Pacific Division – Short/Long Term prospects
6 min read
Review of the short and long term prospects of the Pacific Division.
Golden State Warriors
Original Roster
Current Roster
Draft Picks: Sheadon Sharpe (7), Tari Eason (14), Josh Minnott (26)
Future Picks: Bulls 23, OKC 24 and Nuggets 24
Probaly last seasons bigger underachievers when you look at the roster, im not sure how they didn’t go deep into the playoffs. I think the roster has improved for the season ahead, with Simmons returning and the great pick ups in Sharpe and Eason.
As mentioned with the recent draft selections, the Warriors are a team which looks like they are set to make some noise this season and the next 3-4 years as well. The only weakness in the current roster is probaly the lack of depth at the PF and C position.
Short Term – A The Warriors should be much improved on last seasons record and I expect them to be on the best teams in the West. They have the potential to be Champions, but an injury to Towns could derail them.
Long Term – A- – With Trae, SGA and Sharpe in the back court the Warriors are set for the long term in the back court. There is maybe not quite the same amount of young talent in the forward positions but with the picks they hold and depth in other positions this can easily be addressed. There could also be an issue with salary in the coming seasons.
LA Clippers
Original Roster
| 3 | Spencer Dinwiddie | 1 | Herbert Jones | 1 | Austin Reaves |
| 1 | Tyler Herro | 4 | Dennis Schroder | 1 | Ty Jerome |
| 1 | OG Anunoby | 3 | Malik Beasley | 1 | Kent Bazemore |
| 1 | Kyle Kuzma | 3 | Dwight Powell | 2 | Nemanja Bjelica |
| 1 | Paul Reed | 1 | Santi Aldama |
Current Roster
| PG | 4 | Spencer Dinwiddie | 2 | Dennis Schroder | 1 | Austin Reaves |
| SG | 8 | Klay Thompson | 1 | Ty Jerome | 2 | Justin Holiday |
| SF | 4 | OG Anunoby | 3 | Malik Beasley | 1 | Ochai Agbaji |
| PF | 6 | Kristaps Porziņģis | 1 | Patrick Baldwin Jr. | 1 | Georges Niang |
| C | 1 | Paul Reed | 1 | Santi Aldama | 2 | Serge Ibaka |
Draft Picks: Patrick Baldwin Jr (33) and Scottie Pippen Jr
Future Picks: Hornets 23, Suns 23, 76ers 24, Clippers 25, Lakers 25
The Clippers drew the short straw with the last pick of the re-draft and if im honest, I don’t think they drafted that well. However when it comes to trading, they have certainly improved their roster. I guess they had to given they don’t own their own first till 2025.
The current roster looks like it has a shot at the playoffs, however what doesn’t concern me is how injury prone most of the starting 5 is. When did any of them play a full season last.
There are some nice young players on the roster Reed and Aldama, but there likely role players of the future, the Clippers are in a difficult Western Conference, and are a borderline play off team.
Short Term – C – 3 of the 5 starting 5 would have a case for starting in most NBA teams but injuries and a lack of depth could cause the team to plummet down the rankings.
Long Term – C- None of the current players really look like they have the potential to break out, but OG and KP will still be around, Reed or Aldama will be a serviceable centres and 5 future firsts ensure that the Clippers are not just looking at the short term.
LA Lakers
Original Roster
Current Roster
| 9 | John Wall | 2 | Kendrick Nunn | ||
| 3 | Jordan Clarkson | 3 | Luke Kennard | 1 | Landry Shamet |
| 9 | LeBron James | 5 | Buddy Hield | ||
| 1 | Drew Eubanks | 1 | Wenyen Gabriel | ||
| 2 | Ivica Zubac | 1 | Damian Jones | 1 | Vlatko Čančar |
Draft Picks: None
Future Picks: Lakers 23 and 76ers 25. Both have protection as do other picks, which are to confusing to work out.
Its easy to draw comparisons between the NBA Lakers and DTNBA Lakers. However the DTNBA Lakers probaly rely on LeBron even more. The team is setup to try and win a Championship it has to be given LeBron’s age. However is there enough talent around him?
There isn’t a great deal of youth on the team, and not many future picks. They really are in a win or bust situation. Im leaning towards a bust.
Short Term – B LeBron takes them into the playoffs by himself, winning games in the play offs will be more difficult. A lot could be dependent on what Wall does this season.
Long Term – F – What long term? Outside of Zubac I don’t see many of these players being on the Lakers roster in a few years time.
Phoenix Suns
Original Roster
| PG | 2 | De’Aaron Fox | 1 | Raul Neto | 3 | Rodney Hood |
| SG | 9 | Chris Paul | 2 | Lou Williams | 1 | Juan Toscano-Anderson |
| SF | 2 | Jae Crowder | 2 | Jarrett Culver | 3 | Rudy Gay |
| PF | 7 | Tobias Harris | 1 | Denzel Valentine | 1 | Aleksej Pokusevski |
| C | 2 | Bam Adebayo | 1 | Luka Garza | 1 | Bismack Biyombo |
Current Roster
| 7 | Chris Paul | 1 | David Duke Jr | 2 | Alec Burks |
| 1 | Herbert Jones | 1 | Furkan Korkmaz | 1 | Shake Milton |
| 2 | Jae Crowder | 1 | Oshae Brisset | 1 | Aleksej Pokusevski |
| 8 | Tobias Harris | 4 | Jonathan Isaac | 1 | Luka Garza |
| 6 | Bam Adebayo | 1 | Mark Williams | 1 | Bismack Biyombo |
Draft Picks: Mark Williams (12)
Future Picks: Suns (24)
The Suns are one of the tricker teams to review. I see them as being a 7/8 seed in the West, however as roster with CP3, Harris and Bam should be aiming for better than that. The supporting cast isn’t good enough to help them break into the list of teams who can win the Championship.
They do own a couple of players who have the potential to be elite defenders in Poku and Isaac. Mark Williams will turn out to be good centre. I think the Suns need to pick a direction are they looking to take that next step and maybe trade one of the youngster for a starting SG or SF, or look to break up the roster. Interesting times at the Suns this upcoming off season I feel.
Short Term: C – Like I mentioned they are good enough to sneak into the players but I wouldn’t see them getting out of the first round.
Long Term: C- Don’t have many first rounders and big question marks over Isaac. Poku and Williams do have potential to be starters in the future.
Sacramento Kings
Original Roster
| PG | 4 | Ricky Rubio | 2 | De’Anthony Melton | 2 | Kyle Anderson |
| SG | 9 | James Harden | 2 | Delon Wright | 1 | Facundo Campazzo |
| SF | 1 | Talen Horton-Tucker | 1 | Naji Marshall | 1 | Jared Butler |
| PF | 3 | Thaddeus Young | 1 | Bol Bol | 1 | Charles Bassey |
| C | 6 | Nikola Jokic | 1 | Gorgui Dieng | 1 | Devontae Cacok |
Current Roster
| 4 | Ricky Rubio | 1 | Bennedict Mathurin | 1 | Facundo Campazzo |
| 9 | James Harden | 2 | Delon Wright | 1 | Justin Champagnie |
| 2 | Kyle Anderson | 1 | Naji Marshall | 1 | Jared Butler |
| 4 | Aaron Gordon | 1 | Charles Bassey | 1 | Jake LaRavia |
| 7 | Nikola Jokic | 1 | Gorgui Dieng |
Draft Picks: Jake LaRavia (30) and Keon Ellis (60)
Future Picks: Kings 24 first rounder
The Kings most be one of the favourites to win the 2023 Championship with 2022 MVP Jokic and 2109 MVP Harden on the Roster. However in the West who knows what might happen with the amount of high quality teams.
Outside of the starting 5, there probaly is a lack of quality coming off the bench which may hold them back, but if they stay injury free they have a shot at winning the West.
The team has got younger with the additions of Gordon and Mathurin, but there is the possibility that both trades might not look so wise in future especially with the form Bol Bol has shown in Orlando.
Short Term – A – One of the best in the West, will they get the better of OKC though?
Long Term – C – I wonder how many elite seasons Harden has left in him? When he drops off, I cant see Jokic being able to carry the team to the top of the West like they are at the moment and there’s no obvious signs of a replacement
