Is the Northwest...

[Pappyman]

The best division in the Western Conference? Portland is much improved as well as Denver. The only thing that is holding this division back is that the Timberwolves and Thunder are incredibly young teams that are just not very good right now. Give them a couple more seasons and high draft picks and they will be decent teams. It looks very likely that the Northwest will have three playoff teams this season.

[Narcist]

No the southwest is more talented and any divison that has a double aa team like the oklahoma barn stormers or whatever their called cant be the toughest divison.

[EGame]

Portland fan chiming in here. I agree with Narcist that the Southwest is the toughest, but the Northwest (minuse the bottom dwellers) looks really good right now. In years past it was just a two-team division between Utah and Denver. Even though it might not be what you guys want to see (another potential threat to take the division) it provides entertainment and for a good season and until Denver or Portland prove otherwise, it is your division.

[fivas14]

It's the only divison with 3 double digit win teams. The Jazz should run away with the divison when we're fully healthy.

[freakazoid]

any divison that has a double aa team like the oklahoma barn stormers or whatever their called cant be the toughest divison.

You my heart.

[J Smitty]

It's the only division with 3 double digit win teams. The Jazz should run away with the division when we're fully healthy.

I really doubt anyone is running away with the division this year. The thing about the Jazz is that, although their record isn't too bad so far, they're also in the easiest part of their schedule(which has actually been the easiest schedule any team has played in the entire league so far). If and when they do get healthy, the competition is going to get tougher. I can't see them running away with it by any means.

And actually, when you really look at it....since the division was created in 03-04, the winning team hasn't taken it by more than 6 games once. Seattle won it by 3 games the first year, Denver by 3 in 05, and then Utah by 6 games and 4 games the last two years. The other Western divisions during that time had been won by as many as 19 games. The NW race is always usually a pretty close one, and it should be again this year.


As far as it being the best division in the West....I'd have to say at this very moment, it is. But I also expect the Mavs and Spurs to start playing much better than they have been. In a couple years it will easily be the toughest division in the West - and maybe even the whole NBA - when teams like Phoenix, Dallas, and San Antonio really start to age. Which is funny when you think about it, as everyone was complaining about how **** it was just a couple years ago and even changed the playoff format because of it.

[carrottop12]

Jazz will win it again by a few games. I have no doubt once again the Jazz will have an incredible strong second half of the season. It would be nice if they just had a good December to go along with it.

[@ndrew]

I think Utah is such kind of team where there is no real difference how good is the opponent - it's really about themselves. We won against Lakers w/o Okur and Boozer. We won against Boston at their house without AK. It really depends on us, so this schedule point makes no sense for me.

[Soul Patch]

I agree with Andrew, we beat ourselves more than teams beat us. I think our division got tougher this season and in a year or two could be the toughest division in the western conference or NBA. I'm really stoked for our first game against Denver with Billups, should be a hell of a game.

[PDXKnight]

As good as the NW division is becoming, it's hard to compare the NW with the southwest. We're arguably the second best division in the NBA, but the division with the Mavs, Spurs, Hornets, and Rockets who all have a legitimate chance to make the playoffs deserves the honor.

[hoops4life]

I thought that the Blazers would be good and I knew that Billups would help Denver tremendously but I didn't think that either of them would be this good. I know that we have had a ton of injuries but this could be a scary season for us.

[Ming Kong!]

It's the only division with 3 double digit win teams. The Jazz should run away with the division when we're fully healthy.

I really doubt anyone is running away with the division this year. The thing about the Jazz is that, although their record isn't too bad so far, they're also in the easiest part of their schedule(which has actually been the easiest schedule any team has played in the entire league so far). If and when they do get healthy, the competition is going to get tougher. I can't see them running away with it by any means.

And actually, when you really look at it....since the division was created in 03-04, the winning team hasn't taken it by more than 6 games once. Seattle won it by 3 games the first year, Denver by 3 in 05, and then Utah by 6 games and 4 games the last two years. The other Western divisions during that time had been won by as many as 19 games. The NW race is always usually a pretty close one, and it should be again this year.


As far as it being the best division in the West....I'd have to say at this very moment, it is. But I also expect the Mavs and Spurs to start playing much better than they have been. In a couple years it will easily be the toughest division in the West - and maybe even the whole NBA - when teams like Phoenix, Dallas, and San Antonio really start to age. Which is funny when you think about it, as everyone was complaining about how **** it was just a couple years ago and even changed the playoff format because of it.

Yes, but to the Jazz it hasn't been easy considering they are missing 2 All-Star level players each game + a few role players. The Jazz may have had the easiest schedule, but they have been hit the hardest with injuries, even worse than the Spurs.

Missed game:
Williams - 13 (and maybe about 75% right now)
Boozer - 7 (and still Day to Day)
Okur - 5
Knight - 5
Korver - 4 (and has played most of his games with a hurt shooting hand, which is all he can really do)
Kirilenko - 3 (and still DTD)
Harpring - 12
Collins - 17
Fesenko - Missed a handful with visa issues at the start of the season, with Okur out it hurt us too

About 70 games total missed games due to injury, and we have 5 guys currently injured and expected to miss tonight's game, and Williams is going to probably be mediocre playing 2nd of a back to back.

[outerspacefella]

On a positive note the Jazz still manage to stay competitive for the most games, and their record doesn't suck. Moreover, now we know that almost any player on the roster can contribute any given night (may be with the exception of Fesenko whose game continue to be a mystery...)

[J Smitty]

It's the only division with 3 double digit win teams. The Jazz should run away with the division when we're fully healthy.

I really doubt anyone is running away with the division this year. The thing about the Jazz is that, although their record isn't too bad so far, they're also in the easiest part of their schedule(which has actually been the easiest schedule any team has played in the entire league so far). If and when they do get healthy, the competition is going to get tougher. I can't see them running away with it by any means.

And actually, when you really look at it....since the division was created in 03-04, the winning team hasn't taken it by more than 6 games once. Seattle won it by 3 games the first year, Denver by 3 in 05, and then Utah by 6 games and 4 games the last two years. The other Western divisions during that time had been won by as many as 19 games. The NW race is always usually a pretty close one, and it should be again this year.


As far as it being the best division in the West....I'd have to say at this very moment, it is. But I also expect the Mavs and Spurs to start playing much better than they have been. In a couple years it will easily be the toughest division in the West - and maybe even the whole NBA - when teams like Phoenix, Dallas, and San Antonio really start to age. Which is funny when you think about it, as everyone was complaining about how **** it was just a couple years ago and even changed the playoff format because of it.

Yes, but to the Jazz it hasn't been easy considering they are missing 2 All-Star level players each game + a few role players. The Jazz may have had the easiest schedule, but they have been hit the hardest with injuries, even worse than the Spurs.

Missed game:
Williams - 13 (and maybe about 75% right now)
Boozer - 7 (and still Day to Day)
Okur - 5
Knight - 5
Korver - 4 (and has played most of his games with a hurt shooting hand, which is all he can really do)
Kirilenko - 3 (and still DTD)
Harpring - 12
Collins - 17
Fesenko - Missed a handful with visa issues at the start of the season, with Okur out it hurt us too

About 70 games total missed games due to injury, and we have 5 guys currently injured and expected to miss tonight's game, and Williams is going to probably be mediocre playing 2nd of a back to back.

I realize that, but my point about the schedule is completely separate. If the Jazz had been completely healthy thus far, they'd probably have one of the best records in the league right now, because of who they've played. If this early part of the schedule would have been tougher, their record probably wouldn't be as good as it is now. The thing that sucks for them is that they're losing to some teams right now that, before the season, would have been chalked up as easy wins(home games against Chicago, NJ, and Miami to name a few)....whether it's because of injuries or otherwise, they're still losses. The schedules balance out in the end, but the main thing I'm saying is that you don't want to lose too much ground, especially while you're playing easier teams and the others are playing more difficult ones, because over time it's going to flip...and it'll be harder to make up that ground.

And personally, I don't have any sympathy about the Jazz's injury troubles. My Nuggets have had those problems in years past, but nobody cares or remembers that come April. In a perfect world, injuries wouldn't happen and everything would be decided on the court, fair and square...but that's just not how it works. I hope both Deron and Boozer can get back to full strength soon, because I'm looking forward to one of the better division races in quite awhile.