03-07-2008, 03:52 AM
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#1 (permalink)
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Moderator
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Wisconsin
Posts: 5,459
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bucks still hopeful they can get into playoffs
Quote:
Sure, there are those in the Milwaukee Bucks' locker room who still sneak a peak at the National Basketball Association's playoff standings just for the fun of it.
Others, though, admit that they don't.
When you're 15 games under .500, there's probably not much of a reason to do so.
Except that the Bucks do reside in the Eastern Conference, and in the East this season, anything is possible.
Unlike the Western Conference, where teams with winning records (such as the Portland Trail Blazers, who will play the Bucks at the Bradley Center tonight) do not rank among the top eight, at least a couple teams will make the Eastern playoffs with records far below the .500 mark.
"That's the difference between the East and the West," said Bucks point guard Royal Ivey, who will start tonight if Mo Williams is unable to play because of an abdominal strain. "In the West, they're fighting it out. Fifty wins may not get it (in the West). But here, you might be ten games under and make the playoffs. Hopefully, we get it done. We've got 21 games left and we have to finish strong."
Said Williams: "What's Houston got, a 16-game winning streak? And what are they, in the (fifth) spot? That's funny. It's very lopsided (between the East and the West), let's put it like that."
Portland, with a 31-30 record, is seven games out of the playoffs in the West. Denver has a 36-24 record and also would not make the Western playoffs if they were to begin today.
In the East, however, Washington, Philadelphia, and New Jersey would all make the playoffs despite sub-.500 records.
The Bucks, with a 23-38 record, are - believe it or not - just 3½ games out of the playoffs with 21 games to play.
Bucks coach Larry Krystkowiak, who broke into the league as a player in 1986, can't recall ever seeing such a discrepancy between the conferences.
"You'd have to go back through history to see something like that . . . where you've got two different story lines," he said.
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More here: http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=725562
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bucks still hopeful they can get into playoffs
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