RANK (LAST WK)REC.
1 (1) Lakers 46-10
Even without center Andrew Bynum in the Lakers lineup, the Lakers went 9-1 over that stretch. Lamar Odom has step up his game and the Lakers have not missed a beat.
2 (3) Cavaliers 43-11
Cavs GM Danny Ferry pulled the perfect okey-doke before the trade deadline by not making any moves, yet appearing to be very busy. The reality is the Cavs have the third-highest payroll in the league at $91 million. By not making any moves, Danny Ferry made sure that the Cavaliers will be under the luxury tax come next season when Wally and Eric Snow combined $21 million come off the books. Next season the Cavaliers will have a $71 million payroll with big Z. and Ben Wallace in the final year of their contract paying them a combined $26 million. With the team in a comfortable financial situation and two expiring contracts totaling $26 million, Danny Ferry would have put himself in position to go after one or possibly two players via a trade.
3 (2) Celtics 45-12
The Boston Celtics will be without Kevin Garnett for 2 to 3 weeks, but may come out ahead at the end of the third week due to the difficult road schedule that the Cavaliers have. If Stephan Marbury gets added to the Celtics roster, they will find themselves in a much better position once Kevin returns.
4 (5) Magic 41-14
The trade for Alston was the best thing the Orlando Magic could have done. He clearly makes up for the loss of Nelson and should help keep the Magic in contention in solidifying the third seed in the East.
5 (4) Spurs 37-17
I for one was surprise that the San Antonio Spurs did not make a serious push for New Jersey's Vince Carter. The Nets were practically giving Carter away, but the Spurs opted to stand pat. I guess they figured they needed help for Tim Duncan rather than add another perimeter player at this time.
6 (6) Nuggets 37-19
The Denver Nuggets are only a game behind the San Antonio Spurs and could make a serious push to overtake the Spurs for the second seed in the West. The reality though, is I don't expect this to happen.
7 (7) Trail Blazers 35-20
Could Greg Oden be the reincarnation of Sam Bowie? The Portland Trail Blazers center has been doing a great job of making that impression. Let's not hope 12 years from now Kevin Durant and Greg Oden, are not being compared to Michael Jordan and Sam Bowie.
8 (8) Rockets 35-21
Having McGrady out for the rest of the season is perhaps the best thing that could happen to the Houston Rockets. Yao Ming will once again become the focal point of the offense and Ron Artest can return to averaging 20ppg. I also expect point guard Aaron Brooks and forward Scola to step up their games as well.
9 (11) Jazz 33-23
I will begin by giving my condolences to the Utah Jazz on the loss of their owner Larry Miller who recently passed away at the age of 64. One of the best owners in my opinion, Larry helped shape the Jazz into one of the NBA's most storied franchise. He will certainly be missed by many including Carlos Boozer, the Jazz star forward who recently returned back to the lineup.
10 (9) Mavericks 33-22
The Mavericks have remained steady even without Jason Terry in the lineup. It appears that they will be making the playoffs after all and was Terry returns, I see them moving up a notch.
11 (10) Hornets 32-22
The question I have is, how do you bring back a player who was traded but somehow the trade did not go through? This is the position the Hornets find themselves in with center Tyson Chandler returning back to the lineup. It's going to be very interesting how he's received by his teammates and coaches.
12 (12) Hawks 32-23
The Atlanta Hawks seem to have leveled out and seem very complacent with the fourth seed in the East. I guess they figured they are not going to move up so why put in extra effort. At least that's how things appear based on their body language.
13 (13) Suns 31-24
With the Mavericks steady play and now the return of the Jazz Carlos boozer, the Suns might find themselves out of the playoffs. With Amare out for the rest of the regular season due to an eye injury, I find it hard press that the Suns will make the playoff this season, in spite of the worst case scenario prediction by Shaquille O'Neal, that the Suns will go 22-9 to end the season.
14 (14) Heat 29-26
D-Wade is doing his best to help the Miami Heat maintain the eighth seed in the East and perhaps overtake the Atlanta Hawks for the fourth seed. The addition of Jermaine O'Neal should help the Heat stay consistent at worse, or move up to the fourth seed at best.
15 (16) Bucks 28-31
I don't see the Bucks letting up to the Bulls. I personally think ex Bulls coach Scott Skiles who now coaches the Bucks will do his absolute best to ensure that his new team beats out his old team for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
16 (17) Bulls 25-31
The Bulls may not have succeeded in trading for Amare, but getting Brad Miller and John Salmon from the Sacramento Kings was a pretty good consolation prize. I believe they have a better team than the Milwaukee Bucks, but I still don't see them overtaken the Bucks for the final playoff spot in the East.
17 (15) 76ers 27-27
For a minute the Sixers appeared to be looking past Elton Brand’s injury and rightfully so. I still believe they are better without him, but last week show that they do need an inside presence. Without that they are simply a decent playoff team in the Eastern Conference
18 (20) Knicks 23-32
If Stephan Marbury is released by the Knicks Eddie Curry will be the only high dollar Knicks left from the Isaiah Thomas era. The Knicks are moving full circle in anticipation of the 2010 Lebron James free agency class.
19 (18) Pistons 27-27
The Pistons Rip Hamilton was quoted saying, “I don’t mind coming off the bench if we are winning, but if we’re losing something has to give.” Well not in those exact words the something to that effect. All I can say is the entire Detroit Pistons team is in total chaos at this point.
20 (22) Pacers 24-34
The injury bug caught up with the Indiana Pacers who will be without all star forward Danny Granger for a few weeks. Ironically, they won back to back games without Granger in the lineup. Other than the Phoenix Suns, the Pacers are perhaps the best team that will not make the playoffs this season.
21 (19) Bobcats 22-34
Looking at the potential D.J Augustine, it wouldn't surprise me to see the Charlotte Bobcats move Raymond Felton during the off season. They try to do that by trading him to the Indiana Pacers, but the trade fell through.
22 (21) Nets 24-32
Not trading Vince Carter was the worst thing that could have happened to the New Jersey Nets. The Nets are clearly in rebuilding mold and Vince simply does not fit the bill anymore. I expect the Nets to make a major push to trade Vince during the off season.
23 (23) Raptors 22-36
In the long run the Raptors will benefit from trading for Shawn Marion. He fits their style and compliments all star Chris Bosh and Bagnani very well. I don’t see them making the playoff this season, but they will be a much improve team come next year.
24 (24) Warriors 20-36
I think the Warriors will love to move Jamal Crawford for a pure point guard, since they seem to have settled on letting Monte play the two guard position. I don’t think we will see Crawford in a Warriors uniform come next season.
25 (26) Timberwolves 18-37
With center Al Jefferson out for the rest of the regular season, I think the Wolves are now gearing and preparing for next year, when I expect them to be much improved. It will be a great accomplishment if they somehow can squeeze out 30 wins this year.
26 (25) Thunder 13-43
We don’t have to wait for 12 years, let’s just give it two more seasons for a simple debate. Does Kevin Durant-Greg Oden resemble Michael Jordan-Sam Bowie? In 20 months from now, I will be able to give my first assessment of this theory.
27 (27) Wizards 13-43
Gilbert Arenas told the Washington Post that he practicing at full contact. Please Gilbert, take the rest of the year off and come back stronger than ever. A return this season will only hurt the Wizards chances of winning the first pick in the draft this summer.
28 (28) Grizzlies 15-40
I cannot believe the Grizz sat on Gay when they could have probably gotten Amare. At least that’s according to Mike Stein of ESPN. I still have to look into the validity of that claim, but can you imagine pairing up Amare with Gasol in the middle, not to mention a top 5 draft pick to go along with O.J. Mayo next season. Well, there’s still this summer and if and when the Suns miss the playoff for the first time in years, I am sure Amare will be back on the block.
29 (30) Kings 12-45
Well the Kings got rid of a few salaries and saved some money, which is the only good thing you can say about SacTown right about now.
30 (29) Clippers 13-41
Baron Davis and Chris Kaman will be actively shop this off season I can assure you. Considering the expectations entering this season, the Clippers have had the most disappointing season of every nba team.
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