For those who don’t watch hoops as closely as I do, my week in review can be a good way for you to stay updated on important developments in both pro and college hoops. I’ll try to post it every Tuesday.
NBA:
There are a few hot teams worthy of note:
One is Sacramento. I don’t know whether a 5-4 team counts as “hot,” but I didn’t expect the Kings to have 5 wins until January. Props to them.
And, at 9-2, Phoenix is quickly solidifying itself as a force. Remember, they didn’t make the playoffs last year. So, the teams who had designs on a higher seed (Blazers, Mavericks), and the borderline-playoff teams (Thunder, Clippers, Jazz), better knock Phoenix back to earth quickly if they want to reach their goals.
And there are a few cold teams worthy of note:
The Nets, Knicks, and T-Wolves are quickly starting to look like they are in a class of their own as the worst three teams in the league. The Wizards and Bobcats have been disappointing. The Hornets are falling apart fast.
Some players have been on fire:
Chris Bosh is fifth in the league in points, and second in rebounds. I must admit that I wouldn’t have predicted either of those things before I looked at the league leaders.
Brandon Jennings is tearing up the league. He dropped 55 points on the Warriors, which, for a rookie, is astounding — it’s like dropping 30 points on a real team. This will certainly fire up the debate about whether high school phenoms are best served by playing in college before going pro.
There have been a bunch of developments to note:
The Hornets fired Byron Scott. Denver pounded the Lakers. THE ANSWER got released. Here’s some free advice for other NBA GM’s: SIGN HIM. Chris Paul hurt his ankle. So did Josh Howard.
The Power Rankings from ESPN and Sportsline contain a few surprises:
ESPN
Sportsline
NCAA:
To be honest, I won’t be able to follow the entire college hoops universe closely enough for those of you who love college hoops to use this as a primary source of your college hoops information. I got bills to pay.
I’ll certainly pay attention to the Top 10, and also to Syracuse and Penn (my two favorite teams). This will be a good place to come for links to articles about the big picture, but if you really want to read up about the bubble teams or mid-majors, this probably ain’t the place. I just don’t have the time to watch enough games to cover the landscape.
All-American predictions (from people who know more than I do):
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/powerranking?season=2010&week=1
http://www.cbssports.com/collegebasketball/polls
And, in closing, a few highlights from the week:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_bk9-gQH994
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VVJ8gT1k7-M
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rU_gws8-fTQ
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XO-8Alobeyw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0bsjLz36T6A
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3MqmMxvQrxM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QaJnhDxcm00
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yPFQwF4PUFA