RK (LW) TEAM REC
1 (1) SPURS 23-3
Make no mistake about it, the San Antonio Spurs are the best team in the West and the Lakers and everyone else better watch out because the Spurs are for real and in my opinion are the team to beat out West.
2 (5) CELTICS 22-4
Unlike last season, this Celtics team is showing no signs of letting up. From their first game against the Heat in Boston to now, 25 games later, the Celtics have looked dominant and seem to be on a mission.
3 (4) HEAT 21-8
After a horrible 9-8 start, the Heat have rallied and are clicking on all cylinders. A prime example of how well the Heat are playing could be seen in their recent one point win against the Wizards. The Heat were down by 5 with 32 seconds left, but somehow found a way to win to extend their streak to 12 straight wins. Earlier this season, that would not have been the case, because they would have found a way to lose that game.
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4 (3) MAVERICKS 21-5
With all the trade action over the weekend, I really thought the Mavericks would have been one of the teams involved, but apparently not. I guess they are content with their 21-5 record however, I still believe they are one notch below the Lakers and Spurs if their current roster remains the same.
5 (5) LAKERS 21-7
The Lakers starting center Andrew Bynum returned back to bolster their front line and the Lakers won all four games Bynum played in convincing fashion. As expected he is very sluggish and will take some time to get back into nba shape, but when he does the Lakers will be a scary team.
6 (6) THUNDER 19-9
OKC are playing well and the Durant-Westbrook tandem is creating nightmares for Thunder opponents. Ironically, Durant and Westbrook are averaging 27.4 and 23.1 points respectively, but Westbrook actually has a higher Player’s Efficiency Rating (PER) 24.6 as opposed to Durant’s 22.3 PER.
7 (7) JAZZ 19-9
The Jazz continues to play under the radar and have remained consistent as you would expect out of a Jerry Sloan team. Point guard Deron Williams is leading his team with 22.5ppg and 9.7rpg and continues to be in the discussion of whether he is the nba’s best point guard.
8 (9) BULLS 16-9
The Bulls can’t seem to get a break. For most of the season Carlos Boozer was out, now it’s the Bulls energizer bunny and their best interior defender Joakim Noah who went out recently due to a broken hand. The one constant for the Bulls all season long has been point guard Derrick Rose, who is leading the team in scoring and assist with 24.3 and 8.4 respectively.
9 (12) NUGGETS 16-10
Everyone knows Carmelo wants to be traded to New York, but no one can question his professionalism because he has played well for the Nuggets this season. He currently leads the team in scoring and rebound with 24ppg and 8.4rpg. I guess the Nuggets management concluded that there is no rush in trading Carmelo.
10 (8) MAGIC 16-10
Speaking of blockbusters! Out went Vince Carter, Rashard Lewis, Mickael Pietrus, Marcin Gortat and in came Jason Richardson, Gilbert Arenas and Hedo was brought back. The trade gives the Magic three players as oppose to only Vince Carter, which obviously makes them a better offensive team. Losing Marcin Gortat, the best backup center in the league is a definite setback and weakens the Magic interior, which will put even more pressure on the Dwight Howard to defend the middle. It is going to be interesting to see how things unfold over the next few months.
11 (9) HORNETS 16-11
The Hornets redeemed themselves after an early season 18 points loss to the Jazz in Utah by demolishing the Jazz in a 100-71 victory. The Hornets may be moving in the right direction now that the chaos of the league taking over the Hornets has settled.
12 (11) HAWKS 17-12
Being without Joe Johnson has been tough for the Hawks, but losing Crawford for their last three games has not helped the Hawks either. Johnson may be out a while longer, but Crawford should be returning soon.
13 (10) KNICKS 16-12
Before last week the Knicks were riding on ‘cloud 9’ sporting an eight game winning streak, but then they ran into the two best teams in the East which was a humbling experience. They were still on their cloud after losing to the Celtics because Amare’s 3-pointer at the buzzer would have counted if they had more time, so that loss had them feeling good about themselves. Unfortunately, their next game against the Heat really brought them down to earth. The 113-91 defeat against the Heat really put things in prospective and that is, the Knicks are a good team, but in terms of being a championship contender, pleaseeee!
14 (14) TRAIL BLAZERS 14-14
Brandon Roy was giving three games off and the Blazers won the first two. Personally, I think he needs more time off. I know Roy is a warrior and he means well, but he is clearly hurting his team. After hearing reports about Roy complaining that his knee feels like he has bone on bone, I started to pay close attention and from what I gathered Roy is far from the player he used to be. If surgery is not an option, then maybe more time off might be the best recipe for the Blazers.
15 (15) PACERS 12-14
The Pacers are 17th in scoring at 98.3ppg, 15th in points allowed at 97.8ppg and 13th in assist with 21.3apg. The average of 17, 15 and 13 is 15, which is exactly where I rank the Pacers entering week 9.
16 (21) 76ERS 11-16
An 11-16 record is not great and wouldn’t be worth mentioning except that in the Eastern Conference it is good enough for the eighth and final playoff seed. I’ve always argued the Sixers were one of, if not the best sub .500 team in the nba and over the last 10 games they have proven me right with their 7-3 record over that stretch.
17 (17) PHOENIX 11-12
The Suns took a bold step by trading Jason Richardson, their leading scorer along with Hedo to the Magic, but they got back Vince Carter in return, whom I guess they believe will fill in for Richardson. As far as Hedo, they felt his 9.5ppg was not worth the 4year/$44 million left on his contract. With the center tandem of Marcin Gortat and Robin Lopez, the Suns made a substantial improvement on their interior defense. The Suns have a good chance of making the playoffs if Vince Carter can stay healthy.
18 (19) ROCKETS 12-15
Please say it ain’t so! Yao Ming may be out for a second straight season if he undergoes surgery for a foot fracture. I guess it’s time for the Rockets to accept the fact that Yao Ming may likely retire and prepared to move on without him. This is a very sad situation for the Rockets because when healthy I actually considered Yao a better all-around center than the Magic Dwight Howard, but that was a few years ago.
19 (18) GRIZZLIES 12-16
When you are not a very good team, the last thing you expect is for your best player to make a bone headed play like the one Rudy Gay made when he shoved the Rockets Luis Scola, which caused him an injection and a one-game suspension. The Griz lost both games.
20 (16) BUCKS 10-15
Just when it seemed like the Bucks were heading in the right direction disaster strike. They lost Brandon Jennings, their starting point guard who leads the team in points with 17.9ppg and assist with 5.5apg. The Bucks are expected to be without Jennings for 4-6 weeks with a broken foot.
21 (20) RAPTORS 10-18
The Raptors are 2-7 over their last 9 games after a somewhat respectable 8-11 start. Perhaps the effects of losing all-star Chris Bosh is starting to wear on a team that couldn’t even make the playoffs with Bosh last season.
22 (22) BOBCATS 9-17
Word out of Charlotte is that the Bobcats have made former all-star Gerald Wallace available. It doesn’t surprise me because something has to be done in Charlotte. Luckily for them, they are in the Eastern Conference and are currently only 1.5 games out of the eighth and final playoff spot.
23 (25) PISTONS 9-19
How good can anyone expect the Pistons to be when 36 year old Ben Wallace and fourth year guard Rodney Stuckey leads them in every stat. Keep in mind this is a team that still has Tayshaun Prince, Rip Hamilton, Charlie Villanueva and Ben Gordon. Gordon used to be known for his instant offense and always averaged over 20ppg, but in Detroit he is only averaging 12.2ppg and that is just not getting the job done.
24 (29) CLIPPERS 7-21
No, this is not a mistake the Clippers have a two-game winning streak. What makes this even more impressive is that the last two victories have come on the road. As expected, Blake Griffins continues to dominate. Even though Griffin is a rookie, he is one of only three players averaging over 20 points and 12 rebounds a game. Clearly, he is ahead in the rookie of the year (ROY) race.
25 (23) WARRIORS 9-17
The Warriors are in a serious funk, losers of 11 of their last 13 games. Steph Curry, Monte Ellis and David Lee have all missed games due to their fair share of injuries, but 2 wins in the last 13 games tells me the team have completely taken a step backwards, especially on the defensive end.
26 (24) CAVALIERS 8-19
I wonder who draws up the nba’s schedule? The Cavs are probably asking the same question along with the New York Knicks. After starting the season 7-9, the Cavaliers were scheduled to play Boston and then Miami, which starting a two-games losing streak that eventually grew to 10 straight losses. The Cavs finally ended that streak by beating the Knicks in a 109-102 overtime victory. Ironically, after winning 8 straight, the Knicks were also pitted against the Celtics and Heat respectively. Like I said, who drew up the nba’s schedule?
27 (28) NETS 8-20
The Nets are a third of the way to the 12 wins they had all of last season, but the expectations coming into this season were a lot higher. With Carmelo making it clear that he will not sign an extension with any team other than the Knicks, I believe the Nets may have finally giving up the possibility of trading for Carmelo and may be looking to trade for someone else.
28 (27) WIZARDS 6-19
The Wizards made it official that they are in complete rebuilding mode when they traded Gilbert Arenas over the weekend. By doing so, rookie sensation John Wall will finally have full reigns over the team. I expect his numbers to increase which should give him a fighting chance to compete with the Clippers Blake Griffin for the ROY Award.
29 (26) TIMBERWOLVES 6-22
Kevin Love is the only player averaging 20 plus points with over 15 rebounds in the league. Love and Beasley have a combined average of 42.3ppg and 19.7rpg and may be the league’s best forward tandem behind Lebron and Bosh. Martell Webster's 14.8ppg average has also helped, but the Wolves are 6-22 because they allow their opponents to score a league high 109.9 points per game.
30 (30) KINGS 5-20
Nothing is working in Sacramento. The Kings are simply the worse team in the entire nba. A change is inevitable. At this point, any change will be welcomed.
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