It’s not every day that we have the opportunity to cross the Beatles with the NBA, but as I was scrolling through the box scores and game recaps from Tuesday night’s games, I noticed that the Boston Celtics found a way to scrap out a ‘W’ to get back into the win column against the Detroit Pistons. F Paul Pierce was back in the lineup, and in spite of the fact that he only scored nine points in a rather dismal personal effort, I had to think to myself, “Hmm… I wonder if Pierce wasn’t there if the C’s would’ve won this game?”

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Let’s face it. Things haven’t been going so well in Beantown of late for the champs of two years ago. Boston is still in third place in the Eastern Conference, but it seems to be lagging well behind the Orlandos and Clevelands of this world. The Celtics are only 16-11 on their home court, and a woeful 6-20-1 ATS in those 27 games to boot.

Heading into the game against New Jersey just three nights ago, HC Doc Rivers hung a new sign in the locker room: “INDIVIDUALS WIN GAMES BUT TEAMS WIN CHAMPIONSHIPS.”

Nice motivation, Coach. All your team did that day was lose to arguably the worst team in the history of the NBA on your own home court 104-96.

Pierce was out of the lineup that day nursing his injured thumb.

Enter: The Beatles.

Help! I need somebody. Help! Not just anybody. Help! You know I need someone… Help!

Help arrived at the Palace of Auburn Hills when Pierce came back into the lineup a game after his team suffered the ultimately embarrassment. No one else would do. It had to be Pierce, the only player on this team that has grown up in green, to provide the help.

Now, here’s the next question: Was this just an average win against a lousy club, or was that 105-100 win at Detroit the start of something really great for the Celtics?

Methinks it’s the latter.

Finally, Boston is on the verge of being completely healthy, something that it hasn’t really been in months. C Kendrick Perkins is the only snag right now, but his flu will go away eventually, and he’ll be just fine. But it’s been awhile since this entire team has come out on the same court unified as one. It may or may not happen at home on Wednesday night against the Bobcats, but assuming that nothing else goes wrong in that game, the C’s should be at full strength just in time for one of the easiest stretches of games left in the season.

The Celtics are about to embark on a five-game stretch in which they play the 76ers, Wizards, Bucks, Grizzlies, and Pacers.

When together, it’s pretty clear that Boston should have one of the best teams in the NBA. Just throwing three future Hall of Famers in G Ray Allen, F Kevin Garnett, and the aforementioned Pierce on the court at the same time is awfully impressive. Throw in one of the NBA’s best point guards in Rajon Rondo and a bench that prides itself on defense, and the recipe is right for a championship.

Rivers is right about one thing: Teams win championships.

However, what he failed to mention is that every single individual has to be giving his all to the team for the team to function.

Everyone may be leaving them for dead, but now that the Boston Celtics are back at full strength, the championship could once again be within their reach.

After two weeks worth of great Olympics betting action, the festivities in Vancouver have finally come to a close. There’s plenty left to rant and rave about in the American sports scene, none of which have anything to do with the efforts of the US hockey team, which claimed silver medals after losing in overtime to the Canadians in Sunday’s gold medal game.

Rap Sheet Picture of the Week
Purdue Boilermakers F Robbie Hummel, who suffered a season-ending injury in the same week that his team lost any hope of a #1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

Last week, we took some time to rant about how poorly the Villanova Wildcats played against bubble teams in the Big East. Now, it’s time for the Georgetown Hoyas to step up and face the music. C’mon guys… Losing at home to Notre Dame, playing without its stud F Luke Harangody? That makes two completely inexcusable and embarrassing losses at home on the season, with the other coming at home against South Florida back on February 3rd. Only managing 15 rebounds as a team against the Irish was quite disgusting, and the end result was just as repulsive for a team that once upon a time believed it was good enough to be on the #1 line in the NCAA Tournament.

Don’t think that you’re getting away from this one, Boston Celtics. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I hear you complaining now that you were playing without your best player, F Paul Pierce against the New Jersey Nets on Saturday night. No offense, but if you took your entire regular starting five out of the lineup, you’d still have a squad that was lined at -4 at home against the Nets. Oh, you don’t believe me? Tell me that you’d rather have Devin Harris, Courtney Lee, Yi Jianlian, Trenton Hassell, and Brook Lopez over Marquis Daniels, Nate Robinson, Glen Davis, Rasheed Wallace, and Tony Allen. Get real fellas. If your boy Ray Allen keeps putting up 3/11 shooting nights, you won’t even survive the first round of the playoffs let alone make a run at the NBA title.

The New Mexico Lobos got arguably their biggest win of the season on Saturday when they knocked off BYU in the closing moments of their game 83-81 to clinch up the Mountain West regular season title. However, that’s not what we’re ranting about. We’re ranting about that ridiculous postgame altercation that HC Steve Alford had with one of the Cougars. Hey Coach, you know better than this. You can’t sit there and yell at a player on the opposing team (or your own team for that matter), “I’m going to tell you real clear… You’re an [expletive]!” That marred a big win for your team, Alford, and you owe your guys a heck of a lot better than that.

As an American, it’s really easy to rant on the Russians, but in this case, there were two boneheads that deserve it. Alexander Ovechkin decided that it was a great idea to bust up a camera after his hockey team was bounced from the Olympics. A great display of sportsmanship in an athletic event that is designed to promote the essence of being a good sport in representing your nation.

However, that wasn’t nearly the funniest, yet disgraceful Russian moment of the Olympics. President Dmitry Medvedev demanded that all of the Russian sports officials that were responsible for the debacle that was the country’s dismal 15 medal performance in the Winter Olympics to resign their posts. He claimed, “I think that the individuals responsible, or several of them, who answer for these preparations, should take the courageous decision to hand in their notice. If we don’t see such decisiveness, we will help them.”

So let’s get this straight, el presidente… You’re going to force out all of your Olympic coaching representatives right after the Vancouver games?

Man, are things going to be difficult for the other countries coming onto Russian soil for the 2014 Games in Sochi…

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2009-10 NBA Finals Odds, Preview & Predictions

List of Odds To Win The 2010 NBA Finals Can Be Found At The Bottom

Last year marked the Los Angeles Lakers return to glory as they recorded their 15th NBA Championship in franchise history just two behind the all-time leading Boston Celtics at 17 in total. The Championship marked Kobe Bryant’s 4th title in his career and for Coach Phil Jackson a record 10th championship. However despite the Lakers dominance especially over the Western Conference in recent years, it was their first championship in 7 years despite 2 failed NBA Finals trips during that period. Heading into 2010, the Lakers are once again favorites to take on the hardware at +180 favorites meaning Phil Jackson will have to start finding additional hands to carry those rings. However, as the NBA proved last year the competition is fierce and there will be many fighting for similar claims including Lebron James who is in search for his first NBA Championship with the Cleveland Cavaliers who are receiving +450 odds to win it all. Take a look as we list he odds to win the 2009 NBA Fianls, breakdown each Conference and what to expect from the NBA in 2010, and ultimately giving a prediction for this year’s 2010 NBA Championship.

2009-10 Eastern Conference Preview:

Last year in the Eastern Conference the “Big 3” dominated the conference consistently battling for the best overall record in the league. Those teams were the Boston Celtics, Cleveland Cavaliers, and Orlando Magic who ended up representing the Eastern Conference in the Finals. Orlando is receiving +700 odds for 2010, but they lost Hedo Turkoglu to free agency who landed with the Toronto Raptors. Orlando will still be a force just from the presence of Dwight Howard. However, shooting guard J.J Redick should be able to provide some more help this season and the Magic also landed a proven veteran in Vince Carter. There is no reason not to expect the Magic to be a force this year as Turkoglu really did not do much during the regular season. Orlando will still be playing catch-up early in the season, but they could be a force by playoff time.

The Cavaliers added Shaquille O’Neal to the roster to help down low. O’Neal has not produced a ton of points over the past few seasons, but he could definitely contribute a lot to the defensive efforts from Cleveland. The Cavaliers were among the best defensive teams in the league last year holding opponents to just 90.4 points per game and those numbers may get even better. Of course James will be Lebron like so there is not much worry with him. James averaged just less than 30 points per game last year 2nd best in the NBA behind Dwyane Wade. The player that may make the biggest difference for Cleveland is Mo Williams. Shaq gives the presence you need down low that teams will respect, and Lebron will draw all the attention. If Williams can be the shooter they think he can be, then the Cavaliers may very well have their shot at glory this season.

The last of the “Big 3” is the Boston Celtics who are receiving solid +300 odds to win the NBA Title. There was not a ton of change in Boston outside of the signing of Rasheed Wallace. Wallace spent the last 5 years in Detroit, but will find a place in the starting rotation for the Celtics. The problem Boston had last season is that injuries plagued the team down the stretch. Garnett missed a lot of the latter part of the season and guys were consistently banged up. If not for countless Paul Pierce clutch shots, the Celtics may not have made it out of the opening round of the playoffs last year. Boston will once again own the most talented lineup in the NBA as they can get huge numbers from any of their starters. The key will be staying together and staying healthy.

A few other teams that could get into the mix this season are the Atlanta Hawks and the Chicago Bulls. It has been some time since we seen the Bulls get on a level where they could be possible contenders for a championship. While that still may be a few years down the road, Chicago could make similar noise as they did in their opening round overtime thrilling playoff match-up with the Celtics. Chicago signed 2009 Rookie of the Year Derrick Rose to an extension and he should have a future in the windy city. The Bulls have the ability to contend on any given night, but possibly not the depth to contend in the long run. All in all, the Bulls are about 1 superstar away from being back in the NBA Finals contender category.

The Hawks signed rookie Jeff Teague out of Wake Forest who showed countless signs of brilliance in the college ranks. Teague should adapt well in Atlanta since they like to run a fast paced offense. Atlanta also acquired Jamal Crawford from the Knicks. Crawford averaged 20 points per contest last year and he should help make Atlanta even tougher on a nightly basis. The Hawks are sizeable +4000 underdogs, but are a team to keep on the radar with their style of play.

2009-10 Western Conference Preview:

The Lakers really controlled the West last season with just less than an .80 winning percentage. The only team that showed signs that they could slow the Lakers where the Denver Nuggets who got extremely hot on some late season runs. However, the Nuggets still dropped 3 of 4 regular season contest to the Lakers. Los Angeles also ended up taking Denver out in the Conference Finals going 4-2. In the Southwest division, things were wide open throughout the year. San Antonio ended up on the top spot and showed signs of late season magic, but they were destroyed by Dallas 4 games to 1 in the playoffs. In all reality this may be another year of wide open basketball in the Western Conference, but all will still be chasing the Lakers.

The Dallas Mavericks came on late in the year and also in the playoffs last year mainly behind Dirk Nowitzki. The Mavericks added some depth to the roster this season in Drew Gooden and Shawn Marion. Marion should help scoring efforts and Gooden with time will develop into a nice presence as well. Josh Howard battled injuries all last season and it is imperative that he stay healthy in terms of the Mavericks success. Dallas has the scorer’s to contend, but may still lack the down low presence needed. Erick Dampier just is not the big man in the middle you find on most championship teams.

The other contender out of the Southwest will be none other than the San Antonio Spurs. The Spurs should take battle with Dallas in the southwest as Houston will likely suffer with the season long absence of Yao Ming whose career may be in jeopardy after foot surgery. However, the Spurs made some moves in the right direction. After campaigning for senior citizens benefits last year, the Spurs added youth with rookie DeJuan Blair and also added Richard Jefferson. San Antonio should be the most experience team in the league and Blair may give more help in his rookie campaign than most would expect. The Spurs should be able to contend, but we just not sold they have what it takes to return to the Finals spotlight.

Outside of the might Southwest, the Denver Nuggets have to be the team that challenges the Lakers for the top spot. Last year’s addition of Chauncey Billups proved to be astronomical for the team’s success. Of course Carmelo Anthony is the superstar, but Billups is a star as well and really gets the team to play together. If J.R Smith can have a similar season to 2009 much less improve, the Nuggets will be even better in 2010. Denver has the talent in the starting lineup to content with anyone, but this is another team that can not afford any injuries. If they stay healthy, they have every opportunity to take down the West. Denver is +1500 underdogs which is a line that may deserve a lot of attention.

The Lakers lost Trevor Ariza, but just when you think Los Angeles takes a step back they sign Ron Artest to the lineup. If you hated the Lakers before, you will hate them even more with Artest now on the roster. Like it or not, it should make Los Angeles even stronger. Kobe Bryant may just be the best player in the league and Pau Gasol has proved he is a good match with Bryant. The scary thing about this team is center Andrew Bynum is just going to get better and better. Hopefully for the rest of the league’s sake, Bynum does not have any huge breakout this season. If so call it checkmate for the defending Champions to repeat.

One final team to keep your eye on in the west includes first and foremost the Portland Trail Blazers. Portland has found their star in Brandon Roy and LaMarcus Aldridge is an equally effective helping hand. However, Portland strengthened their lineup over the off season with the additions of Andre Miller and Juwan Howard. Miller should definitely be able to help efforts and depth in the backcourt. Howard is a veteran whose performance will likely wane, but he can still provide some quality minutes. The Trail Blazers really need Greg Oden to step up and be the big inside threat. Oden is a rebounding machine, but has had trouble with injuries as well as foul trouble. If he stays healthy and stays on the court, good things will come for Portland who is receiving +1500 odds.

2009-10 NBA Finals Prediction:

If the Boston Celtics can stay healthy, their lineup is ridiculously talented. The Cavaliers may be even better this season, but the Celtics will be as well. Boston will take down the Eastern Conference and meet up with the Lakers who will again edge out Denver in the Western Conference. However the Lakers will not defend their title, as 2008 repeats itself and the Celtics will beat the Lakers 4-2 while taking home the hardware for the 18th time.

2010 NBA Finals Odds From JustBet Sportsbook (as of 11/5/2009):
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Atlanta Hawks – 40 to 1
Boston Celtics – 3 to 1
Charlotte Bobcats – 100 to 1
Chicago Bulls – 60 to 1
Cleveland Cavaliers – 9 to 2
Dallas Mavericks – 30 to 1
Denver Nuggets – 15 to 1
Detroit Pistons – 75 to 1
Golden State Warriors – 100 to 1
Houston Rockets – 50 to 1
Indiana Pacers – 100 to 1
Los Angeles Clippers – 100 to 1
Los Angeles Lakers – 7 to 4
Memphis Grizzlies – 100 to 1
Miami Heat – 40 to 1
Milwaukee Bucks – 100 to 1
Minnesota Timberwolves – 100 to 1
New Jersey Nets – 100 to 1
New Orleans Hornes – 50 to 1
New York Knicks – 100 to 1
Oklahoma City Thunder – 100 to 1
Orlando Magic – 7 to 1
Philadelphia 76ers – 75 to 1
Phoenix Suns – 70 to 1
Portland Blazers – 15 to 1
Sacramento Kings – 10 to 1
San Antonio Spurs – 7 to 1
Toronto Raptors – 100 to 1
Utah Jazz – 30 to 1
Washington Wizards – 50 to 1

The NBA regular season will end later this week as we head towards the post-season. The Cleveland Cavaliers have locked up home court advantage throughout their Eastern Conference playoff run and are one game away from clinching home court advantage in the NBA Finals if they can make it that far in the playoffs. The Cavaliers are coming off a huge blowout win over the defending Champions the Boston Celtics 107-76 on Sunday. The Cavaliers big win over the number 2 ranked team in the East is actually Cleveland’s biggest victory in franchise history over the Celtics. The Cavaliers amazing home game run extended to a mark of 38-1 inside Quicken Loans Arena with the victory. The Cavaliers appear to be big favorites considering they will get the majority of the games at home were they have been unstoppable. However, the Eastern Conference has been extremely tough this year as Orlando blew out Cleveland a few short weeks ago similar to the Cavaliers big win over Boston. The 3 horse race all season out of the East will carry over to the post-season. In the Western Conference, the Los Angeles Lakers are still the big favorites after a big win over Denver last Thursday night. The return of Andrew Bynum will only be more beneficial for the Lakers who have appeared as the top notch team in the West all season. However teams like Denver, Houston, and Portland have really closed out the year strong and could be teams to put together impressive runs in the playoffs. We give brief breakdown of the major contenders for the 2009 NBA Playoffs along with their odds to win it all.

Eastern Conference

Cleveland Cavaliers (7/5)

The Cavaliers extremely impressive home record makes them big favorites in the NBA playoffs. Their 38-1 record is among the best ever string of runs by a home team in NBA history. Lebron James is averaged 28.3 points per game, but more importantly is getting a lot of help from the rest of the team. Cleveland only lost one game all season at home meaning for them to be beaten in the playoffs a team is going to have to win at least one game in Cleveland while sweeping the Cavaliers away from Cleveland. Good luck with that.

Boston Celtics (4/1)

The Celtics chances to repeat as NBA Champions took a big hit with their embarrassing loss to Cleveland. However, Boston has played very well to close out the season winning 8 of their last 10 games. The Celtics are another team that plays very well at home with a 34-6 record for the season. However, Boston is only 4-4 against Orlando and Cleveland on the year meaning they have been anything but dominant over the top teams in the East. Still the Celtics know what it takes to be Champions, but can they do it again?

Orlando Magic (8/1)

The Magic got the big win over Cleveland back in the first week of April, but they have now lost 3 of their last 4 games. Orlando got off to a tremendous start to the season, but really suffered a hit with the loss of Jameer Nelson despite putting together some solid winning streaks in recent weeks. Also, Rashard Lewis will likely miss the final games of the regular season with a knee injury and the Magic simply look to be too banged up down the stretch to be a legitimate threat as they appeared earlier this year.

Team to Watch – Chicago Bulls (100/1)

The Chicago Bulls have won 4 straight games and 12 of their last 15 games during that stretch. Chicago has put together a solid home record this season that is always crucial during the post season. If the Bulls can keep up the momentum and get some more big performances from Ben Gordon, they could really pull off a string off upsets and perhaps take down either Boston or Orlando who they will be likely playing in the opening round.

Western Conference

Los Angeles Lakers (8/5)

Thursday night’s victory over the emerging Denver Nuggets was icing on the cake for Western Conference bragging rights. The Lakers simply looked too strong for their closest competitors in the West and are big favorites at 4/9 favorites to make it to the NBA Finals. The Lakers got beat by a streaking Portland team on Friday 106-98, but they still appear to be too strong in terms of being beat in an entire series. The Lakers have had more problems with the teams in the Eastern Conference this season and until someone proves us wrong we will ride the Lakers bandwagon.

Denver Nuggets (20/1)

The Nuggets are really playing well to close out the season despite their setback to the Lakers last Thursday. Carmelo Anthony and J.R Smith are becoming a dynamic duo posting big figures every night. The Nuggets have put together wins in 13 of their last 15 games The Nuggets could face the Dallas Mavericks in the opening round if things were to stay the same. Denver would not mind the pairing considering they are a perfect 4-0 on the season against Dallas. If the Nuggets could keep the momentum rolling I am sure they will be eager to get their chance at a series with the Lakers.

Portland Trailblazers (25/1)

The Trailblazers are in a heated battle with the Houston Rockets for 3rd place in the West as both teams stand at a mark of 52-28. The Trailblazers and the Rockets have also both put on a solid 4 game winning streak as Portland will get the Thunder and the Nuggets in the final two games. The battle for 3rd dictates whether they will get New Orleans or San Antonio in the playoffs. The Trailblazers have played the most solid basketball the 2nd half of the season and they should give teams problems if they can stay hot.

Team to watch – Houston Rockets (20/1)

The Rockets have put together 4 straight wins along with Portland. The only difference is Houston beat up on the Trailblazers 102-88 to start their winning streak. The Rockets have what it takes to match-up with the other teams from the West in the playoffs giving them a chance to knock off some wins in the postseason. The only thing is the Rockets have failed to beat the Lakers once this season at 0-4 meaning any dream type run at an NBA Finals may be more of a dream than a reality.

Kobe Bryant has been known for outstanding performances of the past and for his ability to take control over in games over the best the NBA has to offer. Last night was not any different as Bryant lit up the scoreboards again posting a 61 point performance in Madison Square Garden. The Los Angeles Lakers had a solid night as they held of a New York Knicks team who had won 6 of their last 7 by a score of 126-117. Lakers power forward Pau Gasol had an excellent night in a double-double performance knocking down 31 points and pulling down 14 boards. However, it was Bryant that stole the spotlight as he dropped 60 plus points for the 5th time in his career.

Kobe Bryant is no stranger to huge performances as he quite possibly is the best scorer of the modern era. Of course Wilt Chamberlain’s 100 points back in 1962 is a feat that will likely never be broken considering how evolved and competitive the NBA has become. However, Bryant has made a few runs and big performances that rank as high as Wilt’s 100 point performance. Last night, the Lakers franchise player posted 50 or more points for the 25th time in his career. The performance took place in the historic and majestic Madison Square Garden where Kobe surpassed Michael Jordan as the highest scoring game ever for an opponent ever at the Garden. The 61 points also ranked 1st all time at Madison Square Garden for any player as Bryant edged out Bernard King’s 60 points back in 1984.

Kobe’s 25 50 point games ranks 3rd all-time behind Wilt Chamberlain who had 118 50 point nights back before there was a shot clock and the great Michael Jordan who posted 31 50 point games. The miraculous night still fell short of Kobe Bryant’s career best when he drained 81 points against the Toronto Raptors in January of 2006. Bryant performance last night was led by a 61% shooting performance from the floor (19-31), 50% shooting from behind the arc (3-6), and Bryant capped all of it off by not missing a single free throw in 20 attempts from the stripe. The performance along with the 31 points from Pau Gasol marked the highest scoring game all-season by two teammates as they nearly got to the century mark between the two as they ended up with 92 points combined.

The Lakers win moved them to a 38-9 record on the year that ranks the 2nd best in the NBA. Los Angeles has now won their last 3 games including the last 6 of 7. The game was the 3rd of six straight road games. Los Angeles will now get one night off before two hectic back to back games with Toronto and the highly anticipated showdown with the Boston Celtics on Thursday night. The Celtics own the best record in the NBA at 40-9 barely ahead of the Lakers and the showdown will represent last year’s Finals re-match and also represents the two best teams in the NBA at this point in the season. The Lakers won the first meeting this season inside the Staples Center when Bryant led the team with 27 points as they took down the Celtics 92-83. However, the Celtics will likely be in better position to get some revenge this time around. Boston not only will host the meeting which is huge considering Boston owns a 24-2 home record after sporting the best home record in the league last season at 34-6 in the NBA. The Celtics will also get the slight advantage heading into the contest considering they will be on a little fresher legs as the Lakers battle the Raptors on Wednesday night. However, Bryant has a tendency to have some of his biggest nights on the biggest stages and the Lakers will look for him to have another big performance when they travel to Boston on Thursday.

The NBA regular season a little more than halfway through and there is a pretty clear sight of who are the front runners with the chance for a few more teams to make a surprise down the stretch. The Eastern Conference appears to be the strength of the league with the powerhouses of Boston, Cleveland, and Orlando. Out West we still await a contender to emerge to be able to challenge the L.A Lakers and the most likely team to take that role is the San Antonio Spurs. At this time in the season is when all the predictions start coming out and the betting lines are changing every day with new future odds. We break down the top 3 teams in each conference and provide some insight on some teams to keep an eye on that could surprise down the stretch.

Eastern Conference

Boston Celtics (36-9)

The defending NBA Champions had the best start in NBA history at 27-2. However, the Celtics rang in the New Year poorly losing 4 out of their first 5 games and even 7 out of 9 at one point. The tough weeks of basketball exposed the first sign of troubles from Boston that we have seen in some time. Despite the tough stretch that featured 3 of 4 of their last losses on the road, Boston has bounced back with a vengeance. The Celtics have now knocked off 7 straight wins including a big win over what many call the best team in the league the Orland Magic last Thursday night 90-80. The difference in the wins and losses is how the Celtics play defense. In the Celtics last 4 defeats, the opponents were averaging 100.2 points per game. However, in the last 7 victories the Celtics have held opposing teams to only 88 points. The Celtics are 2^nd behind Cleveland in scoring defense this season and that has always been a big attribute to their success. With the troubles seemingly out of the way, Boston appears to be right back where they left last off last year.

Orlando Magic (33-9)

The Magic that is Orlando comes in the form of 6’11 Dwight Howard. Howard has been superb this year and so has the rest of the Orlando lineup. Howard leads the league in rebounds (14rpg), blocked shots (3.2bpg), and also supports with 20 points every game. However, it has not been all the achievement of one man. Rashard Lewis, Hedo Turkoglu, and Jameer Nelson are all averaging at least 17 points while the Magic are averaging 101 points per contest. Orlando had won 8 straight games before their loss to Boston on Thursday night and they own a 7 ½ game over Atlanta in the Southeast. Orlando is the only team out of the top 3 in the Eastern Conference to have captured a victory over the L.A Lakers this season which is clearly the best team right now in the West. The Magic are actually 2-0 over the Lakers and many think they are the most complete team at this point in the season.

Cleveland Cavaliers (32-8)

Cleveland appeared to be the best team out of the East only a matter of a few short weeks ago. However, the Cavaliers have gone 2-2 in their last 4 games with losses over the Lakers and Trailblazers. Not to mention Cleveland is facing some key injuries over the last few days. Starting shooting guard Delonte West has a broken wrist and will miss 4-6 weeks. Also starting center Zydrunas Ilgauskas has a fractured ankle and will miss 3-4 weeks. Despite the small dark cloud that has recently developed over the team, Cleveland is still among the best in the NBA. Lebron James is 2^nd in the NBA in scoring with 27.8 points and the team seems to be playing better behind him than they have in past seasons. The Cavs also are a perfect 20-0 at home meaning that they could be very tough to beat at playoff time.

Team to watch…

Philadelphia 76ers (20-21)

The 76ers have risen from the dead after they were nearly written off with a 13-20 start. However, they have now put together 7 straight wins before a tough loss to Dallas on Monday night. Considering how inconsistent the rest of the East is behind the top 3, the 76ers have a chance to really make things interesting if they can put together another similar streak.

Western Conference

Los Angeles Lakers (34-8)

The Lakers clearly look to be favorites again out of the Western Conference as they have a 5 game advantage over any other team from the West and a huge 10 ½ game lead in the Pacific division. Kobe Bryant’s 26.4 points per game is good for 3^rd best in the league and the Lakers lead the NBA with 108 points per contest as a team. A few short weeks ago the Lakers appeared that they would be unchallenged this year in the conference, but they are realizing that the San Antonio Spurs are playing very well and will attempt to give them a challenge for frontrunner in the West. Los Angeles has won 13 of their past 16 games including big wins over Boston and Cleveland in the process. If nothing else drastically changes, the Lakers will likely make another run towards the NBA Finals.

San Antonio Spurs (29-13)

A lot of questions arose after the Spurs got off to a slow start losing 5 of their first 7 games. However, San Antonio bounced back winning 7 of their next 8 and the momentum has not slowed down much since. The Spurs have now won their last 4 games and 8 of their last 10 including a huge battle where they took down the Lakers 112-111. Tim Duncan and Tony Parker continue to lead the way both averaging 20.4 points per contest. The Spurs win over the Lakers proved that they are back on the right track and not ready to hand over the season quite yet to the Lakers considering Los Angeles is everybody’s pick to win the West. San Antonio gets another big match-up with the Lakers this Sunday and it will be interesting to see how things shake up this time inside the Staples Center. Look for the Spurs to be playing their best basketball as they usually do around post season time.

Denver Nuggets (28-15)

Giving up Allen Iverson may not been a big of mistake as people first thought. Chauncey Billups is averaging nearly 20 points and the Nuggets seem to be in better shape than the Pistons. Carmelo Anthony leads the team with 21 points, but has missed some valuable playing time recently due to a broken hand. Despite their star player missing time on the court, the Nuggets have still managed to win 8 of their last 11 games. Anthony participated in some workouts on Thursday and it should not be long before he rejoins the lineup. Denver will desperately need him back considering they are bout to embark on an 8 game road adventure at the start of February. The Nuggets are only 11-9 on the road this year and how they perform in the next few weeks away from home will definitely make an impact on their ability to maintain their 2 ½ game lead over Portland in the Northwest.

Team to watch…

New Orleans Hornets (26-14)

The Hornets proved last year that they could really come alive during the playoffs. Chris Paul has played like Chris Paul with 21.2ppg and an NBA leading 11 assist per game. New Orleans may have been expected to be in better position at this point in the season, but they are still only a mere 2 games back to the Spurs and definitely in striking range.

The Boston Celtics are off to one of the best starts in NBA history at a record of 27-2. While it is still very early in the season, the Celtics can see a glimpse of history in the making. The Celtics are on pace to challenge the 1996 Chicago Bulls for the best record ever in a season. The 1996 Bulls finished their brilliant campaign with a final record of 72-10 and capped it off with an NBA Championship as well. Boston is off to a mind blowing pace through the early half of the season. The Celtics have 53 games remaining this season and the competition will likely pick up. However, if Boston could keep up similar pace they could quite possibly achieve the best season ever in the history of the NBA.

Boston is one of the most historical franchises in NBA history. The Celtics have an amazing 17 NBA Championships that is by far more than any other franchise in NBA history. Boston has established the best start in NBA history at a mark of 27-2. Only two other teams can compare to that kind of start. Both the 1966-67 Philadelphia 76ers and 1969-70 New York Knicks started their seasons 26-2. They also both went on to win NBA Championships. With last nights 110-91 victory over the 76ers, the Celtics have now won 19 straight games which equals a team record. Boston is making their claim as one of the best teams to ever take the floor in professional basketball.

Celtics’ coach Doc Rivers has done a fabulous job getting his guys to play premier defense. Despite all the offensive weapons, the Boston defensive schemes have been major reason for their success. This season the Celtics are only allowing 91.4 points per game which ranks them as the 2^nd best scoring defense in the NBA. Boston also ranks first in the NBA in defensive field goal percentage. The Celtics are only allowing opposing teams to shoot 41% from the floor on average which is by far the best in the league. The Celtics have only allowed teams to score over 100 points 7 times this season in the 30 games played. That statistic alone is pretty remarkable considering how high scoring the entire NBA has become. However, Boston has stayed with an old school type of basketball that focuses on defense first and it has paid off big time.

Offensively the Celtics are as talented as any team in the league. Unlike the Los Angeles Lakers or Cleveland Cavaliers, Boston seldom has one player stand out game in and game out. Unlike other top teams that are led by star players such as Kobe Bryant and Lebron James, the Celtics can have any of their starting five post a big night. Other teams have the stress of worrying how their start performer will play every night. When those players are off a lot of times the entire team struggles. The Celtics do not have those worries because they have a number of players who can pick up the slack on any given night. Boston is led by a trio of stars in Ray Allen, Paul Pierce, and Kevin Garnett. The Celtics average 50 points per game just between those 3 standouts. Boston benefits from having this type of talent considering when one player is off his game others will pick it up. Many teams can not afford there star players to struggle. However, Boston can play at a top level every night despite individual performances. This reason alone is why they are the most consistent team in the NBA.

Boston is on their way to accomplishing probably one of the most prestigious records a team could capture in the regular season. Boston remaining schedule will most certainly wear down the players and they are likely to lose this blistering early season pace. However, if the Celtics do stay on path they could legitimately challenge the 76’ Bulls for the best record of all-time. Boston has a huge match-up with the Los Angeles Lakers on the horizon to take place on Christmas Day. The game will mark a battle between powerhouses in effort to gain NBA supremacy. Each team will be trying to prove they are the best in the NBA and a win will go along way for each team’s confidence about where they stand in the league. If the Celtics could escape Los Angeles with a victory, the momentum could definitely last the rest of the season.

The Celtics simply have to keep similar pace in tact. Even if Boston were to lose twice as many games in their next 29 games, they would still be on pace to end the season with around 9 losses. This means that every game could be one loss or one win away from breaking the record at season’s end. So far this season Boston has faired well against the best competition in the NBA. Orlando, Cleveland, and Los Angeles have the best records in the NBA behind Boston by 5 games or more. Boston is 2-0 against these teams this season with convincing wins in both games against Orlando and Cleveland. The Celtics will get the Lakers next up the Thursday night and will try to stay perfect against the elite teams in the NBA. The Celtics appear to be headed for a probable chance at history. Unless some drastic things change, Boston will get their chance to stake claim as the best team in the history of professional basketball. Record or no record, for now sit back and watch one of the best teams to ever take the floor and applaud their strive at greatness.