The high-profile, star-studded teams -- you know who you are -- continue to garner much of the hype and the adoration in the Eastern Conference because that's just the way it is. Meanwhile, the Atlanta Hawks keep flying under the radar and winning games.
While the undersized Hawks certainly don't rank among the league's true powers, they have the potential to make things interesting in the East and are a team worth keeping an eye on.
The faces in the Hawks locker room are pretty much the same as they were last season when they knocked the Milwaukee Bucks out of the first round of the playoffs. The big change came on the bench, where former assistant coach Larry Drew moved over a couple seats and took over the head coaching reins from the departed Mike Woodson.
The Hawks are still searching for their identity under Drew.
"We're still trying to find ourselves in a sense of being a more consistent team regardless of who we play," said Drew. "We're just trying to find ourselves as far as who we are as a team, and regardless of who our opponent is we have to handle our business. We have to do what we're capable of doing."
One new wrinkle is Drew has started 7-foot Jason Collins at center against bigger teams -- as the Hawks did last week against Andrew Bogut and the Bucks -- which moves 6-10 Al Horford to power forward and 6-9 Marvin Williams to the bench.
Drew also is searching for a suitable role for backup guard Jeff Teague, has been trying to get forward Josh Smith to establish himself in the low post rather than jack up jumpers, and find some consistency as a team.
"We're doing some things differently," said Drew. "I don't think we're the same (as last season). Personnel-wise we're the same, but we're doing some things differently offensively, trying to be less predictable in what we're doing -- get away from as much of the isolation stuff that we've done in the past.
"We're trying to be more of a body-movement, ball-movement team and get more people involved. We're just trying some things and trying to utilize everybody and bring out what each guy does best and put them in a better position where they can be successful offensively."
The Hawks, who have won nine straight at home, opened a four-game trip Friday in Oklahoma City and this week will travel on to Los Angeles (Clippers), Sacramento and Utah. It's Atlanta's longest trip of the season.
As they headed out on the road, Drew stressed the need to set the pace of the game and have a strong mental approach to help navigate around the bumps that teams encounter on long trips.
"This is definitely a fine opportunity for us to kind of see where we're at," said Atlanta's Joe Johnson . "We've been struggling a bit on the road. This is a chance for us to get out there and find ourselves a little bit."
The Hawks, too, seem curious about just how good they can be.
Easy living
The Charlotte Bobcats won their first two games under new coach Paul Silas after he took over for Larry Brown.
It's the fourth team Silas has coached, but it's the first time he has opened with back-to-back victories. Silas has encouraged his players to play more of a free-and-easy style -- less regimented than under Brown -- if the situation calls for it.
"He wants us to make plays and use our brains," said Stephen Jackson. "We're not robots anymore."
Said D.J. Augustin, "It's freestyle. Just playing basketball, and we know how to do that."
Over the last 20 years, only three other coaches won their first two games after taking over a team that was at least 10 games below .500 -- Magic Johnson with the Lakers in 1994, Bill Cartwright with the Bulls in 2001 and Larry Krystkowiak with the Bucks in 2007.
Fit for a King
When Tyreke Evans heaved in a buzzer-beater from beyond midcourt to give Sacramento a 100-98 victory over Memphis, it marked the first time Sacramento had won a game in which it trailed in the final second since Dec. 19, 2009, when Evans beat the Bucks on a layup with nine-tenths of a second left.
A jumper by O.J. Mayo had given the Grizzlies the lead with 1.5 seconds left and, with no timeouts remaining, Kings coach Paul Westphal yelled for his players to take off down court, hoping to catch the Grizzlies celebrating. DeMarcus Cousins then found Evans with the inbound pass.
"It was like flag football in your neighborhood street," said Westphal. "Everybody go long."
Staying positive
This just in. Cleveland coach Byron Scott thinks his team, 8-24 entering play Saturday, can still make the playoffs. Actually, if you look at the cluster of losing teams that make up the bottom half of the Eastern standings, the final couple playoff spots are up for grabs.
"We still have (many) games left," said Scott. "In my mind, (the playoffs) are still attainable. I haven't given up on this season at all. I'm always optimistic and positive. I do (believe), especially in the East."
Breaking down
Shaquille O'Neal put on quite a show at Boston's shoot-around in Indianapolis after he was informed he had been fined $35,000 for ripping the referees after the Celtics' loss to Orlando on Christmas.
Pretending to be shocked by the news, O'Neal crawled across the floor in "anguish," grabbed teammate Kevin Garnett around the waist and dragged him to the floor. He then crawled over to Paul Pierce and buried his head in Pierce's lap, crying mock tears. All with TV cameras running, of course.
O'Neal's official reaction? "Whoop-do-freaking-doo," he said.
Lots of whistles
Dwight Howard's technical-foul situation is getting serious, as the Orlando center was whistled for his 12th technical in a victory over New York. Players are suspended for a game when they reach 16 technical fouls.
Howard has suggested that the Magic sign the retired Rasheed "The ball don't lie" Wallace not only to provide him with a much-needed backup but to divert some of the referees' attention away from him. New teammate Gilbert Arenas has tried to assist Howard by pointing out his "dumb fouls" on videotape and then unofficially fining him $200 for each.
"When you're a guy who's gotten technicals, it's like anything, you've got a reputation," said Magic coach Stan Van Gundy . "So they make the call and they're looking. He was upset at himself for missing a shot and yelled, 'Damn.' That's all it is. 'Damn' is a technical. ('BS') is OK based on what I saw tonight. ('BS') is fine, but 'damn' is no good. I'm trying to get the rules straight here."
What a mess
In that game against Orlando, New York's Amar'e Stoudemire picked up his 10th technical after yelling "get that mess outta here" after blocking a layup attempt by Arenas. Stoudemire said he would file a protest with the league.
"I wasn't showing up the ref and I wasn't talking directly to Gilbert on that play," said Stoudemire. "I said it twice during the game and for some reason I got a tech on that one."
The bright side
Orlando has been on a roll since reshaping its roster through recent trades and no one is happier than Arenas, who spent some tumultuous years in Washington.
"I really needed it," Arenas said of the trade. "I get to be myself again. I don't have to tiptoe around the locker room and tiptoe throughout the city. I can just go on and be myself and be around guys and people who want me here."
Fast breaks
Before being hired by the Bobcats, Silas spent some of his time in semi-retirement as an assistant coach of 12-year-olds in a Christian recreation league in the Charlotte area.
Oklahoma City is on pace to break the NBA's single-season free-throw shooting record of 83.2 percent, set by Boston in 1989-'90.
Howard is on pace to finish the regular season with 29.8 technical fouls.
Bulls guard Derrick Rose on making the all-star team: "Just get me on the team. Let me be the water boy or the towel boy. Let me run the clock or something, I'll be good."
The Spurs are 10-2 in games in which Tim Duncan scores in single digits.
DOWN THE LANE
THE WEEK IN THE NBA
The Spurs hit the road for a three-game game trip to New York, Boston and Indiana and they had better get used to living out of a suitcase, because Thursday's game at Dallas opened a stretch in which San Antonio will play 18 of 25 games on the road. The Spurs closed 2010 with a 28-4 record, the best in the league and the best start in franchise history. Can you feel their pain? "It's a little frustrating," said Tim Duncan. "We wish we had a couple more games' cushion, but it is what it is. We're happy with our start and we want to extend that a little more." The 76ers put the lid on their eight-game trip Monday at New Orleans and then will play Washington at home Wednesday in their first home game since Dec. 17. The Bulls will play three straight games against teams with losing records (Toronto, New Jersey, Philadelphia) before hosting Boston on Saturday. The Rockets and Trail Blazers meet twice -- on Sunday in Portland and Wednesday in Houston. Orlando is at Dallas on Saturday.
GAME OF THE WEEK
Amar'e Stoudemire will return to his old stomping grounds when the New York Knicks open a four-game trip in Phoenix on Friday.
BUCKS WEEK
The Bucks will close out their regular-season series with Miami by playing the Heat twice in four days -- on Tuesday in Miami and Friday at the Bradley Center. In between, the Bucks will take on the new-look Magic in Orlando on Wednesday. The Heat does not play between its two games with the Bucks. To cap off the week, the Bucks will be at New Jersey on Saturday to play its fourth game in five nights.
QUOTABLE
"Sometimes I think (the referees) have a quick trigger. I'm leading the league in techs and I'm the nicest guy in the NBA. So it's kind of bad." -- Orlando center Dwight Howard, on his technical-foul problem
PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Apparently not satisfied with the 40 points he scored Tuesday against New York, Dwyane Wade poured in 45 the next night in a victory at Houston as the Heat set an NBA record for consecutive road victories in a month (10). Wade scored 15 points in the final 10 minutes after Houston's Aaron Brooks committed a flagrant foul on a breakaway dunk attempt that sent Wade sprawling on the court with a split and bloodied lip. LeBron James could see Wade's offensive outburst coming after that. "I knew exactly what was going to happen," said James. "He went into attack mode. Back-to-back games with 40 points -- he's just an unbelievable talent." Said Wade, "I just got a little aggressive."
NUMBERS GAME
Miami held 16 straight opponents under 100 points before the Rockets scored 119, a season high for a Heat opponent.
The Lakers' recent three straight losses were by a total of 50 points. Their first seven losses were by a combined 36 points.
When John Wall came off the bench to hand out 12 assists against Indiana, he became the first Washington reserve to have that many assists since John Williams had a triple-double (11 points, 10 rebounds, 13 assists) on Jan. 6, 1989.
Wade joined Kobe Bryant (six times), Tracy McGrady (twice) and Shaquille O'Neal as the only active players to score 40 points on consecutive nights.
Jason Kidd's triple-double against San Antonio (12 points, 13 assists, 10 rebounds) was the 106th of his career.
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