[Sporting News] The top 15: the West is best right now edition

The top 15: the West is best right now edition
November 15, 2006

If you were, like me, expecting a resurgent Eastern Conference in the early going of this season, you have been sorely disappointed. The conference's best teams have been very sad sacks. The Pistons have shown little interest in defense and are in the midst of a 1-3 road trip. The Bulls, despite the $60 million acquisition of Ben Wallace, are playing a lot like last year's Bulls. Miami is missing Shaquille O'Neal, and was not playing that well even when he was in the lineup. The Nets are without Richard Jefferson. The Knicks ... just kidding.

1. San Antonio. Leading the way to a huge comeback win on the road against the red-hot Rockets was the point guard/big man combo of Tony Parker and Tim Dun ... er, wait ... no, it was Beno Udrih and Francisco Elson leading the Spurs on a 20-1 spurt that erased a 19-point deficit. Elson has been an excellent addition to the bench all season and Udrih, after a slow start, has made a case for more minutes. Nothing wrong with a little youth on the bench for nights that Parker and Tim Duncan just don't have it. If you're watching the Spurs and thinking, "Why can't my team get guys like Elson and Udrih?" then remind yourself: Anyone could have had them (well, OK, Indiana and Minnesota could not have drafted Udrih in 2004, but that's it.)

2. Utah. So maybe that $118 million frontcourt combo was a good idea, after all. Power forward Carlos Boozer has, so far, exhibited no sign of the pesky little injuries (foot and hamstring) that caused him to miss 80 games in the last two years. He's been such a steady scorer and rebounder (21.1 points and 12.6 rebounds) that even Jerry Sloan can't spend time picking apart Boozer's defense. Trade talk? Ha! Center Mehmet Okur, a big man who once seemed to be a puzzling way to spend $50 million, has been a matchup nightmare. He's draining 42.3 percent of his 3-pointers, scoring 17.5 points per game and mixing that perimeter prowess with some of the best play of his career from inside the arc.

3. Cleveland. The defense still has not been where coach Mike Brown wants it to be, but it probably never will be where Brown wants it. The key for the Cavaliers is their rebounding--they lead the league at 45.9, bettering opponents by 9.3 rebounds per game. That's a huge differential. Drew Gooden has averaged 10.7 rebounds, Zydrunas Ilgauskas has done well to average 8 rebounds in 22.7 minutes and bench big men Anderson Varejao and Donyell Marshall combine to average more than 10. Most important, LeBron James grabs 7.4 per game and Larry Hughes gets 3.9. Even with James, Marshall and Damon Jones making their 3-pointers, this is not a great shooting team, and they need to lean on their rebounding to balance that.

4. L.A. Clippers. There is no shame in losing to the Jazz with the way they're playing, but last night's 22-point loss makes the Clippers 1-29 in their last 30 games in Salt Lake City. One of the differences in last year's turnaround team was that the Clippers played well on the road (20-21), a glaring weakness of Clippers teams past. They've only played two road games this year, but lost both. Also of concern: After a nice game on Sunday, Elton Brand looked below average again, with 16 points and six rebounds. He was picked apart by Boozer. Brand's scoring average has dropped nine points to 15.7, and his rebounding has dipped by 1.3, to 8.7 per game. He did have a good sense of humor about his slow start, which is easy to do when your team is 5-2. "I feel bad for the fantasy GMs, that's about it," Brand said.

5. Houston. Tracy McGrady is averaging 6.4 assists, a career high. That's a good indication of how this team has evolved around Yao Ming, and a good indication that McGrady is willing to shelve his own stats in favor of giving the Rockets a better chance to win. And, no question, getting the ball to Yao (last night's 7-for-21 performance notwithstanding) is going to help the Rockets win more. The only concern is when Bonzi Wells comes back -- he is playing for a contract this year, remember. You don't get a $50 million contract for passing it to the 7-6 guy in the middle.

6. Dallas. Strange how an injury to a key player can sometimes jolt a team out of the doldrums, making them focus more. That seems to be what is going on with Dallas, which won its third straight by ousting Chicago last night and now gets three layups -- a home-and-home with Memphis and a game in Charlotte. That 0-4 start should give way to a seven-game winning streak by next Tuesday. The turnaround has been spurred by Josh Howard's injury. That pushed Jerry Stakhouse into the starting lineup, where he has been hot, averaging 16 points. It has forced Dirk Nowitzki to be more aggressive, too. He is averaging 30.7 points since Howard last played. Obviously, the Mavericks are a better team with Howard than without, but losing him seems to have kick-started their season.

7. Sacramento. Let's play a little word association here. Tell me the first thing you think of when you read: Kevin Martin. Come on, you didn't really just say, "Who's Kevin Martin?" did you? You probably would not be alone. There is no player as underrated as Martin, who is showing the league why the Kings did not want to shell out big bucks for Bonzi Wells. Of course, I'm not quite sure why the Kings felt they needed John Salmons, but that's neither here nor there. Fact is, Martin is an All-Star in the making. He is long-limbed and an excellent defender. He can shoot, he can run the floor, he can play multiple positions and he is not afraid of clutch shots (I saw him nail a game-winner in Chicago not long ago). He is averaging 23.8 points, shooting 54.7 percent and making a respectable 34.8 percent of his 3s. The rest of the Kings really, truly stink -- Brad Miller is hurt, Mike Bibby is playing through an injured thumb and Ron Artest can't get his shot straight. Besides Martin, the other Kings are shooting 38.4 percent. Why are they 4-2, with a three-game win streak? I'll give you one guess.

8. Golden State. The Warriors have quickly upped their basketball IQ under Don Nelson. They're executing the fast break very well, they're running back-door cuts, they're sharing the ball and they're learning the difference between a good 3-ponter and a bad one. The result has been an offense that is humming and four wins in their last five games. In those five games, the Warriors have averaged 108.4 points per game. They've also won four in a row at home, a good sign for a team that plays eight of its next nine games at home.

9. New Orleans. Welcome back, Peja Stojakovic! Even as the Hornets have gotten off to a solid start, the play of their top free-agent acquisition has been only so-so. But then he lined up against the Bobcats last night and, suddenly, looked like the Peja of old. Only better. He scored the Hornets' first 20 points. 20! The Hornets are still in a heap of trouble with David West down and with no other capable frontcourt scoring options, but as long as Peja keeps knocking down 42 per night, they'll be fine.

10. L.A. Lakers. If you're still not buying the notion that Kobe Bryant is a changed man, consider this: He is averaging 13.2 shots per game this year; he averaged 27.2 last year. He needs to shoot more, and as he gets back into game shape, he will. The happiest medium is probably 20-22 shots per game, with Bryant feeding Lamar Odom for 18 or so. Of course, Bryant and the Lakers face Toronto at home on Friday after four days of rest. The Raptors defense is actually worse than it was last year, when it was pretty bad. Anyone remember what happened last time Bryant faced a slipshod Raptors defense?

11. Orlando. It hasn't been overly impressive, but here's the Magic at 5-3 and playing well enough to beat bad teams. Orlando has had four games decided by three points or fewer and is 3-1 in those games. The team is actually in first place in the Southeast. The Nuggets and Bobcats at home are next, followed by Memphis on the road, so an 8-3 start is within reach. One caveat, though: The Magic shoot over 50 percent, and opponents are under 44 percent. Those numbers are inflated -- Orlando is not really that good offensively, nor that good defensively. If the numbers flatten out, will the Magic be able to grind out wins?

12. Seattle. Ever since election night, when Seattle voters denied funding for a new arena in the city, the Sonics have responded by becoming a suddenly good road team. They went 3-1 away from the Emerald City, averaging over 110 points. They're still awful defensively, but the offense is on a roll and they do force turnovers. With the way they shoot, that will be enough to keep them around .500 this year.

13. Chicago. Every November, the circus comes to the United Center and the Bulls start playing like clowns. Chicago started a stretch of seven road games by getting thumped in Dallas and giving up 111 points, marking the third time this defensive juggernaut has given up triple digits. If they're missing Ben Wallace in Detroit, tell them not to worry, they're missing him in Chicago, too. Wallace has only had one great, Wallace-type game, when he grabbed 10 rebounds and blocked five shots against Milwaukee. He had 18 rebounds against Indiana, but turned the ball over five times and shot 4-for-11. It's not all on Wallace, of course, but if he is going to make the Bulls a contender, he has a long way to go.

14. Denver. Like the Sonics, Denver got its act together away from home, winning three straight on the road. Most impressive was a win in Miami. Without Shaquille O'Neal. Or Jason Williams. And it still took a fourth-quarter comeback. Maybe it wasn't such an impressive win. But Carmelo Anthony is aflame and Marcus Camby is healthy. If that holds up, the Nuggets will be a comfortably above-.500 team. They started 0-3, but those losses were by a total of six points.

15. Phoenix. This spot comes down to two contenders who are playing very bad basketball, the Suns and Heat. I'm putting the Suns in here, because when I asked, "Who would you rather play right now, Phoenix or Miami?" my answer was most definitely the Shaq-free Heat. Phoenix has had a rough schedule and has held a lead of nine points or more in every game it has played. The Suns just keep giving away games at the end. That's because Amare Stoudemire and Boris Diaw have not been able to give them the post scoring they need in the fourth quarter to win close games. That will -- Suns fans better hope -- change.

http://www.sportingnews.com/yourturn/viewtopic.php?t=149240

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Yet another top 5 power ranking.