Yes, they make the playoffs. And, yes, they need to re-do the rankings system. And it shouldn't stop within conferences. Why should teams be penalized for their geographic location? Had the Rockets been in the East, they'd barely have missed the playoffs since Hakeem "retired".
Take a look at the Raptors for example. 6-10 and they ranked 4th in the East for leading the weak piss division. They are only better than 2 West teams. LMFAO!
Relevant article by Zach Lowe: http://www.grantland.com/blog/the-t...seless-nba-divisions-step-1-of-a-radical-plan Spoiler Really good overview of how things work with divisions, playoff seeding, and how he thinks they should be fixed.
they changed it in '07 because of the Spurs/Mavs situation to go along with a few other seeding/tanking blunders. a scenario like the Atlantic would almost definitely necessitate another review of the playoff seeding system. seems plenty of folks never quite grasped how the changes went down after 07 in the first place. LAC isn't ahead of Houston because of a better head to head or even division record matchup (that rule only applies to teams in the same division) it's not even a tiebreaker situation. Houston is better by percentage points.
Playoffs 2008 under Adelman the year before the historical run to the second round 4th Jazz (NW division leader)with 54 wins 5th Rockets with 55 wins (and tie breaker over Suns) Rockets got HC advantage but still lost because of matchup 2-4
being a 4 seed division winner is almost meaningless. it means you are likely in the most crappy division in the Conference and you won't get HCA in the first round anyway.
55 wins with a crazy winning streak and no Yao Ming. No one picked us to beat the Jazz that round:http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/playoffs2008/series?series=houuth Without Yao, I'd definitely say the Jazz were the better team that year. 2007 Rockets should have beat them though (again we were 5th seed with the better record but got HCA)... Went to each of the home playoff games that year... Damn.
Portland will drop into the bottom seeding and fend for a playoff birth, they've had one of the easiest schedules so far. Golden State and the Lakers will get better once Kobe and Iggy come back. Dallas is going to make a move for someone before the trade deadline, not sure who but they will compete this year in some way. Minny is also a lingering threat that can make a move and shift players around to better position themselves. The Clippers, OKC and Spurs all have top 4 seeds locked up, they aren't moving unless they suffer massive injuries. Those teams are deep. Rockets at the 5th seed is probably where we end up at the end of the year. Though, I think we end up 5th with HCA in the first round.
Either Golden State or the Lakers. I think the Lakers will be gifted with a trade, at some point this year. They're the Lakers, and the NBA is going to protect them by giving them another young stud, plus Kobe coming back. Golden State with Iggy is a monstrous force, when Iggy comes back I think they win atleast 75% of their games, and I think the Rockets right now will win maybe 65%.
I don't know what trade the Lakers will go for when they're probably looking forward to the summer free agents more than anything else and they're not exactly loaded with assets. I definitely don't see them rising to 4th seed in the West... With or without Kobe. GS has a chance at climbing up to the fourth seed but I still think the Rockets are better than them. Steph and Clay are special on the offensive end but we've got solid perimeter guys, better bigs, and a better bench.
You're a novice to the NBA, then. The Lakers are a team that the NBA will always keep competitive because they bring the most revenue (I hate the NBA for this reason). But, its the truth. The Lakers already have a competitive team as is, but should they manage to trade Gasol or any other players in a package they could potentially land a player like Melo before the deadline. Pau isn't happy in LA, and Melo wants to be playing for a team where he can compete, which isn't in NY at the current moment. Obviously, this is just a random idea of my own and probably won't be the trade. But, you get the idea. The Lakers can get whoever they want. I just hope the NBA doesn't gift rap them a real star. But no matter what I want, I know that Lakers fans will have their Christmas present, because they always do.
when was the last time the NBA did this to them? all that comes to my mind is the CP3 to Lakers trade not being allowed. and please dont just say" they umm got dwight" please give me an example
The Gasol trade, while seemingly balanced also made them immediate contenders and champions. Memphis has yet to win a title with Marc Gasol. What about Kobe being drafted by Charlotte and refusing to play for them? What was that all about? He demanded to play for the Lakers, which is akin to saying that the Lakers had first rights to him without even worrying about draft position. Shaq went there to make money, because playing for the Lakers is like a godsend to the music and movie career. Need I say more? The Lakers will always have stars giftwrapped and ready to go. That will never change in my lifetime nor my great, great, great grand children lifetime.
If me being rational makes me a novice in your mind then so be it. I don't think the NBA is going to hand the Lakers anything that will put them up to the fourth seed in the West this year. What did the NBA do for them in 2005 when they didn't make the playoffs? Or 06, 07, or last year when they slipped into the playoffs with around 40 wins and lost in the first round? If they Lakers could get whomever they want then they'd have Dwight Howard right now. It's a little immature to attribute the Lakers' success to some other entity just handing it to them on a silver platter. They're a popular, well financed and managed team that has been able to get great players and coaches on a consistent basis. That doesn't mean they're going to be successful every year and this happens to be one of those years. Yes, they've had a competitive start to the season with role players over performing and Kobe may be back ahead of schedule. That doesn't mean another team or the NBA (as some diabolical nefarious force that shuffles stars to whichever teams they want) is going to hand them an all-star to make them a mid to high 50s win team in the West.
the shaq signing had nothing to do with the league screwing the rest of the league. the kobe trade alos had nothing to do with the league http://www.lakersnation.com/throwba...for-kobe-bryant-on-draft-day-1996/2013/11/28/ lastly the gasol trade wasnt a screw job as it was used as a rebuilding tool by the griz, they took a punt on Kwame (much like CF's think we should on Bennett if given the chance) while getting 2 first round picks 2008 and 2010 and getting the coverted Marc Gasol. lastly the lakers arnt even the highest profitable teams according to forbes list The NBA's Most And Least Profitable Teams http://www.forbes.com/pictures/emdm45mddl/3-los-angeles-lakers/ the lakers coming in 3 behind the knicks and the bulls. though i undertand what you mean in the marketable sense
And why is it that you think the Lakers and Hornets made that deal? Why is it that no other teams tried to draft Kobe Bryant? Could it be because every team knew that the only team he would suit up for was the Lakers? Of course it was. The NBA gives players with bargaining power all that they want, if they want to play for the Lakers they will play for them no matter what. Kobe was a fan of the Lakers as a kid, as his dad was, he declared himself a member of the team before draft day. Which is tampering and unethical business practice. Marc Gasol and the Grizz are still sitting on zero titles. Gasol trade worked for the Lakers, though. Lasty, the Lakers are the 2nd most popular team in American sports, only behind the Yankees. Regardless of profits.
i cant even argue with someone whose ideas on events are so set in concrete that they won't accpet other possible explanations
its really unbelievable. If the southwest division was playing int the Eastern conference, all of them would be in the playoffs.
