Western Conference: “Redistrict the NBA”
As some Americans argued after the 2002 and 2004 elections, we need some “redistricting” … in the NBA (that’s the National Basketball Association). (I reserve judgment on the redistricting of other organizations, such as the House of Representatives.) I believe any Western Conference fan would agree with me — at least in part — based on the following analysis. Each day, basketball fans check the NBA standings in their local newspapers’ sports section (or on the internet) – few the wiser. Most ”standings” list each teams’ wins, loses, and home, away, division and conference record. (Some even offer each team’s current streak.) But none of these sources give fans each team’s non-conference record. What could be a better statistic for comparing the conference as a whole to its brother?
You would think that after the Miami Heat won the championship last year, the Eastern Conference would have a claim as the dominant conference. Not a chance! Do you recall what happened to the best two teams in the league (at least two of the three best) in the playoffs last year? If I recall correctly (I do), the San Antonio Spurs (Timmy!) and the Dallas Mavericks (Dirk!) played in the second round of the playoffs (yes, the second round of a four round playoff system) and the Mavericks prevailed (if you can call it that) in an intense seven game series. So basically, the top two teams in the league were eliminated at that point. (The Mavs just didn’t seem to have it after that series.) The quirk in the rules that allowed the Spurs to play the Mavs so prematurely has allegedly been fixed, although, it really will not matter if the Western Conference — especially the Southwest division — continues to play .700 (that’s 7 out of 10) basketball against its dueling conference.
If this lack of parity continues — and it appears that it will — seven of the legitimate championship contenders could come from the Western Conference. (Three — Houson, Dallas and San Antonio — from the same division.) In the west, we could have three first round matchups in the playoffs that result in the elimnination of three of those contenders. On the other hand, the eastern Orlando Magic, Detroit Pistons or even King James’ Cavaliers — depending on the other two — could walk into the NBA finals unscathed.
Since my local papers omit non-conference records in the sports’ section, my analysis is based on the following data, which lists each teams’ total record at the end of the season’s first quarter (games ending December 10, 2006), along with the teams’ non-conference record in the parenthetical:
Eastern Conference
Cavaliers 12-7 (4-1)
Magic 15-7 (7-2)
Bucs 8-12 (5-4)
Pistons 13-7 (4-5)
Pacers 11-11 (3-4)
Hawks 8-11 (2-4)
Knicks 8-14 (3-5)
Heat 8-11 (3-6)
Celtics 6-13 (1-4)
76ers 5-14 (1-4)
Wizards 9-11 (1-4)
Bulls 10-10 (1-7)
Bobcats 5-15 (1-8)
Nets 7-12 (1-8)
Raptors 7-13 (1-8)
Western Conference
Suns 13-6 (6-0)
Clippers 10-9 (3-0)
Rockets 14-6 (9-1)
Spurs 15-6 (6-2)
Jazz 15-5 (5-2)
Mavericks 14-6 (5-2)
Lakers 17-6 (5-2)
Hornets 9-10 (5-2)
Nuggets 11-7 (7-3)
SuperSonics 10-11 (6-4)
Timberwolves 10-9 (3-2)
Kings 9-10 (4-3)
Warriors 10-11 (2-2)
Grizzlies 5-15 (4-6)
Trail Blazers 8-14 (4-7)
In sum, as of tonight (Sunday, December 10th), the Eastern Conference teams are 38-74 (.339) against the Western Conference teams — which, in turn, are playing .661 basketball against the east (they are basically winning two-thirds the interconference games). At the division level (there are three divisions in each conference), the Southwest division is 29-13 (.690) against the east. Conversely, the Atlantic division is a disgusting 7-29 (.194) against the west. (This “Atlantic” division includes teams from some of the largest markets in the NBA, including New York, Boston and Philadelphia, and also includes a Jason Kidd/Vince Carter Nets team that is 1-8 against the west.) Even the Pacific (besides Kobe and Nash, who plays at 10:30 p.m. EST?) division is dominating the east (20-7). And if you follow basketball, you probably know that the Central division, by far the Eastern Conference’s best division – with the Detroit Pistons, the Jordan Bulls, the Chosen One in Cleveland and the Indiana Pacers (all four with winning records) – still only boasts a 17-21 record against the west.
Honestly, I feel for fans in New Orleans (or is it Oklahoma City?) and Seattle. Both of their teams have losing records and would be non-playoff teams if it was April, but they combine for an impressive 11-6 record against the east. Not to mention — if the good-but-not-great Suns moved to Maine, they could probably win an unprecedented 75 games — scoring 100 in every game — in the east’s Atlantic where the first-place Nets are 7-12
Bottom line — the NBA needs to redistrict its conferences (just like the MLB and NFL).
Add comment December 10th, 2006
