RK (LW) TEAM REC
1 (1) SPURS 26-4
What if I told you Tim Duncan, the Spurs perennial all-star was playing a career low in minutes (28.9) down from his career average of 36.2 minutes per game and that the Spurs are better because of that? If you haven’t followed the Spurs this year, you would probably vehemently disagree with me. Well, that is exactly what’s happening. In the past, the Spurs were a very methodical team and rightfully so because they purposely slowed down the game by posting up Timmy more, but not this year. They are averaging 105.6ppg, which is the fourth highest in the nba and their league leading 29-4 record is a very good indication that their new formula for success seems to be working so far.
2 (4) HEAT 26-9
Over the Heat first 17 games they had a 9-8 record, but over their last 18 games they have a 17-1 record and this turnaround was right after their infamous team meeting. Their formula for success is to have Lebron standing at the 3-point line while D-Wade goes one-on-one and can usually get to the basket, because the man guarding Lebron is afraid to help. When Wade goes to the Bench then Lebron takes over. From a basketball standpoint this formula is working, but from a Lebron James fan standpoint, it makes him look like the second best player on the team, which is nerve wrenching to watch.
3 (2) CELTICS 25-7
The Celtics are first in assists with 24.6 per game led by Rondo’s league leading 13.5apg, first in opponents points allowed with 90.7ppg and were looking unstoppable until K.G went down. Fortunately for the Celtics Rondo returned, but without K.G in the lineup I expect the Celtics to struggle on the defensive end. Hopefully he will only be out for two week with his muscle strain. Without K.G., the Celtics are 1-2 including the loss against Detroit when he strained his muscle and only played 9 minutes.
4 (8) BULLS 22-10
Derrick Rose was recently quoted saying he wants to be the mvp, and why not? Like I pointed out last week, despite injuries to Boozer and now Noah, Rose has been the one presence in the Bulls armor and he has not disappointed. The Bulls current 5-game winning streak was enough to elevate them up four spots to this week’s fourth ranking.
5 (3) MAVERICKS 25-8
The Miami Heat last two losses came against the new and improved defensive minded, Dallas Mavericks, but that was before the “knee injury bug” hit town. Dirk was the first to go down with a knee injury and since he did, the Mavs have a 1-3 record. As if that wasn’t enough, Caron Butler recently injured his knee and is expected to be out for the remainder of the regular season.
6 (5) JAZZ 23-11
Play hard, grind it out, share the ball and benefit from the fact that you have the second best point guard in the game in Deron Williams is the formula the Jazz have used all season long and they are getting maximum result out of it. They could easily have five more losses if they weren’t so committed to that formula.
7 (6) LAKERS 23-11
The Lakers have a 23-11 record and are on track to win 55 games this season, which is almost the same amount of wins of Phil Jackson first 3-peat team (1992-93 Bulls won 54 games). However, this team seems to be less focused than the Bulls team that defeated the Suns to win the 1993 NBA Finals.
8 (9) MAGIC 21-12
The Magic are sporting a 5-game winning streak and their new acquisitions of Arenas, Richardson and Hedo combined to average 39.2ppg, while making 77-164 (.469) shots from the field and 32-76 (.42) of their 3-point shots. They also combined to average 12.6 assists and 13.4 rebounds per game. Offensively, there is no question that the trade is paying off, but it’s the Magic defense that concerns me in the long run.
9 (7) THUNDER 23-12
I know the Thunder suffered a humbling 101-74 defeat to the Spurs, but they are still on track to win 54 games, which will be an improvement considering the pressure and high expectations they faced entering this season. The Spurs blowout win over the Thunder only proved that for as much as many would like the see the Thunder leap to the next level they are still not there yet.
10 (12) HAWKS 22-14
Joe Johnson returned back from an elbow injury, but he still has yet to prove he’s worth the 6 year/$126 million contract the Hawks gave him over the summer. Over the last four games Johnson is shooting just 35 percent from the field and has not played up to the Hawks expectation, but the season is still young so let’s wait and see.
11 (13) NUGGETS 19-13
Carmelo finally returned to the Nuggets following a two week absence due to the death of his sister and was rusty as you would expect, but the Nuggets are sure glad to have their leading scorer back.
12 (11) HORNETS 20-14
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is currently running the affairs of the Hornets and Phil Jackson seems to have a problem with that and I don’t think he’s the only one. His concerns are two-fold. One, who decides what actions to take if CP3 demands a trade? Two, New Orleans does not have the support to maintain an nba franchise. I think the nba’s ownership of the Hornets may be the beginning signs of “contraction,” in which the nba will reduce from 30 teams to a new number that the owners and commissioner David Stern deems necessary for profitability.
13 (10) KNICKS 19-14
The Knicks leads the nba in scoring with 107.2 points per game, but continues to be one of the worse defensive team. They allow their opponents to score 106.3 points which is the 28th worst in the league. After 33 games one thing seems certain and that is the Knicks will make the playoff, but don’t expect much more until hopefully Carmelo Anthony and/or CP3 joins the team in a year or so.
14 (14) TRAIL BLAZERS 18-16
I think the Blazers have finally heeded my advice and let their all-star guard Brandon Roy take some time off. Roy will check with a specialist before deciding on whether or not to have surgery to repair his knees. Over the last 8 games the Blazers are 6-2 with Roy out, because second year guard Wesley Matthews have more than pick up the slack in Roy’s absence at the two guard spot. Matthews is averaging 18.125 over the last 8 games and has made it easier for the Blazers to rest Roy, a trend I expect to continue.
15 (15) ROCKETS 16-17
The Rockets are breathing down the backs of the Blazers for the eighth and final playoff spot in the West and I expect them to make life a living hell for the Blazers. Starting point guard Aaron Brooks return from injury has helped facilitate the Rockets turnaround. His numbers are down considering the rust he has from not playing for most of the season, but the Rockets have won 5 of 6 with him in the lineup.
16 (16) BUCKS 13-18
When Jennings went down, I thought the Bucks would really struggle, but that has not been the case which led me to examine Jennings true numbers and overall production to his team. I realized that even though Jennings led his team in scoring with 17.9ppg, he also attempted almost 16 shots per game. He also only averages 5.5 assists per game (apg), which makes him a shoot first, pass second point guard. He has the potential to be an elite point guard and he certainly gives the Bucks another weapon that teams must contend with, but I concluded that he does not make his team better. (The Bucks posted a 3-2 record since Jennings injury)
17 (17) PACERS 14-18
The Pacers continued to hang on to the 7th seed in the Eastern Conference, but with the Bucks, Sixers and Bobcats looming in a distance, the Pacers hold over one the last two seeds in the East may be in jeopardy.
18 (20) GRIZZLIES 15-19
The Grizzlies joined a list of teams that have gone into the Staple Center and handily defeated the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers in recent weeks. Their 104-85 blowout win over the Lakers in L.A. has many observers doubting that the Lakers will repeat. The win put the Grizzlies 3 games behind the Blazers for the eighth and final playoff spot in the West.
19 (18) PHOENIX 14-18
The Phoenix Suns traded to make their team a better defensive team, but so far, they are still one of the worse defensive teams in the league even after the trade. They are allowing their opponents to score 108.4 points per game, which is the29th worst in the league. Vince Carter averaged 18ppg in the three games he played since returning from injury, but of the three players the Suns traded for, Carter will always be the weakest link on defense.
20 (19) SIXERS 13-20
Andre Iguodala has been in and out of the Sixers starting lineup all season long and the last reports are that he will be out for the next five games not including the last three that he recently missed. Despite that, the Sixers are only one game out of the eighth and final playoff spot in the East.
21 (21) WARRIORS 13-20
The Warriors showed that they are still a young team with a long way to go by blowing a 20 points lead in Miami. Credit the Heat for being one of if not the best defensive team in the league, but the Warriors showed why they have a 13-20 record. They simply cannot defend and like I’ve said all along, they will continue to struggle until they bring in some size in their back court.
22 (25) BOBCATS 11-20
Sometimes change is good and Coach Larry Brown may have overstayed his welcome. New Heat coach Paul Silas has the team playing faster as he vowed they would. It’s still early to tell, but the Bobcats are averaging 100.33ppg over their last three games and have a 2-1 record, with their lone loss being a one-point heart breaker against the Warriors.
23 (22) CLIPPERS 10-24
Let’s face it, the Clippers are not a good team, but they sure have the potential to be good. Even though they lose their last two games against the Jazz and Hawks, you could see that they really competed but simply came up short against two playoff teams. Rookie sensation Blake Griffin continues to amaze everyone watching him and does not appear to be slowing down anytime soon. Over the Clippers last five games Griffin averaged a mind blowing 27.4ppg and 14.2rpg while making 55.7 percent of his shots. If he ever improves his free throw to around 80 percent and develops a consistent post game, Griffin could be the league’s best power forward since the old Tim Duncan.
24 (24) PISTONS 11-22
You could say the Pistons missed Stuckey, their leading scorer who was out for two games due to an illness and that they can’t wait to have him back, but the reality is the Pistons were 1-1 with Stuckey out and played even worse with him in the lineup. They are simply not that good and I don’t see them making the playoffs without a blockbuster trade of some sort.
25 (23) RAPTORS 11-22
If the nba does indeed move towards contraction, the Raptors would definitely be one of the teams I suspect will be eliminated. Ask yourself this question. If the Toronto Raptors were not in the league, would the nba be worse off or better off? I rest my case.
26 (29) TIMBERWOLVES 9-25
The Wolves have one of the best forward tandems in Beasley and Love and many would even argue that Love (20.9ppg and league leading 15.3rpg) deserves to make the all-star team, but that is just not going to happen if the Wolves continue to be one of the bottom feeders in the league.
27 (26) NETS 9-25
Regardless of whether Lebron made reference to them or not, one thing is certain, the Nets will not be one of those teams affected by contraction if indeed the nba moves in that direction. First, they are in great shape in terms of their salary cap and could still add a player or two in the near future. Two, they are moving to Brooklyn in two years into a brand new state of the art arena. Three, with the nba trying to expand their notoriety worldwide, there is no way they will eliminate a team owned by a rich Russian tycoon with deep pockets.
28 (27) CAVALIERS 8-26
I will continue to argue this point until my last breath and that is trading for Antawn Jamison was the worse move the Cavaliers made in the Lebron error. They got so caught up in the term “stretch four or hybrid four,” and that was not what they needed. Jamison was a terrible defender and not a good enough shooter from distance to be worth the risk. The Cavs should have done everything to trade for Amare Stoudemire. Had they done that, they would have won the championship and Lebron would never have left to join D-Wade in Miami. Reality has finally set in and the affects of Dan Gilbert’s emotional letter has faded. All we are left with is a bad team in Cleveland led by an equally bad and opportunistic coach named Byron Scott.
29 (28) WIZARDS 8-24
John Wall may be a great player one day and probably has the potential to be the best point guard in the nba, but he sure has a long way to go. Playing with the Wizards should allow him to get there soon because with Arenas gone, the Wizards are now John Wall’s team.
30 (30) KINGS 7-24
Tyreke Evans half court heave at the buzzer to give the Kings a 100-98 win over the Grizzlies was the first exciting news out of Sacramento this season and that should be an indication of how bad things are for the worst team in the entire nba.
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