has a bounce back year Duncan style at the age of 36 after two years of injuries I'm calling shenanigans and for the FBI, CIA, NSA, and NASA to test him for every conceivable PED imaginable from goat wiz to fetal tissue injections to illegal Satanic deals on a daily basis

They are adding enough that Kobe doesn't have to have a crazy bounce back year for them to be good enough to sneak into the playoffs.  They are adding two high draft picks (Russell, Randle), a defensive anchor (Hibbert), and quality veterans (Bass, Williams).  Then you add in Kobe, Young, Clarkson, Sacre, and Black, and you have the makings of a pretty solid team.

I think they clearly have the highest upside just based on the shear talent added to the roster.  I mean the Lakers only won 8 less games than the Kings, I'd have to think they added a lot more than the Kings did by adding Rondo.

Gotta do that analysis evenly if you want to compare - the Kings also added a high draft pick (WCS) and some quality vets (Koufus, Bellineli, whatever Caron Butler's got left in the tank).  And George Karl is a very good coach if you want to make the playoffs and then sputter out. Probably not as much as the Lakers added but it's more than just Rondo.