Updated April 14
The Cavaliers will have home-court advantage as far as they go in the NBA playoffs. They don't deserve it.
Sure, LeBron and Co. have dominated the Eastern Conference pretty much from the get-go, thus earning the right to have Games 1 and 2 -- and potentially 5 and 7 -- at home in all series leading up to the Finals.
But why should a team that was swept by the other conference's regular-season champ and didn't play nearly as difficult a schedule get an advantage should it match up with the Lakers in the Finals?
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| Out West, Kobe Bryant's Lakers tangle with eight other teams that have at least 45 wins on the season. (Getty Images) |
Eight of the 11 winningest teams in the league reside in the West, and this is despite the fact these heavyweights beat up on each other all season. For the Lakers to play nearly one-third of their games within this elite group and still come within a whisker of matching the Cavs' record is remarkable.
I'm not saying the Lakers should get home court should they face the Cavs in the Finals. The point is: Having regular-season record in an unbalanced schedule dictate such an advantage is worse than awarding it to the winner of the All-Star Game.
Alas, the Cavs have clinched the home-court edge, and thus must be considered at least a co-favorite with the Lakers to win the championship. Here are the odds I'd put on each team:
Lakers (6/5): Nothing will come easy in the West, but key injuries to Manu Ginobili and Tracy McGrady should make the Lakers' march a bit smoother.
Cavaliers (7/5): They should enjoy watching the Celtics and Magic beat up on each other in Round 2 while they coast into the East finals. That freshness could be the difference in a relatively even battle with Boston.
Celtics (9/5): Make no mistake about it: Only three teams have a chance to win it all. The Celtics have coasted this far. The question is: Can they flip the switch now that the time has come?
Field (10/1): That's right, you get all 13 other playoff teams and 10/1 odds. You want it? You'd have to be a sucker to take it. The Mavericks could surprise in the West (until they run into the Lakers) and Orlando is the only other team in the East with a shot (no way it beats both Boston and Cleveland, though). Remember this about the NBA playoffs: You don't often get surprises.
That's why getting the home-court advantage throughout the playoffs was such a big thing for the Cavs.
And why it's not fair.
I'm picking the Lakers to go all the way, so I'm moving them ahead of the Cavaliers in my final regular-season CBSSports.com Power Rankings.
| Power Rankings | ||||||||||
| Current | Team | Previous | ||||||||
 | 1 | Cavaliers · Trends | 8 | |||||||
| Magic-Heat-Jazz sweep screams, We don't need help. ... Shaq has sore shoulder. Good news: Ilgauskas is still around. | ||||||||||
 | 2 | Hawks · Trends | 9 | |||||||
| Last team to fleece Warriors (Jamal Crawford) is reaping benefits. ... Rare win at Boston comes 19 months too late. | ||||||||||
 | 3 | Nuggets · Trends | 6 | |||||||
| Twenty-six-point blowout of Lakers warrants distinction of No. 1 in West. ... Who says East is least? Denver 4-0 vs. West, just 3-3 vs. East. | ||||||||||
 | 4 | Magic · Trends | 4 | |||||||
| Rashard Lewis suspension ends, regular starting five debuts in win over Bobcats. ... First Shaq-Howard showdown goes to ex-Magic star. | ||||||||||
 | 5 | Lakers · Trends | 2 | |||||||
| Wrath of schedule-maker: Home game, then morning arrival in Denver. Result: Nuggets, 105-79. ... Five home losses all last season, already two this year. | ||||||||||
 | 6 | Suns · Trends | 3 | |||||||
| Team tops 100 first 11 games; first in NBA to do so in 15 years. ... No more double vision: Amare Stoudemire is shooting 53.6 percent. | ||||||||||
 | 7 | Celtics · Trends | 1 | |||||||
| Frustration of back-to-back losses: Three nailed with technicals in loss at Indiana. ... First scare of season: Paul Pierce bruises knee vs. Hawks, is step slow vs. Pacers. | ||||||||||
 | 8 | Heat · Trends | 5 | |||||||
| Dwyane Wade's last-second 3 avoids ultimate embarrassment -- would-be home loss to winless Nets. ... No coincidence: Mario Chalmers injures shoulder, team has worst game (vs. Nets). | ||||||||||
 | 9 | Trail Blazers · Trends | 12 | |||||||
| Club winning with defense; only one of first 12 opponents reaches triple figures. ... Swept by Hawks -- first time in 13 years. | ||||||||||
 | 10 | Mavericks · Trends | 10 | |||||||
| Dirk Nowitzki 26-for-27 from line, earns weekly Western honor. ... Mark Cuban needles Milwaukee business leaders: Thanks for giving us German star (in 1998 trade for Tractor Traylor). | ||||||||||
 | 11 | Rockets · Trends | 11 | |||||||
| Trevor Ariza receives championship ring, plays worst game in win at L.A. ... Club has alternated wins, losses in November. | ||||||||||
 | 12 | Raptors · Trends | 14 | |||||||
| Team just 4-4 this month, but no bad losses (Magic, Mavericks, Spurs, Suns). ... Chris Bosh has eight 20-10s already this season, including past five games. | ||||||||||
 | 13 | Bulls · Trends | 7 | |||||||
| Fans getting money's worth: All five wins by seven or fewer. ... Not everything has happy ending: Brad Miller's apparent game winner vs. Denver ruled too late on TV replay. | ||||||||||
 | 14 | Spurs · Trends | 13 | |||||||
| Signs of old age: Tim Duncan and Tony Parker return; now it's Manu Ginobili (hamstring) who's hurting. ... Early-season most improved: George Hill has gone from nobody to somebody. | ||||||||||
 | 15 | Bucks · Trends | 19 | |||||||
| Amazing part of Brandon Jennings' 55-point explosion vs. Warriors: Scoreless first quarter. ... Rookies with 55 in a game: Baylor, Wilt, Barry, Monroe, Jennings. | ||||||||||
 | 16 | Pacers · Trends | 24 | |||||||
| Four-game win streak comes without Troy Murphy and Mike Dunleavy... Dahntay Jones: 11 double-figure efforts last season; six in first seven games this year. | ||||||||||
 | 17 | Thunder · Trends | 15 | |||||||
| Kevin Durant starts week with 37, ends with 40 -- and club loses both games. ... Team effort on boards: Six different leaders first 10 games. | ||||||||||
 | 18 | Jazz · Trends | 17 | |||||||
| Tough schedule: Trips to Denver, Dallas, Boston, Cleveland (all losses) in first 2 1/2 weeks. ... Another impressive rookie point guard: Eric Maynor fills in for Deron Williams, has 11 assists vs. 76ers. | ||||||||||
 | 19 | Pistons · Trends | 22 | |||||||
| Isiah's record survives: He went 1 for 17 in a game. Ben Gordon was 1 for 16 vs. Mavericks. ... Uh-oh: Lakers, Trail Blazers, Jazz, Suns on Western swing this week. | ||||||||||
 | 20 | Bobcats · Trends | 21 | |||||||
| Improvement noted: 82.4 average before trade, 91 in Stephen Jackson's debut at Orlando. ... Last player acquired from Golden State (Jason Richardson) didn't meet expectations. | ||||||||||
 | 21 | Kings · Trends | 25 | |||||||
| Four-game win streak (Nov. 7-13) creepy; team won four of five Nov. 5-12 last year en route to 17-65 debacle. ... Key to surprising surge: Jason Thompson cracks top 10 in rebounding (10.1). | ||||||||||
 | 22 | 76ers · Trends | 16 | |||||||
| Club considering benching underachieving Elton Brand ... Crippling blow: Much improved Marreese Speights out two months with torn knee ligament. | ||||||||||
 | 23 | Hornets · Trends | 18 | |||||||
| How to lose job: Coach a club that loses by 14.3 points per game. ... New man Jeff Bower's first two losses are by 15.5 average. | ||||||||||
 | 24 | Wizards · Trends | 23 | |||||||
| League's biggest disappointment? Nick Young is shooting 21.1 percent after averaging 10.9 per game last season. ... Desperate team brings in Earl Boykins -- he debuts with 20 vs. Pistons. | ||||||||||
 | 25 | Clippers · Trends | 20 | |||||||
| Like old times: Baron Davis' late 3 avenges earlier loss to Thunder. ... Rematches galore: Club faces Thunder, Timberwolves, Grizzlies, Hornets twice each in odd 22-day stretch. | ||||||||||
 | 26 | Warriors · Trends | 27 | |||||||
| Bottom line of Stephen Jackson deal: Club saves $20 million. ... Raja Bell is a welcome addition; poor backcourt defenders watch Brandon Jennings go for 55 in loss at Milwaukee. | ||||||||||
 | 27 | Grizzlies · Trends | 28 | |||||||
| It's officially over: Allen Iverson's Grizzlies career lasts 67 minutes. ... Battle of backstrokers: Coach labels victory over Timberwolves "big win." | ||||||||||
 | 28 | Knicks · Trends | 26 | |||||||
| Jordan Hill outscores fan-favorite Stephen Curry 10-0 in first duel of lottery picks. ... Have to wonder: Is front-row seat at next draft lottery good or bad thing in effort to woo LeBron James? | ||||||||||
 | 29 | Timberwolves · Trends | 29 | |||||||
| Club's current form worse than Nets, but T-Wolves have a two-point win over 30th-ranked club. ... Team loses by 23, 41, 23 with Al Jefferson, then by just 12, 10 without him. | ||||||||||
 | 30 | Nets · Trends | 30 | |||||||
| First win of season: Chris Douglas-Roberts (16 points vs. Heat) triumphs over swine flu. ... Team leader (Rafer Alston) has three assists in loss at Miami. | ||||||||||
