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Looking ahead
The playoff races are looking good from here
Posted: Friday December 31, 1999 12:28 PM
By Jennifer A. Cooper, CNN/SI
Well, the Christmas break came and went, and the last games of the millennium are upon us. Usually by this point in the season, the division/conference races are taking shape and the men are being separated from the boys.
But while there are definitely a few cellar-dwellers, and a number of teams have made it clear that they're serious about winning, most of the middle ground is still anybody's to claim. Even the Nets have made a move and are looking like a respectable bunch of guys.
Those playoff races can't get here fast enough.  | | Bad news and more bad news | | The Knicks just can't function as a run-of-the-mill organization. In the national spotlight -- on Christmas Day, no less -- Kurt Thomas lays into Jalen Rose. That's on top of John Wallace's arrest for driving with a suspended license, a charge that he denies, and the loss of Marcus Camby and Charlie Ward to injury and illness. New York has to be hoping that Tuesday's loss to New Jersey is the last in that particular series of bad news. | | All-Star number crunching | | According to numbers released by the league, Vince Carter is leading all-comers in the 2000 All-Star balloting. But the most interesting races are going to involve the West's guards and forwards (Jason Kidd vs. Kobe Bryant and Kevin Garnett vs. Tim Duncan). | | He's outta there | | P.J. Carlesimo's losing record -- no matter what the reasons for it might have been -- finally caught up with him. |  | | HOT: Chris Webber The Sacramento forward has obviously recovered from that neck injury. In his team's past four games, in which the Kings have gone 3-1, C-Web has scored an average of 30 points per game on 55 percent shooting. | | COLD: Charlie Ward Here's the Knicks' starting point guard's line from New York's win over Toronto on Dec. 22: 35 minutes, five points on 2-of-8 shooting, 0 free throws, 2 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal and 2 turnovers. | | HOT: Portland Trail Blazers The Blazers aren't getting much attention because they happen to be in the same division as the also-hot Lakers, but they've quietly put together a 21-7 record (.750 winning percentage) and have won three in a row and seven of their past 10. | | COLD: Cleveland Cavaliers The Cavs have lost seven in a row and have fallen to 11-16, hovering only above the lowly Bulls in the Central. They're shooting 40 percent in the past five games, and the Bulls are actually hovering above the Cavs in that category. | | HOT: Michael Finley Even though the Mavs went 1-4 in their past five games, they lost those four by an average of only four points, and Finley is mostly responsible for keeping them close. He's averaged 24 points, eight assists and nine rebounds in that stretch. | | COLD: Dikembe Mutombo It seems like just yesterday that the Hawks' big man was on the "Hot Hands" section of this list. But the past five games haven't been good to Mutombo. He's taken only 18 shots in those games (averaging eight points per game) and has recorded 15 turnovers. What's that about? |  | | Don't Miss | Don't Bother | • Tuesday, Jan. 4
• Portland at Toronto
• Watching Vince Carter and Tracy McGrady go up against Scottie Pippen and Rasheed Wallace should be a lot of fun. | • Monday, Jan. 3
• Portland at Chicago
• If the Bulls can make the Warriors look good, imagine what the Blazers are going to do in the United Center. |  | | Things that make you go 'Hmmm' | | The teams in the Nos. 29 through 21 spots for fouls called in the past five games are all from the Eastern Conference. And is it merely a coincidence that Boston (with an average of 29.4 fouls called per game) and Cleveland (with 28) are at the bottom of the list and they've gone 1-4 in that stretch? |  | | Sound off! | Mark Talach, Wallaceburg, Ontario, Canada: "Until the Lakers get a decent point guard, they will never win a title."
Yeah, Phil had a big problem with that in Chicago.
Brutus, San Diego: "How possible is a trade for Tracy McGrady by the Lakers? I hear West is interested."
A better question might be which GM isn't interested in the Raptors forward.
Joseph, Quezon City, Philippines: "I think David Robinson should be named the best player in the NBA now. If it were not for his selflessness and swallowing his own pride and letting Tim Duncan lead the team, San Antonio would never have won the championship." So if Robinson is the best player in the NBA for that, what would you call the man who actually led the team?. |
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