2009-2010 NBA Central Division Season Preview

Welcome to the best and most complete 2009-2010 NBA Central Division Season Preview available online. The teams that make up our 2009-2010 NBA Central Season Preview are the are the Chicago Bulls, Cleveland Cavaliers, Detroit Pistons, Indiana Pacers and Milwaukee Bucks.

The Cleveland Cavaliers are expected by everyone to own the Central Division this season. The pairing of LeBron James and Shaquille O’Neal is grabbing all the headlines in the NBA this season. The Cavs now have two of the biggest personalities in all of professional sports and should create a Hollywood vibe in the city of Cleveland this year.

While the media focuses on the star studded Cavs, Derrick Rose the 2009 Rookie of the Year winner, hopes to put the Chicago Bulls on his shoulders and build upon his exceptional rookie season. The Bulls are gaining experience with their young talent, and should be a playoff contender in April, but if that is the Cavs toughest competition in the Central division, expect Cleveland to runaway with the crown easily.

The Central Division is no longer the most talented division in the Eastern Conference. The Detroit Pistons used to be the model of consistency in the East, but the 2009-2010 season will be a rebuilding year with the departures of Rasheed Wallace and Chauncey Billups. But good news for Pistons fans because they are in the Central, and the Indiana Pacers and Milwaukee Bucks have two of the worst rosters in the NBA.

The bottom line in the 2009-2010 Central Division will be how good LeBron James and Shaquille O’Neal will be. Without any threat within the division, Cleveland should be able to lock up the #1 seed in the East which will be a great advantage in May and June when they face either the Orlando Magic or Boston Celtics for a chance at the trip to the NBA Finals.

2009 Cleveland Cavaliers Season Preview

The Cavs posted the best record in the league last year, winning 66 games and going 39-2 at home, and proved profitable on the betting lines, going 50-32 ATS. Also, as Cleveland games averaged 192 total points, fifth-fewest in the league, the over /unders went 36-45. But after sweeping through their first two playoff series, Cleveland couldn’t close the deal, falling to Orlando in the Eastern Conference Finals. Despite all the ink the great LeBron gets, the Cavs are mainly a defensive-minded squad. Last season they led the league in FG defense and scoring defense, and ranked third in rebounding. But they just didn’t have the answers in that playoff series defeat This off-season, in search of the missing ingredient, Cleveland traded for a 37-year-old Shaquille O’Neal, added F Jamario Moon and G Anthony Parker, and signed F Leon Powe – although the former Celtic is recovering from a torn ACL and probably won’t be ready to go until well after the new year. They’ll join the cast that includes a nice guard combo in Mo Williams and Delonte West, 7-foot-3 backup C Zydrunas IIgauskas (13 PPG, B RPG), and defending league MVP James (28 PPG, 8 RPG, 7 APG). However, unless LJ signs an extension with the Cavs before the season starts, they’ll have to put up with the constant speculation about his future with the team and that could be a real headache. At the moment, though, it’s all about going all the way for Cleveland, and they must be considered serious contenders for the conference and league crowns.

(Cleveland Cavaliers +120 to win the NBA championship at BetUS)

Cleveland Cavaliers 2009 Season Previews – Cleveland Cavaliers 2009 Season Schedule

2009 Chicago Bulls Season Preview

A couple of years ago, the Bulls appeared ready to challenge once again in the Eastern Conference. Then they went 33-49 in 2007-08. Then they got lucky and won G Derrick Rose in the draft lottery. Last year, Chicago hamand-egged its way to 41-41 before losing that epic seven game first-round series to the defending champion Celtics. Notable to bettors, Bulls games averaged 205 points last season, eighth-most in the league, and the totals went 43- 37. So Chicago appears to be right back where it started three years ago: a team with promise, going up against the big boys of the East. Rose was great as a rookie last year (17 PPG, 6 APG), and his numbers alone don’t tell the whole story, And Chicago made a nice in-season acquisition when they picked up 3-man John Salmons (and C Brad Miller) in a trade with Sacramento, a move that helped them finish the regular season on a 12-4 run. However, SF Luol Deng saw his numbers drop for the second straight season, and as of mid-August, he had still not recovered fully from a shin fracture suffered last February. The Bulls took a hit when G Ben Gordon, the team’s leading scorer the last four seasons, defected to division rival Detroit in free agency, Forwards Joakim Noah and Tyrus Thomas together averaged 18 points and 14 boards PG last year, but need to pick up that production. Winning the Central will be a tough task, but the goal this year is to get a top-four seed so they don’t have to playa postseason Game 7 on the road.

(Chicago Bulls +2500 to win the NBA championship at BetUS)

Chicago Bulls 2009 Season Preview – Chicago Bulls 2009 Season Schedule

2009 Detroit Pistons Season Preview

Any hopes the Pistons had last year for an eighth-straight 50-win season and a seventh consecutive conference finals appearance came to an end when – just two games into the campaign – they traded G Chauncey Billups to Denver for Allen Iverson. Detroit actually started 21-11, but went just 18-39 the rest of the way, and got swept out of the playoffs in the first round by Cleveland. Also, while the Pistons had gone a combined 88-74 vs the point spreads over the two previous regular seasons, they gave those profits back by going 34-48 ATS last year. And even though Detroit played the second-lowest scoring games in the league last season. at 189 points per, the totals only leaned toward the unders by a 41-39 margin. This off-season the Pistons dumped head coach Michael Curry after just one season, eventually replacing him with longtime former assistant but first-time head coach John Kuester. They raided the rosters of a couple of division rivals te grab G Ben Gordon (21 PPG, 41 % from 3-point rang) and F Charlie Villanueva (16 PPG. 7 RPG). In an effort to plug a hole in the middle, they resigned Ben Wallace, although we wonder how much the 35-year-old has left in the tank. And they’ve still got Richard Hamilton and Tayshaun Prince. But Rodney Stuckey’s 2.2 A/TO ratio at the point and his 44% FG shooting need improvement. The imports should help, and the Pistons have a good shot at the playoffs again, but they’re not the conference title contenders they once were.

(Detroit Pistons +2500 to win the NBA championship at BetUS)

Detroit Pistons 2009 Season Preview – Detroit Pistons 2009 Season Schedule

2009 Indiana Pacers Season Preview

From 1989 to 2006, the Pacers missed the playoffs exactly once. Now, after going 36-46 for the second straight year under coach Jim O’Brien, they’ve missed the playoffs three seasons in a row. Somehow, though, Indiana went 44-36 ATS and, as Pacers games averaged 211 points, fourth-most in the league, the totals went 45-34. Indiana also posted one of the largest home/ road differentials in the league, going 25-16 at Conseco Fieldhouse and 11-30 away from it. On one end of the court, the Pacers put up 105 PPG last year, as F Danny Granger led six Indiana shooters who averaged more than 13 PPG by ranking fifth in the league in scoring, with 26 PPG. F Troy Murphy had his best year of his three with the team (14 PPG, 12 RPG). But, two of those six double-figures scorers, G Jarrett Jack and F Marquis Daniels, are now gone, and a third, G Mike Dunleavy, is rehabbing from knee surgery and likely won’t be back until January at soonest. Meanwhile, on the other end of the court, Indiana allowed 106 PPG last year, fifth-most in the league, as opponents shot 46% from the floor. So, there’s plenty of room for improvement there. The Pacers drafted North Carolina F Tyler Hansbrough at #13 overall, and he and other youngsters like C Roy Hibbert and G Brandon Rush are going to be relied upon for minutes and production. If PG T J Ford can stay healthy, Indiana could make a run at the playoffs this year.

(Indiana Pacers +3500 to win the NBA championship at BetUS)

Indiana Pacers 2009 Season Preview – Indiana Pacers 2009 Season Schedule

2009 Milwaukee Bucks Season Preview

The Bucks wandered their way to 34-48 last year and missed the playoffs for the third season in a row. It didn’t help that G Michael Redd missed 49 games and C Andrew Boqut 46, but that’s just the way it’s been around there recently. Milwaukee actually hovered around .500 through January, then lost 19 of its last 26 games. They did, however, manage to go 41-39 vs the point spreads. And as Bucks games averaged 200 points per last year, 14th most in the league, the totals went 44-37. One thing they can say about their first season under coach Scott Skiles, though, is that they improved their FG defense from ranking 29th in the league at 48% to 16th at 46%. Then came the off-season, where the Bucks lost F Charlie Villanueva (16 PPG, 7 RPG) to division-rival Detroit in free agency, and traded F Richard Jefferson to San Antonio in a cost-cutting move. As of late August, it appeared unlikely Milwaukee would retain G Ramon Sessions (12 PPG, 6 APG). They signed F Hakim Warrick (12 PPG at Memphis), drafted PG Brandon Jennings at #10 overall, and might have gotten lucky when SG Jodie Meeks fell to them at #41. For the time being, though, former Oregon Duck Luke Ridnour looks like the starter at the point. If the Bucks continue to make strides on defense, and if some of the youngsters can step up into production roles – and if Redd and Bogut can stay healthy – the Bucks could make a run at a lower-rung playoff spot. But that’s a lot of ‘ifs’.