Southwest Preview

There was a lot of turnover in the bottom of the Southwest this summer. Most notably, the Hornets drafted Anthony Davis first overall and then took Austin Rivers tenth, giving them a promising core for the future. The Rockets signed Jeremy Lin, then used their three first-round picks on guys who will play for them right away. The Mavericks, after an awful title defense, signed O.J. Mayo and Darren Collison as backcourt upgrades. The two top dogs, San Antonio and Memphis, stood pat this offseason, as they believe they already have the talent to compete for a championship.

1. San Antonio Spurs
After two surprising runs as the West's regular season champions, the task is more difficult this year. The ageless trio of Duncan-Ginobli-Parker will win games this year with their chemistry, continuity and coaching. Their Big Three will be helped by the youth of Danny Green and Kawhi Leonard as well as the experience of Boris Diaw and Stephen Jackson. Dejaun Blair, Gary Neal and Matt Bonner will also see minutes as the Spurs need to have a deep team to rest their aging stars. They may not be the most fun team to watch (even though they were second in scoring last year), but Gregg Popovich will get the most out of every player and with him the Spurs are always a contender.

2. Memphis Grizzlies
After losing a heart-breaking series in the first round last season, the Grizzlies will be hungry to prove themselves as a top-four seed out West. Rudy Gay has only gotten better as the go-to-scorer in Memphis. Zach Randolph was never fully healthy last season. He will be needed for his scoring, rebounding and toughness. Point guard Mike Conley is another guy who keeps improving, he is capable of running the floor for this team. Shooting guard Tony Allen is valuable as he can shut down the opposing team's best scorer. But center Marc Gasol is the guy it starts with. He anchors the interior defense and his skilled passing and mid-range game allows Memphis to run the offense through him.The Grizzlies are a very solid team, but may be one player away from becoming a serious competitor in the West.

3. Dallas Mavericks
Mark Cuban could not have been happy with his beloved Mavs last year. They looked sluggish from the start and were promptly swept in the first round of the playoffs. Dirk Nowitzki is immortalized in Dallas, but last season he looked like a guy out of his prime. The Mavs got younger this summer. Replacing Jason Kidd and Jason Terry with Darren Collison and O.J. Mayo. But these Mavericks still don't' look like the perennial contenders of 2011 and before. They are old and build around an aging superstar. Rick Carlisle is one of the best coaches around, but there's not enough talent on the Mavs for them to be a serious contender.

 4. New Orleans Hornets
After "winning" the lottery and getting future star Anthony Davis, the Hornets have as bright a future as anybody this side of OKC. Austin Rivers and Eric Gordon are two talented scorers that will be fun to watch when on the court at the same time. Ryan Anderson was a nice pick-up. He is a three-point marksman who will also provide good rebounding. Expect Davis to be among the leaders in blocks this season. He is the most complete big man to enter the league since Duncan. Who knows where he will lead the Hornets this year and beyond?

5. Houston Rockets
They Rockets had an eventful offseason making a lot of moves that may have no real impact this year. They failed to get Dwight Howard and also let go of point guard Kyle Lowry. They did sign Jeremy Lin, but it's uncertain if he can sustain his play from Linsanity. With their three first-round picks, Houston drafted Jeremy Lamb, Terrence Jones and Royce White. Lamb was the best player available and he will score in the NBA. White can do a lot of things, but the Rockets will have to work around his fear of flying. Kevin Martin is still there. He's lead the Rockets in scoring for the past few years and will likely do so again. Chandler Parsons showed good things as a rookie last year. But with a frontcourt lead by Omer Asik, the Rockets could be cellar dwelling in the West.

We finish the divisional previews with the Northwest. Stay posted.