Tyson, The Thunder And The 'Tunnel'

    What a grand quote given to me today by a long-time NBA exec on the subject of some teams’ financial woes: “Forget seeing the light at the end of the tunnel,’’ says my man. “About half the teams can’t even see the tunnel.’’

    Funny. … unless you are the Suns and the Hornets and the Rockets – three teams that a few months ago stood in the Dallas Mavericks’ path to a top-tier playoff seed in the West. … and now, not so much.

    Then comes Houston with 32 wins, good for No. 5. And New Orleans with 30 wins, good for No. 6. Dallas checks in with 31 wins in the No. 7 slot. Utah has 30 wins and is No. 8. Phoenix is out of the mix for the moment in ninth.

    Now, they are bunched. Phoenix’ 28 wins puts it on the heels of even the fourth-place Blazers.

    But … let’s take one more look. … a look behind the standings. A look at that “tunnel”:

    *No. 5 Houston is unhappy with Ron Artest and is preparing for the wounded Tracy McGrady to again spent the spring in shut-down.

    *No. 6 New Orleans is championship-caliber scary, and they showed themselves capable of dominating Dallas a year ago in the playoffs. But as ESPN’s Marc Stein is reporting, they are salary-dumping Tyson Chandler. They are giving up their All-Star-level center – and maybe giving up their season -- because they are cash-poor.

  *No. 9 Phoenix is arguing that it might just keep Amare and it might just keep Shaq and it might just “stand pat.’’ But even if the Suns do that – and I still do not believe that is their most desired goal – they remain a disjointed team with a cronyism-plagued management group with “these troublesome financial times'’ hovering overhead like a dark cloud.

    My “light-at-the-end-of-the-tunnel’’ source has little respect for Sarver, Kerr and Gentry. So maybe he’s biased. But it is not difficult to envision the Suns setting. It is not difficult to envision the Rockets losing their burst. It is not difficult envisioning the Hornets losing their sting.

   And suddenly, the Mavs are no longer in a nine-team race in the West.

   They are in a five-team race in the West.

    And – if they build on their 31-21 record and don’t mind benefitting from the troubles of others – they increase their chances of maneuvering farther up that playoff tunnel.   

127pm feb 17 2009