Since the start of the season, six NBA teams have still to achieve 15 wins by mid January and no matter how much people say that it’s still too early to say, it doesn’t require a crystal ball to foresee that these outfits will not make the playoffs this year. So what lies ahead for each team? Is there light at the end of their tunnel?

Of the six, the Charlotte Bobcats are the only ones, who can get an exemption from scrutiny. The expansion team is still in the "Work in progress" mould. Of the other five, two have been labelled with the "rebuilding" moniker (Boston and Atlanta), one (Philadelphia) has taken huge steps towards being known as a rebuilding team by trading Allen Iverson and jettisoning Chris Webber, and the last two (Memphis and Sacramento) are not in rebuild mode although they should be.

Let's examine each of these six teams:

We’re still only an expansion team:

Charlotte Bobcats: (12-24): The Bobcats have taken baby steps each year, and it has been the correct approach. Nobody said it would be an easy road going from expansion to title contender. They have also decided to take the slow approach where you don’t sign big-name free agents, you don’t go trading away your cap space for some trouble making ex-All-Star (like an Iverson). You draft talented young players and you pray that some day they’ll grow up to be a cohesive competitive unit.

Well, we’re still at the praying phase. This team has a promising young nucleus with Sean May, Gerald Wallace, Emeka Okafor, Raymond Felton and Adam Morrison and they have a bunch of well-travelled veterans who can take these young guys under their wing. This makes them no better than the Clippers teams from the days when Donald Sterling was unwilling to pay any player above the going rate for a rookie salary. There has also the problem of a fanbase that is not patient enough. Unlike most expansion teams, the Bobcats came to a city that recently had an NBA team (the Charlotte Hornets), and that team left the city when it actually had a shot at the playoffs. These fans are used to that. We’re hearing more and more that Bobcats fans are being turned off by all the losses.

What’s in store for next season? Much of the same unless they win the number one pick in the draft. With a legit center like expected number one pick Greg Oden they would ship one of their two talented power forwards for a value player and in this Eastern Conference that would be enough to make them playoff challengers.

Where will they be five years from now? There are two scenarios. 1. GM Bernie Bickerstaff sticks to the plan and builds totally through the draft. In this case they would become the first team to have nine lottery picks on their roster, they would be so far over the salary cap that this season’s Knicks would look like a cheap sell, and they should be in the hunt for a playoff spot. The second scenario has them aborting the aforementioned plan and picking up a veteran All-Star for cap space and a few talented youngsters, by year five the veteran would be well on the decline and Charlotte (after a couple of years in the playoffs) would get back into the lottery.

In the middle of the dreaded long rebuilding project:

Atlanta Hawks (12-23): There was hope early on in the season. The Hawks enjoyed a hot start before beginning to regain their form last year. That hot start has shown that they may be going in the right direction, although their recent slumps have shown, that they are still a long way from where they want to be.

Joe Johnson’s price may have been steep, but the returns are getting sweeter as this guy gets more comfortable in the league. The drafting of the Josh duo (Smith and Childress) have proven to be a shrewd move as well. After that, however, the problems start to pile up. Number one pick Marvin Willims has failed miserably to live up to the expectations that come with being such a high draftee. Their point guard situation is starting to become a bigger mess than it ever was, they have no genuine powerful big men. They did make the most of a shallow draft last year by nabbing Duke alum Shelden Williams who will be a nice sixth man someday (too bad this team is still lacking starters). So we can all see that this team is on the right track, they are too far at the beginning to know just how bright their future could be. Considering that the Hawks have been in rebuild mode for much of the past six years, the feeling you get each year is that they are just getting started.

What’s in store for next season? Even with Oden and this team will still not be good enough to make a playoff run even in a weak Eastern Conference. I predict that management issues will finally be settled which means we’re going to see many moves in the offseason and a different team next year.

Where will they be five years from now? It all depends on who wins the management battle. If they keep Joe Johnson, they will at least have a challenger for the league’s scoring title. As for anything else, too much depends on just how good Marvin Williams will turn out to be. Five years is not nearly enough to give up on the guy.

Boston Celtics (12-25): ‘What is Danny Ainge thinking?’ This question has become just as known as the classics like ‘Where is Waldo?’ and ‘Where in the world is Carmen Sandiego?’. Danny has a legit Superstar in Paul Pierce. He’s taken over a team that looked like it had the necessary one-two punch (Pierce and Antoine Walker) to challenge for a title. So what does a guy do in this situation? Y’all know the answer! It’s time to R-E-B-U-I-L-D!!! The word that immediately lures thousands of fans to your arena (not!), and gives you the opportunity to become instant conteders (double not!). Since then the once fabled Celtics have been awful, Paul Pierce looks like he has finally had enough, and they never challenged, not even in the downright dreadful Atlantic Division. Ainge even had the chance to reevaluate is decision when Walker was ‘loaned’ back to him in his first season and Boston put together a miraculous finish to make the playoffs. Has it begun to dawn on Danny by now, that he broke up a potent All-Star duo? I’m not quite sure he understands that yet. Anyways this team is talented enough now to have you believe that they can be good. There’s enough raw talent for each position, and then there’s Pierce as well who is taking all of this like a man as he has yet to ask for a trade.

What’s in store for next season? Barring the possibility of them getting Oden, we’ll be seeing much of the same. The Celts have gotten to the point where they have to decide which way they are heading. A decision has to be made whether Gerald Green is good enough to lead them. If the answer is yes, build around Green trade Pierce for some much needed parts and get that rebuilding project going on full. If not, trade him for a veteran star while he still has a high value. Somehow I feel Ainge will do none of the above, and Boston will replicate this season’s performance.

Where will they be five years from now? I’m making a bold prediction here. I’m saying Ainge continues his antics for three more years and with no real improvement ownership finally decides to part with him. Ironically enough whoever replaces him will rely on the nucleus of young players that Danny has assembled and they will have a pretty successful playoff run five years from now.

Our vote goes for rebuilding the team:

Philadelphia 76ers (10-28): With the Allen Iverson trade and the Chris Webber buyout finalised, Philadelphia is officially switching to rebuild mode. Due to the fact that Iverson was such a ball dominator, the 76ers will need to use the remainder of the season to see who is worthy of staying on the roster. Samuel Dalembert has to prove that he is as good a centre as scouts believed he could be, Andre Iguodala has to prove that he is that rare talent the team can build around. Kyle Korver has to show that he’s more than just a spot up shooter. Then there’s the question of Andre Miller. He is a true point guard, who early on in his career even beat John Stockton to an assist title. Does he figure in the team’s plans? We and the team will have half a season to find the answers to these questions.

What’s in store for next season? I think Billy King has had enough of people calling him the worst GM in the east. His lack of bold moves can truly be held to the account that Iverson and Webber’s contract gave him no flexibility at all. I believe he will be active in the offseason and he will make the harshest moves if necessary. That means trading Iguodala and Miller and getting a mixture of young talent and veteran know-how. It’s going to be a bumpy ride as Philly fans will get their first taste of a full season without Iverson.

Where will they be five years from now? Who knows? If you’ve read the predictions for next season you can see that we can’t be sure about that let alone the more distant future. One thing is certain though, if the 76ers don’t show any signs of developing a winning mentality within the next two seasons King will be gone.

Read my lips: We’re not rebuilding!!! (Ok, maybe we are)

Memphis Grizzlies (9-30): This is what a serious injury to your lone star player will do to a team. The coach (Mike Fratello) has been sacked, the team has the worst record in the league. Add to this an as-yet unsettled possible ownership change and Memphis is in total disarray. The worst part is, with no end in sight for the ownership question management can’t move players, unless the only reward is decreasing the payroll. Thus the one thing they can do at this moment is either ride out the seeason as is, or shoot themselves in the foot, and then ride out the season as is. What hurts the most is that they have some pretty good assets as far as trade options go. Pau Gasol (the star player) is a hot commodity despite the broken foot he suffered in this summer’s world championships. They have a bunch of young talents that could be shipped for a serviceable number two star. They have the huge expiring contracts of veteran players (eg Eddie Jones) to offer as cap relief. Yet they can’t get a deal done due to the pending ownership change. The lone positive of their season is interim coach Tony Barone, who has at least implemented a game style that makes this team one of the most fun to watch.

What’s in store for next season? If ever there was a situation where I had to say ‘I don’t know’ well this is it. There’s no clue to what will happen to this team in the next two hours let alone a season from now. One thing is certain though, the longer the ownership takeover takes, the worse their season will be next year.

Where will they be five years from now? Five years from now the only remaining player on the roster will be Hakim Warwick, other than that I haven’t the slightest idea as to how this team will look.

Sacramento Kings (14-21): Who would have thought that a team featuring Ron Artest would implode? Okay, jokes aside, the Kings took a gamble last season when they decided to put their fate in the hands of the volatile forward. That gamble paid off as Ron-Ron led this team to the playoffs where they did put up quite a fight against the San Antonio Spurs. Alas, even the Kings knew that their honeymoon with Artest would end at some point, but they hoped it would last for this season. We now know, that good Artest was only around for a short period and bad chemistry Artest has stepped in his place. The guy has quarreled with players that are known to tolerate all sorts of crazy stuff. He even got to the always cool Mike Bibby. Artest is a great defensive stopper with a somewhat above average offensive game. Yet he believes he should be the go-to guy on the offensive end and he’s been keen on letting it be known to the world. Too bad this had happened because the Kings did rebound well from the loss of Bonzi Wells to free agency. Kevin Martin has stepped up, and he’s become the guy with the lowest number of shot attempts per game to average over 20 points. He is a gifted shooter who because of the whole Artest ordeal isn’t getting enough shots. Bibby is as solid as he has always been, the much maligned frontcourt has shown it could handle its main duties. But this is all going to waste simply because the ocker room is filled with bad air.

What’s in store for next season? I really don’t see how they could find a taker for Artest. That means no trades. They are however better off without him, so they’ll need to buy him out. The buyout will not allow them to sign any major free agents, which in turn will leave them thin in the backcourt. Looks like the Artest gamble had more risk than reward. I still believe they would have a better record next season with a rookie taking Artest’s roster spot.

Where will they be five years from now? Las Vegas. Sacramento has gotten a large taste of playoff success up until this season. That means that whenever the Maloofs decide to break this team up and start rebuilding there will be no patience from the fans. All of this could speed up the inevitable process of a team going to Vegas (the Maloof brothers are number one fans of the city that never sleeps), and in that case no new arena deal is going to stop them from moving. In fact the only reason I’m not 100 percent sure that we’ll be seeing the Las Vegas Kings is NBA commissioner David Stern, who is clearly weary of granting a team to the U.S. gambling capital.