The Sports Truth

Chris Bosh wants your vote.

Will you vote for him?

The Sportstruth’s senior editor, Lucas Dwyer, provides his observations and thoughts from the weekend that was.

On Saturday, one of the greatest days of television programing ever was aired. Starting at noon, ESPN2 ran the following college basketball games back to back to back (to back to back to back): Wisconsin vs. Texas, San Diego University vs. Kentucky, Tennessee vs. Gonzaga, Oklahoma vs. West Virginia, Pittsburgh vs. Dayton, and capped off the night with Memphis vs. Arizona. Wow. If anyone caught all six games, we need to hear about it.

Unranked Wisconsin shocked No. 9 Texas 67-66 on Saturday off of Michael Flowers’ game-winning three at the buzzer

Speaking of those games, here are a few thoughts from what I caught during the day:

- Kentucky is a mess and we now know why Tubby Smith abruptly left to go coach Minnesota. First-year coach Billy Gillespie said before the game that he felt San Diego did not have anyone who could take his defenders off the dribble. Gillespie’s team is worse than he thought - Brandon Johnson attacked the basket whenever he pleased.

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Seated alongside Sean William Scott, Heroes star Masi Oka laughs at the play of the Knicks.

Granted, he could be cheering the team on… but, come on. It’s the Knicks. Laugh it up, Masi.

We all are.

The 2008 NBA Draft is supposed to be one of the best draft classes in history… or at least since 2003.

Ohio State’s Greg Oden, Texas’ Kevin Durant, Florida’s Joakim Noah (pictured), Al Horford and Corey Brewer, Kansas’ Julian Wright and Duke’s Josh McRoberts all look like tremendous NBA talents who will immediately pay huge dividends to the team smart enough to select them.

There’s only one problem: The NBA Draft is not an exact science. There is a better than average chance at least two or three of those guys listed will be a completely bust. Yeah, I’m thinking it will be McRoberts as well.

So in the coming weeks, the Sports Truth will take a look at some of the drafts from the past 10 years. We’ll start today with 1997.

We all remember this one. Well, at least Celtics fans do.

At the beginning of the 1996 season, the Spurs’ David Robinson suffered a minor foot injury, but he missed 20 games and the Spurs were miserable. Instead of rushing Mr. Robinson back into the lineup, they told him to rest for the season.

Smart move! By tanking the season, the Spurs ended up with the first pick in the draft: Tim Duncan, the man who would eventually lead them to three championships; a three-time NBA Finals MVP and the face of the franchise.

Clearly, this was the beginning of a great draft. Or so you’d think. After Duncan (pictured below), the 1997 NBA Draft has to be one of the worst in the history of professional basketball.

Here’s the remainder of the top 10:

2. Keith Van Horn, Philadelphia
3. Chauncey Billups, Boston
4. Antonio Daniels, Vancouver
5. Tony Battie, Denver
6. Ron Mercer, Boston
7. Tim Thomas, New Jersey
8. Adonal Foyle, Golden State
9. Tracy McGrady, Toronto
10. Danny Fortson, Milwaukee

Let’s re-rank the top 10 in terms of how their careers shaped out:

1. Duncan … obviously.
2. Billups … took a few teams, but he’s a star.
3. McGrady … great talent when he’s on the floor, but he’s with his third team now.

Should I keep going?

4. Van Horn … he isn’t half the player most people thought he would be.
5. Daniels … nice player for Washington, but not exactly an All-Star.
6. Thomas … bust.
7. Fortson … good rebounder, barely a first round selection.
8. Mercer … mediocre at best.
9. Battie … tall stiff, not very productive.
10. Foyle … highly overpaid bum who probably hurt the draft position of talented players from smaller schools.

I know what you are thinking: “The rest of the first round must have been strong, right?” Nope! Here is a list of serviceable NBA players from the remainder of this draft:

First Round
12. Austin Croshere, Indiana
15. Kelvin Cato, Dallas
16. Brevin Knight, Cleveland
19. Scot Pollard, Detroit
21. Anthony Parker, New Jersey
23. Bobby Jackson, Seattle

Second Round
9. Marc Jackson, Golden State
14. Stephen Jackson, Phoenix
26. Mark Blount, Seattle

Think about this: If you re-ranked all of the players I just listed, that would put Bobby Jackson (right) and Mark Blount in the lottery. Most of these guys have spent a bulk of their careers on the bench, Anthony Parker played in Europe for years before getting a call from Toronto and Stephen Jackson has been arrested more times than he’s been named to the All-Star team.

Quick Quiz: What do these players have in common: Serge Zwikker, Chris Antsey, Kebu Stewart, God Shammgod and Marko Milic?

Answer: They were all selected in this draft. Do any of you have any clue who these guys are? Yeah, I remember Serge playing for North Carolina and God at Providence, but do you really remember any of them? Antsey was a seven-footer selected by Portland with the 19th pick, Stewart played 110 minutes in his career for Philly and Marko Milic is not related to Darko Milicic, but did play 216 career minutes for Phoenix.

Let’s summarize the 1997 Draft:

Best Player: Clearly it is (and was) Tim Duncan.
Lottery Worthy: Duncan, Billups and McGrady.
Best Second Rounder: Mark Blount, and that’s saying something, barely ahead of Stephen Jackson.
Best Non-Lottery Player: Bobby Jackson. He was an excellent sixth-man and one of the keys to Sacramento’s success.
Busts: Too many to list. Besides the top 10 busts, here are a few more: Maurice Taylor, 14th, Clippers. Scot Pollard, 19th, Detroit. Ed Gray, 22nd, Atlanta (he averaged 24.8 points per game for California in 1997). Jacque Vaughn, 27th, Utah.
Worst Draft: Philadelphia had four picks in the top 36. They came away with Van Horn, Milic, Kebu Stewart and James Collins. Amazingly, they also had four picks in the 1996 draft: Allen Iverson (first pick overall), and then Mark Hendrickson, Ryan Minor (best known for replacing Cal Ripken, Jr., in the lineup when his consecutive game streak ended), and Jamie Feick. Nice work, Philly. No wonder they’ve been so bad.
Notable Undrafted Players: Fabricio Oberto, who’s now with Spurs after several years in Europe. Oberto was available in this draft and he was certainly better than Antsey or Zwikker. Damon Jones is a good shooter, probably should have been drafted. Troy Hudson, remember him? He signed that huge deal with Minnesota, grew dreadlocks and started sucking.

NEXT UP: The 1998 NBA Draft. Michael Olowokandi goes number one. Did it get any better?

1. (1) Dallas (43-9). The Mavs have won eight straight and 29 of their last 31 games. Clearly, this is the best all-around team in the NBA.
2. (2) Phoenix (39-12). Anyone who thinks Steve Nash is not the MVP, just watch the Suns flounder without him.
3. (7) Utah (34-17). Won five straight without Carlos Boozer. Who knew Mehmet Okur was this good?
4. (8) Detroit (32-18). Starting to pull away a little in the East. Chris Webber’s been a nice fit.
5. (3) San Antonio (34-18). Looked bad against Miami, just 3-4 on their current 8-game road trip which ends in Detroit on Valentine’s Day.
6. (5) Houston (33-18). 8-2 in their last ten. Who needs Yao Ming?
7. (10) Cleveland (30-21). Good win against the Lakers, even though Larry Hughes certainly fouled Kobe on the most important play of the game.
8. (4) Washington (28-21). Great run, but the Wizards will end up with the 7th or 8th seed in the East when the season ends. They are seven games over .500, yet their win margin is -0.1. Those things tend to even out.
9. (6) L.A. Lakers (30-23). Tough loss against Cleveland. Who would have thought Luke Walton (below) was really the glue on this team? By the way, why wouldn’t Kobe at least touch the ball at the end of the Knicks game on Tuesday night?
10. (15) Miami (26-26). Luckily for Detroit, Miami won’t stay in the eighth slot in the East much longer. I guarantee they get at least the third seed.
11. (11) Denver (26-24). Still eight games behind Utah. Too much talent to be this mediocre.
12. (9) Chicago (29-24). A 3-4 road trip followed by a home loss to Toronto is not the sign of a championship contender.
13. (13) Toronto (28-24). Big win on the road against Chicago for the East’s biggest surprise. Raptors are 15-6 in 2007 and four of those losses came against Phoenix, Dallas, Detroit and Utah.
14. (14) Indiana (27-24). Another team that allows more points than it scores. Again, this tends to even out over time. After winning 6 out of 7, Pacers quickly dropped three straight. Every time they make a run, they drop back to around .500.
15. (18) Orlando (26-26). Just 4-12 since January 12. That is a quick fade pattern.
16. (12) L.A. Clippers (25-27). ESPN the Magazine did an article about Shaun Livingston recently. He says he knows he can be the man. Any time now, kid.
17. (16) Minnesota (24-27). Ricky Davis fired a dagger into the heart of Celtics fans, but the T-Wolves are still a mess.
18. (23) New Orleans / Oklahoma City (24-28). Making a pretty decent run at the last playoff spot currently occupied by the Clippers.
19. (17) Golden State (24-29). Went 3-6 in their last nine games, including two, yes two, losses to Atlanta. That says it all.
20. (19) New Jersey (25-28). Marcus Williams was 4-for-14 with nine points and 10 assists filling in for Jason Kidd. He also had one steal… think it was a laptop?
21. (20) New York (23-29). Eddie Curry says “It feels good to have 23 wins right now.” Nice job, Mr. Thomas… way to create a soothing atmosphere of mediocrity.
22. (24) Sacramento (22-28). Kings won five straight, then dropped two to Seattle and Houston. Hopefully, someone will get to them and make them realize they are better off losing. Then, after the All-Star break, the Celtics can go to Sacramento and get a win.
23. (22) Portland (22-31). LaMarcus Aldridge’s 18 and 10 in the blowout over the Wizards was a great sign. Brandon Roy is still playing good ball.
24. (25) Seattle (19-32). They are 1-1 since Rashard Lewis returned. That’s an improvement. Oh, and Ray Allen was named to the All-Star team, so stop complaining.
25. (27) Atlanta (20-31). Big win over Phoenix - so what if Nash did not play.
26. (21) Milwaukee (19-33). Bucks have just three wins since we turned the calendar to 2007. Of course, the Celtics only have two wins in that same period. Big battle on Valentine’s Day.
27. (26) Charlotte (18-33). Lost five out of six and appear to be hitting the wall.
28. (28) Philadelphia (17-35). Have gone 6-6 in their last 12 games… is that a good thing?
29. (29) Memphis (14-39). Accepting trade offers for Pau Gasol (pictured). They need to do something.
30. (30) Boston (12-38). See above. Should Danny Ainge give the number one for Pau Gasol? I say no way, but he’s thinking about it.

Coach Doc Rivers, whose Boston Celtics are riding a staggering 15-game losing streak, was probably glad to be asked about anything but that during his news conference last night.

But it had to come as a surprise that he was talking about John Amaechi (pictured) being the first NBA player to publicly come out of the closet and admit that he is gay.

The former Magic and Jazz forward, who averaged 6.2 points per game over five NBA seasons, is due out with a book, called “Man in the Middle,” in which he reveals he is homosexual.

John Amaechi played two seasons for Rivers, appearing in 162 of 164 possible games and starting 89 from 1999-2001 with Orlando.

“I was coach of the year [with Orlando in 2000]; John started for me at the power forward spot,” Rivers told the Boston Globe. “He was great for me. He was great for our team.”

Rivers said he did not know of Amaechi’s sexual orientation. Or care.

“So what? Can he rebound? Can he shoot? Can he defend?’John Amaechi was a great kid,” Rivers said. “He did as much charity work as anyone in our city. I wish that is what we focused on. Instead, we’re focusing on sexual orientation, which I could give a flying flip about.”

The Celtics coach was asked if he thought today’s NBA would be accepting of a homosexual. He said he did not think it would matter in the locker room, because no subject is taboo in the locker room.

He said he would encourage a player to come out.

“It was difficult for people to watch Jackie Robinson and they got used to it,” Rivers said. “And they started cheering for him. It would be difficult for the fans [of today] if the guy couldn’t play. Nothing else should be difficult… John’s a fantastic kid. He’s better than a good kid. He’s just a good guy who happens to have a different sexual orientation. And that shouldn’t be an issue. But it is. And I know why it is. When guys do come out, when that day does happen, [this will] make it easier. I hope so. I can’t wait until it’s not an issue. I really can’t.”

Elsewhere, the reaction to Amaechi coming out was primarily positive. The world’s most famous gay athlete, tennis legend Martina Navratilova, was quick to congratulate Amaechi with his decision:

“It’s hugely important for the kids so they don’t feel alone in the world. We’re role models. We’re adults, and we know we’re not alone but kids don’t know that,” she said. “He will definitely help a lot of kids growing up to feel better about themselves.”

Orlando’s Grant Hill, who said he didn’t know Amaechi when he was with the Magic, also applauded the decision to go public.

“The fact that John has done this, maybe it will give others the comfort or confidence to come out as well, whether they are playing or retiring,” Hill said.

NBA commissioner David Stern said a player’s sexuality wasn’t important.

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1. (1) Dallas (38-9). Two reasons why the Mavs stay ahead of the Suns in my rankings: Number one is defense. They allow just 93.2 points per game, compared to 102.4 allowed by Phoenix. The second reason is their schedule. The Mavs have played 32 of their 47 games against the Western Conference. They’ll get a nice East Coast break in the second half of the season.
2. (2) Phoenix (37-9). Loved how they wore the Spurs down and blitzed them in the second half. The Suns can do this to a lot of teams.
3. (3) San Antonio (32-16). Manu Ginobli stepped up in Phoenix, but the Spurs need to find more balance to run with Phoenix or Dallas.
4. (9) Washington (27-18). Their +1.2 win differential is scary, but they keep winning. Now if someone could just get Gilbert Arenas (pictured below) to shut up, maybe people would care about this team.
5. (10) Houston (29-16). Amazing run without Yao Ming. Mutombo, Howard and Head have all stepped up. By the way, anyone else notice how fat Bonzi Wells is getting? He looks like some of the guys I play pickup ball with.
6. (5) L.A. Lakers (28-18). Kobe’s suspension was a joke and it cost them an easy win in New York, but he didn’t have to punish my Celtics the next night.
7. (4) Utah (30-17). The loss of Carlos Boozer will be hard. Scratch that - impossible to overcome. Just like last season, the Jazz will struggle to win games now.
8. (8) Detroit (26-18). Chris Webber’s impact has been pretty good. He fits into their half-court sets, but he is still a defensive liability.
9. (11) Chicago (26-20). I’m not even going to pretend like I have a clue about the Bulls. They are so inconsistent, it is impossible to predict what this team will do. When Ben Wallace got hurt, I thought we would see Tyrus Thomas, but instead we get P.J. Brown and Malik Allen… I don’t understand this move.
10. (7) Cleveland (26-20). If you saw the Miami game, you saw why the Cavs are not a real threat in the playoffs. Besides the fact Larry Hughes can’t guard anyone anymore, the Cavs can’t make free throws.
11. (6) Denver (22-21). Go ahead, try and tell me Carmelo Anthony is not going to pissed now. He averages 31 points per game and he does not make the All-Star team? It will be interesting to see if David Stern adds him to the team to replace Boozer or Yao. While we’re on the subject, Deron Williams should be on the team as well.
12. (18) L.A. Clippers (23-22). The Clippers are starting to get it together. They’ve won 7 out of 10, but they still need to pick up a few more road victories.
13. (16) Toronto (23-23). I can’t rank them much higher yet, but I told you they would make a run. This could be the beginning of a good run for the Raptors.
14. (15) Indiana (24-21). A very average team with a great center. That will get them in the playoffs.
15. (13) Miami (21-25). Shaq’s back and Dwyane Wade (right) looked like a man possessed against Cleveland.
16. (14) Minnesota (22-23). It’s probably a good thing they are starting to lose games on a more regular basis. Kevin Garnett did his best to carry them, but he can’t carry them too far.
17. (19) Golden State (21-25). Still a strange team with no direction. Until the give the keys to Monta Ellis, they will be stuck in neutral.
18. (12) Orlando (24-22). Plummeting fast. Miami will go by them, can they hold on to the last playoff spot in the East?
19. (17) New Jersey (22-24). They’ll have to hold off New York if they want to make the playoffs.
20. (21) New York (20-28). Got a gift with Kobe missing the game the other night. Crawford and Curry have been great, but this is another team that changes from night to night.
21. (20) Milwaukee (18-28). Struggling to stay above water with all the injuries. At least Williams and Villanueva are back, they still need Michael Redd.
22. (22) Portland (20-27). Brandon Roy is making a strong case for rookie of the year… no surprise.
23. (25) New Orleans/Oklahoma City (19-26). West and Paul are back, but Paul does not have his legs yet. They still need some more talent.
24. (24) Sacramento (18-26). A boring team to say the least. I’d be surprised if Mike Bibby stayed with the Kings after this season.
25. (23) Seattle (17-29). Obviously, the loss of Rashard Lewis has destroyed them. At least Nick Collison (right) is still playing great.
26. (26) Charlotte (17-28). Not much has changed with the Bobcats. They will continue to grow. Gerald Wallace’s 42 points against the Knicks the other night was special.
27. (29) Atlanta (17-27). They really need to make a splash this offseason. There just isn’t enough talent here. If they had a chance to redraft, do you think they would still take Shelden Williams with the fifth pick?
28. (30) Philadelphia (15-32). They can build around Iguodala, Miller and Dalembert, but they will still need to add talent. I expect Kyle Korver will be traded. We’ll see about Miller.
29. (27) Memphis (12-35). Move Pau Gasol while you still can and then hope Joe Durant or Greg Oden falls in your lap.
30. (28) Boston (12-33). Again, they clearly have talent. In some ways, they are letting nature take its course. Jefferson, Rondo, West, Green, Gomes and Perkins will all benefit from this experience.

The mother of four of former NBA star Latrell Sprewell’s children sued him for $200 million Monday, alleging he broke their long-term cohabitation deal and roughed her up last month in their Westchester County home.

Candace Cabbil brought the lawsuit in U.S. District Court, saying Sprewell recently ended the arrangement that developed after they met in 1989 when both attended the University of Alabama.

“I certainly have no comment about that at this point,” said Sprewell’s attorney, Jonathan C. Smith, who probably fears being choked any day now if he talks too much.

The lawsuit says that on September 8, Sprewell broke his promise to share his life with Cabbil when he entered their Purchase, N.Y., home and announced they needed “to end this fake relationship.”

Sprewell started giving Cabbil less money than usual for household expenses and for their children, ages 3, 7, 8 and 11, and made himself scarce when she tried to find him. Cabbil is also the guardian for a 16-year-old Sprewell fathered with another woman. Classy.

It alleges that, in December, Sprewell entered their home, chased Cabbil around and smacked her hand to prevent her from trying to use a cellphone to call the police. Then he allegedly grabbed her and dragged her down a flight of stairs by her feet, causing her physical and emotional injury.

According to the suit, the fight brought a violent end to a relationship that belied earlier promises that she had “nothing to worry about” and she “owned everything he owned” despite Spree’s failure to marry or to put her name on the home he bought for $3 million in 2000.

Cabbil, who gave up a $25,000/year job at a hospital to have their first child in 1995, said there was rarely less than $100,000 in the couple’s joint bank account Sprewell also hired a babysitter and a house cleaner, bought Cabbil new cars and registered her as his wife with the NBA so she could receive health insurance.

When Sprewell was traded from the New York Knicks to the Timberwolves in July 2003, the couple agreed that Cabbil and the children would remain in Purchase. Instead of returning to his family in N.Y., Sprewell chose to live on a yacht he purchased in Wisconsin. Really.

How ironic that the four-time all-star has not played in the NBA since turning down a three-year, $21 million extension offered by Minnesota at the end of the 2004-05 season - a contract he indignantly denounced, stating he had to feed his family. Bet he could use some of that money now that the family wants $200M.

1. (1) Dallas (34-8). The Mavericks retain the edge over Phoenix because of their defensive ability (92.6 points allowed per contest). Meanwhile, Dirk and Josh are deadly.
2. (2) Phoenix (27-8). Take away a two-point loss at Dallas and two overtime losses against Utah and Washington and we’d be looking at a 34-game win streak. The Suns next five games are on the road, then they get Utah, San Antonio and Denver.
3. (3) San Antonio (30-13). Even Pop admits his team is not as hungry as Dallas and Phoenix, but does it really matter? They’ll be hungry when the playoffs begin.
4. (4) Utah (28-14). AK-47 needs to tell Jazz owner Larry Miller to shut the F*%k up or Kirilenko could score more than 9.1 points per game. In case you haven’t noticed, Deron Williams is the best point guard from the 2005 draft and Carlos Boozer (22 points and 12 rebounds per game) should be a legitimate MVP candidate.
5. (5) L.A. Lakers (27-15). Lakers are 10-4 against top Western Conference teams, but they lose too many games against bad opponents. Lamar Odom’s return will help the stretch run.
6. (10) Denver (21-17). Call me crazy, but I’m convinced Allen Iverson and Carmelo Anthony can coexist. Why the high ranking? Do you really think any of the Eastern Conference teams are better than Denver? Neither do I. Do you think Houston or Minnesota is better? Neither do I. Did you catch that Steve Blake trade? He’s been a huge spark a point guard for the Nuggets.
7. (6) Cleveland (24-17). Road trip hangover led to that home loss against Orlando, but a 2-5 stretch was not very impressive. Still, LeBron James is enough for me to keep them at the top of the East… and I’m sure Gilbert Arenas will post this in his locker for motivation.
8. (8) Detroit (23-16). Chauncey Billups is back and the Pistons look much better. Chris Webber might actually be a good addition if he rebounds and hits jump shots after setting the pick.
9. (9) Washington (24-16). I know they are on fire, but I still think the Cavs and Pistons - and eventually the Heat - are better in the East. Wizards need to play defense and learn how to put teams like the Celtics away.
10. (12) Houston (25-16). Tough stretch — lost three straight to Dallas, Phoenix and Denver. Next up: San Antonio. Anyone notice how well Mutombo is playing? Big man can still rebound.
11. (13) Chicago (23-19). This team is riddled with inconsistency. Now they have moved Ben Gordon back into the starting lineup and they are talking to Memphis about trading for Pau Gasol. I can’t figure them out.
12. (7) Orlando (23-19). Go figure… Magic lose five straight and then win at Cleveland.
13. (20) Miami (19-22). The East should be worried. Shaq is ready to return and they are still within striking distance.
14. (11) Minnesota (20-20). Caught the Kevin Garnett foolishness on ESPN the other night. KG needs to be smarter. He can’t take the bait from a bum like Antonio McDyess. I also don’t understand why McDyess was not suspended.
15. (14) Indiana (21-20). It’s a great trade whenever you can get rid of Stephen Jackson.
16. (18) Toronto (20-22). Raps are 18-14 since they’re terrible start. That type of run can win the Atlantic Division going away.
17. (19) New Jersey (20-21). A 9-3 run keeps them alive, but I’m not very confident they can hold off the Raptors.
18. (16) L.A. Clippers (19-21). They’ll be fighting for that 8th playoff spot, but this could be the most disappointing team in the league.
19. (15) Golden State (19-23). Any trade that brings you Stephen Jackson is not a good trade. What the heck is going on in Oakland? Just play Monta Ellis and let him lead this team.
20. (17) Milwaukee (17-23). The return of Redd and Williams will help. Bogut has really stepped up his game. But they need to end this 1-8 run to stay alive in the East.
21. (21) New York (18-25). They won a few at the buzzer, but the back-to-back losses at the buzzer slowed down a pretty good run.
22. (23) Portland (17-25). Brandon Roy’s 28 points against Milwaukee was great to see.
23. (24) Seattle (16-25). Three straight wins led by Ray Allen and Nick Collison.
24. (22) Sacramento (16-23). How about that Ron Artest? He’s been a big help…to Indiana. Maybe Brad Miller’s return will help.
25. (28) New Orleans / Oklahoma City (16-23). How have they won 4 out of 5? David West is back and he’s angry.
26. (26) Charlotte (14-26). Matt Carroll is still on fire and even Adam Morrison is shooting better these days.
27. (29) Memphis (10-32). 4-13 since Gasol’s return…now you know why they want to trade him.
28. (25) Boston (12-28). 2007-2008 starting five: Rajon Rondo, Delonte West, Paul Pierce, Al Jefferson and Greg Oden. Be afraid, be very afraid. If Tony Allen did not get hurt, this would be the best losing season in Celtics history.
29. (30) Atlanta (13-25). Hawks are trying to get in on this Oden/Durant race.
30. (27) Philadelphia (11-30). Still think they might move Andre Miller. If they do, the first pick in the draft will be theirs.

[Current ranking, followed by last week’s ranking in parentheses, followed by team record]

1. (4) Dallas (29-8). A staggering 29-4 since their 0-4 start. All four losses have come on the road. The Mavericks are also playing better defense — holding the Suns, Nuggets and Jazz under 100 points in recent wins.
2. (1) Phoenix (27-8). Steve Nash’s 21 assists with just one turnover against Cleveland is one of the most impressive lines I’ve seen all season. An even more telling stat about the Suns: Against Cleveland, they did not have a 20-point scorer, but still scored 110 points.
3. (2) San Antonio (26-11). Both Phoenix and Dallas appear to be the better teams at this point, but the Spurs still have a shot at 60 wins and you won’t want to see them in the playoffs.
4. (3) Utah (24-11). Holding on after their strong start. Jazz look like they will stay in the top half of the West for the entire season. They lost three out of seven against San Antonio, Dallas and Houston, but Deron Williams led them to a big win over Denver.
5. (6) L.A. Lakers (23-13). Kobe Bryant has held the team above water without Odom, but back-to-back blowout losses on the road in Memphis and Houston are troubling.
6. (11) Cleveland (22-13). Cavs are in the middle of a brutal seven-game west coast road trip. A few wins could give LeBron James and company a comfortable advantage in the East.
7. (10) Orlando (22-14). Dwight Howard’s 30 and 25 the other night was about as impressive as Nash’s 21 assists last night. As long as Grant Hill stays healthy, the Magic have enough to stay at the top of the East.
8. (5) Detroit (20-13). They’re 2-3 without Billups, and just 2-5 in their last seven games. The Pistons will be fine when he returns, but they are not very good with Carlos Delfino and Will Blalock running the point.
9. (12) Washington (20-14). An amazing 11-3 in their last 14 with all three losses coming on the road. In the Eastern Conference, that is a huge run.
10. (9) Denver (17-16). Struggling at 1-6 in their last seven with Allen Iverson. That’s even more proof that Carmelo Anthony is one of the five best players in the NBA and A.I. is not.
11. (15) Minnesota (17-16). Kevin Garnett is playing like an MVP. He is one of only three players averaging 20 and 10 and he is the only one averaging at least 22/12.
12. (8) Houston (23-13). Rockets are 7-3 since Yao Ming’s injury. How long can they keep it up? Will he return? Both are doubtful.
13. (7) Chicago (20-17). Still an up and down team. They’ve lost five out of six, with their only win in that stretch coming against Detroit.
14. (13) Indiana (20-16). Uninspiring team that will hover around .500 all season. They won three in a row against bottom of the barrel teams (Atlanta, New Orleans/Oklahoma City and Boston).
15. (15) Golden State (18-19). Matt Barnes has been great. Every player they have picked up off the scrap heap has played well.
16. (20) L.A. Clippers (17-19). It’s amazing how average this team is, but they are still just 5-13 on the road. They are playing better of late, but the Clips need road wins to get back in to the West race.
17. (21) Milwaukee (16-19). I told you all five Central Division teams would make the playoffs, but the loss of Michael Redd will hurt the Bucks’ chances.
18. (23) Toronto (16-20). A month ago I told you this was the team to watch in the Atlantic Division. The loss to New Jersey was tough, but wins over Washington and Milwaukee will help their playoff chase.
19. (22) New Jersey (16-19). I’m not convinced the Nets will hold off the Raptors or the Knicks… or even the Celtics if they decide to make a push when Paul Pierce returns.
20. (17) Miami (15-19). The Heat are getting just what they need with Shaq out. They are only a half game out of the final playoff spot with no need to rush the big fella back.
21. (27) New York (16-21). They are winning a few games as of late, but don’t get too excited, they’ll soon lose 9 of 10 and the complaining will resume.
22. (19) Sacramento (14-18). Did you know Ron Artest leads the league in steals? Yeah, I didn’t care either. Bad mistake by ESPN the Magazine for putting him on the cover. He should just go away.
23. (18) Portland (14-23). Zach Randolph… blah, blah, blah. Randolph… blah, blah, blah. At least some of the young guys are getting some time for next year.
24. (24) Seattle (13-25). Just three wins in their last 17 games. Good luck getting Rashard Lewis to return next year.
25. (16) Boston (12-22). When we last submitted these power rankings, the Celtics were coming off of a 48-minute domination of Carmelo Anthony and the Nuggets, Al Jefferson looked like an All-Star and Tony Allen was finally becoming a star. Since then, Paul Pierce has not played, Allen destroyed an ACL and Jefferson’s scoring has slowed a bit. Jefferson still looks like a star and Gerald Green is a scoring machine, but Greg Oden and Kevin Durant are looking more and more like they should get used to wearing green.
26. (28) Charlotte (10-23). Nothing new from the Bobcats. They are still Giant-Killers with wins against playoff-bound teams every week (Detroit and LAL are the latest), but they still struggle with consistency from their young stars on a nightly basis.
27. (30) Philadelphia (9-26). They were energized for about a week and then they remembered they did not want to win games. Their four-game slide is better for their future… so is paying Chris Webber to go away.
28. (25) New Orleans / Oklahoma City (13-22). They’re just 5-19 since an 8-3 start. No Chris Paul, No Peja, No David West, No Bobby Jackson and No chance this season.
29. (29) Memphis (9-27). I’m sorry, but I don’t understand why Hakim Warrick is not playing more than 20 minutes per game now that Pau Gasol is back. Warrick led the team in scoring 10 times. He went from 32 minutes and 15 points per game down to 13 minutes and 7 points per game. I don’t understand what he did to lost that much time. I would think the Grizzlies would find more time for Warrick and less time for Dahntay Jones.
30. (26) Atlanta (10-23). Remember the optimism surrounding their 4-1 start? Yeah, that faded faster than Mike Vick and the Atlanta Falcons.