In Part I we looked at the Eastern Conference's contenders. Part II examines the pretenders-those who will make cameo appearances in the postseason and those who won't even make it that far.
6) Philadelphia 76ers: Chris Webber was having a pretty good season in Sacramento before he was traded to the 76ers. I don't believe that he left all of his game on the West Coast-and it's not like he's going to see Duncan, KG, Stoudemire and Nowitzki every night in the East. Look for him to put up decent numbers in 2005-06. Allen Iverson is still one of the top players in the league and it looks like the sky's the limit (literally and figuratively) for the high-flying, versatile Andre Iguodala.
7) Milwaukee Bucks: Milwaukee added number one overall pick Andrew Bogut, Most Improved Player Bobby Simmons and point guard T.J. Ford (who missed the 2005 season with a spinal cord injury) to a lineup that won 30 games last year. I think that those three players will be worth the 10-15 extra wins the Bucks need to qualify for the postseason.
8) New York Knicks: Considering the Knicks' recent track record this may seem to be a bit of a reach, but even last year New York won 33 games and was in mathematical contention for a playoff berth down the stretch. Larry Brown is worth 8-10 wins. Marbury's biggest problem is his tendency to dribble too much. Look for Brown to put Marbury in high pick and rolls, forcing him to either shoot open jumpers or pass if he is double-teamed. Marbury can make that shot and will give up the ball if he is trapped. Brown is not going to let Marbury just dribble out the shot clock trying to find an open shot for himself. Marbury is more athletically gifted than Chauncey Billups and if he is smart enough to heed Brown's counsel, as Billups learned to do, he can build a new reputation for himself. Brown will also teach Marbury and the rest of the defensively challenged roster to at least pay token attention to defense.
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