FanNation - The Republic of Sport

In a league like the NFL, major story lines, breakout players, and the biggest games are easily accessible because of the way the schedule is structured: after one day of games, everything is analyzed and assessed ten different ways. There are dozens of TV shows dedicated solely to doing just that, and so our football information can come to us from hundreds of possible ways. With the NBA, however, there is no such clearly defined method to evaluate players, few shows specializing exclusively in NBA basketball and even fewer ways to truly distill the important things going on in the league today. And so, I've taken it upon myself to do my best to write down any relevant thoughts I had about what's happened in the NBA in the past week. Each week, I'll try to find and write about the biggest story line in the league, the player who made his presence known this week, and the biggest or best game, as well as any other random thoughts I have at the time. Maybe I'll be the only one who finds this interesting, but, in any case, here's what happening this week in the NBA...



The Big Story


The Lakers Feeling the Loss of Bynum, then Gaining Gasol

The Los Angeles Lakers had been a pleaseant suprise in the West so far this year, headlined by the remarkable play of young center Andrew Bynum. The team has been slotted into the West's sixth seed for awhile now, and the trade demands of superstar Kobe Bryant almost seem like they never happened. Unfortunately, Bynum suffered a serious knee injury that should keep him out until mid March, and the team has struggled in his absence. Kwame Brown, the former number one overall pick of the NBA draft, has underachieved while filling in for Bynum, and the Suns have begun to pull away in what had previously promised to be a tight division race. The team has gone just 5-5 in the last 10 games, but it seems as if the Lakers fortunes may be changing with the sudden acquistion of forward Pau Gasol. The Lakers only had to give up Brown, rookie Javaris Crittenton and two number one picks to acquire the All Star and bolster their banged up frontcourt. The slim possibility of Bryant being traded after the season now seems completely dead, as Kobe had asked to be traded or have the team trade for a star to join him in L.A. Now, the Lakers have done just that, and instead of attempting to merely stay afloat in the West until Bynum's return, the Lakers are in the position to greatly improve their playoff positioning before the All Star break. The Lakers sliding down the standings after their fast start and this huge trade make this the story of the week.



The Big time Player:

Jose Calderon

Most people thought that the Raptors would take a big step backward after T.J. Ford's injury in December, but Calderon's play of late has made a lot of peole forget Ford is even missing. Calderon's biggest night came in the OT loss at Washington, where he tallied 23 points, 13 assists and 6 rebounds, but he has been leading Toronto ever since Ford went down. In 31 games as a starter, he's averaged 14 points, 10 assists and 3 rebounds while shooting 45% from behind the arc. The Raptors have had trouble keeping up with the Celtics, but Calderon's strong play has kept them at least moderately competitive and they should be in the position to earn a playoff berth. If the season were to end today, they would be the fourth seed, which is excellent considering the regression of sophmore Andrea Bargnani and the loss of Ford and forward Jorge Garbojosa to injury. Much of this is due to Calderon, and he has certainly earned some recognition.

The Big Game

L.A. Lakers @ Detroit Pistons, January 31, 2008

The Lakers have lost 9 straight games at the Palace of Auburn Hills, and, despite getting 39 points from Kobe Bryant, the Pistons' long winning streak there will continue. The game was a fairly back and forth battle, with Detriot leading by as much as 17 at one point, before Bryant and the Lakers came charging back to take the lead for much of the third quarter. However, the Pistons reasserted themselves in the fourth, and clinched the game on a Tayshaun Prince three pointer, followed by a great defensive stand, where Kobe was not even allowed to get a shot off. The final was Detroit 90, L.A. 89, and it was a great game. This game featured two teams with a long history (the Pistons beat the Lakers in the 2004 NBA finals) battling until the last seconds of the game. The game also had implications in the standings, as it dropped the Lakers 3 1/2 games behind the Suns, and extended Detroit's formidable lead over the Cavs, meaning that the standings in each division will most likely remain similar until the All Star break.

Playoff Picture:

If the playoffs were to end today, here's how things would look in each conference:

East:

1. Boston

2. Detroit

3. Orlando

4. Toronto

5. Cleveland

6. Washington

7. Atlanta

8. New Jersey

West:

1. New Orleans

2. Phoenix

3. Utah

4. Dallas

5. San Antonio

6. Denver

7. Golden State

8. Portland