NBA 2018-19: 5 Takeaways from week 9 

#2 Parity in the Western Conference

San Antonio Spurs v Los Angeles Lakers

Last season the Houston Rockets were the best regular season team out West. Their record was 65-17. The Warriors were 58-24. The Trailblazers were well off the pace at 49-33. It is still early this season with 50 or more games to be played but there are 10 teams out West within five games of the Conference-leading Denver Nuggets.

Going into play on Saturday, December 15th, 2018, top ten teams like The Thunder, Lakers, Clippers, Grizzlies, Mavericks and Kings were all on one or two game losing streaks. A four or five-game winning streak or losing streak for any of these teams could shift the balance in the Western Conference standings.

The San Antonio Spurs who had a mediocre start to the season have won four in a row. Those four wins have come at the expense of the Lakers, Clippers, Suns and Jazz. San Antonio sits 10th overall in the West.

They are only 4.5 games out of first. However, on Saturday night, December 15th, 2018 the Spurs lost 98-93 to the Bulls snapping their four-game winning streak. The Spurs did get 29 points and 12 rebounds from LaMarcus Aldridge and 21 points from DeMar DeRozan. The Spurs are now 15-14 on the season.