The theme of today’s Power Rankings is springing forward. And, to a lesser degree, falling back.
The clock on the wall said 5:15 this morning when the coffee started brewing, but that was an illusion. The actual time was 6:15, meaning sunrise will be coming later, sunset will be doing the same thing … and the NBA playoffs are that much closer.
Oh, and the Lakers are going to be in them. This much we can say with quite a degree of certainty. As I have been saying repeatedly in these rankings for the past few weeks, do not bet against Kobe Bryant when he guarantees something. That fella still has a lot left in the tank, which is reflected below as he is our biggest mover in terms of springing forward.
Joining him in that northward move is Dwyane Wade, who has been overlooked too much by too many people as the Heat have strung together their 17-game winning streak. I had a long talk with Erik Spoelstra last Sunday about Wade’s dropoff in 3-point attempts (he has taken only 60 this season and 56 last season after attempting 206, 243 and 278 the prior three seasons), and the Miami coach explained that the wisening of one’s shot selection was a sign of maturity that comes with growing up mentally, which Wade has done.
Wade is 31 years old, a number which matches the 3-point shooting percentage during his career-best year from behind the arc – 2008-09, when he shot .317 and averaged a career high 30.2 points per game. Wade becomes a 50 percent shooter when he gets within 20 feet of the basket, and his discipline in his shot selection of one of the reasons why he is one of only two NBA guards making more shots than he misses.
The other is Tony Parker, the subject of last week’s rankings, who is falling back. He was a legitimate MVP contender before going down for a month with an ankle injury, and his chances of winning this award have fallen back with him. His team is now in a virtual tie with Oklahoma City for first place in the Western Conference, and as the saying goes … you don’t know how much you will miss something until it is gone.
TO THOSE OF YOU IN OR NEAR TORONTO, GET YOUR RAPTORS TICKETS HERE
Parker will be back for the playoffs, and his team is still my pick to win the NBA title, but his chances of winning this award – and finishing in the top 2 – are somewhere between zero and zilch.
The only thing that might keep LeBron James from failing to win is an epic collapse, and it sure doesn’t seem like that is going to happen unless the Heat start channeling the 2012-13 Kentucky Wildcats instead of the 1971-72 Los Angeles Lakers.
On to the ranks …