AJC > Sports > Hawks > Blog > Archives > 2006 > November > 09
Thursday, November 9, 2006
Looking around the NBA
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Enough with the Hawks already. I feel like we’re analyzing these guys to death right now and we’ve only got four games to analyze.
It’s time to turn our analytical eye elsewhere. How about the rest of the league? I don’t only watch the Hawks. I’ve got League Pass. I watch a little bit of everybody (guess that doesn’t say much about my social life).
I was scanning the standings this morning (yes, the same ones that have the Hawks chillin’ at the top of the Southeast Division) and tried to get a handle on what’s going on.
So in the pre-Canada version of the five things we already know, it’s time to take a tour around the league to figure out what some of these other teams DON’T already know:
— To our friends in Denver, the regular season has started. These aren’t exhibition games anymore. They count. You have to start playing for real. I feel worst for Carmelo Anthony, who will be forever (or at least until he finds his way out of Denver or the Nuggets ship off some of his coaches, teammates, etc.) maligned by the dysfunctional operation around him. But the parts don’t appear to fit very well in Denver (I know it’s early but 0-3? Come on).
— To our friends in Dallas, it’s OK to demolish the competition early in the season. You don’t have to wait until March to crank it up like San Antonio usually does. In their defense, and they don’t need me apologizing for them, the Mavs are working in several new faces (Anthony Johnson, Austin Croshere, Greg Buckner) and playing without one key player (Josh Howard). But I can guarantee you 0-4 is now what anyone in Dallas had in mind for the start of the season. Something’s not right down there.
— To our friends in Detroit, Ben Wallace really is gone. I’ll admit I didn’t think the Pistons would miss Big Ben this much. I was wrong. I watched them against Sacramento late Wednesday night and it’s almost like they’re expecting Ben to come flying out of nowhere to block shots and grab rebounds. They’re playing a step slower than their competition on defense and it’s costing them.
— To our friends in Phoenix, did you really think the rest of the league was going sit back and allow you guys to run over them for another season? Of course they didn’t. The reality is that several of the Suns look like they’re still working their way back into game shape (Amare has an excuse, our guy Boris does not). Success has a way of reshaping your hunger. Some guys have success and crave more so they go overboard to reach the next level. Some guys have success and think they’ve arrived and forget what got them there. Steve Nash is going to need more help than he’s getting right now.
— To all our friends in the Central Division, good luck fighting your way through that mess. The winner of the Central might not be decided until the last week of the season. It’s that deep and that competitive. Any of the five teams – Indiana, Chicago, Cleveland, Milwaukee or Detroit -– can win it. And there’s a good chance all five teams could make the playoffs, for the second year in a row.
