How will the West be won? That’s tough to say, since there are so many scenarios.
This year’s Western Conference postseason will be one of the most competitive ever. No team is without holes. None is void of a superstar capable of making his season special.
“Any team in the Western Conference with some confidence and playing well can win,” Nuggets guard Andre Miller said. “You’ve got to get on some type of winning streak, some type of roll to advance.”
Said Los Angeles Clippers coach Mike Dunleavy: “There’s not a matchup out there where a team couldn’t be beaten in the first round.”
World champion San Antonio still is the favorite. But there are a lot of chinks in the Spurs’ armor.
All-star forward Tim Duncan isn’t having his typical MVP season. All-star guard Tony Parker is having the best season of his career, but his driving lanes are being closed by opposing defenses. Guard Manu Ginobili has shown only flashes of his all-star play of last season. But the Spurs are deeper than they were last season and have three talented reserve veterans who can make game-winning shots in Robert “Big Shot Bob” Horry, Michael Finley and Nick Van Exel.
“San Antonio, they’re the defending champs; you can’t take nothing away from those guys,” Denver center Marcus Camby said. “But they’re not really dominating like they have been in past years.”
Los Angeles Lakers coach Phil Jackson said: “Right now San Antonio has kind of recovered after having a little spell there where they lost games, had a tight schedule. They look to be the odds-on favorite to win this conference.”
If everything goes as expected, the West’s winningest teams, San Antonio and Dallas, will meet in the second round. The NBA’s setup benefits the three division winners: San Antonio or Dallas in the Southwest, Phoenix in the Pacific and the Nuggets in the Northwest. Whoever finishes second in the Southwest will be the fourth seed and likely will have a tough first-round matchup with either Memphis or the Los Angeles Clippers.
If it weren’t for winning their division, the Nuggets likely would be seeded fifth or lower in the West. Instead, Denver will have a higher seed than a Southwest Division second-place finisher with a much better record. Expect the NBA to make a rule change in the offseason.
“The rules are the rules,” Dallas coach Avery Johnson said. “That’s the way it is.”
A healthy Dallas – emphasis on healthy – with MVP candidate Dirk Nowitzki could surprise San Antonio. Fast-running Phoenix is led by MVP candidate Steve Nash and all-star Shawn Marion, and is capable of getting back to the Western finals. But the Suns won’t have Amare Stoudemire.
Memphis all-star Pau Gasol and the deep Grizzlies or a veteran Clippers team, led by all-star Elton Brand and playoff-tested Sam Cassell, could make it tough on the Southwest Division winner in the first round.
A healthy Nuggets team, with a hot Carmelo Anthony, is good enough to make it to the Western finals or disappointing enough to be eliminated in the first round. You can’t count out the Lakers since they have the NBA’s most talented player in Kobe Bryant. And let’s not forget Ron Artest’s Kings, still trying to get to know each other but deep in veteran talent.
“Dallas is playing pretty good basketball,” Camby said. “You also could throw in Dallas, ourselves, Memphis, the Clippers, Lakers, Phoenix. It’s wide-open. I don’t see one team that’s really dominating.
“Anything’s possible, especially in the NBA. You never know if a team or individual player could get hot and lead a team to a series victory. A guy like Kobe, he could get rolling and get 50 each night and help will his team to victory.”
So what’s the deal in the Eastern Conference? The only teams with legitimate shots of making it to the Eastern finals are reigning conference champion Detroit, Miami and New Jersey. Whoever is left from the tough West might be too beaten up to put up their best fight against likely East champion Detroit.
“Outside of maybe a couple years where we had our runs, it seems to be a pretty open field,” Bryant said.
Said Nuggets coach George Karl: “There’s going to be a surprise. I’m hoping it’s the Denver Nuggets.”
Footnotes
Former University of Denver center Yemi Nicholson had the largest wingspan (88 inches) at the recent Portsmouth Invitational Tournament, which showcases colleges and top seniors to pro scouts. The Sun Belt Conference player of the year was listed at 6-feet-9 3/4 with shoes on and 257 pounds. Former Wyoming center Justin Williams was listed at 6-10, 211 with an 85 1/4 wingspan. … While there are rumors Golden State coach Mike Montgomery could be on the hot seat and isn’t well-liked by his players, the Warriors don’t expect him to be sent packing. He has two years and $5 million left on his contract … Word is Utah Jazz coach Jerry Sloan will be back for his 19th season and is enjoying the challenge of getting his franchise back to prominence. … Former NBA player Micheal Ray Richardson, a Denver native, said he will return as coach of CBA Albany next season. “I was a game away from the championship game,” he said. He may work with the New York Knicks’ summer-league team and at a basketball camp in Korea this offseason.
Marc J. Spears can be reached at 303-820-5449 or mspears@denverpost.com. Spears can also be heard on ESPN 560 AM on Thursdays at 4 p.m. on “Roundball Rap.”
