The NBA is Back!!!

After years of poor play and off-the-court problems the NBA has  recaptured an audience who grew tired of low-scoring games and players  who were running into trouble with the law.
While baseball is being  dragged through the mud over the steroid problem and the NFL is hoping  that Spygate will go away, the NBA is running and gunning with a  number of exciting story lines.
The games are more captivating than  they have been in years. It was in the 90s, where the half court game  took over, and it was rare to see teams reach 100 points. That style of  boring basketball has lasted well into this decade.
In the  2000-2001 season only four teams averaged 100 or more points per game,  with the Sacramento Kings leading the league with 101.7 points per game.   Half of the league averaged less than 95 points per game, and three  teams averaged less than 90 points per game.
This season teams are  lighting up the scoreboard, which excites the fans.  Eleven teams are  averaging over 100 points per game.  Five of those teams are averaging  over 106 points per game, with the Golden State Warriors leading the  league with 110.8 points per game.  Only four teams average less than 95  points, with the Minnesota Timberwolves averaging a league worst 93.6  points per game.
Like the 80s, the Lakers and Celtics are on top,  and it would cap off a great season for the league if the two teams met  in the NBA Finals.  It would revive one of the best rivalries in sports  and would be the highest rated NBA Finals in years.  The San Antonio  Spurs and Detroit Pistons are great teams, but nobody wants to watch  their slow-paced, defensive style of basketball in the Finals.
The  last time both the Lakers and Celtics were on top of their conferences  in the same season was in 1987, which was the last time they met in the  Finals.
The two teams are not a lock.  The Celtics have to worry  about the Pistons in the East, and the Lakers have to worry about pretty  much everybody in the West.  The Warriors, who hold the eighth seed at  the moment, are only  four games outside of first place. The Phoenix  Suns and Dallas Mavericks, who have been two of the top teams in the  West over the past few years, are in the sixth and seventh spots.
Both  the Suns and Mavs made blockbuster trades just before the trade  deadline. And, both trades have blown up in their faces, as each team  continues to fall in the Western standings.
When the Suns traded for  Shaquille ONeal they were leading the conference, and Shaq was supposed  to be the player to finally put them over the top.  But through the  first 10 games with Shaq, the Suns are 4-6 and their defense has been  horrible, giving up an average of 110.6 points per game.
The Mavs  have also dropped in the standings after their big trade.  Since they  traded for Jason Kidd they are 5-5 and on the verge of falling into the  eighth and final spot in the Western Conference playoff race.
The  Spurs and Lakers have been fighting over the top spot over the past  couple weeks, but now the Houston Rockets have come right up on their  heels.  The Rockets were on a 12-game winning streak when Yao Ming was  injured.  It appeared that it was a wrap on their season, but they have  run their winning streak up to 18 games without Ming.
The Rockets  Tracy McGrady has been playing at an MVP level since Mings  season-ending injury.  He scored 31 points in a victory over the Mavs,  and then 41 in a victory over the New Orleans Hornets.
But McGrady  will not be a huge factor in the MVP race.  The Lakers Kobe Bryant and  the Cleveland Cavaliers LaBron James are in a battle for that award.
Bryant  appeared to take the lead over James with his 52-point performance on  national television in an overtime win over the Mavs just over a week  ago.  Bryant followed up that performance by scoring 17 of his 34 points  against the Kings with less than six minutes to play in the game to  rally the Lakers to victory.
James did not sit around and allow  Bryant to go on a scoring rampage by himself.  So far this month James  has had games of 37, 50, 39, and 38 points.
James is leading the  league in scoring with 30.3 points per game, and he leads the league in  fourth-quarter scoring.  But the MVP usually does not go to the player  with the highest points per game average.  Bryant led the league in  scoring the last two seasons, with averages of 35.4 in 06 and 31.6 in  07, but he did not receive the MVP.
This season Bryants numbers  are slightly down, but he is getting his teammates more involved.   Bryant is averaging 28.3 points per game, but he is shooting the ball  less, allowing his teammates more opportunities.  James is putting his  team on his back and doing the bulk of the work like Bryant has done in  the past, but the Lakers have been a much better team with Bryant  sharing the load.
Bryant has led the Lakers to the top of the Western  conference, which is a lot tougher than the Eastern conference.  The  Lakers are fighting for the No. 1 seed, while the Cavs are barely  holding onto the No. 4 seed in a weaker conference.
The deciding  factor may be on the defensive end of the court, where Bryant more than  likely will be named to his eighth All-Defensive team.  James has not  been named to the team in his career.
Bryant has had the label of  the best player in the league for a few years now.  At some point he has  to be given the MVP.
The last five weeks of the season are shaping  up to be great.  The Celtics and Pistons look like they are a lock for  the Eastern Conference Finals, but the West is still wide open.  And  Bryant and James will keep fans on the edge of their seats as they  battle for the leagues MVP Award.