Young teams with depth should benefit from the compacted 66-game NBA schedule. Here are three teams with that makeup that could exceed expectations this year: Minnesota Timberwolves » The Wolves will rely heavily on their youth — Ricky Rubio (21), Wesley Johnson (24), Michael Beasley (22), Kevin Love (23) and Derrick Williams (20). But being young doesn’t necessarily mean this team is inexperienced. Love and Beasley are both entering their fourth season in the league. Love is coming off an All-Star year in which he led the NBA in rebounding (15.2 a game). And Beasley averaged a career-high 19.2 points a game in 2010-11.
Indiana Pacers » The Pacers were the No. 8 seed in the East last season and desperately needed another scoring option opposite of small forward Danny Granger, who averaged a team-high 20.5 points a game last year. So the Pacers signed All-Star power forward David West, who has averaged more than 18 points a game the last five seasons. The move has made Indiana deep and versatile in the frontcourt with West, Tyler Hansbrough, Roy Hibbert and Jeff Foster.
Denver Nuggets » The Nuggets aren’t just a playoff team, they are a Western Conference contender. They may lack an All-Star on their roster, but there isn’t a deeper team in the league. Without drop-off at any position from the first to second unit, coach George Karl will have a lot of lineup options at his disposal. To take advantage of its depth, Denver must push the tempo — something that shouldn’t be a problem with Ty Lawson or Andre Miller at the point.
– Jeffrey Tomik
