Plenty to Like After First Month of NBA Season

LeBron James loves his new teammates and Ron Artest is playing nice with his old ones.

Speaking of homecomings, it’ll be a while before either Phil Jackson or Larry Brown can start enjoying theirs.

The first month of the NBA season has offered plenty more for fans, like a duel between Kobe Bryant and Allen Iverson for the scoring lead, and a first-place team in Los Angeles -- just not the one anyone is used to seeing.

The duds may be a little more dapper, too. But one thing looks all too familiar: Everyone is still chasing the Spurs and Pistons.

Detroit brought in Flip Saunders to sit on its bench, the Spurs added Michael Finley and Nick Van Exel for scoring off theirs. So far the moves are paying off, and an NBA Finals rematch seems possible -- even if the defending champs aren’t ready to look that far ahead.

“We have to play 82 and hopefully win another 16,” the Spurs’ Manu Ginobili said. “There’s a long way to go. We want to worry about playing better and getting better.”

Some unfamiliar teams are among the ones looking ready to stand in their way.

Cleveland made changes designed to get James into the postseason for the first time in his three-year career. Larry Hughes, Damon Jones and Donyell Marshall have fit in nicely, James has been superb while winning Eastern Conference player of the month, and the Cavs have stayed near the top of a Central Division that could be the NBA’s most competitive.

“For the first time I feel great because our team is playing real well,” James said during the Cavs’ strong start.

So are the Clippers, who surged to the top of the Pacific Division -- that other team in Los Angeles has been at the bottom -- after adding guards Sam Cassell and Cuttino Mobley to play with forward Elton Brand.

The Pistons are just as happy with the move they made in hiring Saunders to replace Brown. The Pistons were already one of the league’s best defensive teams, but Saunders has turned them into a pretty good offensive club as well. The players quickly embraced him, no doubt helped by their 8-0 start.

“Flip is one of those guys that doesn’t get too excited about teams making runs, or us coming down and not getting a basket in two or three times down the court,” Ben Wallace said. “It’s so rare in this league for a coach to be that calm.”

The Spurs aren’t quite as pleased, but look nearly as good. San Antonio players don’t think their defense has been up to its usual high standard, but now more than ever seem to have enough offense to overcome an occasional lapse.

“I think the record talks about us better than we are actually playing,” Ginobili said. “We don’t think we’re playing that great yet, but it’s good to not play good and be winning. That’s a good thing because we know we have a long way to go and improve, and we’re still winning.”