For all NBA freaks

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Ok I know there are too many NBA lovers on the forum and being a freak myself and with the playoffs approaching this is my personal look on the league this year

WESTERN CONFERENCE:

This has been the biggest and toughest race for a playoff spot in years in this conference and it will certainly carry on deeply into the final 8...if the usual big teams are still here, this year has certainly witnessed quite a few surprises with the rising New Orleans Hornets who are currently leading the conference...a major turn-around led by all-star players Chris Paul and David West especially the second player whose versatility in his game is unmatched in the whole league(like a young Chris Webber) as for Paul he is a huge candidate in the race for MVP after improving his game drastically on both ends of the floor...as for fan favorites LA Lakers they started off the season quite well led as usual by Kobe Bryant and an unexpected player in the person of Andrew Bynum...Bynum erupted this season posting over 20 points 10 rebounds and 3 blocks a game in many occasions...Bynum's injury half-way through the season did not scramble a fired-up team of LA who pulled off the biggest steal of the season by acquiring Pau Gasol of the Grizzlies for some expiring contracts and a rookie player...Gasol fit extremely well into Jackson's system and formed a massive one-two punch force with Bryant...but his injury slowed the Lakers' momentum for a few games...adding to that, Bynum's injury the Lakers had to go for a smaller front-court that managed to pull off decent performances...as for the Suns their mid-season block-buster trade that brought Shaquille O'Neal to Arizona left a lot of skepticism around the league especially that the Suns were giving up on Shawn Marion and with him their run and hit offense that used to make the difference in the league...after a few defeats rusty O'Neal caught up with D'Antoni's system and helped the Suns build a long winning streak and prove that the gamble of the decade did magics...why was Shap brought to the Suns??the answer is the Spurs...the NBA champions kept their core unchanged with Duncan as usual leading the way...but this season witnessed a few up and downs for Popovich's boys who know how to shine at the right time...the Spurs brought in Kurt Thomas of the Sonics to try and keep up with the huge changes in the west...Thomas would bring athleticism and defense to the team with Ginobili, Parker and Duncan taking care of things with a supporting cast of Finley, Barry, Bowen and many others...as for my personal favorite, the UTAH Jazz, they managed to get the league's best home record with just four defeats(it's their struggles away from home that kept them from having a huge record)...this year they were led by Deron Williams who took his game to the next level and may very well replace Stockton in the hearts of Jazz fans...Carlos Boozer also posted solid numbers and was the main offensive front-court power for the team...mid-season acquisition of Kyle Korver who came at a bad time for the Jazz opened up the game for Williams and Boozer who erupted afterwards...Kirilenko's defense was also a major key for the team and Mehmet Okur's efficiency did improve that year especially from beyond the arc...the Jazz can be the dark horses in the playoffs this year but have a tough schedule to wrap up the season and may see their lead on 2nd place Nuggets fall...as for the other teams, the Mavericks brought in Jason Kidd to keep up with the huge changes in the west...but the Mavs only won one game against a team with a winning percentage since the trade was done(Mavs lost the speed of Devin Harris and the athleticism of Diop who were sent to the Nets)...they keep their playoff hopes alive though and if they manage to keep their composure they might pull something out in the playoffs...the Rockets lost Yao Ming but their historical 22 game winning streak brought them back into playoff contention but their latest results show the effect of the absence of the big guy...but the Rockets did a very satisfying season considering the circumstances they encountered and might surprise us late on...the Denver Nuggets are getting hot at the right moment and if they manage to maintain their push late in the season they might just make it...the biggest losers would be Baron Davis and his Golden State Warriors who despite having one of the best league records might have to miss out on this year playoffs because everyone was just too good this year...

The surprise: they will not be playing after the end of the season but the Trail Blazers improved drastically this year...they lost their first pick Greg Oden to injury at the beginning of the season but pulled off big games led by all-star player Brandon Roy...great prospects await this team next season

The deceptions: Despite having all-star caliber players the Grizzlies failed again miserably and the trades they made this year show that they are on a process of rebuilding...they have Rudy Gay and Mike Miller to build around for the next upcoming seasons...the Clippers were slaughtered by injuries especially with their superstar player Elton Brand who missed out on the whole season...they have Al Thornton to look for the next season...


EASTERN CONFERENCE:

How can you turn a lottery team into the biggest winning machine of the league??Danny Ainge found the answer by dismantling his under-achieving team and bringing the best all-around player of the league Kevin Garnett and one of the best sharp-shooters Ray Allen to Boston...the change was immediate and Boston has currently the best record in the league and seem unbeatable when having a good day...Ainge gave his big three players a good supporting cast and brought in experience with PJ Brown and Sam Cassell later on in the season...the Celts just have to carry this momentum to the playoffs and they will be in for a big year...as for the other conference power, the Pistons, they managed to keep the same line-up for another season and look like the only team that can beat Boston...Rasheed Wallace is having another great year with Billups and Hamilton taking care of the back-court and Tayshaun Prince bringing in the hardiness...the Pistons also got the help of some new players such as Maxiell, Afflalo and Stuckey who brought a much needed depth to the team...Orlando managed to keep up with the pace of the big teams and profited from a career year by Hedo Turkoglu to finish first in their conference...Howard is developing into the game's most dominant big man...and with the salary cap clearing up next season this team can bring in some big big names to Florida...King James and his Cavs had a lot of up and downs this season...if LeBron is an MVP candidate he had a bad team to work with in the start...Hughes never gave out the performances he gave back in the time where he was still with Washington...all of that pushed Danny Ferry to change half his roster on the trade deadline...Hughes and Gooden were traded to Chicago and Cleveland brought in Ben Wallace who came off a bad spell with the Bulls...the Cavs also brought in experience with Delonte West and Wally Szerbiack...and can look for Daniel Gibson to give them range...yet the team was never consistent and was capable of the best as well as the worst...Cleveland may not do the big run they did last year but you never know...the Wizards struggled with injuries to Gilbert Arenas and Caron Butler throughout the season...but Eddie Jordan managed to give them a certain stability and maintain them in the east top 8...Antawn Jamison had another good year and was the leader of this squad...but a good run in the playoffs seems unlikely for this team...Philadelphia was the biggest surprise of the season...they did not look like a competitive team at the beginning of the year but Andre Miller and Andre Iguodala had excellent seasons and managed to take this team very high in the weak eastern conference...as for the Toronto Raptors they also had a lot of ups and downs this season but will eventually make it to the playoffs led by Chris Bosh, the only consistent player on the squad...the other surprise came from the Hawks who might just make it to the final 8 for the first time since 1999...the acquisition of Mike Bibby certainly helped Joe Johnson and his teammates in the race for a playoff spot and they are on fire recently and look like they have the 8th spot secured(despite having a losing record)...
needless to say the eastern conference could not even compare to the west in matter of intensity...but the winner might just come out of there...my personal opinion is that the real NBA final will be the match-up between Detroit and the Celtics

the surprise:the 76ers had a great season and with their young players developing quickly they have everything to look for the next seasons...they still need a lot of experience though to be considered a real playoff contender but with the salary cap clearing up next season they can have a huge post-season...right now we will enjoy watching the young guns playing against the big boys...

the deceptions:the Knicks have trained 4 times over the last 3 weeks...Isaiah Thomas has failed miserably with this franchise and with Donnie Walsh becoming the new Knicks president Thomas will certainly say good bye to New York after leading the team to one of their worst seasons ever...the Nets also had a horrible season but will look forward next year with Harris running the point and a few healthy big men...for now they will have to watch the playoffs at home for the 1st time since Jason Kidd came to NJ...champions 2 years ago the Heat tanked the season halfway and gave Dwayne Wade a year off...as for the Bucks...this team always comes with huge prospects every season but fails miserably due to bad management(GM Harris was fired during the season)...and finally the Bulls who have some of the game's finest young players they also failed miserably due to poor management and choices and incoherence throughout the season...

There were a lot of deceptions in the east this year(the Bobcats were also a very under-achieving game despite having a quality squad as well as the Pacers)...let's hope the next seasons will make the teams more competitive...


So that was my breakdown on this year's NBA season...it is not over yet and some big games are on schedule for the rest of the season...I'm expecting a Lakers-Celtics final...but every playoff team in the west can make it that far...