Last time on The New Millennium, the Atlanta Hawks stocked up, trading for Paul Pierce and Anton Kozlov. New stars entered the league in the likes of Stephen Curry and James Harden, and their efforts combined with many others have helped make the NBA a guard's league.
Western Conference
1. Los Angeles Lakers(59-23)
2. Sacramento Kings(53-29)
3. Dallas Mavericks(49-33)
4. New Orleans Pelicans(48-34)
5. Los Angeles Clippers(45-37)
6. Portland Trail Blazers(44-38)
7. Minnesota Timberwolves(42-40)
8. Denver Nuggets(41-41)
9. Golden State Warriors(39-43)
10. Phoenix Suns(36-46)
11. Vancouver Grizzlies(34-48)
12. Houston Rockets(31-51)
13. San Antonio Spurs(31-51)
14. Seattle SuperSonics(30-52)
15. Utah Jazz(22-60)
Elite guards dominate the top five, with Kobe and the Lakers, Chris Paul in Sacramento, Tony Parker in New Orleans and Dwyane Wade with the Clippers. But Curry has the chance to be the best of them all, posting incredible numbers in his rookie year(27.3 ppg, 9.5 apg) to help Dallas achieve an incredibly quick turnaround. The Warriors and Carmelo Anthony were extremely disappointed to miss out on the playoffs, as Denver held them off thanks to new starting point guard Jameer Nelson(14 ppg, 7.1 apg). San Antonio saw huge regression from Tim Duncan, and without an elite guard, plummeted down the standings after being one win away from a title just last year. And the Jazz completely wasted a great season from young J.R. Smith(19.5 ppg) to finish in last, ironically thanks to a lack of talented big men.
Eastern Conference
1. Chicago Bulls(56-26)
2. Charlotte Hornets(51-31)
3. Philadelphia 76ers(48-34)
4. Indiana Pacers(47-35)
5. New Jersey Nets(46-36)
6. Washington Wizards(46-36)
7. Atlanta Hawks(45-37)
8. Detroit Pistons(43-39)
9. Milwaukee Bucks(39-43)
10. Boston Celtics(39-43)
11. Orlando Magic(38-44)
12. Cleveland Cavaliers(37-45)
13. Miami Heat(31-51)
14. Toronto Raptors(30-52)
15. New York Knicks(30-52)
The Bulls are once again the best in the East, thanks to four guards(Jamal Crawford, Edwin Russell, Lenny Park and Damien Baxter) averaging double-digit scoring. The Hornets got a great season out of shooting guard Calbert Walton(20 ppg), as did Philly with the combination of new starter Willis Hammonds(16.6 ppg) and sixth man Lou Williams(18.8 ppg). The Wizards improved majorly thanks to rookie shooting guard Dane Grimes(14 ppg), and the Hawks struggled for chemistry all year, benching Anton Kozlov only to see him win Sixth Man of the Year, because why not. Detroit got a big second season out of Russell Westbrook(15.8 ppg, 7.1 apg) to finally reach the playoffs, while the Cavaliers improved despite trading away Paul Pierce. The Raptors had a stunning slide down the standings mostly thanks to the regression of Vince Carter, but at least Drew Gooden(9.1 ppg, 10 rpg) and Brandan Wright(9 ppg, 7.8 rpg) were solid.
Awards
MVP: Chris Paul, Sacramento Kings
Rookie of the Year: Stephen Curry, Dallas Mavericks
Sixth Man: Anton Kozlov, Atlanta Hawks
Defensive Player: LeBron James, Atlanta Hawks
Most Improved: Willis Hammonds, Philadelphia 76ers
Coach of the Year: Phil Jackson, Los Angeles Lakers
Chris Paul wins his second MVP, LeBron is Defensive Player for the sixth year in a row, Phil Jackson is the best coach for the fourth time, and the Lakers and Bulls are the best teams in their conference for the third year running. Deja vu is everywhere in The New Millennium, but the playoffs can often be very random. Next time on The New Millennium, find out who wins the 2010 NBA Championship!
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