12/11/2023 0 Comments Western conference divisions nbaI’m still not sure they’re in great position - LeBron James turns 39 in December, Anthony Davis looks awesome for two weeks then moves like the tin man for the next two, and it’s hard to play their best lineup (James at the four and Davis at the five) with zero rotation-caliber small forwards on the roster.īut let’s stop and at least acknowledge the work the Lakers did just to make this an interesting conversation. Of those three, you could argue the Lakers are in the best position to make some playoff noise, conditional on them getting that top-three spot. All three share similar profiles at first glance: Led by aging superstars who may not be able to play the full schedule, shaky on second-line talent and overall depth while limited in resources to do anything more in season. Last year the Suns, Warriors and Lakers finished finished fourth, sixth and seventh, respectively, and, although each advanced out of the first round, they combined for zero conference finals wins. ![]() The top three seeds in each conference share the other 98 percent of title probability each season those champions include the 2020 Lakers (first seed) and the 2022 Warriors (third seed). With 10 teams a year over 47 years, that’s a 1-in-470 hit rate. Only one of those teams, the 1995 Houston Rockets, actually won the title. (I’m excluding the shenanigans that made a 60-win Dallas team the “fourth seed” in 2006 for this discussion.) The success of Miami and the Lakers last season, winning five series between them, might muddy this a bit for people, but the Heat were only the seventh team in the post-merger era to make the NBA Finals with their conference’s fourth-best record or worse. Finishing fourth or worse offers two separate obstacles: First and most obviously, that you probably weren’t good enough anyway, but second, that the path to blast through four rounds against elite teams without home-court advantage is just too hard. Historically, that has been a pretty stark dividing line between the teams that have a realistic chance of winning a title and those that don’t. The most interesting topic in the West for me is which, if any, of the Lakers, Warriors and Suns can muster enough regular-season wins to earn a top-three seed. But with only five games separating these teams in my projected standings, the capriciousness of random variance could easily offset any difference: I’m not picking a seven-way tie, although I was tempted, because I do see at least some small margin between first and seventh in the regular season. Nonetheless, the margins among the top seven in particular project to be razor-thin, portending both a regular-season chase for seeds and home-court advantage that could go to the final day of the season, and another topsy-turvy postseason with little to distinguish “favorites” from underdogs. ![]() More probably, factors like injuries, shooting variance and unexpected breakout years tilt the playing field in favor of a few teams and away from some others. It’s theoretically possible we have 11 teams tied at 44-37 on the last day of the season. It projects to be close enough for the gods of randomness to have a field day. In the meantime, get your popcorn and appreciate the race we might have. A few teams are going to be terribly disappointed come April, and that could have some serious ramifications for the next offseason. Expectations are high all over the West, even for a few teams I don’t even project to crack the top seven. The best record ever by a NBA team was 73-9 by the 2015-2016 Golden State Warriors.News flash: Nobody made these moves to win 45 games and lose in the first round.The most points scored by a team in a game was 186 by the Detroit Pistons.Of the current teams, the Memphis Grizzlies, the Minnesota Timberwolves, and the Los Angeles Clippers have the worst records. The San Antonio Spurs have the best all time winning percentage followed by the Lakers and the Celtics (2021).The Lakers' teams with Magic Johnson were called "show time".The Chicago Bulls have won all 6 of the NBA championships they have played.Los Angeles has two NBA teams and two NFL teams.The most championships by an NBA team is 17 by the Boston Celtics (as of 2010).The Western conference also has three divisions, which are the Northwest, Pacific, and Southwest. The Eastern conference has three divisions called Atlantic, Central, and Southeast. The league is divided up into two conferences, the Eastern Conference and the Western Conference. Positions are more through different roles played on the court as set up by the coach. There aren't any special positions by rule in the NBA. The other three are inactive or in reserve. ![]() Twelve players are considered part of the active roster and can dress out to play in a game.
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