List of Current NBA Teams 2009-10

Entering the 2009-10 season (the league's 64th), here's a look at the current list of all 30 NBA Teams, as well as a bit of a history lesson. The oldest franchises listed which have kept their original names are the Boston Celtics and New York Knickerbockers (shortened to Knicks), while the Oklahoma City Thunder is technically the newest squad, since the team used to be the Seattle Supersonics until a few years ago. Technically, Toronto Raptors or the Memphis Grizzlies are the newest expansion teams, while the Charlotte Bobcats and New Orleans Hornets merely moved around a bit.

The original NBA Team list when the league was founded back in 1946 consisted of just 11 squads:

Boston Celtics
Chicago Stags
Cleveland Rebels
Detroit Falcons
New York Knickerbockers
Philadelphia Warriors
Pittsburgh Ironmen
Providence Steamrollers
St. Louis Bombers
Toronto Huskies
Washington Capitols

As you can see several of the cities above have survived into 2009-10, yet with different names for their teams. Chicago, Detroit, Philly, Toronto and Washington all exist today but with different names. In 1948-49 several of the ABL franchises were added into the mix including the Minneapolis Lakers and Denver Nuggets.

NBA Teams list 2009-10

Atlanta Hawks
Boston Celtics
Charlotte Bobcats
Chicago Bulls
Cleveland Cavaliers
Dallas Mavericks
Denver Nuggets
Detroit Pistons
Golden State Warriors
Houston Rockets
Indiana Pacers
Los Angeles Clippers
Los Angeles Lakers
Memphis Grizzlies
Miami Heat
Milwaukee Bucks
Minnesota Timberwolves
New Jersey Nets
New Orleans Hornets
New York Knicks
Oklahoma City Thunder
Orlando Magic
Philadelphia 76ers
Phoenix Suns
Portland Trail Blazers
Sacramento Kings
San Antonio Spurs
Toronto Raptors
Utah Jazz
Washington Wizards

Celtics Repeat-Worthy in 2008-09?

The Celtics continue doin it and doin it and doin it well..Representin' Boston and the NBA Championship so far, the C's are 7-1 in this fresh 2008-09 season. Tonight saw an enthusiastic and talented Toronto Raptors team take the court in Boston, and actually put up a double digit lead for some time on the Celtics into the second half. In the second half, the C's battled their way back matching shots and locking Toronto down on defense. It was behind Paul Pierce's 36 points and 9 boards that the Celtics were able to win tonight 94-87 on their home court. KG added 21 points and 10 boards, while Ray Allen chipped in 19. The big 3 were on point and the Celtics look repeat worthy as champs.

With the season still young, there doesn't look to be much of an Eastern Conference threat for the Celtics. The Cavaliers are always the exception, as Lebron still wants to get back to the Finals and capture that trophy. The Pistons having added Iverson have given themselves a deadly component to their squad, a small man capable of winning games. And tonight, the Raptors showed that they are a viable force in the East as well. The combo of Bosh and Jermaine O'Neal down low is quite powerful in the paint. These two may be able to carry Toronto into the second round of this year's playoffs, barring any unfortunate injuries. The Raptors could still use some sort of veteran leadership at the point/shooting guard. If they add that, they might be considered one of the East's top 3, and a threat to the Celtics.

Home Sweet Home!?

It pays to play at home in the NBA playoffs. The only teams to have successfully taken away some of the "home court advantage" factor in the playoffs have been Philadelphia and Utah. Utah of course owns a 2-0 lead over the slightly higher seeded Rockets, as they won both games in Houston. Philadelphia stunned the NBA nation by going into Detroit and pulling off a game 1 win. That series is tied at a game a piece now.

On Thursday night, several teams took advantage of being back home so they could get themselves back into their playoff series. Washington had quite an impressive win over Cleveland, blowing them out 108-72 for the Wizards' biggest playoff win ever. DeShawn Stevenson and Caron Butler figured big in the game, with Stevenson leading the way and using a "you cant see me" hand gesture after several big baskets. The crowd was on Lebron all night, chanting "over-rated" which as we and they all know is untrue. Kevin Duarant, Clinton Portis, Soulja Boy & Colin Powell were amongst the celebrity spectators for the game in DC.

Toronto was also back home Thursday night, hosting the Orlando Magic. Toronto stayed ahead in this one and won 108-94 behind 21 points from point guard TJ Ford. Jose Calderon wasn't too shabby either. The Raptors are now back into the series, down just 2 games to 1. I still don't see the Raptors taking this one, but the NBA is where amazing happens.

Houston traveled to unfriendly Utah for their Game 3. The Rockets had guard Raefer Alston back from injury which was good news. As mentioned before, the Rockets were down 0-2 to Utah, and it could become yet another first round loss for Tracy McGrady. We finally got an exciting, down to the wire contest here, amongst all the recent playoff blowouts (Celtics, Pistons, Cavs, Wizards, Hornets, etc). Houston ended it by pulling off a 94-92 win in Utah, which they really had to do. Houston had their backs against the wall as T-Mac said afterwards. T-Mac had 27 points and 7 assists. The returning Raefer added 20 points as well. Carl Landry had a huge block on Deron Williams to protect the Rockets lead and win. Unfortunately, Landry also took a shot during the game and lost some of his teeth...

(Note: If you're a member of the website "Twitter", you can now follow Love and Basketball!)

2008 NBA Playoffs Day 2

On Sunday, the 4 remaining series started up for the NBA Playoffs. In action were the top teams from each Conference with the Celtics and Lakers' series opening. The Pistons, Sixers, Magic and Raptors also got things started, and there was a surprise upset win by a lower seed.

Toronto Raptors vs. Orlando Magic

The Toronto Raptors traveled into Orlando for the first game of their matchup. It featured two of the premier big men in the game in Dwight Howard and Chris Bosh. Earlier in the season, D-Howard was amongst those discussed for NBA MVP, due to his dominance in terms of scoring, rebounding and defense. In this game Orlando prevailed, winning it 114-100 . Dwight Howard had not only 5 blocks but also 25 points and over 20 rebounds. Jameer Nelson helped lead the way with 24 points in this one and Hedo Turkoglu added 21. The battle of the big men Bosh vs. Howard looks to continue its intensity in this opening series. Game 2 will go down on Tuesday night in Orlando.

Magic's scorching 3-point shooting early burns Raptors

Denver Nuggets vs. LA Lakers

Another Game 1 saw Los Angeles win over Denver 128-114 behind Kobe's 32 and Pau Gasol's impressive near triple double including 36 points. This season Los Angeles had a 22-5 record with Pau Gasol. The playoff game was close through the 2nd quarter, but the Lakers blew it open in the third and fourth, up by about as much as 20 points. Pau Gasol had an impressive Lakers debut with a near triple double. Kleiza also played well for Denver in the loss. Allen Iverson picked up 2 quick technicals towards the end of the game and was tossed. In the playoffs, after a player's 7th Tech, they are suspended for 1 game. It may not matter if the Lakers dominate this series.

Lakers beat Nuggets behind Gasol

Philadelphia 76er's vs. Detroit Pistons

Detroit is the most recent amongst Eastern playoff teams to capture the NBA title. They played host to the Philadelphia 76ers, who not many analysts expected to be here right now. In Game 1, the Sixers shocked the Pistons winning it 90-86. Andre Miller had 20 points while Andre Iguodola added 16points, 9 boards and 8 assists. Rasheed Wallace led the way for Detroit with 24 points and 9 rebounds. Chauncey Billups added a mere 14 points. After the game, Rasheed Wallace accepted the blame for the loss.

Fourth quarter surge helps Philly take Game 1

Atlanta Hawks vs. Boston Celtics

The Boston Celtics made headlines this season with the greatest turnaround in NBA history. After spending last year at the bottom of the Eastern Conference, they made serious moves to bring in KG, Ray Allen and several key bench players. The talented squad hosted the Hawks in Boston on Sunday night, the first playoff appearance for Boston since 1999. Boston handled business by defeating Atlanta 104-81. Ray Allen had 18, KG had 16 and Pierce added 16. It may be a very quick but painful exit for the Atlanta Hawks this postseason.

Allen, KG spark Celtics to 104-81 rout

Act Now: Vote Bosh 2008!

Chris Bosh wants your All-Star vote. So much so that the Toronto Raptors forward has resorted to a creative marketing strategy. On his website, Chris-Bosh.com, the superstar has a video of himself mocking those local car salesmen you see. In the ad Chris asks for your vote and says you don't even have to spend $20 to vote. It's a definite first in the history of All-star votes and NBA stars campaigning for votes. Chris is currently third in votes amongst East forwards (behind KG & Lebron). Act now if you want to see Bosh starting in the East!

Bosh also has an interesting blog going on his site. In a December 14th entry, he discusses the guys he watched while "growing up":

"I think about all of these players in the league that I watched while I was growing up. Tim Duncan, Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen, Jermaine O'neal, Allen Iverson, Kobe Bryant, Vince Carter and many more were all drafted when I was in Middle School, some a little before that. Shaq was an All-Star when I was in the 2nd Grade! Now don't get me wrong. I'm not trying to make anyone feel old, but like I said before, It just blows my mind that I compete against these guys everyday."

Read more of the Chris Bosh blog here. And remember the "Vote for Bosh" deal is a limited time offer.

TJ Ford Hits Court Hard

You may or may not have seen the unfortunate injury of TJ Ford as highlights were shown to open ESPN Sportscenter. In the Hawks vs. Raptors game Tuesday night, TJ Ford was on a fast break with Hawks rookie Al Horford trailing. Ford went for the layup and Horford went for the block. Unfortunately Horford's hand caught Ford ackwardly and Ford came down onto the court in what looked like bad whiplash. Ford's neck/head snapped back against the court, and Ford was taken out from the game on a stretcher in a neck brace. Chris Bosh indicated later it was a relief to see that TJ was moving after the fall.

Horford insisted the play wasn't dirty, but Horford was ejected from the game with a flagrant foul for this. He stated he was fooled by Ford's layup move and when he went to block the ball he caught Ford's head. He later said he's not a dirty type of player and hopes Ford is ok. It's unfortunate for TJ, because he had a previous spinal injury which he was able to recover from. That injury caused him to miss the entire 2004-05 season with neck surgery and recovery. Let's hope this isn't as serious and that TJ is back sooner rather than later.

Read Raptors' Ford takes a hard fall.

Raptors Game Oddities

The speculations about games affected and points shaved as well as bad calls made will probably be ongoing until the NBA presents more definitive evidence to the general public. MSNBC has a recent story presenting two "oddities" involving the final score in Toronto Raptors games, months apart. Alleged crooked ref Tim Donaghy was involved in both contests.

From MSNBC.com:

"There were strange circumstances regarding two Toronto Raptors games officiated by Tim Donaghy, the former referee who allegedly bet on NBA games for the past two seasons, the Toronto Sun reported.

On Nov. 24, the Atlanta Hawks defeated the Raptors 97-93 to cover the three-point spread. However, a two-point basket by the Raptors' T.J. Ford was not recorded. Had it been, the final score would have been 97-95 and the Hawks thus would not have covered the spread.

On Jan. 15, the Philadelphia 76ers were favoured to beat the Raptors. However, according to the New York Times, wagering on the Raptors was so heavy that Toronto eventually became a one-point favorite by game time. The Raptors went on to win 104-86.

After the Raptors-Hawks game, Toronto assistant coach Jay Triano told the scorer's table that the final score was incorrect, but the situation didn't get resolved, the Sun reported."