Last time on The New Millennium, the Atlanta Hawks once again loaded up, re-signing Paul Pierce and trading for Dwight Howard. Plus, the Warriors traded for Ray Allen, the Kings for Jason Terry, and the Lakers signed a new point guard, Dorell Moncrief. How would these changes affect the 2010-2011 regular season?
(Henry's Note: I turned injuries on this year but kept the frequency low, just to try and spice things up. Not too many players actually got injured, but Greg Oden took this opportunity to tear his ACL, because of course he did)
Western Conference
1. Los Angeles Lakers(60-22)
2. Dallas Mavericks(60-22)
3. Portland Trail Blazers(50-32)
4. Los Angeles Clippers(48-34)
5 Minnesota Timberwolves(46-36)
6. Houston Rockets(46-36)
7. Vancouver Grizzlies(43-39)
8. Denver Nuggets(42-40)
9. New Orleans Pelicans(42-40)
10. Sacramento Kings(41-41)
11. Golden State Warriors(36-46)
12. Seattle SuperSonics(35-47)
13. Utah Jazz(32-50)
14. Phoenix Suns(30-52)
15. San Antonio Spurs(27-55)
After only one team, the Bulls in 2004-2005, managed to win 60+ games, this year, two teams did it in the same conference. Unfortunately for the Mavericks and MVP Stephen Curry, they just missed out to Kobe and the Lakers. Portland greatly improved thanks to new addition Jimmie Owens(18 ppg, 9.3 rpg), and Houston got a great second season out of Blake Griffin(20 ppg, 7 rpg). Denver just hung on on the final day of the season, clinching the final spot once again, taking out the Pelicans on tiebreaker. The Kings were disappointed to miss out despite a positive point differential, but Carmelo Anthony was steaming mad as the Warriors faltered down the stretch, demanding a trade. Seattle missed Oden, and the Spurs were just terrible in general, putting them in prime position, ironically, to draft Kawhi Leonard in the offseason.
Eastern Conference
1. Atlanta Hawks(54-28)
2. New Jersey Nets(48-34)
3. Charlotte Hornets(42-40)
4. Boston Celtics(41-41)
5. Orlando Magic(41-41)
6. Chicago Bulls(41-41)
7. Detroit Pistons(39-43)
8. Washington Wizards(39-43)
9. Milwaukee Bucks(38-44)
10. Philadelphia 76ers(38-44)
11. Miami Heat(38-44)
12. New York Knicks(37-45)
13. Toronto Raptors(34-48)
14. Cleveland Cavaliers(32-50)
15. Indiana Pacers(30-52)
If only teams like New Orleans and Sacramento could be in the East, where outside of Atlanta and New Jersey, there were a ton of subpar teams with bad records. The Bulls left the top spot wide open, but did sign Rudy Gay(19.3 ppg) before the season started. The loss of Gay left Russell Westbrook(18.1 ppg, 7.4 apg) to put on a show in Detroit to power his team into the playoffs, while Milwaukee just missed out despite a good year from James Harden(19.2 ppg, 6.9 apg). The Raptors struggled again as Vince Carter(13 ppg) continued to decline, and Cleveland got a good year from Jack Jamison(15.6 ppg, 8.2 rpg) but not much from anyone else. And shockingly, the Pacers finished in last thanks to a ton of close losses, a stunning result for a team that has been so good in this series.
Awards
MVP: Stephen Curry, Dallas Mavericks
Rookie of the Year: DeMarcus Cousins, Miami Heat
Sixth Man: DeMar DeRozan, Seattle SuperSonics
Defensive Player: LeBron James, Atlanta Hawks
Most Improved: DeMar DeRozan, Seattle SuperSonics
Coach of the Year: Rick Carlisle, Dallas Mavericks
Coach Rick Carlisle has won one NBA Championship in 2006 with the Indiana Pacers, and now hopes to lead the Mavericks to win the ring they won this year in real life. Will the likes of Kobe or LeBron have anything to say about it? If the Lakers want another title, they'll have to get through a first round rematch with defending champions the Denver Nuggets. Join me next time on The New Millennium, as we found out who wins the 2011 NBA Championship!
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