Ranking the NBA from worst to first…

30. Charlotte Bobcats (3-19) Last Week: 29, -1 The worst team in the league. Bar none. Nine straight losses. Their only bright spot in all of this is Kemba Walker. In his last five games, he’s averaging 15.2 points, seven rebounds and five assists a game and had the first triple-double in his rookie class. Your turn, Ricky and Kyrie. Read More »

Joe Johnson is absolutely balling right now. He dropped 24 in the first half of Atlanta’s blowout win in Toronto. After he closed the frame with a rainbow three from the top of the key, the ATL play-by-play guy yelled, “Nothing but the bottom of the sack.” It’s not even a question anymore whether he’s an All-Star. If he keeps this up, we’re only asking for him to give back $30 million to the Hawks, rather than $40 mill. 30 points on 13-for-18 from the field, in only three quarters … Tracy McGrady added 15 off the bench … Read More »

Well that was quick. How many of you predicted Chris Kaman wouldn’t last long in New Orleans after the Clippers packed him up in a box and shipped him out cross country? It’s not that we thought he wouldn’t like it there. He probably loves it, and could’ve taken over Aaron Gray’s resident spot on the roster as the big, wild outdoorsman. But the Hornets are destroying and rebuilding like we’re back in 2001 listening to Stillmatic. Kaman is only 29 and was an All-Star just two seasons ago. But he refused to accept a diminished role. Playing 20 minutes a game in the Bayou wasn’t going to keep him happy. Now, he’ll be someone else’s treasure. Read More »

The Knicks decided real basketball was for the birds, and started launching a monsoon of treys. That might work against some teams, but not Miami, especially when Dwyane Wade is healthy and cooking. With Carmelo Anthony sitting out, the Heat weathered a random Bill Walker night (21 points, all on treys) and a bunch of other weird stuff (in the first half the Knicks were 5-for-19 on twos and 10-for-23 on threes) to pull away in the fourth quarter, 99-89. LeBron and D-Wade were all over the place, combining for 59 points and only 15 missed shots. Read More »

Who stole Orlando’s offense? With the Celtics reeling from injuries and actually giving legit minutes to people like Sasha Pavlovic and E’Twaun Moore, the Magic could’ve stepped on their necks. Instead, they folded like a bad hand, scoring only 56 for the game and leaving Boston with a 31-point L on their foreheads. 56 points sounds awful. But 20 second half points and 24 percent shooting for the game sounds even worse. Dwight Howard had 18 and 14, but didn’t even make a shot in the second half while Paul Pierce and Brandon Bass dropped 19 to lead all scorers … Read More »

It wasn’t like we were the only ones to say the Sixers were for real this year. Everyone was saying that, and the numbers backed it up. They were No. 1 in offense and defense – at the same time – for a while this season, and were dominating people at home. But last night, they ran into a real title contender, the Miami Heat, and the Sixers got blitzed worse than anything we’ve seen all year from the Ravens. Even without Dwyane Wade, the Heat won because they dominated on the glass and LeBron (28 points) was an absolute savage on the pick-n-roll. Whenever he got into the lane, it was an automatic bucket. Read More »

Thank you NBA fans. You’ve officially destroyed any drama that I ever got out of the All-Star voting. Not that it really matters. Almost every year, you can bank on certain names garnering the most votes and a starting spot in the Sunday capper of the best midseason weekend in basketball. Kobe Bryant could do his whole “watch what happens when I don’t shoot, world” routine for four weeks straight, and his fans would probably declare he’s the best passer in the world and should be in the game. LeBron James could act like a train off its tracks, and keep up that weird “I’m here, but don’t ask me to do anything heroic” face he’s had on since last June, and fans would still call him the most talented player in NBA history. Blake Griffin could blow out his knee or decide to never dunk again as long as the refs continue to screw him (Watch him complain on every call. Hubie almost had a heart attack last night: “GET BACK ON D! YOU GOTTA GET BACK!”), or he could have both happen, and Quake would still be in February’s ultimate showcase. Read More »

The best team in the NBA against the worst. Blowout right? But Washington grew tired of getting jumped and walking around embarrassed the rest of the day. So they put together by far their best performance of the season in their surprising 105-102 win over the Thunder. On a night where Andray Blatche got booed in the pre-game introductions, and then booed again just three minutes in when he started his lackadaisical routine by shooting air balls, eventually everything turned to gold because John Wall took over in the fourth quarter. Read More »

Ranking the NBA from worst to first …

30. Washington Wizards (1-12) LW: 30, — Well, at least John Wall finally had a big game yesterday against Houston (38 points) because I was beginning to believe that the rest of the guys had brainwashed him. Read More »

Beast of the Night: Joe Johnson posted 27 points, five rebounds, six assists, two steals, three blocks and three three-pointers last night. He shot 45 percent (9-20) from the field, 86 percent (6-7) from the free-throw line and turned the ball over once. Johnson has really turned things up a notch lately and is putting up top 40 numbers so far this season, a notable improvement from last year’s disappointing averages. There’s not much reason to think he can’t keep this up. Read More »