By Aaron J. Lopez, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)
Friday, April 18, 2008
1. Boston Celtics
Coach: Doc Rivers (playoff record 8-14).
Team MVP: Kevin Garnett. "The Big Ticket" brought attitude and leadership to
Boston and anchored the team on both ends of the floor.
指標球員：Kevin Garnett。KG為波士頓帶來態度與領導力，是塞爾提克攻守的靠山。
Unsung hero: Rajon Rondo. The second-year point guard, perhaps Boston's
biggest question mark heading into the season, proved himself capable of
steering the cruise ship.
無名英雄：Rajon Rondo。這位二年級生可能是波士頓開季前最大的問號，但證明了他能掌
控這支球隊。
Eye-popping stat of the season: Plus-42 - After winning 24 games last season,
the Celtics enjoyed the biggest one-year turnaround in NBA history.
值得注意的數據：本季戰績提昇42勝，本季的波士頓是歷史上最大的鹹魚翻身。
Title talk: Odds-on favorites to win it all. Showdowns loom with
battle-hardened Detroit and whichever team survives the slugfest in the West.
有關總冠軍：東區大概就是他們與底特律的戰鬥了，勝出的一隊很有希望能擊敗激烈的西
區。
2. Detroit Pistons
Coach: Flip Saunders (playoff record 37-44).
Team MVP: Richard Hamilton, the Reggie Miller of the 21st century. Hamilton
is tireless without the ball and the Pistons are 20-4 when he scores at least
20 points.
Unsung hero: Tayshaun Prince. One of the game's best two-way players also is
an ironman (412 consecutive games). More NBA titles (one) than All-Star
appearances.
無名英雄：Tayshaun Prince。最好的全能球員之一，也是個鐵人（連續出賽412場）。冠軍
數比全明星次數多。
Eye-popping stat of the season: 34-1 - Detroit's record when scoring at least
100 points.
值得注意的數據：得超過100分，34勝1敗。
Title talk: The Pistons will draw motivation from being overshadowed by the
Celtics. That should make for a coin flip of a conference final.
有關總冠軍：被塞爾提克搶去風采讓活塞更有動力，兩者很可能在準決賽碰面，勝負只在五
五之數。
3. Orlando Magic
Coach: Stan Van Gundy (playoff record 17-11).
Team MVP: Dwight Howard. Everything revolves around the big man, who led the
NBA with 69 double- doubles, including eight games with at least 20 points and
20 rebounds.
指標球員：Dwight Howard。球隊的一切都跟這個大個有關，本季69次雙十全聯盟第一，其
中有八場雙二十。
Unsung hero: Hedo Turkoglu. The favorite to win NBA's Most Improved Player
award leads the Magic in fourth-quarter scoring (6.1 points).
無名英雄：Hedo Turkoglu。最佳進步獎強力候選人，是隊中的第四節先生（6.1分）。
Eye-popping stat of the season: 5 - The minimum number of three-pointers made
by the Magic in every game this season. Orlando made 18 threes against Memphis
on Jan. 23.
值得注意的數據：本季魔術單場三分最少也有5顆，一月23對曼菲斯投進18粒三分。
Title talk: The Magic put together a nice season, but beating Detroit and
Boston in back-to-back rounds might be asking too much.
有關總冠軍：本季對於魔術來說是成功的一季，但是連續對付底特律及波士頓可能要求太
高了。
4. Cleveland Cavaliers
Coach: Mike Brown (playoff record 19-14).
Team MVP: LeBron James. It took James fewer than five seasons to become the
franchise's scoring leader. The Cavaliers are 0-7 this season when he is out of
the lineup.
指標球員：LeBron James。只花了五季就在得分榜榜上有名，當他沒有上場時，騎士本季0
勝7敗。
Unsung hero: Delonte West. Not the biggest name in Cleveland's trade-deadline
deal, but the fourth-year guard has settled into the starting lineup.
無名英雄：Delonte West。並不是公牛騎士交易中最顯眼的名字，但這位四年級後衛已經
固定在先發名單。
Eye-popping stat of the season: 1 - NBA scoring leader in franchise history.
That would be James, whose 30.0 average was 1.7 points better than Kobe Bryant.
Title talk: As James showed last spring, he single-handedly can lead the
Cavaliers to the Finals. The task will be tougher this year, but the Cavaliers
are a nice sleeper pick.
有關總冠軍：去年春天，James隻手將騎士帶入總決賽。今年這個任務難度更大，但騎士是
個可能的黑馬。
5. Washington Wizards
Coach: Eddie Jordan (playoff record 6-14).
Team MVP: Caron Butler. Though Antawn Jamison has better numbers, Butler is
more indispensable. The Wizards were 10-14 without him compared with 33-25 with
him.
Unsung hero: Roger Mason Jr. Increased his scoring average by more than six
points, giving the Wizards an option off the bench.
無名英雄：Roger Mason Jr.。他的得分上升到六分以上，提供巫師板凳上的另一個選擇。
Eye-popping stat of the season: 29 - Years since Washington previously put
together four consecutive plus-.500 seasons.
值得注意的數據：相隔29年之後，巫師連續四季勝率超過五成。
Title talk: Gilbert Arenas' return might not be the best thing for a team
that played well without its shoot- first point guard, but a first- round
victory is reasonable.
有關總冠軍：Gilbert Arenas的回歸對於球隊來說可能不是好事，但是第一輪過關應是合
理的。
6. Toronto Raptors
Coach: Sam Mitchell (playoff record 2-4).
Team MVP: Chris Bosh. Mr. Consistency averaged 22.3 points after seasons of
22.6 and 22.5. CB4 has a chance to raise his profile by winning a playoff
series.
Unsung hero: Jose Calderon. The point guard played like an All-Star after
starter T.J. Ford was injured in December and became the 11th player in the
past 20 seasons with a 5-to-1 assists-to-turnovers ratio.
Eye-popping stat of the season: 27 - Games in which the Raptors committed
fewer than than 10 turnovers. They are 16-11 in those games.
值得注意的數據：有27場比賽失誤少於10次，16勝11敗。
Title talk: Capable of winning a first-round matchup with Orlando but would
be a long shot in a potential second-round date with Detroit.
有關總冠軍：第一輪對上奧蘭多還是有獲勝的可能，但第二輪可能的對手底特律不是他們
能應付的。
7. Philadelphia 76ers
Coach: Maurice Cheeks (playoff record 3-7).
Team MVP: Andre Iguodala. Gradually has assumed a leadership role since the
"other" A.I. was traded to Denver last season. Scoring average (19.9) is a
career best.
指標球員：Andre Iguodala。在上季大A.I.被交易到丹佛後，他漸漸的成為球隊的領導人。
本季有生涯最佳的19.9分。
Unsung hero: Andre Miller. Sometimes looks as though he just rolled out of
bed, and probably could hand out 10 assists in his sleep.
無名英雄：Andre Miller。有時候看起來像是剛起床，但卻可能在睡夢中交出十助攻。
Eye-popping stat of the season: 8.8 - Miller's three-point field goal
percentage, bringing his career mark near the Mendoza Line (20.3).
值得注意的數據：Miller本季的三分命中率只有可憐的8.8％，讓他的生涯命中率只剩百分
之20.3。（Mendoza Line是棒球術語）
Title talk: The 76ers nearly pulled off a winning record after being 12 games
under .500 earlier in the season, but the turnaround magic ends in the first
round against Detroit.
有關總冠軍：在季初時勝場低於五成勝率12場，季末勝率卻差點到達五成。但反彈的力道
在第一輪碰到底特律時就將結束。
8. Atlanta Hawks
Coach: Mike Woodson (first playoff appearance).
Team MVP: Josh Smith. One of the league's most athletic players. Often dunks
at one end of the floor and immediately swats a shot at the other.
指標球員：Josh Smith。聯盟中體能最好的球員之一，常常在一邊剛灌完籃，就飛到另一邊
搧個鍋。
Unsung hero: Josh Childress. Swingman out of Stanford has the ability to play
multiple positions and boasts the coolest Afro since Dr. J ruled the ABA.
Eye-popping stat of the season: 37 - Victories that enabled the Hawks to
qualify for the playoffs. They would have finished 12th in the Western
Conference.
值得注意的數據：37勝就讓老鷹進入季後賽，這種成績在西區只能排第12。
Title talk: The Hawks failed to make much of a push after acquiring veteran
point guard Mike Bibby and will do well to avoid a first-round sweep.
