Author: Nick Parsons - Friday, December 21, 2007

December 21 - In my last article I reviewed the NBA's Eastern Conference; in this article I'm going to look at the head honchos in the West and some interesting against the spread trends.

Orlando, Detroit and Boston are still the top dogs in the East, and there are three standouts in the West as well, but that is where the similarities end between these conferences.

The Phoenix Suns (18-8), San Antonito Spurs (18-7) and the Dallas Mavericks (18-9) are once again the cream of the crop in the West; however, there are a bunch of teams log jammed right behind them. Unlike the Eastern Conference, with the top three franchises head and shoulders above the rest of the other squads, the West is much more competitive.

Right behind the Western leaders are the Denver Nuggets (15-10), the surprising Portland Trailblazers (14-12), the LA Lakers (15-10), Golden State Warriors (15-11), and the New Orleans Hornets (16-10).

To say the West is open wider than John Madden's mouth on Thanksgiving would be an understatement.

Let's take a closer look at the Suns, Spurs and Mavericks.

Phoenix is the highest scoring team in the league, averaging 109 ppg, 108.6 at home and 109.3 on the road. However, they rank 27th in the league in average score against, allowing teams a whopping 104.3 per contest. Despite their incredible overall record, and amazing points per game, the Suns are just 11-14-1 ATS overall (4-6 ATS at home and 7-8-1 ATS on the road).

San Antonio averages 99.7 ppg, good for 12th overall, but is ranked number three overall on the defensive end, allowing just 93.1 points per contest. Anyone wagering on the Spurs to start the season will have shown a meager profit; San Antonio is 14-10-1 ATS overall (a commanding 10-4 ATS at home and a sub par 4-6-1 ATS on the road).

Dallas is another well-balanced team, number nine in the league, averaging 102 ppg, and 14th in the league on defense, teams mustering just 98.5 points per contest. The Mavs are 11-15-1 ATS overall (6-7-1 ATS at home, and 5-8 ATS on the road).

So which team is the worst in the West? With the Big Ticket dominating in Boston, it's no surprise that the Minnesota Timberpups are now the worst team in the entire league with a record of 3-21! They are 11-13 ATS overall, 3-9 ATS at home, but an awesome 8-4 ATS on the road (if you recall in my last article when reviewing the Celtics' 2006 season, they were 13-27-1 ATS at home, but 28-12-1 ATS on the road. This seems to be a trend that Minnesota is following, and one that we should all keep our eyes on!).

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- NBA Betting Analysis By Nick Parsons
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