The end of the 2014 calendar year marks the one-third completion of the NBA season, and it seems at this point as though there are more question marks than answers compared to the preseason. The Cleveland Cavaliers aren’t nearly as dominant as they were expected to be with LeBron James, Kevin Love, and Kyrie Irving. The Oklahoma City Thunder are facing an uphill climb just to get in to a playoff position. And few would have projected the two teams jockeying for top spot in the Western Conference right now.
How High Will The Thunder Climb In The West?
Injuries to Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook held the Thunder back to begin the season and they have had a difficult time climbing the standings even with both stars in the lineup. The rest of the Western Conference is just that deep and, even though they are only two games back of the eighth and final playoff spot, they will have a tough time climbing higher than one of the lower seeds. Oklahoma City has the talent to make the postseason if they can stay relatively healthy the rest of the way but the fact that they won’t climb in to the top four will mean they’ll have to be road warriors in the playoffs.
Will The Pelicans Clinch A Playoff Spot In The West?
New Orleans is two games back of the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference – one game up on the Thunder. Anthony Davis is playing at an MVP level, averaging 24.4 points per game, 10.5 rebounds, 3.0 blocks 1.6 steals and 1.6 assists. With Tyreke Evans, Jrue Holiday and Ryan Anderson performing like a respectable supporting cast, there might actually be enough talent around The Brow for this to be a playoff team. As impressive as they’ve been, the Pelicans will have to play even better to catch either the Clippers, Spurs or Suns for one of the bottom three playoff seeds – or even to hold off a healthy Oklahoma City.
Will The Cavaliers Be Able To Turn Things Around In The East?
James hasn’t played at the level he did in past years, the big three haven’t gelled and an injury to Anderson Varejao has made a difficult situation that much worse. Cleveland simply doesn’t have the type of defensive players to protect the rim and rebound, and as a result have relied far too heavily on their scoring. There have been reports that the Cavaliers could pursue Kosta Koufos, Timofey Mozgov, or Robert Sacre in an effort to shore up their interior defense with Varejao done for the year, but when you’re mentioning names like that, you’re really grasping for straws. This team does not look like a Championship contender right now.
Which Team Will Earn The Top Seed In The East?
With Cleveland struggling with consistency, the Toronto Raptors, Washington Wizards, Chicago Bulls, and Atlanta Hawks are all in the conversation as teams with the potential to earn the top seed in the Eastern Conference and home court advantage throughout. Toronto currently has a one-game lead atop the conference and it will be interesting to see if they can hold on or if another team – including possibly the Cavaliers – can win the top seed.
Can Stephen Curry Continue To Play At His MVP Pace?
Curry has averaged 23.1 points per game along with 7.6 assists, 2.1 steals, and 5.1 rebounds with the league’s best RPM WAR. Only Michael Jordan, Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, Tim Hardaway, and Michael Adams have been able to post those averages for the course of a full year. The fact that his Golden State Warriors occupy top spot in the Western Conference will work in his favor when it comes to the voting, as MVP winners are almost exclusively chosen from a top-two seed. Whether or not Curry is able to continue to play at this incredible pace will be something to keep an eye on as Golden State aims for the top spot in the West.
