WHO'S NEXT!? (Cue Goldberg Chant)

[MexicanMamba]

Word count: 1,651


A popular topic in these articles now: Detroit Pistons and their reign of terror. So, why not throw one more log onto that fire with my remaining 1,000 words until I reach my article cap? Obviously, the Pistons have won the last two championships and, health permitting, will win a 3rd in a row. I do not feel like 4 is a guarantee but depending on what they choose to do with their roster next season (Folse is an expiring contract) and how the TC gods respond, its possible. What I am interested in is: Who is next? Which rosters do I feel are lined up to win the next non-Pistons championship? I will be looking at a number of factors, such as their current win-now players, assets to trade for such players, young players ready to pop and be stars, and the GM running the ship. Let’s dive in!





7. Orlando Magic



Andy is having another top-notch season, but also another one that is just shy of being elite enough to be among the most complete championship contenders. These kinds of seasons have stacked his point bank, for sure, but have not equated into much of a dent in title chases. Kory Manley is a Purple force on the offensive end but offers nothing on defense and we could see his color start to fade very soon since he is creeping up on 29-years-old and he is on an expiring contract, so is it possible he is leaving Orlando soon? Ken Dirks is a phenomenal young talent and Tony Parris is proving to be a strong defensive presence, but Adkison and Hintz are aging and soon to hit the open market like Manley, meaning that this roster will probably look very different in short order, and there are currently no easy paths to more assets to rebuild around Dirks. I suppose you could consider this more of an honorable mention, but I felt it a worthy mention, even if at the bottom of this list.





6. Denver Nuggets



The 3-6 spots I could have convinced myself to put in just about any order. Ryan has a roster full of talented young players, two of them whom I feel can be legit studs quickly (DeJuan Baker, Johnny Davis). He also has three other players 25 and under, two of which are on their rookie contracts, that can either continue to be groomed or used as ammunition to trade for a star or two to surround Baker and Davis. Depending on what he does with Maker’s option for next season and what Barnes chooses with his $26 million player option, Ryan can also have a boatload of cash to spend in free agency this coming off-season as well. There are a lot of positives going for this Nuggets roster and the only reason that I do not have them higher on this list is because Baker still has a lot of growing to do and for as great as Davis has played in just his 2nd season, he is not ready to be THE guy just yet. Still, if Ryan is aggressive this off-season, I think there are plenty of moved he can find that’ll give him a shot.





5. Indiana Pacers



Until being overwhelmed by the Spurs’ talent late in the regular season, this Pacers team was roaring and looking like the 2nd best team in the league. I’ve yet to fully grasp where this success stems from because the roster alone does not look anything like the recent history of teams with this many wins. Herb Jones is an emerging star, but he is not close to peak performance. I like Larry Canfield, but I don’t see SUPERSTAR in him. Gamez is well past his prime at Point. Patrick Williams is the real deal though and perhaps he is every bit as capable of elevating a team as anyone, and I simply misjudged that situation. It is a deep team, with capable players all down the roster and stingy defensively. In the off-season, they will get another camp for Herb, Canfield and Williams still on the roster and a ton of cap space to try to add at least one max player and a few high-end role players to that strong trio. And Pauly has never been afraid to spend (or overspend). With great team success this season, Pauly is also in-line for free agents to choose him over many other teams if money is close, so I expect he will have success in free agency.





4. Milwaukee Bucks



Saddiq Bey alone was going to have Doug on this list. Adding Darius Garland to him? Bonus points. As mentioned above, this is a roster that I could have had as high as even 2nd (in my opinion) on this list but, here’s how the cards ultimately fell. The above-mentioned superstars are a fantastic 1-2 punch, and players like Terrance Lewis-Weeks, David Rodriguez and Carmelo Williams are very good supporting characters, but the issue right now is that this team has no muscle. Carmelo Williams is the team’s starting Power Forward and Zeke Nnaji is the #1 Center. Nnaji being there would have been great 2-3 seasons ago, but not now. At least not on a title team. Williams is a decent all-around player but isn’t a difference-maker no matter where you put him. What keeps Doug from being higher on this list for me is a lack of options to fix this problem. With Bey’s contract expiring, and Lewis-Weeks hitting RFA, there will be a short period of time this off-season where Doug can get into the trading game to fill cap space. However, his only real tradeable asset is Warley, who I don’t feel is going to gather much attention, but still could be enough to give his front court a proper boost. Williams has a player option for some weird reason, but if Doug lucks out and he declines, he could have even more space to maneuver and try getting him back for much, much cheaper. If stars align, the Bucks will be a favorite next season, but let’s see how it works out.







3. Los Angeles Clippers



With Dong Bone, Karlo Pearson, Raiquan Gray and Safi Fino-A-Laself, I feel like I have the base for a championship roster right now. I am only looking at winning 42-45 games this season, but I have dealt with a high number of long-term injuries which really derailed any flow I would be able to get into. With another training camp to get his scoring ability up even more, Safi could be my leading scorer next season among this group. On top of that, I have some pieces to move around in Ousmane Dieng, EJ Liddell, some green pot rookie contracts, and up to 4 1st round draft picks to try to add that 5th starter to really go all-in. I think it’d need to be a genuine superstar to get over that hump, but if I chose to be aggressive in that manner, I do believe I’d be one of the favorites going into next season. This all goes down the drain though if I choose to step back, deal all of those players mentioned above with the exception of Safi and try to set-up a short rebuild to align with Safi’s absolutely prime in a few seasons. There’s a big part of me that wants to do this, but it will be based upon the right deals coming along for my star players. If I trade one of them quickly this off-season, drop me down much further on this list!





2. San Antonio Spurs



The caveat for the Spurs, much like it is for me, is that he already has expressed a desire to re-tool and trade Montoya and Galloway. If he finds deals that make sense for him for those two stars, then Carlos too will tank on this list. That being said, if he pushes through and goes at it again, I don’t see him being any worse than he is this season (#1 in the Alpha conference) because Montoya and Galloway are simply incredible players, and Whitley, though aging, is still a load on offense. Carlos is always great at bargain shopping in free agency and due to his recent team success, often gets great players (Like Schiff) on dirt cheap deals. If Carlos doesn’t deal, he’s going to be a contender, and could be the next one to raise a trophy that lives outside of Detroit.





1. Chicago Bulls


This is just as much about Josh as it is about his roster construction. Yeah, the Bulls are staring at another lotto season, but they fought up to the 8th seed with a team full of babies. There are 4 blue or purple potential players on this roster who are on rookie contracts (and a couple more green ones). He has Charles Jarrett, Gerald Dixson and Jericho Sims who are 24, 26 and 26 years old, respectively. All three of those guys can either be ready to start on a championship roster now or soon, OR be used as a major salary matching piece in a deal to get a superstar in. We know that when Josh smells blood in the water, he is aggressive in going in getting the pieces that he feels will win him a championship. Usually, his instincts are correct as well. As I’ve mentioned too, a few teams have already stated their willingness to trade away star players this coming off-season if the deal is right. Josh doesn’t generally cheap out when he really wants someone so, he will put together the right deal. So, right now this roster looks far away, but if I had to bet, the Bulls are the one that I’d put money on to turn it around and grab another trophy to derail this Pistons run.





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1600+ words, (written) media cap reached, +5pts