December monthly review

EAST

Atlanta:

• The Celtics ended their 19-game winning streak with two consecutive losses one to the Lakers in the Christmas Showdown and one to the lowly Warriors, and then ended the year with yet another loss in Portland. At 28-5, they are still on pace to win 70 games this season, but we can simply stop all the invincibility talks. We have seen their weaknesses: one is the relaxed defense, probably due to complacency and cockiness, which can easily be corrected; another one is the thin bench, which is a more critical issue to be dealt with. (Posey, anyone?)



• The once surprising teams, the Knicks and the Nets, gradually came back to reality. Say whatever you want about D’Antoni, but let’s face it, with such a roster, there’s no way that they can have a winning record, no matter how pedestrians like Duhon, Harrington and Nate Robinson, have been posting stats like all-stars. As for the Nets, please, other than Devin Harris and Vince, they have no one else scoring. How could you expect a team which starts Bob Simmons, Yi and rookie Brook Lopez in the frontcourt to win? And please, NO NOT VOTE FOR YI!



• Sam Mitchell was fired, and the Raptors kept on losing. Well, at least I can see some improvement here: that the Raptors had fewer blowout losses under Jay Triano. They need to play some real defense in order to win.

Central:

• The Cavs managed to blow out opponents early in December but gradually fell back to reality around Christmas, when they narrowly escaped a win over the Wizards at home. They finished the year with the second best record in the league, but I think the record is inflated because their opponents this month were just too weak (other than the wins over the Nuggets and the Rockets). If they are smart, the loss in Miami should serve as a wakeup call to this arrogant bunch. People say LBJ’s defense has improved substantially. I would love to see how good it is but I have yet to watch a Cavs game.



• The Pistons finished the year with a 5-game winning streak, last three of which without Rip Ham. In Dec, the Pistons had one subtle but crucial move: they re-signed Antonio McDyess. With Dice on the bench, they could afford to start Rodney Stuckey at PG, and shift Iverson, which had been struggling to pretend to be a PG, to his natural SG position and Rip Ham at SF. Furthermore, the Pistons are now dangling with the idea of starting Amir Johnson and let Rip Ham (when he comes back from injury) come off the bench. This would (1) size up their frontcourt and (2) further boost up their bench scoring. I like this idea and I’m seeing the Pistons to get better in 2009.



• We saw Derrick Rose’s scoring and FG% came off in Dec, as the opponents no longer gave him any rookie treatment and focused on stopping him. Maybe it’s time for him to learn to run the offense and focus on passing.

Southeast:

• Orlando Magic has quietly posting up wins after wins and recently people start talk about them being included in the Elite Four (Celtics, Cavaliers, Lakers and Magic). Their point-differential (+7.4) was the fourth best in the League. They put up some quality wins in Dec, over the Lakers, the Spurs, the Blazers and the Hornets. Jameer Nelson and Rashard Lewis have been scoring at will. Stan Van Gundy for COY?



• Atlanta Hawks has become the Giant-beater in Dec. During the month, they beat the Cavs, the Nuggets, the Heat and narrowly lost to the Celtics. No. 4 in the East and a 21-10 record sounds a bit surreal to them. To maintain their standing, they must continue playing hard to fend off any challenge from the Pistons. Last but not least: Joe Johnson for All-Star!



• Don’t get over-hyped by their win over the Cavs in New Year Eve, the Heat is still a mediocre team with two rookies starting and is severely undersized. I like the idea of benching Beasley and starting Joel Anthony at C. They will see a tough January schedule which features a 7-game road trip and also meetings with the Magic, the Nuggets, the Lakers, the Celtics, the Hawks and the Mavs. D-Wade has been playing like a MVP but will never win the award.

WEST

Northwest:

• The Nuggets are leading the division, but I have yet to be convinced that they are an elite team. I don’t see any quality players after Billups, ‘Melo and Nene. J.R. Smith has been hitting 3s of late but he’s too one-dimensional. Now tied with the Spurs and the Rockets at #3 in the West and after Billups’ honeymoon period of, I expect them to fall in 2009.



• The Blazers are just 1/2 game behind the Nuggets in the division. None of the games speak louder than their win over the Celtics at home on Dec 30. Without Brandon Roy, no less. While Roy is a locked All-Star, they have LaMarcus Aldridge as a not-so-small second banana. Oden’s minutes (and therefore his production) have increased recently and he played all games in Dec. Glad that he looks healthy so far.



• The Jazz has been badly hit by injuries. First Boozer, then Okur (now back), now Millsap. Kudos to the team hanging tough (now at #9 in the West) despite all these. Boozer will undergo microscopic surgery on his left knee and will be out for at least a month. Before the surgery, Boozer vowed to test the free agent market this summer. Now, how much would he be worth after the knee surgery? Did anyone say “karma”? I will never forgive him leaving Cleveland.

Pacific:

• Yes, the back-to-back losses in Florida (Miami and Orlando) are unforgivable, but the Lakers looked real impressive in the Christmas Showdown against the Celtics. Their defense remains questionable, yet they are the most talented and versatile team in the league. As proven earlier in Nov (and the recent game against the Celtics), they could stop opponents when they were determined to do so. Mark your diary: Jan 19, LBJ & the Cavs are visting La La land.



• At 18-12, you could hardly say that the Suns are “struggling”, but the cold fact is that they are 8th in the West with just 1/2 game over the Jazz. Yes, you can argue that they are just 2 games behind the #2 Hornets too. Anyway, the trade for J-Rich has addressed their need of perimeter scoring. They now have an upper hand to keep their playoff berth over the Mavs and the Jazz.



• I will never forgive the Warriors losing to the team-formerly-known-as-Sonics. C’mon, they are trying to make history by losing more than 71 games!

Southwest:

• The Southwest remains the toughest division in the league. Right now it features 4 teams which are on pace to win 50 games (Hornets, Spurs, Rockets and Mavs), and are just 2 games apart. The Hornets improved from 9-6 in Nov to finish at 19-9, thanks to a rather easy schedule. The two ugly losses against the Lakers and in Orlando around Christmas sure have raised some red flags for the second best team in the West. We have yet to see a completely healed Tysan Chandler.



• To say I’m worried about the Spurs is an understatement. As impressive as their record (20-11, tied 3rd best in the West) shows, they were just 4-3 against teams with winning record in Dec. They had unconvincing wins over weak teams like Wolves, Raptors, team-formerly-known-as-Sonics and Grizzlies (double OT at home), and an ugly loss to the visiting Bucks which allowed Andrew “white stiff” Bogut to have 20 pts and 14 rebs. Their point-differential of +3.1 is actually worse than that of the Nugget, Rockets, Blazer and Jazz. They will be seeing a lot of road games in the next couple of months including their famous Rodeo Road Trip in February. Now Oberto is injured, sigh!



• The Rockets had only one quality win (over the Nuggets) in Dec, which required a triple-double from T-Mac and a 32-pt effort by Yao. Then they strangely lost to the Grizzlies and Wizards. That’s why I’m always hesitant to name them as an elite team. They will start the year with a 5-game road trip, with meetings with the Hawks and the Celtics, followed by a 5-game homestand featuring 4 winning teams: the Lakers, the Heat, the Nuggets and the Jazz. Let’s see if we can tell who they are after that.



• Like the Hornets and the Spurs, the Mavericks benefited from a soft Dec schedule to end the year with a respectable 19-12 record. Of course, the absence of Josh Howard from late Nov to early Dec hurts, but still it’s beyond comprehension to be down by 29 pts against the Wolves at home and then needed some superhuman moment by Jason Terry to rally and win.