Orlando Magic (30-35, 8th in the East)
Orlando has not clinched a playoff spot, but only the Washington Wizards or the Brooklyn Nets could leap them in the playoffs. Orlando has been a team stuck in the middle of the pack in the East the last few years, but are currently a much stronger team than either the Wizards or Nets.
Orlando's core of Nikola Vucevic, Aaron Gordon, and Evan Fournier should be enough to carry them to the 8th seed. Beyond that, I'm not too sure. Fournier, in particular, has been a pleasant surprise this season, averaging a career-high 18.8 PPG on 47/40 shooting splits. Vucevic has continued to be an old school big man who still can stretch the floor a little, and Aaron Gordon is still at least solid. What could help the Magic win a game in the playoffs would be F Jonathan Isaac being able to suit up. Isaac was having his best season before going down with an injury. Isaac is a versatile defender who can guard wings and bigs due to his length and quickness and is definitely a bright spot on this team.
Both Isaac and former number 1 pick Markelle Fultz have missed the Magic's first scrimmage game and it is questionable how much they will play during the bubble. Fultz hasn't been amazing or anything this year but was at least on the court (which is more than can be said for most of his career). Fultz should be an upgrade over veterans DJ Augustin and Michael Carter-Williams, but it may be closer than most people realize.
While not stars, both Terrence Ross and Mo Bamba deserve a mention. Ross have carved out a good role in Orlando as a volume shooter who can heat up at any given time off the bench. Apparently, Bamba has packed on a decent amount of muscle during quarantine and is still an intriguing player due to his skillset.
BEST CASE: MAKE THE PLAYOFFS AND WIN 1 GAME
WORST CASE: INJURIES OR CONDITIONING MAKE KEY PLAYERS MISS TIME, NO PLAYOFFS
Portland Trailblazers (29-37, 9th in the West)
After last season's playoff success, it seemed like Damian Lillard and the Blazers were destined to be in the West's upper echelon in 2019-20. It hasn't turned out that way at all.
Lillard and CJ McCollum continue their run as a top 2 backcourt in the NBA offensively, but Portland is near the bottom of the league in almost every defensive category. Losing Al-Farouq Aminu and Maurice Harkless this offseason has left Portland with a lack of toughness on the defensive end. Lillard, McCollum and Carmelo Anthony are all below average on that end at this point of their careers, Hassan Whiteside is averaging 3.1 BPG but hasn't traditionally been thought of as even a good defender, and the Blazers seem to be grasping at straws by hoping Trevor Ariza can still be a valuable contributor. Portland's bench also took quite the hit by losing both Rodney Hood and Zach Collins due to injury. I don't think they can rely on Anfrenee Simons, Gary Trent Jr., Nassir Little, or Mario Hezonja to make any type of major impact in the bubble.
Portland is in luck with Collins returning and C Jusuf Nurkic has also surprisingly rejoined the team in Orlando. Nurkic has not played since 2018-19 due to injury, but when he last played he was a monster. In just 27 MPG in '18-19, Nurkic averaged 15.6 PPG, 10.4 RPG, 3.2 APG, and just over 1 steal and 1 block per game. We don't know if he will be fully ready for a full-time role just yet, but Nurkic's return gives some hope for the Blazers this year.
Despite some negatives. Damian Lillard has had a monster year, and can singlehandedly keep the Blazers in any game. I personally feel that Memphis and New Orleans will be a bigger threat in the bubble than Portland, but Dame is the x-factor. The future could still be bright for Portland, but they will still need to add a little more depth to reach the same heights they did last year.
BEST CASE SCENARIO: SNEAK IN TO THE PLAYOFFS
WORST CASE: LOSE MORE PLAYERS TO INJURY AND MISS THE PLAYOFFS
San Antonio Spurs (27-36, 12th in the West)
San Antonio is a long shot to make the playoffs this season, but they haven't missed the playoffs since 1996-97. That's insane. Gregg Popovich is one of the premier coaching minds in any sport and will keep this team at least somewhat competitive.
With LaMarcus Aldridge out for the remainder of the season after surgery, the Spurs will have to rely on DeMar DeRozan to carry them. I debated dropping the Spurs down a tier just due to losing Aldridge, but there are still a few things to like here. DeRozan seems like he is from a different era now based on his playstyle, but he does have a lot of experience which should help the Spurs in bigger moments. San Antonio also has a few intriguing young players such as DeJounte Murray, Lonnie Walker IV, Jakob Poeltl, and Derrick White. Murray seems poised to take a leap sometime soon, White has been just solid this year, and Walker and Poeltl just need more playing time to prove themselves.
Despite some positives, the Spurs have been pretty bad (especially on defense) for the most of year. Unless a few of the younger players step up, it's hard to see this team contending for a playoff spot. I would still bank on Popovich having a few old tricks up his sleeve.
BEST CASE: POP'S LAST HURRAH, SAN ANTONIO IS THE 8TH SEED
WORSE CASE: YOUNG GUNS DON'T STEP UP, DEROZAN ALONE ISN'T ENOUGH TO CARRY THEM
That brings us to an end for part 5. The conclusion of the series is part 6 which is essentially the "what the hell are we doing here?" teams. This should be fun.
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