20. Milwaukee Bucks (20): The Bucks disappointed me more than any team this season. They came into the year with an awesome “Fear the Deer” campaign, and with Brandon Jennings at the helm – they were poised to be one of the league’s most exciting young teams. However, injuries and a failure to live up to the 09-10 instilled hype, ultimately pushed them off the deep end.
19. Phoenix Suns (18): They had a shot at the eighth seed in the West for quite sometime, but losing 14 of their last 23 games derailed any chance they had at slipping into the playoffs. They’ll surely go into the offseason looking for ways to revamp their early 00’s all-star clad roster (Vince Carter, Grant Hill, Steve Nash), but with Marcin Gortat displaying some monster potential down the stretch, they might not be so far off from a return to playoff contention.
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18. Golden State Warriors (21): Having been eliminated from the playoffs, it’s time for the Warriors to get into offseason mode. They need a frontcourt compliment to David Lee more than anything, and if they can somehow acquire a big, bruising body to accompany him in the paint, they will surely become a team to be reckoned with in 2011-12. However, for now, all the players can do is finish out the season and enjoy their summer break.
17. Indiana Pacers (16): Indiana might be the first team to go in the playoffs. They are easily the worst team in the postseason this year (an unofficial award annually assigned to whoever finishes as the eighth seed in the East) and are already set for a first round matchup against the Bulls. Darren Collison is a decent point guard, but he’s no match for likely-MVP Derrick Rose.
16. Philadelphia 76ers (15): The Sixers still have a shot a stealing the sixth seed, and if they can somehow leapfrog the Knicks into that spot, they will likely be matched up with the Celtics in the first round. And at this point, Philly will be much better off facing a team like the Celtics, who are prone to losing when facing teams with young, high-energy rosters.
Next: 15-11