San Antonio – The San Antonio Spurs advanced to the Western Conference Semifinals last year after knocking off Dallas in six games, but were then swept four games to none by the Phoenix Suns to shock all NBA bettors. Everyone claims that the Spurs are getting too old and they may be right, but the team has done a nice job of adding young talent to the core. Dejuan Blair was a nice addition last year and this year they will get the service of 2007 first round draft pick 6’11” Tiago Splitter who has honed his skills in Europe. They also have 6’6” SG James Anderson of whom they drafted with their top choice this year. The Spurs were 15th in the league in scoring at 101.4 PPG and 8th in defense allowing 96.3 PPG.

Houston – Yao Ming who has had foot problems for years is coming off a season ending broken foot. He declared that if he cannot fully recover from the injury that he will retire. Even without Yao, Houston was a winning team. Coach Rick Adelman said he will limit the minutes for Yao this season and even brought in veteran center Brad Miller to help protect the Chinese national. The Rockets also brought in Courtney Lee from New Jersey and drafted forward Patrick Patterson with their first round selection. The Rockets were 8th in the league in scoring at 102.4 PPG and 22nd in defense allowing 102.7 PPG.

Memphis – The Grizzlies could be this year’s most improved team not named the Miami Heat. Lionel Hollins returns for his third season at the helm following a 40-42 season. He returns all five starters from last year in center Marc Gasol, forwards Zach Randolph and Rudy Gay (signed max contract over the summer) and guards OJ Mayo and Mike Conley. Through the draft they added a pair of guards in the first round in Xavier Henry and Greivis Vasquez who will help off the bench. Veteran Tony Allen was added via free agency over the summer. The Grizzlies were 7th in the league in offense at 102.5 PPG and 24th in defense allowing 104 PPG. NBA oddsmakers will certainly have totals that involve the Grizzlies to be high once again this season.

Dallas – The Dallas Mavericks, much like the San Antonio Spurs have gotten older. In fact Dirk Nowitzki, Jason Kidd, Jason Terry and Shawn Marion are all at least 32 years old. They do have 22 year old guard Rodrigue Beaubois who looked very good last season. The Mavs’ also went out and added some front court help in the shape of Tyson Chandler. In the NBA betting circles, many expect this Dallas team to fall off. The Mavericks were 11th in the league in scoring at 102 PPG and 15th in defense allowing 99.3 PPG.

New Orleans – There has been so much talk about Chris Paul going elsewhere, but the season is upon us and he is still the Hornets starting point guard. The NBA odds of him leaving are high after this season after signing with LeBron James PR company this summer. The bad news is backup Darren Collison is off to Indiana after being traded in a four team trade which brought in Trevor Ariza. The Hornets return Peja Stojakovic, David West and Emeka Okafor but may not be enough to challenge in the rugged Southwest Division. The Hornets were 17th in the league in scoring at 100.2 PPG and 21st in defense allowing 102.7 PPG.

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