Rank//Team//Win-loss
1 New Orleans 53-22
2 San Antonio 52-24
3 L.A. Lakers 52-24
4 Utah 51-26
5 Phoenix 51-25
6 Houston 51-25
7 Dallas 47-29
8 Denver 46-29
9 Golden State46-30
10 Portland 38-38
11 Sacramento 35-40
12 L.A. Clippers 23-53
13 Memphis 20-56
14 Minnesota 19-56
15 Seattle 17-59
The top eight teams in each conference make the playoffs. The Eastern side of things is not nearly as interesting. There is Boston (60-15), Detroit (54-21), Orlando (47-28) and Cleveland (42-34) and then it doesn’t matter. The Miami Heat, NBA champions two years ago, stand at 13-63 this year. Back to the West. The hyperbolic sports writers are correct, this is the most compelling playoff race ever. Less than ten wins separate the No. 1 spot and not making the playoffs at all. Take a look at the range between No. 2 and No. 6. With slightly less than 2 weeks to go, these games still matter. (I bet Golden State would like to have back those six losses in a row at the beginning of the season when things “don’t matter”).
ABOVE: Chris Paul: my vote for MVP this season
I’m really happy for New Orleans, a team that was in danger of being moved even before Katrina is now one of the few bright spots for the Big Easy. Chris Paul should get MVP this year. Another unlikely success story this season is the Lakers. If you remember last summer all the talk was of Kobe wanting to be traded because the organization no longer seemed to have the passion for excellence. Forget all that now. They probably got the biggest steal of a trade this season when they got Pau Gasol from Memphis. The team formerly known as Kobe and His Scrubs is now Kobe, Gasol, “next big thing” Andrew Bynum, Lamar Odom and a suddenly competent bench. The most controversial and risky trade of the season, Shaq to Phoenix, seems to be gelling and paying off just at the right time. It is insane that teams as good as Denver, Dallas and Golden State are all in a real battle just to make the playoffs. And of course, the silent killers Utah and San Antonio don’t make much news, but the Spurs are still World Champions until further notice and everybody wants to avoid Utah this year. Unfortunately, my Houston Rockets will probably once again be bounced out in the first round (another underwhelming performance brought to you by Tracy McGrady and the forever injured Yao Ming).
ABOVE: Until the Houston Rockets trade emotional basketcase T-Mac, they will not get too far in the brutal NBA playoffs
By the way, I was trying to come up with the typical sports writer title for the article, and I considered the well-worn “The Wild West”, or even "The Wild, Wild West”, or perhaps “How the West Will Be Won”…but I went with the title of a favorite Sergio Leone movie and great Dire Straits song.
14 comments:
I agree with you 100 percent. Chris Paul should get mvp and if he doesn't it will be a total waste of having a mvp. No one is working harder than this man right now.
If you did follow college basketball, you would know the common thread that makes the spurs, hornets, and mavs so good. Anyone care to answer? My undying respect for the persone who gets it right. Care to guess?
First off, I don't believe your "undying respect" claim for a second. I long ago came to grips with the fact that I will always be deinied the respect from you that I so clearly deserve. That being said, I like your question, so I will give it a shot...
There are a lot of things you can look at - solid guard play (Parker, Paul, Kidd/Terry), versatile big men (Duncan, Chandler/West, Nowitzki), great coaching (Poppovich, Scott, Johnson), but what I look at the most is excellent TEAM DEFENSE. Each team has a premiere on-ball defender (Bowen, Paul, Howard), but all three teams play excellent defense as a team to go with their shutdown defender. Fast breaks, 3-pointers, and windmill dunks sell tickets, but defense gets you the ring, just ask the Spurs, four titles in nine years mainly because they play shutdown defense. Or ask the Pistons. They are a much better team offensively since their championship run, but it was the DEFENSE that got them over the hump. All three teams defend well, and the Mavericks defense seems to get overlooked, but they've been pretty solid since Avery Johnson took over.
Interesting analysis, and somewhat valid, in that defense is a big part of it. But I am looking for the "root" of that inspired play on all three teams. There is a common thread, a direct link between all three that is objective and finite. YOu are getting warm, but what I am looking for is much less analytical than it is definitive.
Try again.
Does no one have an answer for this??!!! Come on!!! It is so easy:
Spurs Best Player: Duncan. College - Wake Forest
Hornets Best Player: Paul. College - Wake Forest
Mavericks Best Player: Josh Howard. College - Wake Forest
Was that so hard?
Josh Howard is a better player than Dirk?
These playoffs are going to be ridiculous. Or at least, they should be. Can't wait. The Mavs aren't looking great, but I do think that in a year with such great balance and so much talent, a LACK of expectations can't hurt.
In Vegas last weekend, I got the Hornets to win it all at 22-1!!! The top seed in the West! I'm not saying they're going to win it; heck, any team in the West can lose in the first round or win the whole thing (well, Houston can't win the whole thing; no offense). But 22-1?? I'm very happy about that...
That is ridiculous that you get 22-1 for the Number One seed in the West. That said, The Hornets will not win the title. So even though you got great odds, you still threw your money away.
I really think Boston will take the title this year. If it is someone out of the West, then I really have a feeling on Phoenix this year. The Lakers are strong (they just took the 2 spot after last night), but I just don't see them going all the way.
Every series in the West should be amazing. Seeds 8-1 have a shot; they are all great teams. If the playoffs started today, The Spurs and Suns would play eachother in the first round. Is that insane, or what?
Yeah, the first round out west is just silly. Not a bad matchup in sight. I'm not saying the Hornets are a favorite or anything, but I'm happy with them. They've got the best point guard in pro basketball, a completely underrated monster in the post (David West), and fans that are (at least currently) pretty rabid. I'll roll the dice against an aging Duncan, a still Kobe-centric Lakers team, and the perpetually postseason-underachieving Phoenix. But, will I be shocked if the Hornets lose? Of course not. Anyone in the west can lose.
Boston is pretty awesome, but the West still reigns. It will be interesting to see how the Celts (if they get past Detroit) react to whatever VERY well-tested beast emerges from the West.
Since when is 32 considered "aging"?
Oh and while Dirk may put up slightly better offensive numbers, he doues not play defense. Josh does
Pockymon, putting aside realistic considerations like salary or specific needs for a team...if you had your choice to get Josh Howard or Dirk for your pro team, you'd go Josh over Dirk? Perhaps we can find a talent scouting job for you with the Knicks.
JMW, I agree with you on being enthused about the Hornets. I'm rooting for them and I really like them. I can't say enough about Chris Paul. But...no. they ain't gonna win this.
I go with Phoenix for several reasons. I know that Steve Kerr was almost roasted on a spit by the good people of Phoenix when he did the Shaq deal, but that move was for the playoffs. Shaq can't last an entire season. But when he's got something to prove and he just has to get himself going for the playoffs, it may work. He gives them what they need in the paint for the slowed pace of playoff basketball vs. regular season. Stoudamire has just gotten better since being able to move over to Power Forward. Steve Nash is still Steve Nash. They've got explosive shooters like Bell and Barbosa. Grant Hill wants a title BAD. I just got a good feeling about Phoenix this year.
Yes. I would build around Josh
Oh . . .and enthused is not a word. It may be in some dictionary, but it is not a word.
A sure sign that your argument is weak is when you abandon substance and start picking apart your opponent's grammar! I'm not saying that Josh is a bad player at all. But you don't build a team around him. You do build a team around Dirk.
You are wrong
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