NBA Notes: Season is a compelling one

By Mike Walsh

In the midst of March Madness is one of the most compelling NBA seasons in recent memory. The Western conference is a cluster of nine teams on pace to win 50 games.
One of those teams will be a lottery team. There are three teams that are fighting to stay in the top eight right now. Let’s take a quick peak at each to see what’s going on.

Dallas- The Mavericks are in a tailspin. They hadn't beaten a team with a winning record since acquiring Jason Kidd until beating Golden State on Wednesday night. Now Dirk Nowitzki is out with a “sprained knee and ankle.” His return date is cloudy, as is his level of effectiveness upon his return. I said I thought the Kidd trade made them worse and it looks like I was right…for once. I just feel like they will not be able to right the ship in time to save their season. Who would have thought that fighting for the eighth seed and sneaking in the playoffs would be “saving the season” for the Mavericks?

Denver- They continue to play well at home and poorly on the road. They continue to have little offensive continuity; either Allen Iverson, Carmelo Anthony and J.R. Smith are hot…or they are getting pummeled. That’s because they can’t stop anyone. While Carmelo has figured out how to take advantage of the different defenders thrown at him, he hasn’t figured out how to play defense against anyone. Iverson plays the passing lanes, but isn’t a great one on one defender anymore, Smith is too busy thinking about the next cross over fade away jumper he’s going to throw up and Kenyon Martin is a step slow now. Camby is the only player who can defend his man and protect the basket. I say they finish one game ahead of the Mavs for the final playoff spot.

Golden State-(author’s note: this was written before the Warriors laid down and died in the 4th quarter against the Spurs last night and before they laid an egg against Dallas) Predicting with your heart instead of your head is always a bad idea. Fortunately for me, I am full of bad ideas and I’ve let my heart lead me into many horrible situations, so why stop now? The Warriors play four tough games on the road against the Spurs, Mavs, Grizzlies and Hornets. By the time they get back to California I will either be giddy or I will have jammed a staple remover into my throat. After the road swing the Warriors have a match up remaining with the Nuggets and Suns. Sprinkled in there are the Clippers with Brand back, the Kings and Sonics. Their road isn’t easy, but I feel like the Warriors have built on last year and they have actually learned from their let downs this season (evidenced by their lack of losing streaks. When they lose a game they’ve come back and played well against their next opponent). My heart is telling me that they finish go 7-2 in their final nine including beating Dallas AND Denver. If not? The Warriors will be a lottery team. Could you imagine them ending up with a top five pick and drafting a Lopez twin or Kevin Love to rebound, defend and outlet? Not a bad consolation prize for missing the playoffs.

Potential matchups: We can’t even talk about potential matchups in the West because nothing will be decided until the last couple games. That makes all of this even more “Tourney-like." The surprise of the matchups and all of the jockeying for playoff positions will just add to the intrigue.
The Eastern Conference is shaping up just how everyone thought it would. Boston, Detroit, Orlando and Cleveland have all solidified their positions at the top of the conference. If any lower seed makes it to the second round, which is a long shot, it would be the Raptors. No matter who they end up playing, they have the most overall talent as a lower seed and have been to the playoffs with this nucleus. A second round match up of Boston vs. Cleveland and Detroit vs. Orlando is going to be fun.

The plague: Injuries are plaguing several teams in the race for the west. The Lakers have some relief on the way as Pau Gasol is set to return for the Lakers next game against the Blazers. Unfortunately there is still a shroud of mystery regarding the return of Andrew Bynum. The Mavericks are without Dirk Nowitzki with no timetable for a return after landing awkwardly and spraining his knee and ankle. Stephen Jackson of the Warriors has battled a sprained ankle over the last six weeks and looks 47 steps slower on defense. It’s always frustrating when injuries get in the way of a team’s success in any sport. With so many great teams battling this season it would be a shame if one bowed out due to injury.