Youth movement in the NBA..

• hoops23

  

  As everybody who follows the NBA knows, The Oklahoma City Thunder have so far this season, made that jump to the next level in terms of being a playoff contender.. A lot fo us expected as much, given the young, good nucleus in OKC.. Players such as Kevin Durant, Jeff Green, and Russell Westbrook are going to be VERY good (Durantula = great) players for years to come and OKC is blessed to have such a young core and what seems like a very good front office.
  
  Recent rumors pit OKC VERY interested in Chris Bosh, whether it be by trade this year (unlikely, especially since Toronto has already said they won't trade Bosh regardless of what he says and that they are currently in the playoffs) or free agency next year. That would be a pretty solid move for them, given their need for a LEGIT post scorer.
  
  Currently, OKC has the #8 seed in the playoffs.. 1/2 game ahead of a team about to be mentioned a little later...
  
  HOWEVER, two teams nobody was really high on in the Charlotte Bobcats and the Memphis Grizzlies, are doing just about as good. Charlotte isn't that young, but they do possess some good young talent in Raymond Felton, DJ Augustine, and Boris Diaw and Tyson Chandler, whom are both 27.. They also have two very good veteran players in Gerald Wallace and Stephen Jackson. A very good mix in terms of roster flexibility and a proven head coach have the Bobcats currently sitting in the 6th seed here in the Eastern conference.. This is a franchise that has NEVER made the playoffs, and NEVER been over .500 this late in the season (20-19).. I thought Charlotte would contend for a playoff spot, but I didn't expect them to be this "solid" early on.. I figured it'd be more of a late push towards March that would come close to getting them in.. However, they are already holding onto the 6th spot, behind Orlando..
  
  Memphis was a team I was really high on coming into this season and went on record on the old Huddle stating they would contend, but fall short of the 8th seed in the West (they currently sit 1/2 game behind OKC for the 8th seed). I loved the core of Mayo, Gay, Gasol, and even Randolph (thinking he would fit in).. These guys have 2 players averaging 20 PPG in Gay and Randolph, and Mayo averages 18.. That's 58 PPG between 3 players.
  
  Mike Conley Jr. has also stepped it up this season and is turning in his best season as a pro yet.. Getting around 30 MPG he's running the offense perfectly to the tune of 10 PPG and a tad over 5 APG. He's also shooting 43% from 3 this season..
  
  Since a 1-8 start to the season, Memphis has gone 21-10 and currently stands at 22-18.
  
  It's going to be fun watching Memphis and OKC (as well as Utah, Houston, New Orleans, Phoenix and Portland) battle it out for the last 3 playoff spots all season, and it's going to be interesting to see what Charlotte can continue to build as they've had an impressive run of late as well..
• jpake1

  

  cool
• Heretic

  

  It's amazing Chandler's only 27, as it seems he's been around forever. The last couple of years, he's finally started showing some of the skills he was hyped as having when he went from high school to the pros. Always felt he could have used a couple of years of college, as it took him a long while to really find a niche. He's more of a fragile journeyman post than anything, but there's value in a journeyman post with the ability to put up 11+ boards a game, like he did a couple years ago. Oh....and Charlotte also has Lasagna Diop on their roster. Therefore they win at life.
  
  And Memphis has turned into one of the more fun teams in the league to watch. Great young nucleus there.
• wildcats20

  

  It's kind of hard to believe Utah is one of the youngest teams in the League. Not what you expect from a Sloan team.
• sportswizuhrd

  Hopefully Oklahoma City can keep their core players around once their rookie contracts expire. Durant, Green and Westbrook will want more. If Bosh gets traded there Green will be gone and likely another young player(perhaps Harden). If they pull this deal off, I like the chances of them signing Bosh. They have tons of money to spend and Durant and Westbrook will be a selling point. With or without Bosh they should make the playoffs.
  
  Larry Brown is doing another great job in Charlotte. Gerald Wallace is having a great season so far and Stephen Jackson has played well since he got to NC. They are one of the top teams at Home and they need to continue it to make it to the playoffs.
  
  If Utah trades Boozer, Memphis can make the playoffs, I dont see them passing Utah with Boozer. Zach Randolph is having a flat out awesome season. He is finally putting it all together(on and off the court). No reason why he shouldnt be an all-star. Alot of their future will be determined if they can re-sign Gay in the summer. Its gonna be a big loss if they cant re-sign him because it will take them a step or two back. To make a better run towards the playoffs, I think they need to pick up a veteran. Randolph, Steven Hunter and Jamaal Tinsley are the only players on the roster who have played more than 3 seasons. Mayo is having a good season as well. Glad to see him doing well.
  
  One team I would add to the list is the Sacramento Kings. Tyreke Evans should hands down win the ROY. It will be interesting to see if they trade or keep Martin. They are 1-7 with him playing this year and if Evans is going to dominate the ball, they might need to deal Martin and get some help where they need it. He's a big chip to move and will get them quality players in return. He is very injury proned though. They wont make the playoffs this year but they have a good core developing with Evans, Hawes, Cassipi and Thompson . They are probably 2-3 years away but with trades and the draft, it could be shorter.
• september63

  

  There shouldnt be an NBA team in Memphis. Winning team or not, they cant draw fans!!
• wildcats20

  

  september63 wrote: There shouldnt be an NBA team in Memphis. Winning team or not, they cant draw fans!!

  Wow, I didn't realize it was THAT bad there. They currently are dead last in the league in attendance at only an avg. of 13,028 per game.
  
  NBA Attendance Figures per ESPN
• hoops23

  

  I also didn't notice it was that bad there.. Though, it hasn't hurt their homecourt advantage (15-5)
• dave

  the memphis tigers drew a ton of fans when cal was there. if the grizz win, the fans will come. pretty simple concept, don't forget the cavs used to be at the bottom not too long ago.