NBA Playoff Preview: West Still the Best...But Is That a Good Thing?

The NBA’s Western Conference is arguably as good as it has ever been.  Ten teams are currently above .500, all fighting for the top eight spots.  The Los Angeles Lakers are back at the top of the West with a 47-21 record, but are only two games ahead of the sixth-place San Antonio Spurs in the standings.  If the season ended today, the Greg Oden-less Trailblazers and Denver Nuggets would be on the outside looking in.  Denver (40-28), would be the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference and Portland (35-33) would be tied for sixth.  Even the Sacramento Kings (31-36) have a better record than the current eighth seed in the East, New Jersey (29-39).  Not to mention, if these three teams—Denver, Portland, and Sacramento—played in the East, their records would undoubtedly be better than they currently are. That being said, I haven’t been this excited for the NBA postseason since I started watching basketball.  Each first-round matchup is ... (link)