NBA: Distinguishing The 2014-15 Contenders And Pretenders
Oct 20, 2014; Columbus, OH, USA; Chicago Bulls center
Joakim Noah(13) drives between Cleveland Cavaliers forward
Kevin Love(0) and guard
Kyrie Irving(2) at Value City Arena. Mandatory Credit: Greg Bartram-USA TODAY Sports
Continuing our NBA Preview series, we begin to distinguish the contenders from the pretenders
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There is only one week left, ladies and gentlemen, until the start of the NBA regular season.
With new faces in new places, the NBA’s outlook is much different this season. A much more balanced Eastern Conference was a huge necessity in terms of parity, and the needs were met this past offseason. The Cleveland Cavaliers, Chicago Bulls, and the Washington Wizards all made their rosters significantly stronger to help balance out the once lopsided league.
In the Western Conference, the Phoenix Suns and Dallas Mavericks both had successful offseasons as well, and may find themselves higher in the ranks in the West this season than most expect. With all of these transactions, the fact still remains that some teams are contenders and some are pretenders. Some teams that are receiving an overabundance of hype are considered pretenders, meanwhile some are legit contenders and are capable of knocking off the reigning NBA champion San Antonio Spurs.
Without any further delay and buttering up, here is a list of the NBA’s five contenders and pretenders.