In this early season, we always look at the surprise teams, both good and bad.  It's always nice to see a team become great out of nowhere.  Going from the lottery to contention in a one-year period is fun but rare.  Like the 2007-08 Celtics, the exceptions to the rule are usually memorable (e.g., 2001-02 Nets, 2004-05 Suns).  Even intermediate change is rare.  We see that this year that some other younger teams in Atlanta and New Orleans are also poking their heads into the playoff picture.  … [Read more...] about Playoff Turnover

The first full month is in the books. I’m going to look at what a teams’ conference rank on 11/30 has historically meant and what it means for teams in 2007-08. Here’s a look at each seed at the end of play on November 30th and how well they’ve continued to play. This table goes back to the 1983-84 season, when the current 16-team playoff format began. The column on the left is the team rank on 11/30. The row across the top indicates the final standings. The numbers in the chart show … [Read more...] about What November Means