2014-15 NBA Predictions
As you know, the NBA season began last night. However, we decided to release our predictions today marking our ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY. Thanks for your continued support over the last year and thank you in advance for your support in our second year! Feel free to comment with your own opinions, as these are simply ours. Without further ado, we present our 2014- 2015 NBA Season Predictions:
EAST | ||
Place | Sam Breiter | Brett Malamud |
1 | Cleveland Cavaliers | Cleveland Cavaliers |
2 | Chicago Bulls | Chicago Bulls |
3 | Toronto Raptors | Washington Wizards |
4 | Indiana Pacers | Toronto Raptors |
5 | Washington Wizards | Miami Heat |
6 | New York Knicks | New York Knicks |
7 | Brooklyn Nets | Charlotte Hornets |
8 | Charlotte Hornets | Brooklyn Nets |
Bubble Team (9th) | Atlanta Hawks | Atlanta Hawks |
ECF | Cleveland Cavaliers vs New York Knicks | Cleveland Cavaliers vs Chicago Bulls |
West | ||
Place | Sam Breiter | Brett Malamud |
1 | L.A. Clippers | San Antonio Spurs |
2 | San Antonio Spurs | Oklahoma City Thunder |
3 | Dallas Mavericks | Golden State Warriors |
4 | Oklahoma City Thunder | L.A.Clippers |
5 | Houston Rockets | Portland Trail Blazers |
6 | Portland Trail Blazers | Houston Rockets |
7 | Phoenix Suns | Dallas Mavericks |
8 | L.A. Lakers | Phoenix Suns |
Bubble Team (9th) | New Orleans Pelicans | Minnesota Timberwolves |
WCF | L.A. Clippers vs. Dallas Mavericks | Golden State Warriors vs. San Antonio Spurs |
Champion and Awards | ||
Sam Breiter | Brett Malamud | |
FINALS | Cleveland Cavaliers vs LA Clippers | Cleveland Cavaliers vs. San Antonio Spurs |
Champion | Cleveland Cavaliers | Cleveland Cavaliers |
Defensive POY | Dwight Howard | Joakim Noah |
Rookie of the Year | Andrew Wiggins | Andrew Wiggins |
Coach of the Year | Doc Rivers | Gregg Popovich |
Most Improved | Tim Hardaway Jr. | Anthony Bennett |
MVP | Blake Griffin | LeBron James |
Sixth Man of the Year | Isaiah Thomas | Jamal Crawford |
2014 NHL Free Agency Preview
By Brett Malamud
Forwards
Thomas Vanek- 30 Years Old- LW (2013-14: 27 G, 41 A, 68 Pts.)
Possible Destinations: Wild
Vanek has narrowed his list to “4 or 5 teams” and I’d be shocked if the final decision wasn’t Minnesota.
Jarome Iginla- 36 Years Old- RW (2013-14: 30 G, 31 A, 61 Pts.)
Possible Destinations: Bruins, Wild, Canucks, Red Wings, Lightning
Unless Iginla decides that he’ll take a pay cut to return to Boston, I’m not quite sure how the Bruins will find salary cap space to sign him. This should be an exciting bidding war.
Paul Stastny- 28 Years Old- C (2013-14: 25 G, 35 A, 60 Pts.)
Possible Destinations: Blues, Predators, Maple Leafs, Red Wings, Avalanche
Speaking of bidding wars, the most pursued free agent out there is none other than Paul Stastny. Stastny grew up in St. Louis and so the Blues are certainly intriguing. I think that they’ll make a good offer. Colorado would like to keep him but could very well be outbid by a team that’ll overpay for him.
Matt Moulson- 30 Years Old- LW (2013-14: 23 G, 28 A, 51 Pts.)
Possible Destinations: Islanders, Sabres, Senators, Stars, Predators
Let’s get this out of the way: Don’t doubt a Moulson return to Long Island. The 30 year old still remains close with one of his best friends John Tavares. Moulson loved being an Islander. Isles GM Garth Snow made his mistake when he dealt Moulson to Buffalo for Thomas Vanek, who told the team a few months later that he wouldn’t re-sign. I’m sure Tavares will be chirping in Snow’s ear.
Mike Ribeiro- 34 Years Old- C (2013-14: 16 G, 31 A, 52 Pts.)
Possible Destinations: Flames, Blackhawks, Predators
The Coyotes bought out Ribeiro for his behavior off the ice. Should be interesting to see who will take a chance on him.
Daniel Alfredsson- 41 Years Old- RW (2013-14: 18 G, 31 A, 49 Pts.)
Possible Destinations: Red Wings
Alfredsson has indicated that his two options are the Detroit Red Wings and retirement.
Defensemen
Matt Niskanen- 27 Years Old- (2013-14: 10 G, 36 A, 46 Pts.)
Possible Destinations: Wild, Islanders, Capitals, Lightning,
Niskanen is the top all around defenseman on the market in my opinion. The Lightning cleared a ton of cap space and I think signing Niskanen is the reason why they did.
Dan Boyle- 37 Years Old- (2013-14: 12 G, 24 A, 36 Pts.)
Possible Destinations: Islanders, Lightning, Rangers, Canadiens, Red Wings, Maple Leafs
Boyle’s rights were traded to the Islanders, but they couldn’t nail down a deal so he’ll hit the FA market. His age will effect his contract so don’t expect anyone to break the bank on Boyle.
Christian Ehrhoff- 31 Years Old- (2013-14: 6 G, 27 A, 33 Pts.) Possible Destinations: Islanders, Lightning, Red Wings
Ehrhoff was bought out of his remaining seven years of his 10-year deal with Buffalo. Detroit showed a lot of interest at the trade deadline, so keep an eye on them.
Michael Del Zotto- 24 Years Old- (2013-14: 3 G, 13 A, 16 Pts.)
Possible Destinations: Islanders, Maple Leafs
Del Zotto was not given a qualifying offer by the Nashville Predators, making him an unrestricted free agent. The question with Del Zotto is: can this be a good value pickup? He won’t get paid as much as the others, so a low spending team like the Islanders may take a good look at him.
Brooks Orpik- 33 Years Old- (2013-14: 2 G, 1 A, 13 Pts.)
Possible Destinations: Islanders, Capitals, Blues, Sabres
If you notice, the Islanders were listed on each of the defensemen’s free agents possible destinations. Yes, they need a defenseman and so they’ll look at each one. I believe that they should sign Orpik but don’t think they will. He has a blistering shot and is a force on defense. A hard hitter, Orpik will be a good fit wherever he goes.
Goaltenders
Jonas Hiller- 32 Years Old- (2013-14: 29-13, 5 SO, 2.48 GAA)
Possible Destinations: Lightning, Jets, Canucks
This is a rough spot for Hiller here, sharing the market with Brodeur, Miller and Nabokov. But he could go to a team such as the Lightning and Jets who have a shaky situation when it comes to a plan B in net.
Martin Brodeur- 42 Years Old- (2013-14: 19-14, 3 SO, 2.51 GAA)
Possible Destinations: Maple Leafs, Devils, Lightning, Bruins, Blackhawks, Penguins
Instead of retiring, Brodeur will explore his options outside of New Jersey. I don’t expect him to be signed on the first day of free agency.
Ryan Miller- 33 Years Old- (2013-14: 15-22, 3 SO, 2.72 GAA)
Possible Destinations: Canucks, Sharks
Miller already met with Vancouver officials and my belief is that he’ll be signed by them.
Evgeni Nabokov- 38 Years Old- (2013-14: 15-14, 4 SO, 2.74 GAA)
Possible Destinations: Islanders, Capitals, Flyers
Another interesting signing will be Nabokov. He wasn’t close on a deal with the Isles and so he’ll go out to free agency. The Capitals need a backup for Braden Holtby. Philly is over the cap and so I think Nabokov will end up with the Caps.
Brett Malamud is a Computer Science Major at Binghamton University. He is the co-founder of dabuzzza.com. His favorite athletes are Derek Jeter and Todd Bertuzzi. You can follow him on twitter at @brettnyy
MLB Staff Picks
The smell of peanuts and cracker jacks is in the air. After 152 days since the Red Sox walked off the field as champions, baseball is back. Our picks are in for this year’s fall classic. Here they are:
Writer |
Pick |
Brett Malamud |
I’m taking the Yankees over the Dodgers. Both teams have proven this offseason that they want to win now. The Yankees unloaded after missing the playoffs by opening their checkbook and spending close to $500 million. The additions of Jacoby Ellsbury, Carlos Beltran, Brian McCann, and Masahiro Tanaka immediately make the Yankees a legitimate threat. But don’t think they’re the only team spending the big bucks. The Dodgers passed the Yankees for the MLB’s highest payroll, ending the Yankees 15 year streak, by spending $235 million this season. All and all I’d say Derek Jeter better start spreading the news that his final season will end with a ticker tape parade down the Canyon of Heroes. |
Sam Breiter |
As an extremely optimistic Mets fan with nothing but the highest expectations, I’m always going to take my team. So along with my Mets, I’m taking the rival Yankees. The Mets have young talent in there rotation, and a growing lineup. They may make a huge move by the deadline, and Zach Wheeler will suprise people this year. Yankees, because they spent money this offseason and are clearly doing anything to win a year after missing the playoffs |
Dan Lagnado |
In the NL I’ll take the Dodgers and in the AL I’ll take Detroit. Dodgers win a six game series behind Kershaw and Greinke who each win two games |
Josh Halilej |
Tigers over Cardinals. Lots of solid pitching between the two of them. I think Justin Verlander comes back big this year and comes out as the Tigers’ #1 with Rick Porcello having an awesome year too finishing ahead of Max Scherzer in the pitching rotation. The Cards are going to need Yadier Molina to manage the pitching staff well, but they just don’t have the overall offensive firepower that Detroit does with the addition of Ian Kinsler. Watch out for the Rangers though if they can have someone aside from Yu Darvish step up in their rotation. |
Seth Schuster |
Red Sox over Dodgers. Only a little bit of bias plays into this one…Both are great teams with amazing young talent. With the recent resurgence of John Lackey, John Lester, a healthy Clay Buchholz, and a young and very talented Xander Bogaerts, the Red Sox will be the 2014 World Series Champions. With the leadership of David Ortiz, Dustin Pedroia, and Mike Napoli, look for the Sox to make a push for the repeat. |
Ben Ozur |
Rays vs Dodgers. There’s no explanation for why the Rays are good every year, but the undeniable fact is that they are. However nobody is on the Dodgers level in terms of overall talent. Despite multiple holes including infield depth and major league ready pitchers in the minors, their superstar talent everywhere else will cover that up. |
Ryan Gillman |
Dodgers over Tigers. The Dodgers are armed with a wealth of talent and the largest payroll in history. Anything less than a championship would be a disappointment. |
Sam Iryami |
Nationals vs Tigers. Nationals win. The Nationals have the best pitching rotation in baseball with the front four being Stephen Strasburg, Gio Gonzalez, Jordan Zimmermann, and Doug Fister. Pitching wins games. Although the Tigers have a great all around team, the team is full of veterans. However, they are definitely a contender for the World Series because of their many stars such as Justin Verlander, Miguel Cabrera, Ian Kinsler, and Max Scherzer. Both teams have unbelievable pitching and hitting, but I have the Nationals taking home the trophy in this one. |
Zach Pokorny |
Dodgers vs Angels, but I’d pick the Angels because Mike Trout is amazing |

Derek Jeter has one last season in his hall of fame career and will make the most of it (Via Sabo News)
We hope everyone enjoys Opening Day and stays locked in to Dabuzzza here and on our twitter page this MLB season. We know we will.