against the front

Chapter 118 The end of the regular season

On April 2009, 4, American time, the 15-08 NBA regular season entered the final day of duels, and today will be a record-breaking 09 games. All 15 teams in the league will play Fight against each other today, so as to draw a successful conclusion to the regular season of this season.

However, before today, all 8 teams in the Eastern Conference to participate in the playoffs have all been settled. The Cavaliers with 65 wins and 16 losses have already secured the first record in the regular season in advance, and after the Cavaliers, it is At the beginning of the regular season, the Celtics played 27 wins and 2 losses. This season, the Celtics are a bit of a high-level drive. In the 30 games at the beginning of the regular season, Celtic lost only 3 games. The Celtics, in the following 51 games, lost as many as 17 games, and the direct cause of the Celtics' downturn was Kevin Garnett's absence due to injury. After Nate was reimbursed due to injury, the Celtics were in chaos for a while. Not only did they fail to win 70+ games in the media's expectations, but they fell all the way to the number one throne in the league.

After the Cavaliers and Celtics, the Orlando Magic ranked third in the Eastern Conference with a record of 58 wins and 23 losses, replacing the Pistons who were in infighting and rebuilding, and became one of the top three in the Eastern Conference. After his performance got better and better, the Magic also began to reap the dividends of building a team around Howard. In the past three seasons, the Magic has made a step forward every year, with 40 wins last season, 51 wins last season, and 58 wins this season. A small team quickly became the top power in the league, and the success of the Magic has once again verified the changes that an excellent center can bring to a team.

After the Magic, the remaining teams in the Eastern Conference that entered the playoffs, the Eagles, Heat, 76ers, Bulls, and Pistons, did not have a good record. Even if these teams were in the Western Conference, they would have consecutive seasons. Can't make it to the playoffs. It has been confirmed that they will miss the playoffs. They can only be ranked tenth in the West. The record is the same as that of the Eagles who are ranked fourth in the East.

And when there is a difference in wins between each other, and there are 3 wins between the ninth Pacers and the Pistons in the Eastern Conference, the final round of the matchup will not only not affect the playoffs in the Eastern Conference The number of places, even the rankings that have been determined, will not have any impact, so in the final round of the game, all Eastern teams that have entered the playoffs can rest assured and bold to prepare for the playoffs in advance up.

But in the West, it is more troublesome now, because apart from the Lakers, who are currently ranked first in the West, and the Dallas Mavericks, who have no desires and desires, the Nuggets are now ranked second in the West, and behind them. The wins between the Spurs, Trail Blazers, and Rockets are very close. Winning or losing a game is enough to make a huge change in the ranking between the second in the West and the fifth in the West. A place in the playoffs can only be finally determined through the final round of duels.

Currently ranked seventh in the Western Conference is the New Orleans Hornets with 49 wins and 32 losses, followed by the Sacramento Kings with the same record. After two games, they ranked behind the Hornets, and the Jazz ranked ninth in the West behind the Kings with 48 wins and 33 losses.

In the final round, the Kings will play at home against the Hornets. The winner of this game will enter the playoffs as seventh in the Western Conference, while the Jazz will play away against the Lakers. According to the existing NBA ranking rules, as long as the Kings Defeated the Hornets, and the Jazz won the Lakers away, then the Jazz will squeeze out the Hornets and take the last bus in the playoffs.

Compared with being ranked seventh in the West now, but it depends on the faces of others, the King is in a much better situation now. Although the King is only ranked eighth in the West now, because the Lakers in the same area as the King have already determined the West. The top spot, and the record between the King and the Jazz is two wins and two losses, so even if the King unfortunately lost to the Hornets in the last game, the King can enter the playoffs with the eighth ranking in the West .

However, even if they barely enter the playoffs in the eighth position in the Western Conference, the Kings will face the Lakers in the first round. There is a 99.99% possibility that the Kings will be in the first round, and they may even be swept out, so the last round In this game, the Kings will also try their best to win, because only by winning the game against the Hornets can the Kings avoid the Lakers in the first round of the playoffs.

At around 4:15 p.m. on April 11th, when the whistle sounded for the end of the game and the Kings at home defeated the Hornets as a guest 97-91, the entire Arco Arena erupted instantly, and Kings fans filled the sky. Among the flying ribbons and flowers, the slogan of victory and the name of the king were chanted to celebrate their return to the playoffs after three seasons.

As for the Hornets who lost the game, at the moment the game ended, they all had expressions of grief and helplessness, but when the results of the game between the Jazz and the Lakers came, the expressions on their faces changed instantly. , From helplessness to surprise, from grief to excitement, because the Jazz lost to the Lakers in the away game, and the Hornets broke into the playoffs as the eighth in the Western Conference after losing.

The King's victory over the Hornets at home is equivalent to giving the Jazz a chance to enter the playoffs. However, the Jazz did not seize this opportunity and let him slip away easily. That's all.

After the Kings and Hornets caught up with the last train of the playoffs, all eight teams in the Western Conference that entered the playoffs were released. The Lakers finally ranked first in the Western Conference with a record of 64 wins and 18 losses. Ranked second in the entire league, behind the Lakers is the Nuggets with 54 wins and 28 losses. At the beginning of the season, the Nuggets sent Allen Iverson, one of the backcourt double guns, to the Pistons in exchange for Finals MVP Chauncey Billups, now it seems that the deal for the Nuggets is definitely worth it. Allen Iverson, who was sent to the Pistons, not only suffered a serious decline in state, suffered from injuries, but also repeatedly exploded. The news of disagreement with the coach and teammates caused the Pistons' record to plummet, while the Nuggets, who got Chauncey Billups, jumped from eighth in the Western Conference last season to second in the Western Conference.

After the Nuggets are the Spurs and the Trail Blazers, who have the same record as the Nuggets. Although they have the same record, because of their inferior record against the Nuggets and the limitations of the league's current ranking rules, the Spurs and the Trail Blazers have the same record. It can only rank third and fourth in the West.

After the Trail Blazers, the Rockets ranked fifth in the West, and the Mavericks ranked sixth. Because the King defeated the Hornets in the last round, they ranked seventh in the West, avoiding the top spot as they wished Lakers.

After all the games in the regular season are over, all teams participating in the playoffs will have a rare two-day holiday. After the short holiday, the curtain of the playoffs will officially begin. The Kings The opponent in the first round of the playoffs is the Denver Nuggets, who are second in the Western Conference in the regular season.

(End of this chapter)