25. Detroit Pistons (25): The Pistons are going to need a major overhaul this summer, and it needs to start with Dumars and Keuster getting the boot. I understand they don’t have a great deal of talent and skill to work with, but at the same time – Dumars is the one who has consistently been making the wrong moves since Nov. 2008, and Keuster has nothing going for him (he’s a bad coach and his players hate him).
24. New Jersey Nets (23): Just when it started to look like the Nets were going to go on a mini end of season run to possibly take a shot at the eighth seed, their newest superstar, Deron Williams, goes down with an injury. Those chances are gone, but with an early summer for the Nets, it’ll be interesting to see what moves they make in attempting to persuade Williams to sign an extension.
23. Charlotte Bobcats (21): This is what disgusts me about the Eastern Conference. Charlotte is 13 games below .500 and they still have a very realistic shot at the playoffs (they are only 1.5 games out of the eighth seed). But even if they were to make it, it’s not like it would matter, they’d be four and out quicker than you can say, “Eduardo Najera.”
22. Los Angeles Clippers (22): It’s been seven games since Blake Griffin recorded double-digits in the rebounding column; I’m surprised that EMTs haven’t been ordered to the Clippers’ practice facility in Playa Vista, Calif. to make sure he’s still alive.
21. Milwaukee Bucks (24): The Bucks might be the lone exception to the rule that “defense wins championships.” Currently, they allow the third fewest points of any NBA team, yet they sit outside of the playoffs and I think that Charlie Sheen has a better chance of becoming an elementary school teacher than the Bucks do at winning a title this year.
Next: 20-16