Hoops Rumors Polls

Back on March 6th, it appeared to be a four-team race for the final three playoff spots in the Western Conference, with the Warriors, Rockets, Jazz, and Lakers jockeying for position. The Warriors and Rockets have since cemented their place in the standings, though neither team has officially clinched a postseason berth yet. And while the Mavericks made some noise in recent weeks, it appears their run will fall short, leaving the Jazz and Lakers battling for the eighth and final spot.

In the poll linked above, nearly 90% of you suggested that it would be the Lakers or Jazz, rather than the Warriors or Rockets, that missed the postseason. And despite the fact that Utah was 2.5 games up on L.A. in the standings at the time, the Jazz were the club that over 50% of voters believed would be on the outside looking in.

With less than two weeks left in the regular season, the Lakers (39-36) have overtaken the Jazz (39-37) in the standings, but Utah still has a decent chance to sneak into the postseason. Of Utah's six remaining games, only three are against playoff teams, while five of the Lakers' last seven games are against Western Conference playoff clubs. The Jazz also hold the tiebreaker in the event that they finish with the same record as the Lakers.

The specifics on how each team's schedule breaks down for the rest of the season: The Jazz will host the Thunder and play in Golden State and Memphis, but have a pair of winnable games against the Timberwolves, and also host the Hornets. The Lakers will host the Hornets as well, though their other four home games (Grizzlies, Warriors, Spurs, Rockets) should be more challenging. They'll also hit the road to play in Portland, and face the Clippers in what is technically a Clips home game.

Neither of those schedules is a cakewalk, so it's worth mentioning that the Mavericks (36-38) still play the Hornets twice, and have games against the Kings, Blazers, and Suns left on the slate as well. The Mavs' loss in Los Angeles earlier this week put a serious dent in their chances though, and didn't help them for tiebreaker purposes either, so they're a real long shot in my view.

Of course, it's impossible to say at this point how injuries or teams resting players will affect the outcome of the next two weeks of games, so picking a clear favorite for that eighth seed isn't easy. What do you think? Which team ends up earning a spot in the 2013 NBA playoffs?

The Suns, at 23-48 and in last place in the Western Conference, have little to play for this season, but that doesn't mean there isn't plenty at stake in the next few weeks for Phoenix. The Suns entered the night in a jumble of nine teams within five games of each other at the bottom of the standings, as our tentative draft order shows. A rare win could compromise the team's chance at landing the No. 1 overall pick in the draft lottery, which currently stands at 11.9%. A win against the Jazz tonight would be twice as damaging.

Thanks to the Steve Nash sign-and-trade this past summer, the Suns will receive the Lakers' first-round pick this year if L.A. fails to make the playoffs. If the Lakers manage to sneak into the postseason, that pick goes to the Cavs, and Phoenix would instead receive Miami's pick, which will almost certainly be 30th overall. The Jazz sit one game behind the Lakers for the final playoff spot in the West, and they catch a break tonight. Suns starting point guard Goran Dragic isn't playing against Utah, and the team says the move is to allow Dragic to rest while rookies Kendall Marshall and Diante Garrett see more playing time, according to Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic. Dragic, the team's leading scorer, is healthy and says he would play if he were allowed. Skeptics may wonder whether the Suns' true intentions have more to do with the draft than they're letting on.

Also tonight, the Magic gave up a 19-point lead after one quarter and lost to the Bobcats, bringing Orlando to within a half game of Charlotte for the league's worst record. If the Magic eclipse the Bobcats for that mark, they'll improve their chances at the No. 1 pick by 5.1%. 

The draft lottery was instituted in 1985 in part to remove the incentive for teams to intentionally lose games to improve their draft stock, but nearly three decades later, the strategy of tanking appears to be alive and well. Proposals abound on how to fix the problem, from giving each team in the lottery an equal chance at the top pick to instituting a playoff for the No. 1 overall selection. We'll surely hear plenty such ideas in the next few weeks, but the central question is simply whether or not the NBA should take measures to encourage teams at the bottom of the standings to stay competitive toward the end of the season. Let us know your thoughts by voting, and if you have an idea for a system of awarding draft positions that would encourage teams to try to win, post it in the comments.

March Madness is underway and some of the top programs in the tourney are anchored by "one-and-done" stars.  Top high school prospects heading to college for just one year before making the leap to the pros is nothing new, but it's more prevalent than ever since the NBA enacted new eligibility rules in the 2005 collective bargaining agreement.  You can no longer jump from high school to the pros, as we all did in our childhood daydreams ("Take a hike, Rick Pitino.  I'm gettin' paid").  Instead, a player must be 19-years-old at the time of the draft and be one year removed from his high school graduation.

The league reasons that players need to be viewed against quality competition before being properly evaluated for the quantum leap to the NBA.  It's a fair point, regardless of which side of the argument you find yourself on.  You can rattle off the success stories, from Kevin Garnett to Kobe Bryant to Tracy McGrady to LeBron James, but not everyone can make a seamless transition to the league without getting a healthy dose of reality at the college level.  Some also argue that the rule keeps the talent level of the NCAA higher, but that doesn't necessarily concern the league and it's not always a sure fire way to keep the college ranks filled with superstar talent (see: the 2013 draft class).

Some would argue that the draft limit needlessly keeps players who are NBA-ready out of the league for an extra year, only for them to make them go through the charade of upholding the first half of the student-athlete title.  It also seems unfair to some that an 18-year-old would be denied the ability to earn a living in the highest ranks of professional basketball.

Meanwhile, there are some who are past David Stern's place on the spectrum who would even like to see the NBA bar players from entering the draft until they are 20 or 21.  It would be a dramatic turn from what we're accustomed but there's no denying that those draft crops would have players who are better prepared to contribute to teams in year one.

In the real world, the future of the NBA draft is a matter that will be handled by the owners, Commissioner Stern, his heir apparent Adam Silver, and the player's union.  But we want to know where you stand on it.  

Based on talent alone, it's hard to argue that Delonte West wouldn't have a place on several playoff-bound teams.  When you factor in all of the off-the-court issues plaguing the guard, the matter gets a little bit more complicated.  West has nearly a lockout season's worth of postseason games (58) to his credit over the course of his career, but it's easy to understand why some teams might not even c0nsider picking him up.  In tonight's column, Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld wonders aloud if a playoff team will sign West.

West is still eligible for this year's playoffs, provided that he is called up by April 17 in order to play in the first round.  West has showed significant signs of rust in his first two games for the D-League's Texas Legends, but he'll be given the minutes necessary to show that he's back in playing shape.  If West can make some things happen in the D-League, a team could sign him to a 10-day contract and then give him a deal for the remainder of the season.

There are several teams keeping a watchful eye on West, including the Knicks, who would like to add another one-guard to the fold.  They'll have the spot to make the pickup too if they wind up cutting Kurt Thomas or Rasheed Wallace.  Whether they (or any of the other 15 playoff teams) want to introduce the troubled guard to the locker room is another question.  Do you see West in an NBA uniform a month from now?