30 DEGREES TO AN NBA CHAMPION

                        

Who will be the 2004-2005 NBA Champion?? Well, let’s take a wild journey using the ol’ "six degrees of Kevin Bacon" method. Instead of six degrees...we will use 30. We’ll start at the defending champion Pistons and work our way to the new champion.

First off, this isn’t scientific. This isn’t a true sports take in the fact that it isn’t a breakdown. It’s just fun and games, folks...don’t take this pick seriously [sad that I have to explain that, isn’t it?]

Here we go.

                             

The DETROIT PISTONS are the defending champions and have a great shot to win it again. They still bring the defensive presence that it takes to win a title. Can they do it again? Larry Brown will have his troops ready.....Larry Brown also led the PHILADELPHIA 76ERS to the NBA Finals against the Lakers. On the surface, this has the look of an Iverson team with little else. True, to an extent. They have plenty of role guys that will do the little things it takes to win. But if Webber comes back strong in the playoffs, that does help Iverson’s game.....Of course, Webber came to Philly from the SACRAMENTO KINGS. While the Kings aren’t as powerful as they once were, they still are dangerous. They’ve done a great job transitioning from the Webber-Divac-Christie days to the Bibby-Peja-Miller squad. They also have a few young guys that can help out. Maybe Rick Adelman will get to stick around?.....Adelman did get to the NBA Finals with the PORTLAND TRAILBLAZERS. The Blazers are really in some tough times. The Nanny Stopper [Patterson] verbally smacked the organization. Miles wants out. Players are fighting with each other. Coaches are getting sick of this crap. Heck, they might as well kept Sheed Wallace if they were goingto deal with this crap. At least then they were winning. What if they didn’t trade Jermaine O’Neal for Dale Davis?? Ooops!!....Too bad they did, and the INDIANA PACERS are grateful. In fact, they have both O’Neal and Davis now. Rick Carlisle needs to be considered in the Coach of the Year balloting. Artest missed the whole year; O’Neal was suspended and injured much of the year; they’ve had guys in and out of the lineup all season; and they’ve relied on a guy that is retiring after this season [Reggie]. They are still trying to get back to the Finals for the first time since Larry Bird led them in 2000.....The BOSTON CELTICS are trying to get to the Finals for the first time since Larry Bird led them in 1987. Winning a division is a good start...even if it is the Atlantic. They also could be the first team to not have home court advantage despite being a higher seed in the first round. Paul Pierce seems rejuvenated with Antoine Walker back......

                                    

Walker played the first half of the season for the ATLANTA HAWKS. How bad is it in Atlanta?? Well, they are worse than an expansion team, and that expansion team at least has a cornerstone set in place. The Hawks are woeful, selling their best players for cap space that nobody wants. Maybe nabbing Andrew Bogut will begin a renaissance for Hot-lanta. They have the best shot at getting him since the Hawks have the worst record in the NBA.....Last year, the ORLANDO MAGIC had the worst record in the NBA. The year actually started great for the Magic. Steve Francis had a chip on his shoulder; Grant Hill made a spirited comeback from injury; and the Magic were actually a top 5 team in the East. Since then, Francis kicked a photographer; Hill is out for the season; the coach is fired and the Magic will miss the playoffs. Not much to talk about in the NBA-only city.....Salt Lake City is also an NBA-only city, and the UTAH JAZZ will miss the playoffs for the secondstraight season after a 20-year run. Their acquisitions of Boozer and Okur haven’t worked out that splendidly as expected. And with AK-47 missing a ton of time, they really had no shot to contend. Instead, they’ve languished in the bottom of the West for the first time since they were in New Orleans......Right now, the NEW ORLEANS HORNETS rule the Jazz’ old town. Well, I wouldn’t say "rule". The move to the West was a cruel as expected. Last year, the Hornets were a playoff team. This year, they are the worst team in the conference. They dealt Jamal Mashburn and Baron Davis, the once cornerstones of the franchise in one swift period. And now there are questions about their attendance figures......Their hard times come when their old stomping grounds are enjoying the CHARLOTTE BOBCATS. Sure, the Cats aren’t that good. But, many had them pitted to be the worst team in NBA history. While they aren’t too good....they did beat Houston, Denver, Miami and Detroit this year and owned Atlanta and Orlando [6-2]. Not a bad start for blueprint artists Bernie Bickerstaff and Robert Johnson.....Johnson owned BET, which is based in the home of the WASHINGTON WIZARDS, where Bickerstaff also coached. The Wiz are having their best season since they were the Bullets. Jamison, Hughes and Arenas have formed quite a scoring trio for the Wiz. There hasn’t been this much excitement in DC since Michael Jordan first donned the jersey.....

                    

There hasn’t been much excitement for the CHICAGO BULLS since Jordan donned that jersey, either. The Young Bulls are finally starting to show their promise and upside we’ve been waiting for. If they can somehow keep these guys together, it could lead to something special. Gordon could win the Rookie Of The Year award......Last year, LeBron James won the Rookie Of The Year award for the CLEVELAND CAVALIERS. This is another franchise in some sort of turmoil. The team has struggled, fired their coach and had a change in ownership. They are still trying to clinch a playoff berth, but keep falling short. If they don’t act right, LeBron James could want out.....James was the #1 pick in 2003, and the HOUSTON ROCKETS’ Yao Ming was the #1 pick in 2002. Yao has his moments where he shines, but still is inconsistent. Good thing Tracy McGrady is around, and he doesn’t mind picking up the slack. Jeff Van Gundy has done a nice job figuring a game plan to fit his personnel......Van Gundy replaced Rudy Tomjonavich in Houston, and Rudy T took over the LOS ANGELES LAKERS this year. It didn’t last long as he re-retired due to health reasons [Kobe-itis]. In dealing Shaq, the Lakers took on less-than-desirable contracts [read: Brian Grant]. This signals the start of the rebuilding of the Lakers. Hard to believe we are just a year removed from the Western Conference champions to missing the playoffs......The MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES are close to missing the playoffs and they too were in those Western Conference Finals. Garnett still does his thing, but other additions just haven’t worked. Sprewell openly cried about his contract, Flip Saunders gets fired and the Kandi Man can’t play nice at the club. Good God!! You Wolves were the #1 seed last year and now, poof!.......Instead, the Northwest Division title went to the SEATTLE SUPERSONICS. While Seattle is struggling a little more than the other division winners, they still have an explosive offense and a slept on frontcourt. This may be their big shot at it all since Ray Allen could leave via free agency after the season....

                                  

Of course, Allen came to Seattle from the MILWAUKEE BUCKS. And Milwaukee has another one of the prized free agents, Michael Redd. The franchise could rest on the decision of Redd. If he stays, they could attract some more players to surround him. If he bolts, they are left with journeymen to go along with Des Mason and [hopefully] TJ Ford. Some believe this roster was all the mess of former coach and GM George Karl.....Karl is now the coach for the DENVER NUGGETS and has them smoking. They will be in the bottom half of the seeds in the West, but may be just as dangerous as anyone. They started slow, but Melo and the crew could make some major noise in the playoffs. And, now, the addition of Kenyon Martin looks to be a great one.....K-Mart came over from the NEW JERSEY NETS, who are just a season removed from back-to-back Eastern Conference Championships. Despite starting the year with Kidd injured, ending it with R-Jefferson injured, they still are on the cusp of getting into the playoffs. Of course, the addition of Vince Carter has been huge. What a season he is having.....A shame he couldn't "get up" for playing for the TORONTO RAPTORS. They aren't looking to swell right now. Jalen Rose has 2 more years on his deal worth over $32M. Alonzo Mourning's buyout is still on their books for another two years. Alvin Williams has $20M left over 3 years remaining. Rafaer Alston has been a headache, Rafael Araujo hasn't done a thing, and no one wants to be there. Chris Bosh needs to hurry up and turn into a Carmelo Anthony quick!.....Isaiah Thomas used to rule the roost in Toronto, but now he mans the mess for the NEW YORK KNICKS. How about a $104M payroll and no playoffs again? Next year won't be much different. The payroll goes up to $108M, but Tim Thomas and Penny Hardaway are looking at expired contracts. That makes them tradeable [especially to the Hawks, it seems]. In the NBA economics, these guys will be prized trade figures in 2005-2006......Penny Hardaway and Stephon Marbury came to the Knicks in last season's blockbuster deal with the PHOENIX SUNS. While the NYC will be missing in the playoffs, Phoenix is the West's top team. By comparison, the Suns payroll is only around $44M with only free agent signee and MVP candidate Steve Nash making over $9M. I like the Suns starters. They play a style that is really tough to keep up with. But, can they, themselves, keep it up? With the days off between playoff games, they just might....

                                       

Suns emit heat, like the MIAMI HEAT. And both teams are the #1 seeds in their conferences. The addition of Shaq to Miami has been outstanding. He's my pick for MVP. But it also has been Dwayne Wade's emergence as a superstar that has really been the dagger for opponents. If you focus too much on Shaq, Wade will kill ya! Miami has a great shot to get to it's first NBA Finals if (a) Shaq stays healthy and if (b) Detroit really wasn't laying down this year.....Shaq was an outcast from the Lakers that found success elsewhere. So is the MEMPHIS GRIZZLIES president Jerry West. While West built the Lakers Bling Dynasty, he's also doing a nice job with Memphis. However, as the Grizz's man, he's building around role players instead of stars. His highest paid player is Bonzi Wells, making a tad over $7.7M this season. Don't get me wrong, they have a big payroll [$73M], but they spent on quantity as much as quality. They have 16 guys that make at least $1M; 9 guys that make at least $5M. Yet, they are in the playoffs while the Timberwolves and Lakers are not.....Jerry West was a teammate of Elgin Baylor for many years, and both have been long time GMs in the same city. Baylor still is the LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS big guy. The Clippers are, well, the Clippers. Their blueprint has always been, draft guys but keep the salaries to a minimum. If they win, great! If not, well the books still look good! If there is some heat coming, they'll fire coach Mike Dunleavy.....of course, Dunleavy's son plays for the GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS. Dunleavy Jr has had a better second season than his rookie campaign. But, the buzz has been around G-State's deadline deals. They brought in Baron Davis who, when healthy, is one of the better point guards in the NBA. They have Adonal Foyle, Jason Richardson and Troy Murphy on lock down for a while, so this team could bloom into something. Maybe it will bring back the successes they had back in the Don Nelson days.....Don Nelson "retired" from coaching the DALLAS MAVERICKS this season. But they haven't missed a beat. Dirk Nowitzki has blossomed into an All-NBA performer and has actually gotten a little attitude to himself. Jerry Stackhouse has taken Jamison's Sixth Man role nicely. If Eric Dampier actually shows up for the playoffs, then Avery Johnson's team could be a surprise team in the West.....

                                  

Which leads me to my 2005 NBA Champion. Avery Johnson won his ring in 1999 with the SAN ANTONIO SPURS, my pick to win it this year. Why? Well, they were my preseason pick to win it, and my preseason picks of New England winning the Super Bowl [and I stupidly wavered to the Eagles during Super Bowl week], USC winning the BCS title and North Carolina winning the NCAA Tournament all were correct, so I'll stick with what brung me. But, they do feature Tim Duncan, the Big Fundamental. As Tony Parker was the breakout star last year, Manu Ginobili has been the Spurs' breakout star this year. He made the All Star team and has performed well when Tim is in or out of the lineup. And with the Lakers out of their way, they really have no nemesis to deal with. It is their conference to lose.