Initial Analysis:
As I look at this table there aren't too many surprises. The 6 easiest schedules the rest of the way belong to teams in the Western Conference, no team has played a slate of games with teams less than a 43% or more than a 56% winning percentage, and with plenty of games left to be played, all teams have tons of home games rack up wins (or away games to rack up losses for the tankers). I'll focus this edition on just a few teams that may make major moves up or down the standings based on these numbers.
Bad News:
This game is all about matchups, gameplans, roster construction, injury luck, etc. There are a million variables, but we're looking at Strength of Schedule data, and this graph is pretty bad news for two competitive teams in particular, the Heat and the Kings.
Miami Heat - At 15-15, the Heat are currently tied for the 7th spot in the East and occupy the projected 8 seed in the playoffs. They also have 5 teams within 3.5 games of them, and according to these numbers, they might be a little worse than a .500 team. They've played the 5th easiest schedule in the league, and the easiest in their conference. They play the 2nd hardest schedule moving forward, and the 4th smallest percentage of home games remaining. Though at least one of the teams above them got appreciably worse at the trade deadline *cough Bobcats cough*, I think they'll have a tough time putting any space between them and the 9-12 seeds in the playoff race, and they may fall out altogether.
Sacramento Kings - Listen, the Kings have a very very good team, they'll make the playoffs, and they'll be a tough out for whoever they face out West. However, they are not quite as good as they've been, and I don't know they'll be able to stave off a Warriors team that is starting to play some exceptional basketball (8-1 in their last 9 with 6 20+ point wins). The Kings have played the easiest schedule in the league, have played a few more home games than not, and have a more middle-of-the-road schedule the rest of the way. The Pacific division will be a fun one to watch as the season moves along.
Good news:
On the flip side, there are a couple of teams who can smile reading this data - at least until the Sim Gawds smite them mightily for their hubris.
Denver Nuggets - I rarely get to write about my team in this column, in fact far more often than not this exercise has been bad news for Denver. But this time, the 25-7 Nuggets have the 2nd easiest schedule the rest of the way. This shouldn't come as a surprise given the overall weakness of the Northwest Division, but a full 28% of their remaining schedule comes against teams that have yet to notch their 10th victory. In addition, they have the largest lead of any division winner, so when the time comes to play a brutal February stretch of 16 of 21 games on the road, they are better positioned to weather the storm.
New Jersey Nets - The New Jersey Nets have a pretty killer team with a very disappointing record. There's some reason to be optimistic about SNEAKING into the playoffs this year for the Real Pelicans Fan. They have played the league's most difficult schedule, and will face teams much closer to .500 the rest of the way. They sit only 2.5 games out of a playoff spot, and I would bet on them to move into playoff position by the time the season finishes up.
