"We won 70 games! The final game of the season! The Lakers reached 70 wins!"
"The first season of this run-and-gun dynasty was no weaker than the first year of the OK Dynasty."
"We can fully expect that even if the Lakers don't win the championship this year, they'll still be the strongest contenders for the title over the next five years!"
There was no game at Staples today.
Yet a huge number of fans still showed up at the arena.
They discussed the league standings, the outlook for the first round of the playoffs, and waited for this year's regular-season awards to be announced.
This season's Western Conference standings:
First: Los Angeles Lakers, 70–12
Second: Sacramento Kings, 67–15
Third: Minnesota Timberwolves, 65–17
Fourth: Vancouver Grizzlies, 61–21
Fifth: San Antonio Spurs, 57–25
Sixth: Dallas Mavericks, 51–31
Seventh: Houston Rockets, 46–36
Eighth: Utah Jazz, 42–40
This year, the Western Conference had four elite teams with 60 wins.
In the latter half of the schedule, the Kings remained steady.
The Grizzlies, meanwhile, were overtaken by the Timberwolves in the second half. The Garnett-Ray Allen-Marbury trio had grown increasingly cohesive.
Garnett had at one point ranked fifth on the MVP ladder, behind only Kobe, Nash, O'Neal, and Webber. His averages of 24.6 points, 15.6 rebounds, 5.6 assists, 1.8 steals, 3.5 blocks, and 2.8 turnovers per game this season put him ahead of Duncan!
The Spurs' performance this season, however, seemed somewhat out of step with the times.
Every team emphasized mobility, shooting, and transition play.
Still relying on twin towers—and twin towers made up of Duncan and the ageless Dikembe Mutombo—made their regular season a real struggle.
But the Spurs were still favored by many. People believed last year's champions would rediscover their form in the playoffs.
The Mavericks' record remained neither here