Eastern Conference

THE Andre 'Iggy' Iguodala-led Philadelphia 76ers continue to impress the pundits with their efficient performances, especially when playing at home.

As at Sunday, the 76ers had a 14-6 record being propped up by a 10-2 home record and a two-game winning streak. In their most recent 95-74 victory over the Detroit Pistons, 'Iggy' celebrated his 28th birthday with a picture-perfect 10 points-10-assists-10 rebounds triple-double.

The Miami Heat extended their winning streak to four games with a 97-93 victory over league leaders Chicago Bulls. The win has helped them to close in on the Bulls' record 17-5, lifting their record to 15-5.

The Boston Celtics have climbed back into play-off contention on the back of a similar four-game winning streak. They now hold an overall league record of 9-9 with the return of Paul Pierce being instrumental to their recovery.

Boosted by winning eight games out of nine played at home(14-6 overall), the Atlanta Hawks as at Saturday lie fourth in the Eastern Conference and are on course to finish either there or fifth, just as they did last season and the season before. The Milwaukee Bucks with a 8-11 record are occupying the last play-off spot in the East with pressure coming from the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The New York Knicks have lost three games in a row and with that they have lost nine of their last 10 games. After sitting pretty in the top four a couple seasons ago, the Knicks now have a 7-13 record which is nowhere close to what would be required to claim a much-expected play-off spot for the second year running. The Charlotte Bobcats are on a league worst eight-game losing streak, definitely not something the Michael Jordan-owned franchise would have expected.

Will the Lakers make it?

Western Conference

THOUGH just a quarter of the way into the season, the Los Angeles Lakers are looking as though they'll be on the outside looking in when the NBA post-season comes around.

They are currently outside of the play-off spots with a record of 11-9 and while their run of form could change for the better, it is hard to imagine. Their bench production is ranked second-to-last in the league and Kobe Bryant is the only consistent point-getter in the starting five.

Their city rivals, the Los Angeles Clippers, are in a much better position of clinching a place in the play-offs, holding a record of 10-6. Coupled with the fact that their multiple All-Stars are rapidly learning to adjust to each other, things are looking up for at least one team in the city of angels. The Oklahoma City Thunder and the Denver Nuggets are still comfortably leading their competitors with 16-3 and 15-4 records respectively.

Another team that failed to make the play-offs last season but are in good standings now are the Utah Jazz. As at Saturday their balanced production from their starters and the bench sees them holding down fifth place with an 11-7 record.

Just above them, with a 12-8 record, are the Houston Rockets who are currently the best team in the league based on form; winning nine of their last 10 games played.

The San Antonio Spurs, Portland Trailblazers and defending champions the Dallas Mavericks also hold a 12-8 record. The Memphis Grizzlies who were previously impressing without forward Zach Randolph lost their last three games to slip out of play-off contention with a record of 10-9.

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