WEEK SIX RECAP

A smoldering Atlantic division, the NBA goes to Mexico, rookies play big and the return of the Jedi.

1.  After a closely watched eight month rehab process Kobe returned to action last night against the Raptors. Watching that game against the Warriors in April and seeing how hard Bryant worked to get back this soon really gave me another level of respect for someone I already highly respected. You can look at his stat line; 9 pts, 8 Turnovers, 8 rebounds and criticize him or you can acknowledge that a lot of 35 year olds maybe wouldn't have come back from a ruptured achilles at all, they wouldn't have rushed back as hard as he did, they wouldn't be the same, etc... We certainly have yet to see the long term capability of Kobe after the injury, but he showed a desire last night to create, to work with his teammates, to go in at crunch time. The Lakers came up short and Bryant looked rusty, but what can you expect after eight months of no basketball. It's definitely good to have him back.

2. Just before the Lakers and Raptors game last night another much anticipated story unfolded for the Raptors. Toronto moved Rudy Gay to Sacramento along with Quincy Acy and Aaron Gray for John Salmons, Greivis Vasquez, Patrick Patterson and Chuck Hayes. This marks the first trade chip to fall in what is expected to be a season full of interesting front office moves. I'm glad to see Chuck Hayes and Kyle Lowry reunited, albeit in Toronto.

3.  A big element from last nights game that will certainly take the back burner to Kobe's return was Amir Johnson's play. Dude went off for a career high 32 pts, adding 10 boards, 2 steals and 2 blocks.  If Johnson hadn't played out of his mind the Lakers probably would've won thus changing the story of Kobe's return. With Rudy Gay being traded there will be plenty of opportunity for other Raptors to step up and this was certainly a big step for Amir.

4. Showing he's not ready to be counted out Tim Duncan hit the game winning shot against the Hawks in San Antonio last Monday night. On top of the game winner Duncan pulled in 21 rebounds and had 23 points on the night making him the oldest (37) player to rack up 20 and 20.

5. After the win at home, the Spurs would then travel to Mexico City for a game Wednesday night against the Minnesota Timberwolves as part of the league's global promotion. Things didn't go quite as planned though, a generator caused the arena to fill with smoke causing the game to be cancelled. The two teams will make up the game at an unknown time in the future and it will be in Minnesota.

Al Bello/Getty

6.  The battle for New York rages on. On Thursday the Knicks played the Nets in Brooklyn in the two teams first meeting this season. A game that saw Andrea Bargnani get ejected, every player on the Knicks score including six in double digits, Charles Barkley's first ever time on the subway and six technical fouls altogether. The Knicks won pretty handedly, final score 113 to 83, ending their nine game tailspin in good fashion. However on Sunday the Knicks suffered the worst deficit of the season to the Celtics in MSG, 114 - 73, further showing the Atlantic division cannot be taken seriously. 

7.  Staying on Eastern teams that have had disappointing seasons thus far the Bulls got a little source of joy this past Thursday when they upset the "Hollywood as Hell" Heat, 107-87. After Derrick Rose went down for the rest of the season with a torn meniscus the rest of the season seemed fairly bleak for these Bulls, especially when the looming free agency of Deng potentially altering the direction of the franchise. 

8.  To say the Nets have been a disappointment this season would be a bit of an understatement. With a payroll twice the size of any other teams, after tax is figured, and a spot near the bottom of an astoundingly bad Atlantic division with a 6 and 14 record the Nets have given new consideration for just how disappointing a team can be. Jason Kidd, in his first year coaching, was favored by many to be the first coach to get his walking papers but Kidd may have bought himself a little more time last week with the demotion of his main assistant Lawrence Frank. Kidd has said it was a "difference in philosophies" that led to him reassigning him to writing daily reports and no longer having a spot on the Net's bench. Players have stated they noticed tension between the two ever since a dispute after an early season, and Kidd's first game after his two game suspension, blowout suffered at the hands of Orlando.

Sam Forencich/Getty

9.  The Blazers and the Pacers, both leading their respective conferences, faced off last Monday in what many have said was the game of the season so far. Despite a career showing from Paul George, including five 3-pointers in the last three minutes of the game for 43 points on the night, the Blazers took the game 106-102. The Blazers big wins over the Spurs, the Pacers and the Thunder have helped establish them as a real force and one of the league's elite teams.

Howard Smith/ USA Today

10.  Both Michael Carter Williams and Victor Oladipo have been stunning so far this season. Both playing on undermanned teams in Philadelphia, MCW, and Orlando, Oladipo, but performing at a high level and exceeding expectations people generally have for rookies in the NBA. The two faced off against each other last Tuesday and took it to the next level on both ends. The Sixers won a game, 126-125,  that went to double overtime and saw both players complete a triple double, marking the first time two rookies have done so in the same game. MCW scored 27 points with 12 rebounds and 10 assists, while Oladipo had 26 points with 10 rebounds and 10 assists. There hasn't been co-rookies of the year since the 1999-2000 season when Elton Brand and Steve Francis shared the honor but it's not unheard of and if these two keep playing the way they are it would be hard to make a case against either over the other and sharing the honor would feel very appropriate.