West continues to dominate, Spurs remain on top

[Hawksquawk]

When marquee free agents like Carlos Boozer and Amar'e Stoudemire went from the Western Conference to the East last summer, we thought it might bring more balance to the NBA landscape.

View the full article

[Wurider05]

I think that when its all said and done we will have not realized the true greatness of Tim Duncan. Hardworker, good teammate, doesn't whine about touches/spotlight, he steps up in the post season (unlike JJ). I think this season he only plays about 29 minutes a game and is allowing his teammates to play their game. How many superstars are willing to do that. Look at the Lakers. In the beginning of the season when the offense was running through Gasol they looked unbeatable and it was early season talk of MVP. Then you have Kobe is has lost a step and has a bad knee (don't even practice) going against what was working for them.

Tim Duncan is the best player of the post Jordan era and the best power forward in the history of the game. It's a shame he will never get the recognition he deserves.

Good to see the Hawks moving up but my we still haven't beaten the good teams. Those Orlando games should not count because of obvious reasons.

Edited January 24, 2011 by Wurider05

[Admin]

Good to see the Hawks moving up but my we still haven't beaten the good teams. Those Orlando games should not count because of obvious reasons.

Does the Heat victory not count? I know we laid an egg in the next game against the Hornets but they also locked down the Spurs right after that as well so I don't feel nearly as bad as I did about it.

And continuing the trend of looking at their rankings last year vs this year ...

This year:

8 Atlanta (29-16)

Pace: 92.5 (25), Off: 104.5 (14), Def: 102.5 (11)

Following a road win over the Heat with a 41-point home loss to the Hornets, the Hawks are obviously the Jekyll and Hyde Team of the Week. But overall, they haven't lost more than two games in a row since before Thanksgiving and are still very much in the picture for a top-four seed in the East.

Last year:

5. Atlanta (28-14)

Pace: 93.5 (26), Off: 109.1 (3), Def: 103.3 (13)

The Hawks have won seven of their last nine in a home-heavy stretch. They face a tough nine-day, five-city stretch against some of the league's best defensive teams: @ Houston, @ San Antonio, vs. Boston, @ Orlando, @ OKC.