Nice work, apart from that 36ers bias!

"Out: [...] Scott Morrison* (stage production of Phantom of the Opera)"

Ahahahaha

Hard to take it seriously when he's listed 36ers as first. Surely even the most one-eyed Adelaide supporter would not think their team is going to win this year.

Looked like a good read....then I saw that you had 36ers finishing first. Lost all credibility right there :P

LOL.. Pathetic!! Couldn't disagree with it more!!

More like

1. Melbourne
2. Perth
3. New Zealand
4. Cairns
5. Adelaide
6. Sydney
7. Townsville
8. Wollongong

Adelaide will not make top 4.
Melb at full strength will be exciting to see.
Perth v melb or nz grand final.

I think top 3 will be Melbourne, Perth & New Zealand and then the rest could go any which way

also,g/f needs to be 5 game series.....now that would be exciting !

I think the bench players of each team will have a say, in wich team will make the four and im wich order. I think all eight teams have a solid starting line up

Yeah picking the Sixers to finish first is obviously dubious to say the least, but the rest of the article has some solid insight into where most of the clubs are at.

I'd be picking PERTH to finish first, then I have no idea. They are still allowed to be more physical than any other team and I don't see that changing despite the ongoing refereeing revamp, on top of the tremendous talent and depth they possess. Incumbency is a powerful thing and it shouldn't be underestimated. They'll finish first, but not by a great margin.

MELBOURNE is a team I really don't trust: I predict chemistry issues and stagnant offense due to poor coaching. Still, you can't deny the talent they have on paper and it should get them into the four. If all goes well they will be in the top 2. Maybe the talent will overcome poor Xs-and-Os play-calling from Anstey and their length will be able to contain pick and rolls despite a poor scheme.

TOWNSVILLE is massive - I believe they are the biggest team in the league height-wise...but outside of Conklin they will probably still be able to to be pushed around by the heavier, more aggressive sides. They have one of the best shooting teams in recent NBL memory -- barring any lengthy cold streaks (which are a real thing in the NBL where you only play a game or two a week...a cold snap can last a whole season). If they can play the right way and move the ball there is no reason why they shouldn't be able to get what they want on the offensive end most nights. They have 5 guys who shot 40% from three last season (!), and that's not the craziest part...the shooters are at every position, so they could trot out a lineup of Norton, Markovich, Steindl, Blanchfield and Vanderjagt and have a 40% 3 pt shooter at every position on the floor 1-5. The big question mark for them is going to be aggressiveness and toughness. How nasty they want to be will determine how far they go. If they play with the right identity they could wind up down the bottom of the ladder, if they do it the right way they could finish as high as 3rd or maybe even 2nd if Melbourne and NZ don't address the coaching & leadership problems they had last season.

Not sure about NZ: I think Cedric Jackson will not be as dominant this time around as the standard of play has really improved since he last played here. Vickerman still has to prove himself as a coach. They will probably be in the top four though. They have a tonne of talented but inconsistent guys and could have a great year. Pretty hard to bet against a team with a competitor like Vukona.

I think that will be the top four, and if I was gonna place a bet I'd say it would be Perth, Melbourne, Townsville, NZ in that order. Still, it's wide open and three of those teams could miss out entirely (Perth a certainty though IMO).

Wollongong now they have Neville are going to be intriguing. Gordie will get the big fella having a career year IMO but I don't trust their import guard combo to make the right plays. Don't think they have the cattle to make the 4 but should be around the mark at the end of the season.

Cairns...I really don't know. I think they have tuned their coach out, but what do I know. They could be a dark horse, or it could be more of the same mental issues.

Sydney: Childress will be great, but they really don't have much else. Rookie coaches don't tend to do well either.

I don't think the Sixers will be around the mark, to be honest. They just don't have the firepower, and they really don't have any shooting outside of Peter Crawford and the improving jumpshot of Gibbo. What they do have is a pretty damn good coach though. I still don't think it will be enough without a personnel change (which wouldn't be surprising early on.

My bet (with no certainty outside of Perth) is:

Perth
Melbourne
Townsville
NZ

Wollongong
Sydney
Cairns
Adelaide

I also think there will be very little separating 8th from 3rd place.

*if they DON'T play with the right indentity

sportsbet have Adelaide as the favourites for the wooden spoon too

Tend to disagree with the notion 36ers will not make top 4. a few changes off-season but the same coach and same core players generally minus Ervin and DJ. Melbourne to play finals, perth also, NZ and Cairns in the mix. I actually reckon will be a highly competitive season.

Mick you have summed it up extremely well...I especially agree with what you said about Perth and Melbourne. Good stuff!

1. Perth (will overcome a slow start to the season and complacency to finish on top)
2. Melbourne (with Anstey affecting their chances of a top place finish, talent alone will see them finish second)
3. NZ (a fit pledger and returning jackson will make the breakers a force again)
4. Townsville (good size, good shooters, fantastic coaching and fanatical defensive intensity its hard to keep the crocs out of my top four predictions)
5. Cairns (so much talent but can the snakes click as a team? Could be with a new coach by seasons end)
6. Sydney (not so much depth and a new coach will take time to implement game style)
7. Adelaide (joey knows what he's doing and will get the best out of this team)
8. Wollongong (will play an up tempo style which will suit ervin. But even with the addition of neville they lack rebounding strength)

Not much in the sides between 4-8

I think top 3 will be Melbourne, Perth & New Zealand and then the rest could go any which way

Im not quite sold on NZ to be honest,

They got Cedric Jackson back, which is huge, and a upgrade on Kerron Johnson, but is Ibekwe as good as Wilkinson?? i havnt seen much of Ibekwe so hard to judge, but i dont expect him to be as good, so as far as the import combo goes i see it as more or less of a break even, unless Ibekwe is as good or very close to Wilkinson, who is one of the better import bigs we have had in the NBL in recent years. Either way i dont see the imports as massive upgrades overall, even though Cedric is by far the best of the lot.

Im a fan of Corey Webster, but not sure he will have the year people are expecting, i think he will average somewhere around 13 pts tops, with a few big scoring games along the way, overall i think he is average in terms of starting sg's in the NBL, not the worst but no where near the best, unless he has a huge break out year, which not sure he will.

Abercrombie and Pledger missing time (potentially) with injury could also hurt them a fair bit.

Also not sure about there bench, maybe its my ignorance of some of there players, but Carter is the most proven of them (im also a big fan of his) and Wesley intrigues me, he could be really good, and there import big should be ok, but overall it lacks a shooter or 2 imo, and a touch top heavy with Carter as the only guard.

Having said all that i think they will be decent and in the group from 3rd to 6th, and to me they are of a similar level to last season. So yes they could come 3rd, but i dont see it as a lock like many are suggesting.

Anyway will be interesting to see, cant wait for the season.

Nathan Sobey is going to be a force in this league I feel.

I was trawling through his stats and looked at some film. Averaged 9.8ppg last season at Wyoming, but check out some of these massive games!:

33 points vs. Colorado State on 11-22FG 4-8 3PFG 7-9 FT

26 points vs Fresno State on 5-8FG and 15-17 FT

Not to mention various other 18 point, 16 point, 14 point games against the likes of New Mexico, Utah State, Boise State, UNLV.

This is how Boti has them finishing

1. Perth
2. Melbourne
3. Adelaide
4. Sydney
5. NZ
6. Townsville
7. Wollongong
8. Cairns

Source: http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/sport/basketball/nba-import-quality-and-returning-stars-from-europe-give-nbl-huge-boost-ahead-of-37th-season-next-week/story-fnii09gt-1227079299450

Maybe our man Air T isn't too far off the mark?!

Great to see im not the only one crazy enough to put Adelaide in the top 4!