Coming into this season there were obvious picks for the next Western Conference champion like the defending champion San Antonio Spurs who are always a contender, the Dallas Mavericks who will be looking to avenge the early loss in the first round last season and the Phoenix Suns that added veteran Grant Hill to their lineup in the off season. Although all of these teams are still on pace to be best in the West, there are a few unexpected surprises in the West this season.
There are three teams in the Western Conference that continue to amaze and improve as the season progresses: Los Angeles Lakers, New Orleans Hornets and Portland Trailblazers
The Portland Trailblazers came into the season on a sour note with their number one pick Greg Oden having season-ending surgery before he could even play his first game in a Blazer uniform. That kind of took the wind out of their sails coming out of the gate, but not for long as their young superstar Brandon Roy put his team on his back and rallied the troops to a very impressive start with the promise of a playoff spot come June.
The New Orleans Hornets have to be the biggest surprise out of these three as rookie of the year Chris Paul has become a real leader and on of the top point guards in the NBA just behind Steve Nash and Jason Kidd. If the playoffs started today, the New Orleans Hornets would be the number one seed in the West, pretty amazing considering they were no where near making the post season last year.
Then we come to the never ending saga of the Los Angeles Lakers who have been the NBA's equivalent of a drama filled soap opera all off season long with questions and trade rumors about the NBA's best player in Kobe Bryant. Even though the Lakers' future looked very dismal and eminent for disaster when the season began, somehow, someway Kobe Bryant and company were able to pull it all together and become one of the league's best teams with most of the credit going to up and coming center Andrew Bynum who is looking more and more like the future of the Lakers and the next great center in the NBA.
Who will come out on top in the Western Conference? Who knows, but one thing is for sure, as the season moves closer to the playoffs, basketball fans are in for a treat as it is looking more competitive than ever in the West!
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Source: www.ezinearticles.com
