Last night was a very busy night in the NBA, with 13 games being played, so I figure this is a good time to make as many generalizations about the league as possible since I didn’t make a season preview.

The Sixers (4-4) went into New Jersey (0-8) to take on the Nets, who are really hurting right now with Devin Harris, Courtney Lee, Tony Battie, and Yi Jianlian all injured. The Nets were forced to dress only 8 players, and only 7 of those 8 actually saw court time. New Jersey lost the tight game in the dying seconds, as they got some tough calls and made some mental mistakes down the stretch to give Philly an 82-79 victory. Brook Lopez continues to be a bright spot for New Jersey, as their fan base still has plenty to cheer about with a strong and young nucleus. Philadelphia continues to get large contributions from Marreese Speights, Thaddeus Young, Louis Williams and Andre Iguodala. Elton Brand, once one of the best power forwards in the game, has struggled this year as he hasn’t found his groove after fighting back from a ruptured achilles tendon before the 07-08 season. It should be interesting to see if he can return to form or if his career will continue to down-spiral, joining the long list of big men who haven’t been able to stay healthy their whole careers. One more quick note on the Sixers - if you missed Iggy’s slam against the Nets check it out here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gVIwwIwpI4o. This dunk woke me up this morning, I can’t imagine what it did to Terrence Williams.

The Grizzlies (1-8) took on the Rockets (5-3) in Houston. Memphis is still without Allen Iverson who took a personal leave of absence from the team, presumably to mull over his future as an NBA player. Unable to accept coming off the bench, AI clearly didn’t use the offseason to readjust his ego to where his game currently stands - it will be interesting to see if he can change. Houston continues to impress people by staying consistent on defense even without Yao Ming. Their general manager, Daryl Morey, is perhaps the best in the game at adding cheap players who hustle and play team ball (he signed the Lakers glue-guy Trevor Ariza this past summer). He has accomplished this despite having no previous experience or history with the game of basketball. As expected, Houston beat up a soft Memphis team. If anything, this game should prove that depth, chemistry, and character all matter in today’s NBA - Houston won 104 - 79.

The Hawks (6-2) went into the basketball mecca of Madison Square Garden to take on the Knicks (1-8). Jamal Crawford made his return to New York, after spending four seasons with them during Isiah Thomas’ ruinous tenure as general manager. Atlanta would outscore the Knicks 67-47 in the second half of this one, led by 21 points from Al Horford. The Knicks fall to a very disappointing 1-8 on the season, partially because of Nate Robinson’s ankle injury. Atlanta improves to 6-2, a winning percentage which ought to hold throughout the year as they’ve got all the parts in place to compete in the playoffs, especially with the improved depth after adding the high-scoring Jamal Crawford in the offseason. I would expect Jamal to be in the running for 6th man of the year when it’s all said and done.

The Bulls (4-4) went into Toronto to take on the Raptors (4-4). Chicago was extremely lethargic in the second half of this one, as they were coming off a tough home loss the night before, allowing the Raptors to pull away for the 99-89 win. Many of Chicago’s jumpshots were off the mark in the second half, a sure sign of tired legs. Toronto continues to search for a consistent defensive effort as they allowed Chicago 60 points in the first half (the Bulls average 88 for the whole game on the year). Chris Bosh played well yet again, forcing his name into the MVP discussion, and so far has been playing the best basketball of his career thanks to adding 15 pounds of muscle in the offseason.

The Hornets (3-6) took on the Suns (8-1) in Phoenix. This one was over quick as Phoenix scored 40 points in the first quarter. Suns basketball is back, both the good and the bad. While they’re capable of scoring in very quick bursts thanks to an offense predicated on getting a shot up in 7 seconds or less, the Suns still lack the ability to get a defensive stop when they need it, something which allows many teams to stay in the game. However, I strongly urge you all to check out a Suns game on TV or the internet if you can. There isn’t a better example of how much fun basketball can be. Steve Nash has been making extraordinary passes again, racking up 20 assists in a game twice this year already. Phoenix would go on to win 124-104. Also worth paying attention to is the class with which Chris Paul continues to act. He is in a terrible situation in New Orleans on a team with no depth and nobody to run a fast break with. It’s a travesty that this player’s early career has been influenced so strongly by the organizations poor general manager Jeff Bower and coach Byron Scott. All a good point guard needs is athletic players to get out and run with, and New Orleans has continually added old, immobile players such as James Posey, Morris Peterson, Peja Stojakovic and Emeka Okafor. Look for Scott to be on the chopping block if New Orleans continues to underperform. As I finished writing this, news broke that Byron Scott has indeed been fired. Stay tuned to see if new coach Jeff Bower can get this team playing hard again, or if it will be a fitting demise for the man who crafted this shoddy lineup.

The Golden State Warriors (2-5) opened up a 5-game road trip in Indiana taking on the Pacers (3-3). Danny Granger continues to lead the way for Indiana, as he poured in 31 points, a career high 16 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocks and 1 steal. Mini-Matrix as he was once called looks better than Shawn Marion ever was, and he deserves a second all-star on his team. Give him that and Indiana could be a top 3 team in the East.

Dallas (5-3) went into San Antonio to play the Spurs (4-3), who sat out Tim Duncan and point guard Tony Parker for the second straight game - both sidelined with ankle injuries. Richard Jefferson played a great game for San Antonio, scoring 29 points in total. If he can continue to contribute this well San Antonio will be a force in the playoffs. While the Spurs make no excuse about repeatedly sitting players out during the regular season, theirs is an organization which understands the clock is ticking on Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili’s careers. In two years this team will look alot different. So enjoy the view while you can Spurs fans, because the team is slowly eroding. That said, San Antonio has the potential to win the title this year, as long as they stay healthy. As for Dallas, they are going to have to find a way to get everybody involved offensively. Jason Kidd is not the offensive catalyst he once was, and Dirk Nowitzki can’t score a franchise record 29 fourth quarter points (against Utah on November 3) every night.

Portland (6-3) went into Minnesota (1-8) to play the T-Wolves. Minnesota is really struggling this year, as Kevin Love has been injured and they are working in new players, with a new coach, with a new offensive system (The same Triangle system of Jordan and Kobe’s championship teams). This was an easy win for the Blazers, as Greg Oden gave them 18 points and 11 rebounds. If he can somehow average these numbers for the year Portland can be a title-contender. It will be interesting to see if Greg can put up a consistent year for once in his career.

The Nuggets (6-3) travelled to Milwaukee (4-2) to take on the Bucks. Milwaukee looks rejuvenated with the Aussie Andrew Bogut back, and rookie Brandon Jennings has been playing out of his mind early in the year. He is likely leading the way in Rookie of the Year consideration (along with Tyreke Evans of Sacramento). Carmelo Anthony and the Nuggets came into this one still riding an emotional high from their great finish to last year and great start to this year. They were bound to have a let-down sooner or later, and it makes perfect sense for it to happen against the energetic Bucks at home. Milwaukee has been rebounding the ball better than anyone else in the league so far with a +6.7 rebounding differential. Milwaukee was able to make the plays down the stretch, exposing Denver as an inconsistent squad. Most notably, rookie Iryan Ilyasova gave Milwaukee 17 points 8 boards and 2 blocks in only 22 minutes. He has proved to be a very efficient player so far for them, averaging 6 rebounds per game in only 18 minutes.

Charlotte (3-5) played Detroit (4-4) in the Motor City, in a matchup of two teams heavily influenced by Charlotte coach Larry Brown. Brown brought Detroit a championship in 2004, while his long-time assistant John Kuester is in his first year as Detroit’s head coach. As one learns more about the NBA one discovers the fact that so many of today’s coaches have ties to Larry Brown, truly a legend of the sport. New additions Ben Gordon and Charlie Villanueva have been playing great for Detroit, averaging 24 and 16 points per game respectively. They’ve eased the pressure on the team considerably, and it should be interesting to see if they can beat expectations and make the playoffs on this fiesty club. Detroit would go on to win 98-75 in a blowout. One notable was Will Bynum giving the team energy with two huge slams. Listed at a generous 6 feet, Bynum is a supremely athletic player who is always a tough player to guard.

The Jazz (3-5) went into Boston (8-1) to take on the Celtics. Boston took a double digit lead into the second half, and in that half Boston maintained and extended it’s lead. During one play all five players on Boston touched the ball in about 5 seconds, highlighted by a behind the back pass from Kendrick Perkins, a player previously known only for his hard-nose play and scowls on the court. If Phoenix is the epitome of the beautiful game, Boston is the epitome of the ugly game - as far as you can make it ugly in today’s whistle-happy league. Boston made it a 20-point lead in the second half on a Kevin Garnett alley-oop, and the team looks great early on in the season.

The NBA season is well under way, and the thing that sticks out that many teams are still trying to find their way. Check back for more NBA thoughts, and I hope to be a source for some excellent NBA links, as this year has a plethora of exciting players, even with Blake Griffin sidelined early.