NBA Weekly Fives for November 4th, 2010 from the Sports Mac

5 Stories Making News The Past Week

1. The first week of the new season sees a myriad of players on new teams highlighted by LeBron James and Chris Bosh beginning their careers for the Miami Heat.

2. The Lakers have surprised no one by getting off to a perfect start in the defense of their title; the other two undefeated teams may be surprises though in Atlanta and New Orleans.

3. The Pistons and Rockets have had disastrous starts to their years and remain the only two winless teams in the league.

4. The Celtics have started well and have had some history making performances from Rajon Rondo and Paul Pierce.

5. Asbestos problems in Madison Square Garden lead to the postponement of a Knicks game with no make-up date for the game with the Magic having been announced.

Best 5 Teams Right Now

1. Los Angeles Lakers (5-0): The defending champions have picked up right where they left off last year with a fast start out of the gate.

2. Atlanta Hawks (5-0): A surprise that it’s not Miami or Orlando leading the Southeast Division after the first week; maybe Atlanta can make it a three team race?

3. New Orleans Hornets (4-0): Definitely the surprise of the first week; they’ll need to keep it going to gain some early confidence this season.

4. Miami Heat (4-1): After the slip-up in the opener, they’ve rolled to four straight wins and if they stay healthy, they’re just going to keep getting better.

5. Boston Celtics (4-1): They’ve now won three in a row after being stunned by Cleveland on the opening weekend; Rajon Rondo and Paul Pierce lead the way so far.

Worst 5 Teams Right Now

1. Detroit Pistons (0-5): Things are looking bleak in the Motor City as this franchise has fallen apart after being a perennial playoff contender.

2. Houston Rockets (0-4): A bad start like this will have this team fighting from behind all season long to make the Western Conference playoffs.

3. Minnesota Timberwolves (1-4): Here’s a bad Florida road trip: getting outscored by 74 points combined in back to back nights in Miami and Orlando.

4. Milwaukee Bucks (1-4): A disappointing start for a team that was really expected to challenge Chicago in the Central Division.

5. Los Angeles Clippers (1-4): There are signs of turmoil already for the other team in Los Angeles and we’re just getting into November.

5 League Leaders To Keep Track Of

1. Monta Ellis, Warriors SG: He is off to a flying start as he is shooting 55 percent from the field and is tops in the league at 30 points per game.

2. Joakim Noah, Bulls PF: The young Bull has been exceptional on the glass so far, cleaning up 15.3 rebounds per contest at the start of the season.

3. Rajon Rondo, Celtics PG: He is setting records for distributing the rock to start the season with 82 in his first five games to lead everyone with 16.4 per contest.

4. Mike Conley, Grizzlies PG: Off to a great start taking the basketball away as he is first in the league at 3.4 steals per game.

5. Josh Smith, Hawks PF: Had dominated the paint so far, rejecting 20 shots in Atlanta’s five games this year to tie for the league lead.

5 Games To Watch Over The Next Week

1. Bulls at Celtics, 8:00 PM, Friday, ESPN: Two of the young point guards in the league in Derrick Rose and Rajon Rondo square off in Beantown.

2. Nuggets at Mavericks, 9:00 PM, Saturday, NBA TV: Denver tries to get revenge for Dallas winning in Denver earlier this week.

3. Trail Blazers at Lakers, 9:30 PM, Sunday: An early test for young Portland going into Staples Center to take on the defending champs.

4. Hawks at Magic, 7:00 PM, Monday: An early season showdown in the Southeast Division as Atlanta tries to show it will be a factor in the division race.

5. Jazz at Heat, 7:30 PM, Tuesday: Utah and Deron Williams will get a crack at taking on Miami’s Big Three on their home floor.