Western Conference Part 2

These three teams are a clear cut above the rest of the Western Conference and it will be very surprising if someone besides these three wins the conference. In reverse order again:

3. San Antonio Spurs (39-18)
Right now the Spurs are only one game ahead of Utah for the 3rd playoff spot, but I think everyone would agree that they are a much better team than the Jazz and will be able to hold them (and any other contenders) off. San Antonio is a veteran team who has been though this time of year plenty of times. At this point they know that they have a very small chance of getting one of the top two seeds, and so they can rest their players somewhat and make sure that everyone on the team is fully healthy going into the playoffs. One of the most dangerous things about the Spurs is that they almost for sure will be playing their best basketball of the year in the playoffs. The Spurs are playing very well lately too, as they are currently on a six game winning streak. Throughout the year, the Spurs have put together a number of short winning streak of four or five games (six of those streaks in total), and they have only lost three games in a row once all year. This shows that San Antonio is very consistent with the ability to win a number of games in a row. Not surprisingly, the Spurs are led by Tim Duncan, who is averaging 20 and 11 this year. Helping Duncan out on offense are Tony Parker with 19 PPG and Manu Ginobli with 17. The Spurs have been a fantastic three point shooting team this year, led by Breant Barry (45%), Parker (44%), Ginobli (40%), and Bruce Bowen (38%). They also have Robert Horry and Micharl Finley who don't have amazing numbers this year, but have been 3-point shooters throughout their careers. Another aspect of the Spurs to like is the fact that Bruce Bowen, while he has gotten slighty older and slower, is still one of the best defensive players in the league. While San Antonio will be the third best team entering the playoffs, it would come as absolutely no shock if they were to win the West.

2. Dallas Mavericks (48-9)
Dallas has the best record in the NBA, and their record is even more impressive when you consider the fact that they started out the season 0-4. That means that since the first four games of the season, Dallas has been 48-5, which is 9.6 wins per every loss. That stat basically means that the Mavericks have just been absolutely unbeatable this regular season. They have had winning streaks of 12 and 13 games, and are currently on another 13 game winning streak. Dallas is led by probably the leading MVP candidate, Dirk Nowitzki, who it putting up 25.4 PPG and 9.6 RPG. Josh Howard is having a career year, scoring 19.2 a game. Jerry Stackhouse is a great scorer off the bench as 6th man, either Jason Terry or Devin Harris can bring up the court and they are the starting backcourt, and Erick Dampier and DeSagana Diop are both inside presences that rotate at the center position. It will be very, very tough for any team in the league to beat the Mavs in a seven game series, but there's one team that I think can do it...

1. Phoenix Suns (44-14)
I think this is the year that the Suns get over the Western conference championship hump and win the conference. In my opinion, Steve Nash is having an even better season than he had the last two years, and his supporting cast is stepping it up also. It seems like Amare Stoudamire is finally coming back into his own after his knee surgery, and if he is 100% for the playoffs, he will be a force. Even without Amare being completely healthy this season, he is still leading the team in points, and he is putting up 20.8 and 9.9 a game. Nash and Amare run the pick and roll so beautifully and it is almost impossible to defend. In addition to Amare's almost 21 and 10 a night, Nash is putting up 19 PPG and 12 APG a night. Shawn Marion, although he is only 6-7, leads the team in rebounds with 10.2 a game. In addition to that rebounding, Marion is also scoring 18.4 PPG. The Suns top six players are all in double figures, with Leandro Barbosa scoring 17 a game, Raja Bell scoring 15 a game, and Boris Diaw scoring 10 a game. I think that the Suns not only have best trio of players in the league, but they also have the best top six players combination in the league. The one thing that could derail this team is the fact that all six players play over 32 minutes per game and they could be tired by the time the playoffs roll around. Barring that though, I think that this team will take down any team in a seven game series, even the Mavericks.

Western Conference playoff predictions:
Dallas Mavericks over Houston Rockets in 6
Phoenix Suns over San Antonio Spurs in 7

Phoenix Suns over Dallas Mavericks in 7