Name three positives in the league right now

[Andrew]

We've had the negatives. Anyone feel like commenting on a few positives?

No "Zero Tolerance" Approach

Perhaps it's just been the games I've seen this season but it seems like they've reconsidered the whole "Zero Tolerance" policy from a season ago. I've seen far fewer technicals whistled on players who did little more than shake their heads or look sideways at a referee after a call but fortunately not to the extent where the inmates are running the asylum. It was a noble idea in theory but with different officials displaying difference tolerance levels and some players being shown more tolerance than others, it didn't exactly clean up the league.

The Western Conference

It's been the dominant conference for years and it would be foolish not to consider teams like San Antonio, Dallas and Phoenix still at least a notch above everyone else based on their Playoff experience but with the current battle for position in the West, there is a wide open feel to the conference. The seasoned teams might still stand above the rest as favourites but there's the feeling that anything could happen. As it stands today, the West has ten teams above .500.

The Potential Playoff Matchups

After last year's somewhat anti-climactic postseason, the Playoffs could well produce some interesting matchups particularly in the Western Conference. As always, any rematch from the previous year such as Warriors/Mavs and Suns/Spurs is bound to grab attention but there's also the possibility of some historically significant series with a compelling tale to accompany the action on the court.

Old rivalries may be renewed with a Boston/Detroit series. Should the Lakers somehow reach the NBA Finals, not only would it be a feather in Kobe's cap but a throwback to days gone by should they run into the Celtics or Pistons. Should the Celtics and Suns meet, they would do so for the first time since the infamous series in 1976 with one team trying to break their own record and the other looking for their first title, not to mention two Big Threes going head-to-head.

Not bad for a league that was supposed to have been struck a huge blow by the actions of a former referee.

[Tuomas]

1. New teams rising
There is some change taking place in the league, with new teams rising (Magic, Hornets, Boston(?) ) while some of the bigger powerhouses have declined. In my opinion it's good for the league plus I've never been a big dynasty fan.

2. East has contenders
...in addition to the Pistons, there are teams that can battle against any Western Conference teams at the moment.

3. Rebuilding teams
While it might not be good for the fans of the respective teams, it's interesting to see what happens to these teams during the summer and after that. It's also fun to make fun of my friends who suppport these teams especially my Heat supporting friend, althought the Heat shouldn't fall into this category, yet.

[Drex]

Too lazy to name 3, but the one that I like the most is the coming back of the centers (or big guys) in the league. Dwight, Yao, Amare, Bynum, Kaman, and lots of other guys who are showing their potential

[BIG GREEN]

It's hard to name 3 positive things in the league....it's such a shell of it's former self.

1. Coaches getting the blame for shitty play of teams before players do. I'm glad the NBA owners realised chemistry plays a big part of winning. I'm tired of all the commentators refering to whatever coach they are currently talking about being "underrated" or a "great coach". Not every fucking coach is a great coach for christ sakes.

2. The nba outreach and community programs..and international basketball promoting. No other league in the USA does this like the NBA....it's a more popular sport on a world scale than the NFL and MLB because of it.

3. The amount of money nba players make is a nice improvment over the past when they made peanut shells. I'm especially happy about this because i know that my unborn son will be making the league in 19 years. I encourage everyone and anyone to quote me on that.

[Not Me]

1. The Playoff Race in the West

2. Surprise Teams (ex. new orleans)

3. Bynum showing his potential ( too bad he got injured)

[Andrew]

Too lazy to name 3, but the one that I like the most is the coming back of the centers (or big guys) in the league. Dwight, Yao, Amare, Bynum, Kaman, and lots of other guys who are showing their potential

That's a good one. The current group of pivotmen as a whole isn't quite as impressive as those seen in bygone eras but it's good to see nevertheless. The only downside is that most of them are in the Western conference; back in the 90s you had at least three centres in each conference who were amongst the elite players in the league.

[Sauru]

hard for me to 3 of 3 seriously good things for the nba right now but i do think that boston doing good is a plus for the nba. now if they could only get the knicks playing well again....


however since i did post here i guess i will try to come up with 3 things that i still do like in the nba

1. role players. i think that the role players are what make the game great. i love seeing the guys without the huge names, and without the freedom to jack up 500 shots without a care. i love watching these guys bust thier ass night in and night out for thier team

2. the fans. even with all the flops and bad calls and whatever else is going on the fans are still big time into the game. the league has had alot of shit go on with it over the last few years that could have caused(and probably did) alot of people to just forget about the nba

3. not allowing high school players to enter the draft. i think this is one of the best rules in place right now

[Indy]

1.) Mike Dunleavy playing completely up to expectations from when he got drafted. I think the lightbulb has clicked on for good. Mike is now a top 30 player in the league whether people realize it or not.

2.) The revival of the Center.

3.) With the amount of great young players in the league, and looking forward to the quality and quantity of young players that are about to enter next year the NBA looks extremely bright for the next generation.

[Miami Heat]

1) the hornets im glad that they are doin good, workin hard for it
2) bynum hes a future allstar
3) the east all star team kg, wade , kidd , howard is crazyy

[el badman]

1. I agree with Andrew about the Western Conference, it's nice to see other teams like Portland and New Orleans step up and become a real threat, not just the usual suspects. With all their players, even teams like Houston, Saco or Memphis offer a lot of potential.

2. I'm glad the Heat are doing miserably. I just wish the Lakers would follow their example...

3. Marcus Camby has been pretty healthy and is just out of this world defensively.

[The X]

1. Andrew Bogut starting to become a factor in Milwaukee....he's averaging 17.5ppg, 10rpg, 3apg & shooting 58% in January....he's one of the centres that is part of the rebirth in the league....

2. Brandon Roy & the Blazers....

3. Chris Paul & the Hornets....

[deihatein]

1.The Celtics are not going to break the Bulls 72-10 record

2.There are young teams that are showing some great basketball right now.

3.Kenyon Martin being able to bounced back after some injury seasons

[Andrew]

1. role players. i think that the role players are what make the game great. i love seeing the guys without the huge names, and without the freedom to jack up 500 shots without a care. i love watching these guys bust thier ass night in and night out for thier team

You must have really enjoyed the Celtics/Heat game today. With KG and Allen out and Pierce not doing much at all, the role players really put on a show.

[Sauru]

yeah that was a great game, i know it was only vs the heat but it was still nice to see the players that everyone has bashed for being worthless step up and win a game without 2 of the 3 and the third playing like crap

[cyanide]

1. Position dominance by young superstars. LeBron, Howard, and Paul are all playing in different positions, but they are young superstars that's well on their way to becoming HOFs.

2. New Orleans and Portland beating expectations. Keeps the league competitive and unexpected.

3. Future potential. Michael Jordan's not in the league anymore, but the NBA's in great shape for the future.

[Buckley]

Lets see....

1. Bostons big start to their season and the emergence of the Eastern Conference

2. The Hornets on top of the West in their first year back in New Orleans

3. Portland doing good even though Oden hasnt played

[Eugene]

1. Competitive games and players playing hard. We've had a bunch of great match ups with players playing very hard. Nice break from the malaise of the regular season.

2. Influx of new talent. Last season's rookies look great, and so do this year's crop, and there's a solid talent pool for next season.

3. Return of pure point guards. Chris Paul, Deron Williams, Calderon, Rondo, Blake, Ridnour, and others. By the way, Team USA is in great hands with Paul and Williams running the show for the next 15 years

[Indy]

1. Andrew Bogut starting to become a factor in Milwaukee....he's averaging 17.5ppg, 10rpg, 3apg & shooting 58%....he's one of the centres that is part of the rebirth in the league....

He is having a good year, but he's not quite that efficient yet. He's getting 13-9 on 53% from the field.

[The X]

1. Andrew Bogut starting to become a factor in Milwaukee....he's averaging 17.5ppg, 10rpg, 3apg & shooting 58%....he's one of the centres that is part of the rebirth in the league....

He is having a good year, but he's not quite that efficient yet. He's getting 13-9 on 53% from the field.

sorry, I meant to say he's been averaging that in the month of January....

[shadowgrin]

1. Up and coming stars/future of the league that reportedly have good character. Players like Brandon Roy, Chris Paul, Al Jefferson, even Caveman Kaman.

2. The Sixers are now free of Billy King. All they need now is the disappearance of Mo'Cheeks

3. The Knicks having a losing season under its 'savior' coach Isiah Thomas. Maybe finally he's going to be fired.

[Fitzy]

1. my 10 dollar bet on the celtics to win the ring is starting to look fantastic
2. richard jeffersons in great touch
3. The league has survived without ron mercer

[Sauru]

1. my 10 dollar bet on the celtics to win the ring is starting to look fantastic

i hope you got good odds on that, and its not dollar for dollar. my brother made a bet half way through the nfl season that the pats would go perfect and he did it dollar for dollar, thats crazy

[Fitzy]

no way, did it at the start of the year. i cant remember the odds, but if they win i get $135

[Andrew]

3. The Knicks having a losing season under its 'savior' coach Isiah Thomas. Maybe finally he's going to be fired.

I don't know, he's survived some brutal seasons and questionable moves so far. I could see him being encouraged to find a replacement on the sidelines while still remaining in the front office.

The unfortunate thing about the Isiah Thomas situation, aside from what it's doing to the Knicks franchise and all its fans of course, is that along with his other blunders (such as the whole CBA bankruptcy affair) it's probably going to be what he's remembered for, first and foremost.

The story of his journey to back-to-back titles with the Pistons after years of coming up short including his inspiring performance in the 1988 Finals on a sprained ankle became one of the NBA's great stories. A lot of people, particularly younger fans, are probably going to look back on his story when it's recounted on historical NBA DVDs and ask "Isn't that the same guy who ruined the Knicks?"

[Lamrock]

1. Kwame Brown's Wikipedia page

2. The Blazers and Hornets are good this year

3. Pau Gasol a Laker