This year is a great NBA season, Mark, but the best?
Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban recently asked in his blog:
Is this the best NBA season ever? I haven't done the research to find out when the last time 7 games
separated one conference's top 10 teams, all with a winning record and
playing good basketball this late in the season. It hasn't happened in
the 8 years I have owned the Mavs. This year is shaping up to be
a crazy one. A 5 or 6 game losing streak and any of the 4 teams who
have had the best record in the west over the past month could find
themselves out of the playoffs.
http://www.blogmaverick.com/2008/01/28/is-this-the-best-nba-season-ever/
It's silly to try to apply absolutes like "best" or "worst" to any season, since the attributes that define the quality of a season differ from fan to fan. Some fans just want to see a high caliber of play all around, and for those, this is indeed a great NBA season. Other fans are a bit more selfish, and define the greatness of a season based on how their team is performing. While Hornets fans would surely agree that this is the BEST SEASON EVER, Miami Heat fans might disagree. And for teams with a storied history, it's hard to slap the label "GREAT" on a season when you compare it with past glory. Sure, the Celtics are playing great and have an exciting roster, but to define this season as "the best ever" would diminish the unstoppable 1986 Celtics with Bird, McHale, Parish, Walton, Ainge, and others coming together to play lights out ball. Point being, it's easier for the owner of the Dallas Mavericks to pontificate about "best ever," but for a Laker GM or Celtics coach or Knicks owner or Bulls VP to do the same would be heresy.
Hoop purists who have no proclivity for one team over another must be enjoying this season as the level of play is exception in many spots around the League. There have been and will always be some level of disparity in any league with so many teams, but the number of top tier teams is at an all time high. As Mark noted, there are 10 Western Conference teams with near-identical records. And the Eastern Conference has Boston and Cleveland and Detroit playing at a high level.
So, Mark, this is shaping up to be a top-notch season, but I think it's a bit premature to label it the best ever. But we appreciate your enthusiasm.