New Year's Resolutions 2015

The turn of the calendar brings the second half of the season.  Here are the New Year's Resolutions for each one of the 30 NBA teams.

by Austin Peters



Boston Celtics
Resolution: Lose more games
Let's get my team out of the way...  As it stands today, the Celtics are only two games out of the 8th seed in the East.  If the draft started today, Boston would have the ninth best chance to have the number one pick.  This isn't bad enough.  We need to be worse.  The roster is no where near being on a level ready to compete for a playoff spot. Being as bad as possible gives us a higher pick in the draft.  The good news is that since Rondo was traded, Boston is 1-4 with an offensive rating of 102.8, a mark that would fall at 25th in the entire league, six spots lower than their ranking currently.  LOSE MORE FOR OKAFOR!!!

Brooklyn Nets
Resolution: Cut the payroll
It has already been reported that the Nets are trying to unload their three biggest contracts: Deron Williams, Joe Johnson, and Brook Lopez.  By doing this, they've made it clear that the core they decided to build around isn't going to produce them the results they were hoping.  Williams is injury prone and hasn't even been a shell of his former All-Star self.  It seems like every year Brook Lopez has a major surgery on his foot.  Joe Johnson is a really attractive asset, not just because of his productivity but because next year, his humongous salary will be expiring.  I wrote about a trade that would make sense for Toronto, but I doubt they make a deal.  When the report first happened, the Pacers instantly became a team that I thought of for Joe Johnson.  A combination of expirings would be able to get the deal done and they would have a perfect compliment to Paul George when he comes back.  I've heard the Pelicans as a possibility as well.  We will see if and when these three get traded.

New York Knicks
Resolution: Sit Carmelo
This brings two benefits.  Carmelo has been saying that he is going to play through a knee injury, but that is the exact opposite thing the Knicks should be encouraging.  The Knicks have lost eight straight games, and 18 of 19 as well.  There is no reason they should be playing Carmelo.  The other benefit? More losses = higher draft position.  The one year that they actually get to keep their own pick, the Knicks need to take advantage of it and make sure it is the best possible pick it can be.

Philadelphia 76ers
Resolution: Stop Winning
The Sixers have won two of their last five games, both on the road at Miami and Orlando.  What is going on? Did the Earth stop rotating? They better shape up and start losing, otherwise Sam Hinkie will trade everybody! Don't think he won't do it!

Toronto Raptors
Resolution: Make the throwback Raptor jerseys permanent
Seriously though... Aren't these jerseys awesome??? Why wouldn't they wear the jersey with the Raptor on the front every game? 

Chicago Bulls
Resolution: Play Jimmy Butler less minutes
This will get better when Doug McDermott comes back from injury (hopefully), adding depth to the Bulls wing.  Unfortunately, this has been the theme with Tom Thibodeau wings.  Thibs would butt heads with Luol Deng and his reps often because he would play him too many minutes.  Jimmy has been incredible, enjoying career highs in just about every statistical category and literally carrying the Bulls offensively.  He does, however, have an injury history in his early career.  Adding more to his workload worries me that he might get hurt, and if he does, they don't have anyone on that roster that can replace anything close to what his production is.  Imagine how good Jimmy would be if he was playing with fresher legs? (Side note: Welcome back, D Rose.  Good to have the MVP back.  Basketball is just better when Rose is playing like Derrick Rose).

Cleveland Cavaliers
Resolution: Stop playing in "Chill" mode
Enough is enough.  Just about everybody nowadays is an internet coach, including myself.  Everyone all thinks they have the answer and the hottest take on how to "fix" the Cleveland Cavaliers.  While the start to the season is very disappointing and discouraging, this team has the potential to turn it around and be a title contender.  Let's try to take a look at all the things that are going on... They have a first year head coach who has never coached in the NBA before.  Two of their "Big 3" haven't played a minute of meaningful basketball in their careers.  They're also playing on a team that they aren't the number one option for the first time.  Neither Irving nor Love have had good coaching before and have never even been average defenders.  Their supporting cast is either dudes who think they're way better than they are (cough, cough, Dion Waiters), or LeBron's buddies (Mike Miller, James Jones, Anderson Varejao, Shawn Marion).  No wonder why Joe Harris and Matthew Dellavedova are getting big minutes.  On top of all of this, you have the best player on the planet playing games in "Chill" mode.  Are you kidding me? "CHILL" mode? I'm sorry, but that is pathetic.  How can you expect the rest of the team to get their stuff together when their best player and leader is playing games in "chill" mode?  We can all act like we know what is going on, but the bottom line is this: if you aren't willing to do what it takes to win games, sacrificing whatever it is you have to sacrifice, then you're not going to have any success. And it starts at the top.

Detroit Pistons
Resolution: Try to keep SVG's head from exploding
There were high expectations for this Pistons team with a brand new coach who was supposed to come in and change the culture and the on court results.  It clearly hasn't happened that way, although they have been playing well since they waived Josh Smith.  Poor Stan probably didn't realize the mess he inherited.

Indiana Pacers
Resolution: Stop being a part of ear blowing events
First it was Lance. Next, it was Kevin Garnett blowing in David West's ear.  Why is it always the Pacers that have to be a part of these things? 

Milwaukee Bucks
Resolution: Play Giannis more minutes
His minutes totals are up to 27.7 per game, but at the beginning of the year, Jason Kidd was bringing the Greek Freak off the bench.  The Bucks are 3-7 in games where Giannis plays less than 25 minutes, 13-9 when he plays more.  UNLEASH THE GREEK FREAK!!! 

Atlanta Hawks
Resolution: Keep chucking threes
Everybody knows that the Hawks have developed a system where coach Mike Budenholzer puts a premium on three point shooting.  The Hawks rank 4th in effective field goal percentage and true shooting percentage.  They play at a relatively slow pace, which puts their offense at 11th in the league as far as offensive rating goes.  By ranking in the top five in these shooting metrics despite playing at a slow pace, you can tell that they are efficient shooting the ball.  Their adjusted field goal percentage reflects that, ranking fourth in the league behind Golden State, the Clippers, and Dallas.

Charlotte Hornets
Resolution: Trade Lance
The Lance experiment has been a disaster.  I did a scouting report on Lance this summer, talking about how he had the potential to be one of the best two way players in the league.  I also questioned his fit in Charlotte due to his mediocre shooting numbers from outside and Charlotte's lack of shooting threats around him.  Lance's antics have definitely reared their ugly head.  They started off 4-0 after Lance sat out due to an injury.  Not a coincidence. He kills the team's spacing and is embarrassing to watch when he goes into full pout mode in the corner.  A change of scenery would be the only thing that could save Lance at this point.

Miami Heat
Resolution: Get healthy
We all know that Dwyane Wade misses his fair share of games each year, but injuries to newly acquired Josh McRoberts and All Star Chris Bosh have left this team decimated.  They are still very much in the playoff race because it's the East, but if they get healthy, Miami has the potential to make some noise in the Eastern Conference.

Orlando Magic
Resolution: Make sure Aaron Gordon is healthy
Aaron Gordon is just one of many rookies this year that have tragically missed time due to an injury.  The Magic are young and fun, and it stinks that one of their lottery picks is having to sit out.  Putting Gordon's athleticism and defensive versatility on this team would've made them even more fun to watch.

Washington Wizards
Resolution: Keep the 360 layups a thing
John Wall did it on Christmas day and I swear he has done it in every single one of their games since. How fun has John Wall been this year?  Leading the league in assists and has a 21.00 PER.  He probably won't win the MVP, but he is definitely knocking on the door to be a part of the discussion.

Denver Nuggets
Resolution: Blow everything up
The Nuggets could get some serious assets out of some of their rotation guys.  Darrell Arthur is quietly having a nice individual season, Foye and Robinson could help contenders, and Chandler is in high demand from several teams.  They covet Timofey Mozgov, Ty Lawson, Kenneth Faried, Gary Harris, and Danilo Gallinari, which isn't bad for a core of guys.  They just can't keep their cap clogged up with all the other contracts.  Their flexibility is non existent until about 2017, so dumping some of these guys off their books wouldn't be a bad idea. It will allow them to play their core guys more, develop their chemistry, and give them more wiggle room under the cap.

Minnesota Timberwolves
Resolution: Have their own dunk competition
Wouldn't you love to see LaVine and Wiggins go at it every night in warmups too? Maybe that will put some people in the stands.

Oklahoma City Thunder
Resolution: Make a trade
I beat this to death last Friday and I've said enough about it to last a life time.  The Thunder have to upgrade and add another key player. If they don't, they are rolling the dice with the guys they have now, who very well could win the title.  But why risk that chance when you could turn some of your assets into a better player, without risking any of your key rotation guys?  Do it Sam. Just do it.

Portland Trailblazers
Resolution: Contain Damian Lillard, take a blood sample, and find out what makes him awesome
Have you watched this guy this season?  He is seriously of a different species.  He does things late in games that are unfathomable.  He is definitely on my "top five favorite players to watch" list.  I might have to write a post about that sometime soon...

Utah Jazz
Resolution: Figure out the point guard situation
I know that I've expressed before how much I love Trey Burke, but at this point, Burke doesn't look the part of a starting point guard in this league.  He has regressed in just about every statistical category from his rookie season to this season.  You could still get value out of him, especially for a team that needs a backup point guard.  Exum is going to get to start games now that Alec Burks is out the rest of the season with a shoulder injury.  This will help them figure out who they want to be their lead guard going forward.

Dallas Mavericks
Resolution:  Have Dirk fix all of the rims
Real story... In Washington, Dirk was missing shots in warm ups and went and told someone that the rim was off.  They honest to God took out a ladder and a tape measure, measured the rim, and found out that it was off.  Unrelated but still true: Monday night, the rim was bent in the Rockets game, forcing them to fix it.  Looks like Dirk needs to make a trip to every arena and help these people out. 

Houston Rockets
Resolution: Keep making teams miss with their minds
I've searched all morning for a stat that shows team field goal percentage against the Rockets with defense being nowhere close to the shooter.  It is baffling watching a game and seeing how many wide open looks the other team will get and how many times they will miss.  The only thing I could find to convince you that this is a thing is that Houston's defense less than five feet from the basket is in the bottom ten in the league, while anywhere outside of five feet they rank in the top five in the league in opponent field goal percentage.  Their defensive rating in the playoffs last year was 115.2, a mark that would've ranked dead last in the league last season.  This year, their defense ranks third in defensive rating.  Whatever trick they're using with their minds to make teams miss, it's working.

Memphis Grizzlies
Resolution: Keep feeding Vince whatever they're feeding him
It's been great to see Vince turn back the clock a couple times this year.  He has had a couple vintage Vince plays.  Old man can still get up every once in a while.   

New Orleans Pelicans
Resolution: PASS THE BALL TO ANTHONY DAVIS
Davis leads the league in PER, is third in the league in scoring, and sixth in field goal percentage.  Why on God's green earth is he SECOND to TYREKE EVANS on his own team in usage? There is absolutely NO excuse for this. NONE. Pass him the dang ball. End of discussion.

San Antonio Spurs
Resolution: Shave Pop's beard
It was kinda cool at first, but the beard has to go, Pop. It's time.

Golden State Warriors
Resolution: Get Andrew Bogut healthy
Bogut protecting the rim for the Warriors is so crucial.  Opponents' offensive rating plummets by nearly eight points per 100 possessions when Bogut is manning the middle for the Dubs.  Opponents shoot a stifling 39.2% at the trim when Bogut is defending it.  If Golden State is going to have a shot to win the title this year, they need Bogut.  Without him, they can't expect to have a chance against some of the other Western Conference front lines.

Los Angeles Clippers
Resolution: Get along
It was reported yesterday that someone close to the Clippers said the team "doesn't like playing with each other."  Are we teenagers all of a sudden?  This isn't the type of news a team with championship or bust expectations needs surrounding them.

Los Angeles Lakers
Resolution: Give Swaggy more touches
I have no statistics to back this up.  I just want to see more of this.

Phoenix Suns
Resolution: Make Goran Dragic happy
This offseason will be a big one for Phoenix. Dragic is an unrestricted free agent and you can guarantee that there will be plenty of teams coming for his services.  With the Thunder looking like the Thunder again, it seems like the Suns might be the odd men out of the playoffs again unless they make a landscape altering trade.  Dragic is their best player and a huge part of what they do.  If they get the sense that he isn't happy, don't be surprised to see Dragic move at the deadline.

Sacramento Kings
Resolution: Don't do anything stupid
Ahhhh, who are we kidding. It's the Kings.  From firing Mike Malone in season to trying to trade for Deron Williams, nothing is out of the realm of possibility for this team.