2008 Woodie Awards
What Happened to the Bulls and Heat?
Josh Cohen
Issue date: 11/15/07 Section: Sports
- Page 1 of 2 next >
As the NBA season starts to get under way, a few early season themes have already become apparent. Primarily, the cream has risen to the top. The elite teams in this league, the Mavs, Spurs, Suns, Rockets and Celtics, have all lived up to expectations and played with a heightened sense of purpose. The same cannot be said for some of last year's surprises, such as Golden State and Chicago. Although we are only two weeks in, we have already witnessed the great potential of Kevin Durant and a rookie class full of future stars. With this said, here is the good, the bad and the ugly that the NBA has offered us so far.
The Good:
Forget what has been said about Boston Celtics General Manager Danny Ainge in the past; this time he got it right. The Big Three have been all that Ainge and the Celtic faithful could have hoped for, as Celtic basketball has risen from the bottom of the Atlantic Division. At 6-0, Boston remains the only undefeated team in the league and they have been doing it in convincing fashion. Outscoring their opponents by 16 points per game, each member of the trio has been superb. The Big Ticket is averaging just less than 23 points and 16 boards. Mr. Jesus Shuttlesworth has shown a youthful touch that reminds me of his das at UConn, pouring in 22.6 a game. The third piece of the puzzle, Paul Pierce, has shined (23.6 ppg) now that he doesn't have carry the load every night. Bottom line, the Celtics are by far the most dangerous team in the East.
There were big expectations for this year's Houston Rockets squad and thus far they have been as good as advertised. Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming have continued to shine, putting up a combined 51 points per game, but it has been the gelling of the rest of this team that has led to a 6-1 start. Defensively, they don't get much better than Shane Battier. The man takes charges, gets steals and has to guard the opponent's best player nearly every night. Although Rafer Alston starts at the point, Mike James has provided key minutes off the bench so far and represents the third leading scorer at 10.9 ppg. Add in Bonzi Wells off the bench to give breathers to Chuck Hayes and this team has proven to have the depth and defensive capabilities to run with the Dallas Mavericks in the Southwest Division.
The Good:
Forget what has been said about Boston Celtics General Manager Danny Ainge in the past; this time he got it right. The Big Three have been all that Ainge and the Celtic faithful could have hoped for, as Celtic basketball has risen from the bottom of the Atlantic Division. At 6-0, Boston remains the only undefeated team in the league and they have been doing it in convincing fashion. Outscoring their opponents by 16 points per game, each member of the trio has been superb. The Big Ticket is averaging just less than 23 points and 16 boards. Mr. Jesus Shuttlesworth has shown a youthful touch that reminds me of his das at UConn, pouring in 22.6 a game. The third piece of the puzzle, Paul Pierce, has shined (23.6 ppg) now that he doesn't have carry the load every night. Bottom line, the Celtics are by far the most dangerous team in the East.
There were big expectations for this year's Houston Rockets squad and thus far they have been as good as advertised. Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming have continued to shine, putting up a combined 51 points per game, but it has been the gelling of the rest of this team that has led to a 6-1 start. Defensively, they don't get much better than Shane Battier. The man takes charges, gets steals and has to guard the opponent's best player nearly every night. Although Rafer Alston starts at the point, Mike James has provided key minutes off the bench so far and represents the third leading scorer at 10.9 ppg. Add in Bonzi Wells off the bench to give breathers to Chuck Hayes and this team has proven to have the depth and defensive capabilities to run with the Dallas Mavericks in the Southwest Division.
Be the first to comment on this story