Oklahoma City Thunder: Another tough division

At the quarter pole of the NBA season, seems like a good time to check in on the league’s parity. As in, has it gotten any better between the conferences?

Answer: Only a little bit. The beleaguered Eastern Conference, the inferior half of the NBA since sometime late in the Michael Jordan era, looks better this season. The Knickerbockers appear to be legit. The Netropolitans are much better. The Hawks have been a pleasant surprise. And LeBron James hasn’t gone anywhere; he’s still a Heater.

But the East also has some dregs. The East has four teams below a .300 winning percentage, and that’s even counting the woeful Charlotte Bobcats, who somehow have played competitive basketball and are 7-13 this season, matching their victory total of last season. But no way will Charlotte stay at a .350 clip.

Meanwhile, the West has only one team playing below .300, the New Orleans Hornets, who are in OKC tonight for a ballgame.