burnet44
03-20-2007, 12:43 PM
The return of the top-10 rankings.
Whiners, bring your crying towels.
It's been that kind of magical season for the Mavericks. Just when they experience their first losing streak since November and appear ready to tumble from the top of the rankings, down go the two teams giving chase. How often do all of the top three contenders lose back-to-back in the same week?
So consider it a hiccup and figure Dallas will likely head into the playoffs as the team to beat. But can the Mavs really rest easy when Miami is rising in the East?
After four weeks away, here are the rankings:
1--DALLAS MAVERICKS (Last ranking: 1) -- 54-11 -- After having that bubble of a 17-game win streak popped by the Warriors and Suns, what was left for the Mavs to do except start another streak. So they're at two in a row and counting.
2--SAN ANTONIO SPURS (Last ranking: 4) -- 46-20 -- We're writing off those back-to-back losses as what the stock market calls "a correction." The Spurs are still lurking as the biggest hurdle for Dallas in the West.
3--PHOENIX SUNS (Last ranking: 2) -- 50-16 -- The double-overtime win at Dallas was as good as it gets, then they crash landed with the losses to Detroit and Denver. Still, nobody wants to deal with their pace in the playoffs.
4--CLEVELAND CAVALIERS (Last ranking: 9) -- 41-25 -- Maybe the 8-game winning streak -- and 9 of their last 10 -- means LeBron & Co. have finally gotten off the rollercoaster and are getting tuned up for a postseason run.
5--DETROIT PISTONS -- (Last ranking: 6) -- 42-23 -- Very impressive on a 5-0 blitz through a trip out West. Then came back home and dropped a heavyweight bout to the Mavs. But they played without Chauncey Billups.
6--MIAMI HEAT -- (Last ranking: 8) -- 36-30 -- Just when it looked like Shaq had turned the clock back to the early part of the millennium with a 9-game winning streak, the Wade-less Heat stumbled at home to the hapless Magic. If they win the Southeast, they make noise in the East.
7--UTAH JAZZ -- (Last ranking: 3) -- 43-23 -- Four straight losses have the Jazz in need of some home-cooking and now the schedule serves up four of the next five at the toxic waste dump arena. Those two games left with the Rockets could determine home court in the first round.
8--HOUSTON ROCKETS -- (Last ranking: 5) -- 42-25 -- To take off from an old Roger Miller song, the Rockets swing like the pendulum do. Now it's a 3-game win streak as they've moved to 6-2 with Yao Ming back in the lineup.
9--CHICAGO BULLS -- (Last ranking: unranked) -- 39-29 -- They're finally starting to play solid now that they're pretty much locked into the No. 5 seed in the East. But they'll likely have home court in the first round and could make Detroit work in the second.
10--GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS -- (Last ranking: unranked) -- 32-36 -- Gilbert Arenas will be angry for the Wizards getting dissed here. But how many chances in a lifetime do you get to give the Warriors credit for doing anything right? Plus the giant-killer are 2-0 against Dallas.
Whiners, bring your crying towels.
It's been that kind of magical season for the Mavericks. Just when they experience their first losing streak since November and appear ready to tumble from the top of the rankings, down go the two teams giving chase. How often do all of the top three contenders lose back-to-back in the same week?
So consider it a hiccup and figure Dallas will likely head into the playoffs as the team to beat. But can the Mavs really rest easy when Miami is rising in the East?
After four weeks away, here are the rankings:
1--DALLAS MAVERICKS (Last ranking: 1) -- 54-11 -- After having that bubble of a 17-game win streak popped by the Warriors and Suns, what was left for the Mavs to do except start another streak. So they're at two in a row and counting.
2--SAN ANTONIO SPURS (Last ranking: 4) -- 46-20 -- We're writing off those back-to-back losses as what the stock market calls "a correction." The Spurs are still lurking as the biggest hurdle for Dallas in the West.
3--PHOENIX SUNS (Last ranking: 2) -- 50-16 -- The double-overtime win at Dallas was as good as it gets, then they crash landed with the losses to Detroit and Denver. Still, nobody wants to deal with their pace in the playoffs.
4--CLEVELAND CAVALIERS (Last ranking: 9) -- 41-25 -- Maybe the 8-game winning streak -- and 9 of their last 10 -- means LeBron & Co. have finally gotten off the rollercoaster and are getting tuned up for a postseason run.
5--DETROIT PISTONS -- (Last ranking: 6) -- 42-23 -- Very impressive on a 5-0 blitz through a trip out West. Then came back home and dropped a heavyweight bout to the Mavs. But they played without Chauncey Billups.
6--MIAMI HEAT -- (Last ranking: 8) -- 36-30 -- Just when it looked like Shaq had turned the clock back to the early part of the millennium with a 9-game winning streak, the Wade-less Heat stumbled at home to the hapless Magic. If they win the Southeast, they make noise in the East.
7--UTAH JAZZ -- (Last ranking: 3) -- 43-23 -- Four straight losses have the Jazz in need of some home-cooking and now the schedule serves up four of the next five at the toxic waste dump arena. Those two games left with the Rockets could determine home court in the first round.
8--HOUSTON ROCKETS -- (Last ranking: 5) -- 42-25 -- To take off from an old Roger Miller song, the Rockets swing like the pendulum do. Now it's a 3-game win streak as they've moved to 6-2 with Yao Ming back in the lineup.
9--CHICAGO BULLS -- (Last ranking: unranked) -- 39-29 -- They're finally starting to play solid now that they're pretty much locked into the No. 5 seed in the East. But they'll likely have home court in the first round and could make Detroit work in the second.
10--GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS -- (Last ranking: unranked) -- 32-36 -- Gilbert Arenas will be angry for the Wizards getting dissed here. But how many chances in a lifetime do you get to give the Warriors credit for doing anything right? Plus the giant-killer are 2-0 against Dallas.