Prelude to NBA Playoff 2005
NBA又一年的季后赛就在眼前。本来想写个赛季回顾和季后赛前瞻，细数一下各个球队球员本赛季的表现和一些季后赛的看点，发表一下一个铁杆球迷的独到见解，像去年一样。但写了一段发现实在太耗时，因为30个球队，要写的东西实在太多，不是坐着一两个整天不停写写不完，写简单了又没看头，所以干脆还是暂且剽窃一下，先看看ESPN的最后一次Power Ranking，以及中国人最关心的火箭队本赛季所有的排名记录：
Note: Every Monday during the regular season, ESPN.com senior NBA writer Marc Stein takes the pulse of the league by ranking all 30 teams.
It is a day of great sadness and joy. Sadness because this is the final edition of Marc Stein's NBA Power Rankings until October. And joy because that means the playoffs are mere hours away. In Stein's farewell batch, Phoenix reclaimed the top spot for the 10th time with a 4-0 week, which made the Team O' The Season this season's first 60-win team ... and Denver slipped up at Houston (without injured Marcus Camby) to suffer just its third loss in a span of 27 games. Tim Duncan's return keeps San Antonio in the top three despite an embarrassing loss to Utah, while surging Detroit bumps Miami as the East's highest-ranked team thanks to the Pistons' longest win streak of the season.
2005 Power Rankings: Week 24
Rank (Last Wk) Team Rec. Comment
1 (4) Suns 61-19 So they didn't maintain that 31-4 pace. Big deal. Suns following up that sick start with a 30-15 burst looks quite sufficient.
2 (2) Mavericks 56-24 Don't say they have nothing to play for. Those increasingly confident Mavs are trying to finish ahead of Miami ... just in case they need home-court advantage in the Finals.
3 (3) Spurs 59-21 It didn't always seem so with Duncan missing 16 games (9-7), but this actually was a fairly easy season for the most versatile Spurs yet. Forty of S.A.'s 59 wins are by 10 points or more.
4 (1) Nuggets 48-32 We don't want to worry Furious George, but the last team to post the best record after the All-Star break and lose in Round 1 was ... George's 1994 Sonics. To Denver, remember.
5 (6) Pistons 53-27 What's the highest compliment we can give the champs? They placed no one on the committee's All-NBA team, but even without a top-15 player they remain our pick to win the East.
6 (5) Heat 57-23 S. Van Gundy is undoubtedly panicky about the way his Heat are stumbling to the finish line, but at least one recent trend is encouraging: Zo has averaged 23.2 mpg since April 8.
7 (8) Rockets 49-31 Postseason success, of course, is what really matters for T-Mac, who has never won a playoff series. But 50 wins would be nice, too. T-Mac's previous teams have never topped 45-37.
8 (11) SuperSonics 52-28 It wasn't the smoothest divisional clinch, but c'mon. Fifty-two wins! Nate must have done some coaching to coax 52 wins out of a smallish squad universally picked to be a doormat.
9 (7) Bulls 46-34 Don't write Baby Bulls off in the first round, even without Curry and Deng. They're 14-2 since a worrisome four-game skid.
10 (13) Celtics 45-35 The reward for Boston's first division crown since '91-92 looks like a first-round series with Indy for the third successive spring. Don't know that we'd call it a welcome reward, though.
11 (9) Grizzlies 44-36 An 0-4 trip means Memphis backed into the playoffs a bit, but don't forget these guys do have road wins over Suns, Pistons and Spurs. Phoenix knows Grizz pose a physical threat.
12 (10) Kings 49-31 Wouldn't be Kings playoff season without injuries: B. Miller, B. Jackson and now Peja. Chances are they all play in the playoffs; chances are better none of them will be 100 percent.
13 (15) Nets 40-40 The way Nets are rolling, it looks as though they'll snare the eighth spot. But if they don't, Nets can point to a league-leading 13 losses in which they led by at least 10 points.
14 (14) 76ers 41-39 As promised Friday, Iverson will get LeBron's spot on our MVP ballot and our All-NBA first team if Sixers make it and Cavs miss out. Which looks like a lock now, doesn't it?
15 (12) Pacers 43-37 Losing to Miami in Jermaine's return, after Shaq got hurt, was a bit of a downer. Here's the pick-me-up: Pacers went on a season-saving run of 15-7 while their O'Neal was out injured.
16 (16) Wizards 45-35 References to '97-98 don't apply to Bulls only. Until now, Wiz haven't had a winning season since His Airness retired, either.
17 (17) Warriors 32-48 They've faded a little, sure, since that record-setting road win streak. But it's been a fun ride since Baron arrived, as Ws over Suns (twice), Kings (twice), Rockets and Sonics would suggest.
18 (21) Clippers 36-44 The magic number to clinch a better record than their Staples Center co-tenants is one. And if not for a season-long injury epidemic, it probably wouldn't have been close.
19 (19) Timberwolves 42-38 Here's a hunch that the best record of any non-playoff team isn't much consolation. Another hunch: McHale resigns as coach and GM, leaving Wolves to fill both posts before anything else.
20 (18) Cavaliers 40-40 Gone might be Cavs' first winning record since '97-98. LeBron's Cavs now face becoming just the second team in history to drop out of the playoffs from 10 games over .500 after 50 games.
21 (22) Raptors 32-48 If Pape's starting, we'll be watching. We'll also be watching Wednesday's finale to track Cleveland's fate and see two of our favorite lefties for the last time 'til fall: Bosh and Jalen.
22 (20) Magic 35-45 Like Frank Hamblen says to all moms: ''Don't let your sons grow up to be interim coaches.'' Injury-ravaged Magic are 4-12 under Jent after losing six straight before he took over.
23 (25) Bucks 30-50 Does anyone remember that Bucks' season started 3-1? It certainly didn't help that Milwaukee, amid increasing sale and Redd's Leaving speculation, went 0-15 on the road vs. the West.
24 (23) Knicks 32-48 On Jan. 1, at 16-13, a playoff berth seemed reasonable. Zeke's Knicks have won only 16 games since, and only that many because they're 3-0 on the road after a 2-20 away stretch.
25 (24) Lakers 34-46 Lakers are actually a robust 27-6 when they hold the opposition under 100 points. Unfortunately there's the small matter of how poorly they defended in those other 47 games.
26 (27) Trail Blazers 26-54 The kiddies' 2-14 mark in March -- the worst month in club history -- has given way to a 2-8 April. At least Portland should get a high draft pick for its season of suffering.
27 (26) Jazz 25-55 Injuries were obviously a killer, but last season's 42-40 magic disappeared just before Thanksgiving ... when Jazz lost back-to-back home games to then-winless Hornets and Bulls.
28 (29) Bobcats 17-63 In the end, Bobs couldn't secure the first three-game win streak in club history. But seeing Bobs with 17 wins still shocks us almost as much as seeing Utah with only 25.
29 (28) Hornets 18-62 It's all good. Owner George Shinn, in a recent letter to season-ticket holders, announced that ''I am committed to building a team that will be successful in New Orleans.'' No worries.
30 (30) Hawks 13-67 At least they avoided 70 losses. Not by much, but Hawks -- after losing back-to-back games to Charlotte to make sure they have the most lottery pingpong balls -- achieved that much.
Houston Rockets Power Ranking Archive
SEASON WEEK RECORD RANK COMMENT
2005 Training Camp 45-37 7 As with Denver, some will say this is too steep a climb, especially since Rockets have PG issues. But we like the T-Mac move that much, along with the Juwan throw-in.
2005 Preseason 45-37 7 Jeff Van Gundy agrees with those who say we've got Rockets overrated. High up in JVG's opening statement on a recent conference call: 'We turn the ball over a lot.'
2005 Week 1 2-2 9 Perilously close to the first 0-3 start in JVG's coaching career, Rockets eventually emerged from a four games-in-five nights stretch with some style.
2005 Week 2 3-4 12 Rockets' start was slow before McGrady hurt his hip and/or groin. Hard to see them getting healthy soon, with six of the next seven games on the road.
2005 Week 3 6-6 15 Perhaps we shouldn't be surprised that they've started slowly. Rockets just might be the slowest team in the league, because of a serious athleticism shortage that must be addressed.
2005 Week 4 6-9 19 Denver's gradual recovery means that Rockets have launched to the top of the league's Most Disappointing list. It's a state law that every team in Texas should be at least .500.
2005 Week 5 7-11 22 At Van Gundy's request, T-Mac is vowing to be more aggressive. The real problem in Houston: JVG is hesitant to ask the same from a passive Yao, who also looks tired already.
2005 Week 6 9-12 17 The flip side to all the T-Mac hubbub: 10 times already, in 19 games, McGrady has scored fewer than 20 points, which happened only 13 times in 67 games last season.
2005 Week 7 11-13 17 To echo a point made recently on NBA Fastbreak by our pal Ric Bucher, how much better would Houston be right now with Eddie Griffin as an athletic power forward to partner with Yao?
2005 Week 8 13-14 18 Even in the unlikely event that Atlanta's Barry does make a big different at the point, Rockets still have PF issues. Yao and T-Mac better start combining for 74 points more often.
2005 Week 9 16-15 12 With two new guards (J. Barry and Wesley), perhaps now Houston can work on another problem. Like, say, its 6-8 record vs. the East ... compared to 9-7 against the West.
2005 Week 10 17-17 15 Anyone else feel like Rudy might have been a better coaching fit for the T-Mac-Yao tag team than JVG? Anyone else notice Rudy is 2-0 vs. Rockets and 15-14 otherwise?
2005 Week 11 20-17 12 Looks like Houston's roster revamping will deemphasize Yao's role on offense a bit. Which probably isn't the worst idea for a guy who's still only fit enough to play 31 mpg.
2005 Week 12 22-19 12 It's a safe bet, even with half a season to go, that T-Mac will have no trouble averaging 20 ppg under Van Gundy, as some suggested. T-Mac's at 28.1 ppg over his last 25 games.
2005 Week 13 24-21 11 Ever since they came to Dallas and posted a 124-point night in the committee's presence, Rockets have scored 100 only twice in the past nine games, going 6-4 in that span.
2005 Week 14 28-21 7 The only team this season besides Seattle to beat San Antonio twice just completed a 4-0 week, with three of those victories on the road. Looks like they're getting it.
2005 Week 15 31-21 6 It's a good thing Rockets are so hot -- 15-4 since Jan. 7 -- because our research staff says they have the NBA's toughest remaining schedule based on opponent winning percentage.
2005 Week 16 32-21 7 An eight-game win streak is encouraging in itself, but then there's this: Yao is quietly averaging 20.5 ppg on 64.5-percent shooting during Houston's 8-0 run. Not bad at all.
2005 Week 17 32-24 9 Even after trading for Wesley and Jon Barry, formerly scorching Rockets needed to swing a buzzer trade for longtime target Mike James because Sura's back, by all accounts, doesn't look good.
2005 Week 18 34-25 10 It appears the All-Star break came at the worst time for Rockets, but look at the standings. No. 5 Sacto is well within reach.
2005 Week 19 37-25 6 Rockets are your proverbial Team O' The Week. Only problem with Houston's surge is that the No. 6 seed might prove more attractive than No. 5, depending on San Antonio's finish.
2005 Week 20 39-27 8 Rockets haven't been this far over .500 since 1996-97. But they really don't feel like celebrating after losing Juwan for a while.
2005 Week 21 42-28 5 All Rockets needed to finally seize No. 5 out West was a win over Duncan-less Spurs. Instead Houston joined Atlanta and Charlotte as the only teams to lose to SA with Duncan out.
2005 Week 22 44-30 9 Just when we were ready to anoint Houston as the Lower Seed No One Wants To Face out West, Rockets played New Orleans at home on April Fool's Day ... and lost. No joke.
2005 Week 23 46-31 8 The bad news? Rockets are 7-6 since losing Juwan for good. The good news? A win in Monday's road finale at Seattle would make this Houston's second-best road team ever at 25-16.
2005 Week 24 49-31 7 Postseason success, of course, is what really matters for T-Mac, who has never won a playoff series. But 50 wins would be nice, too. T-Mac's previous teams have never topped 45-37.
Note: Every Monday during the regular season, ESPN.com senior NBA writer Marc Stein takes the pulse of the league by ranking all 30 teams.
It is a day of great sadness and joy. Sadness because this is the final edition of Marc Stein's NBA Power Rankings until October. And joy because that means the playoffs are mere hours away. In Stein's farewell batch, Phoenix reclaimed the top spot for the 10th time with a 4-0 week, which made the Team O' The Season this season's first 60-win team ... and Denver slipped up at Houston (without injured Marcus Camby) to suffer just its third loss in a span of 27 games. Tim Duncan's return keeps San Antonio in the top three despite an embarrassing loss to Utah, while surging Detroit bumps Miami as the East's highest-ranked team thanks to the Pistons' longest win streak of the season.
2005 Power Rankings: Week 24
Rank (Last Wk) Team Rec. Comment
1 (4) Suns 61-19 So they didn't maintain that 31-4 pace. Big deal. Suns following up that sick start with a 30-15 burst looks quite sufficient.
2 (2) Mavericks 56-24 Don't say they have nothing to play for. Those increasingly confident Mavs are trying to finish ahead of Miami ... just in case they need home-court advantage in the Finals.
3 (3) Spurs 59-21 It didn't always seem so with Duncan missing 16 games (9-7), but this actually was a fairly easy season for the most versatile Spurs yet. Forty of S.A.'s 59 wins are by 10 points or more.
4 (1) Nuggets 48-32 We don't want to worry Furious George, but the last team to post the best record after the All-Star break and lose in Round 1 was ... George's 1994 Sonics. To Denver, remember.
5 (6) Pistons 53-27 What's the highest compliment we can give the champs? They placed no one on the committee's All-NBA team, but even without a top-15 player they remain our pick to win the East.
6 (5) Heat 57-23 S. Van Gundy is undoubtedly panicky about the way his Heat are stumbling to the finish line, but at least one recent trend is encouraging: Zo has averaged 23.2 mpg since April 8.
7 (8) Rockets 49-31 Postseason success, of course, is what really matters for T-Mac, who has never won a playoff series. But 50 wins would be nice, too. T-Mac's previous teams have never topped 45-37.
8 (11) SuperSonics 52-28 It wasn't the smoothest divisional clinch, but c'mon. Fifty-two wins! Nate must have done some coaching to coax 52 wins out of a smallish squad universally picked to be a doormat.
9 (7) Bulls 46-34 Don't write Baby Bulls off in the first round, even without Curry and Deng. They're 14-2 since a worrisome four-game skid.
10 (13) Celtics 45-35 The reward for Boston's first division crown since '91-92 looks like a first-round series with Indy for the third successive spring. Don't know that we'd call it a welcome reward, though.
11 (9) Grizzlies 44-36 An 0-4 trip means Memphis backed into the playoffs a bit, but don't forget these guys do have road wins over Suns, Pistons and Spurs. Phoenix knows Grizz pose a physical threat.
12 (10) Kings 49-31 Wouldn't be Kings playoff season without injuries: B. Miller, B. Jackson and now Peja. Chances are they all play in the playoffs; chances are better none of them will be 100 percent.
13 (15) Nets 40-40 The way Nets are rolling, it looks as though they'll snare the eighth spot. But if they don't, Nets can point to a league-leading 13 losses in which they led by at least 10 points.
14 (14) 76ers 41-39 As promised Friday, Iverson will get LeBron's spot on our MVP ballot and our All-NBA first team if Sixers make it and Cavs miss out. Which looks like a lock now, doesn't it?
15 (12) Pacers 43-37 Losing to Miami in Jermaine's return, after Shaq got hurt, was a bit of a downer. Here's the pick-me-up: Pacers went on a season-saving run of 15-7 while their O'Neal was out injured.
16 (16) Wizards 45-35 References to '97-98 don't apply to Bulls only. Until now, Wiz haven't had a winning season since His Airness retired, either.
17 (17) Warriors 32-48 They've faded a little, sure, since that record-setting road win streak. But it's been a fun ride since Baron arrived, as Ws over Suns (twice), Kings (twice), Rockets and Sonics would suggest.
18 (21) Clippers 36-44 The magic number to clinch a better record than their Staples Center co-tenants is one. And if not for a season-long injury epidemic, it probably wouldn't have been close.
19 (19) Timberwolves 42-38 Here's a hunch that the best record of any non-playoff team isn't much consolation. Another hunch: McHale resigns as coach and GM, leaving Wolves to fill both posts before anything else.
20 (18) Cavaliers 40-40 Gone might be Cavs' first winning record since '97-98. LeBron's Cavs now face becoming just the second team in history to drop out of the playoffs from 10 games over .500 after 50 games.
21 (22) Raptors 32-48 If Pape's starting, we'll be watching. We'll also be watching Wednesday's finale to track Cleveland's fate and see two of our favorite lefties for the last time 'til fall: Bosh and Jalen.
22 (20) Magic 35-45 Like Frank Hamblen says to all moms: ''Don't let your sons grow up to be interim coaches.'' Injury-ravaged Magic are 4-12 under Jent after losing six straight before he took over.
23 (25) Bucks 30-50 Does anyone remember that Bucks' season started 3-1? It certainly didn't help that Milwaukee, amid increasing sale and Redd's Leaving speculation, went 0-15 on the road vs. the West.
24 (23) Knicks 32-48 On Jan. 1, at 16-13, a playoff berth seemed reasonable. Zeke's Knicks have won only 16 games since, and only that many because they're 3-0 on the road after a 2-20 away stretch.
25 (24) Lakers 34-46 Lakers are actually a robust 27-6 when they hold the opposition under 100 points. Unfortunately there's the small matter of how poorly they defended in those other 47 games.
26 (27) Trail Blazers 26-54 The kiddies' 2-14 mark in March -- the worst month in club history -- has given way to a 2-8 April. At least Portland should get a high draft pick for its season of suffering.
27 (26) Jazz 25-55 Injuries were obviously a killer, but last season's 42-40 magic disappeared just before Thanksgiving ... when Jazz lost back-to-back home games to then-winless Hornets and Bulls.
28 (29) Bobcats 17-63 In the end, Bobs couldn't secure the first three-game win streak in club history. But seeing Bobs with 17 wins still shocks us almost as much as seeing Utah with only 25.
29 (28) Hornets 18-62 It's all good. Owner George Shinn, in a recent letter to season-ticket holders, announced that ''I am committed to building a team that will be successful in New Orleans.'' No worries.
30 (30) Hawks 13-67 At least they avoided 70 losses. Not by much, but Hawks -- after losing back-to-back games to Charlotte to make sure they have the most lottery pingpong balls -- achieved that much.
Houston Rockets Power Ranking Archive
SEASON WEEK RECORD RANK COMMENT
2005 Training Camp 45-37 7 As with Denver, some will say this is too steep a climb, especially since Rockets have PG issues. But we like the T-Mac move that much, along with the Juwan throw-in.
2005 Preseason 45-37 7 Jeff Van Gundy agrees with those who say we've got Rockets overrated. High up in JVG's opening statement on a recent conference call: 'We turn the ball over a lot.'
2005 Week 1 2-2 9 Perilously close to the first 0-3 start in JVG's coaching career, Rockets eventually emerged from a four games-in-five nights stretch with some style.
2005 Week 2 3-4 12 Rockets' start was slow before McGrady hurt his hip and/or groin. Hard to see them getting healthy soon, with six of the next seven games on the road.
2005 Week 3 6-6 15 Perhaps we shouldn't be surprised that they've started slowly. Rockets just might be the slowest team in the league, because of a serious athleticism shortage that must be addressed.
2005 Week 4 6-9 19 Denver's gradual recovery means that Rockets have launched to the top of the league's Most Disappointing list. It's a state law that every team in Texas should be at least .500.
2005 Week 5 7-11 22 At Van Gundy's request, T-Mac is vowing to be more aggressive. The real problem in Houston: JVG is hesitant to ask the same from a passive Yao, who also looks tired already.
2005 Week 6 9-12 17 The flip side to all the T-Mac hubbub: 10 times already, in 19 games, McGrady has scored fewer than 20 points, which happened only 13 times in 67 games last season.
2005 Week 7 11-13 17 To echo a point made recently on NBA Fastbreak by our pal Ric Bucher, how much better would Houston be right now with Eddie Griffin as an athletic power forward to partner with Yao?
2005 Week 8 13-14 18 Even in the unlikely event that Atlanta's Barry does make a big different at the point, Rockets still have PF issues. Yao and T-Mac better start combining for 74 points more often.
2005 Week 9 16-15 12 With two new guards (J. Barry and Wesley), perhaps now Houston can work on another problem. Like, say, its 6-8 record vs. the East ... compared to 9-7 against the West.
2005 Week 10 17-17 15 Anyone else feel like Rudy might have been a better coaching fit for the T-Mac-Yao tag team than JVG? Anyone else notice Rudy is 2-0 vs. Rockets and 15-14 otherwise?
2005 Week 11 20-17 12 Looks like Houston's roster revamping will deemphasize Yao's role on offense a bit. Which probably isn't the worst idea for a guy who's still only fit enough to play 31 mpg.
2005 Week 12 22-19 12 It's a safe bet, even with half a season to go, that T-Mac will have no trouble averaging 20 ppg under Van Gundy, as some suggested. T-Mac's at 28.1 ppg over his last 25 games.
2005 Week 13 24-21 11 Ever since they came to Dallas and posted a 124-point night in the committee's presence, Rockets have scored 100 only twice in the past nine games, going 6-4 in that span.
2005 Week 14 28-21 7 The only team this season besides Seattle to beat San Antonio twice just completed a 4-0 week, with three of those victories on the road. Looks like they're getting it.
2005 Week 15 31-21 6 It's a good thing Rockets are so hot -- 15-4 since Jan. 7 -- because our research staff says they have the NBA's toughest remaining schedule based on opponent winning percentage.
2005 Week 16 32-21 7 An eight-game win streak is encouraging in itself, but then there's this: Yao is quietly averaging 20.5 ppg on 64.5-percent shooting during Houston's 8-0 run. Not bad at all.
2005 Week 17 32-24 9 Even after trading for Wesley and Jon Barry, formerly scorching Rockets needed to swing a buzzer trade for longtime target Mike James because Sura's back, by all accounts, doesn't look good.
2005 Week 18 34-25 10 It appears the All-Star break came at the worst time for Rockets, but look at the standings. No. 5 Sacto is well within reach.
2005 Week 19 37-25 6 Rockets are your proverbial Team O' The Week. Only problem with Houston's surge is that the No. 6 seed might prove more attractive than No. 5, depending on San Antonio's finish.
2005 Week 20 39-27 8 Rockets haven't been this far over .500 since 1996-97. But they really don't feel like celebrating after losing Juwan for a while.
2005 Week 21 42-28 5 All Rockets needed to finally seize No. 5 out West was a win over Duncan-less Spurs. Instead Houston joined Atlanta and Charlotte as the only teams to lose to SA with Duncan out.
2005 Week 22 44-30 9 Just when we were ready to anoint Houston as the Lower Seed No One Wants To Face out West, Rockets played New Orleans at home on April Fool's Day ... and lost. No joke.
2005 Week 23 46-31 8 The bad news? Rockets are 7-6 since losing Juwan for good. The good news? A win in Monday's road finale at Seattle would make this Houston's second-best road team ever at 25-16.
2005 Week 24 49-31 7 Postseason success, of course, is what really matters for T-Mac, who has never won a playoff series. But 50 wins would be nice, too. T-Mac's previous teams have never topped 45-37.
posted by ZZ at
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