NBA East Round-Up; A Look Around the Conference
Walker leads the surprising Bobcats in scoring so far this season.
Division Leaders: New York, Milwaukee, Miami
The National Basketball Association takes a well-deserved day off for Thanksgiving while the NFL and and college football garner the attention. A day off usually means a day of full action the night before and many of the Eastern Conference teams were in action. Here’s a quick re-cap of some games I highlighted yesterday and how I did.
Charlotte 98 Toronto 97 – I went with the Bobcats here simply because the Raptors were coming off a game in Philly in the night before. Kemba Walker knocked in 19 points for the winners.
Orlando 90 Detroit 74 – This one went exactly as I thought it would. Detroit just can’t score and Orlando is playing very solidly on defense so far this season. That mixture led to the Magic victory. Andrew Nicholson led a balanced Orlando attack with 15 points.
Cleveland 92 Philadelphia 83 – My streak came to a crashing halt right here as the Cavs, playing without Kyrie Irving, beat the Sixers in Philly. I didn’t see a whole lot of hope for the Cavs even with Irving this season but it looks like they are primed to be aggressive without him. Jeremy Pargo led the Cavs with 29 points.
Anthony and Knicks lead the way in the Atlantic.
Where we stand…Right now in the Eastern Conference, we can say safely at this point that Miami should pretty much run away with the Southeast division. Even with Dwayne Wade dealing with some injury-issues (what else is new?) I just can’t see Charlotte or even Atlanta doing much to challenge them.
The Atlantic division could prove to be one of the most exciting as the season progresses. Four of the five teams in the division are within three games of each other with New York leading at 8-2. Only Toronto is off the pace at six games out right now. Brooklyn, Philly and Boston are teams that I don’t see falling off the pace too much with the possible exception of the Sixers if Andrew Bynum can’t get himself right.
The Central division looks to be full of mediocrity and worse. The Cavs and Pistons are bringing up the rear and I don’t see them being any type of threat moving forward. The Bucks, Pacers, and Bulls are within a game and a half of each other and I don’t see that changing. Obviously the Bulls must feel like if they can hang through the All-Star break and the get Derrick Rose back they’ll be in good position for the playoffs. That’s assuming of course Rose can return and be the MVP-caliber player he was.
Games for tomorrow
Atlanta at Charlotte – Hard to call any game this early in the season important but if these two teams would like to keep the Heat in shouting distance they’ll need to win these games. Each team has won three in a row but I’ll go with the Bobcats at home because of a little better scoring and defense.
Cleveland at Orlando – The Cavs head to Central Florida to take on the Magic. The Cavs are 1-6 on the road while Orlando is 3-2 at home. I like the defense the Magic are playing too so I like Orlando.
Toronto at Detroit – This one doesn’t exactly make anyone want to run out and buy a ticket now does it? This is the Raptors’ third straight game on the road and the previous two have been defeats. Detroit returns home after a poor showing in Orlando. I’ll take the home team simply because they’re home and Toronto is 1-6 on the road.
Oklahoma City at Boston – OKC hits the road for Beantown with a 3-1 record on the road and is coming off a much-needed overtime win over the Clippers. The Thunder had yet to beat a quality team and will need a similar performance to beat the Celtics at home. Boston is 3-3 at the Garden and must play the solid defense Doc Rivers’ teams are known for. There will be some great individual match-ups in this one, but I like the Thunder in a tight one.
