| Wednesday, December 22
By Mike Monroe
Special to ESPN.com |
|
With Christmas nearly upon us and the NBA season already at the quarter
pole, it is time for the first assessment of the good and the bad around
the Western Conference.
|  | | Mercer, who may or may not be a Nugget for long, is on a winning team. |
Oh, yeah ... and the ugly, too.
In fact, let's start with the ugliest start of any Western team.
Not so fast, Grinch breath. We are not talking about the Grizzlies or
the Clippers. None of us really expected those teams to climb out of the
depths of the conference standings in which they have resided for so
many years.
No, the ugliest team in the West thus far has been the Houston Rockets.
Fact is, the Rockets were awful even before Hakeem Olajuwon and Charles
Barkley went down with injuries. And since those two superstars got
injured, the Rockets have done nothing but lose.
It is so bad in what once was called Clutch City that coach Rudy
Tomjanovich already has relegated himself to a non-playoff season,
focusing squarely on the future.
"We really have made a big change. It's just a tremendous opportunity
for our young guys. There's a lot of responsibility, a lot of leadership
situations they're going to have to deal with.
"Things like this happen. Sometimes you get an upset win early,
sometimes you don't. But then you get into acceptance of this is what we
have, this is what we have to work with. I've seen it a lot of times
where you develop a lot of chemistry that's successful. That's what I
hope happens."
Rudy T., one of the most competitive coaches on the planet, has done his
level best to convince those around him he relishes the chore of
rebuilding his team, almost from the ground up. He insists he is having
fun trying.
We suspect he will not think the task such fun, oh, around the All-Star
break, when the Rockets are about 20 games under .500.
Best start in the West?
Has to be the Denver Nuggets.
Go ahead: Try to convince me you thought the Nuggets would be 13-11
after a three-game home stand against the Kings, Spurs and Trail
Blazers.
On second thought, don't even try. Not even Dan Issel thought the
Nuggets would win all three of those games. Right now the Nuggets look
like the sixth- or seventh-best team in the West, on a fast track to the
playoffs as long as they can stay relatively healthy the rest of the
season.
Worst start in the West is a push. The Warriors were so awful through
the first month of the season that P.J. Carlesimo was one loss away from
dismissal. In fact, it's surprising he wasn't fired -- on the spot -- when
his team fell behind the Timberwolves by 20 in a Dec. 11 game before
staging an amazing rally for a 23-point win. Subsequently, the Warriors
have been more than competitive, and Carlesimo's job security has
stabilized. Nevertheless, the Warriors' first-quarter start has been
dreadful.
From what we hear, the Grizzlies all but quit on Bob Hill, which
explains why he isn't on their bench anymore. For that, they have to
share equal billing with the Warriors for worst start in the West
through the first quarter of the season.
Wandering the West
By now you've heard all the speculation about additions and deletions
to the next Dream Team, the 100 percent NBA team that will represent the
U.S. in the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia.
Trouble is, none of the speculation has come from inside the committee.
SuperSonics general manager Wally Walker is a member of the committee,
and he insists nothing at all has been discussed regarding the three
remaining spots on the team.
"We're going to have a meeting in January," Walker said last week.
"Nothing has been discussed yet, certainly none of this stuff I keep
hearing. This is all speculation from you (media) guys. Where are you
getting it? Absolutely nothing has been determined, and it won't be
until we meet. As far as I know, everything is still open for full
discussion."
Speaking of speculation, all the idle talk that Denver's Ron Mercer, a
free agent in July, already has determined this will be his one and only
season as a Nugget is just that: idle talk.
Recent reports that Mercer is on his way out of the Mile High City
misstated the case, according to Mercer, who told The Denver Post he
would like to remain in Denver if it makes business sense next summer.
Percy Miller, better known as Master P, head of the sports agency that
represents Mercer, went so far Monday as to say he believes the Nuggets
have the makings of a championship team he would like to see Mercer
remain a part of.
"That's on him," Miller said of the free agency decision. "But I
think it's a great team. I think they have a good chemistry. They have
all the pieces to be a championship team.
"They play hard and with a lot of emotion. He and Nick Van Exel play
well together."
Something to think about as All-Star voting heats up: Sacramento point
guard Jason Williams is so popular he is certain to make a run at being
the West's starter in the All-Star game, scheduled for Feb. 13, in
Oakland. But for all his flash and dash, Williams is hardly having an
All-Star season. In fact, I offer this as the most shocking statistic of
the season, to date:
In back-to-back games, Williams and fellow Kings backcourt starter
Nick Anderson were outscored, 111-12. Give Williams this much, though.
He had all 12 of those points. Anderson went for the bagel in both
games.
Mike Monroe, who covers the NBA for the Denver Post, writes a Western Conference column for ESPN.com. You can e-mail him at monroe128@go.com |  |
NBA West: Charles, the other side
