Will changes help or hurt these NBA teams?
Some made off-season moves that might backfire

By Mike Baldwin Comments 0
Published: November 1, 2009

Changing one component sometimes can alter the entire picture.

The Thunder’s next four opponents all won more than 50 games last season. All four made at least one significant change.

NewsOK Related Articles

NBA Inside scoop: LeBron James' workout tour
11/01/2009 LeBron’s workout tour →LeBron James took Cavs assistant Chris Jent and assistant athletic trainer Mike Mancias with him on a 16-day, 10-city...
The art of the haircut
11/01/2009 The art of the haircut Ron Artest had the Lakers’ "L” logo shaved into the back of his head and "World Champions” in Chinese on...
They said it
11/01/2009 Kobe Bryant on receiving his ring last Tuesday "I’ve been through so much. We didn’t make the playoffs (in 2005). We went through...
Rockets by boat
11/01/2009 Rockets by boat Houston players lived a unique experience when they were forced to take a ferry to play the Warriors in Oakland after a cable snapped on the...
By the numbers
11/01/2009 Hollywood hangover Back-to-back games in Los Angeles have not been kind to the Mavericks. This past weekend marked the ninth time in franchise history Dallas...
Time to make a change
11/01/2009 Time to make a change 10 NBA off-season changes that could influence playoff races →Lakers: Defending champions sign Ron Artest, allow Trevor Ariza to...
Stephen Jackson hears boos
11/01/2009 Jackson hears boos Speculation continues to heat up that Stephen Jackson will be traded. It probably would be best for Jackson and Golden State since fans...

In each case, except one, the new player is projected to help produce another high seed that takes his team deep into the playoffs.

Portland, tonight’s opponent, added Andre Miller, an underrated point guard in Philadelphia.

It was assumed Miller would supplant Steve Blake as the starter. When that didn’t happen, Miller said he never would have signed with the Trail Blazers if he had known he would be coming off the bench.

Miller has since softened his stance. And there’s a chance he could crack the starting lineup at some point.

But it’s a reminder team chemistry sometimes can be as much a factor as talent.

If Miller gives the Trail Blazers an improved floor general, Portland could continue its gradual climb to a team capable of winning an NBA championship.

But if Miller doesn’t mesh well with a team that won 54 games, or there are internal issues, it can spoil a general manager’s best intentions.

That’s never more obvious than with the Lakers, who visit the Ford Center Tuesday night. The ultra talented but ultra controversial Ron Artest joins a Lakers team favored to win back-to-back titles.

If Kobe Bryant keeps Artest focused on the long-term goal, it gives the Lakers another option along with Pau Gasol, Lamar Odom and Andrew Bynum.

But if Artest turns into a locker-room problem, a team that should coast to the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference might have been better off re-signing Trevor Ariza.

Speaking of Ariza, he’s now playing for the Rockets, who host the Thunder Friday night in Houston. The Rockets will fall regardless of how Ariza plays simply because Yao Ming is out for the season and Tracy McGrady will be sidelined through at least November, possibly longer.

Ariza, though, is expected to replace a lot of what Artest provided last season with the Rockets. The key is how Ariza handles that responsibility after playing a lesser role with the Lakers.

The final team on the Thunder’s week-long tour of 50-win teams is Orlando, which plays in the Ford Center next Sunday night. The Magic reached the NBA Finals but opted to let Hedu Turkgolu leave, replacing him with Vince Carter.

Orlando’s core — Dwight Howard, Jameer Nelson and Rashard Lewis — remain the key players to the Magic trying to duplicate last year’s playoff run.

Lewis, though, will miss the first 10 games due to a suspension for steroids. That places even more pressure on Carter to produce immediately.

Nearly every team goes through roster changes. How quickly players mesh with new teammates can determine what kind of start, possibly what kind of season, a team has after undergoing off-season changes.