To look at the state of the Western Conference heading into the 2007 off-season, one must start at the top of the heap, and that would be the San Antonio Spurs, who are coming off a four-game sweep of the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA Finals. This victory not only cemented the Spurs’ dynasty this decade, but also brought the balance of power back to the Western Conference.

In the finals, San Antonio defused Cleveland on both ends of the floor. The Spurs simply out-rebounded, out-hustled, and eventually ousted the Cavs in just four games. The sweep was just the fourth since 1983, as the Spurs joined the ’83 Philadelphia 76ers, the ‘89 Detroit “Bad Boy” Pistons, and the 1995 Houston Rockets as the only teams to sweep an opponent in the finals in the last three decades. Despite this title being the Spurs’ fourth since 1999, this championship had a different zest than the previous three. The reason was the play of point guard Tony Parker. The 25-year-old native of France used this installment of the finals as a showcase of his many talents. Parker averaged 24.5 points (up from an 18.6 season regular season average) for the series, to go with a 57 percent shooting percentage. For his efforts, Parker was named the series MVP. The man who won the previous three MVP awards for the Spurs titles, Tim Duncan, was his old efficient self. The Wake Forrest product was not spectacular, but he played solid basketball on both ends of the floor, especially on the rebounding end. The stout San Antonio defense was at its best as well. Led by cagy defensive ace Bruce Bowen, the Spurs held Cleveland to a mere 322 points for the series, the fewest points ever scored in a four-game final. With this title, San Antonio has surpassed the Los Angeles Lakers of the early 2000’s as the team of the decade, and they may not be done yet.

While the class of the conference lies in San Antonio, several hungry teams out west prove to be strong challengers to dethrone the Spurs in 2008. The series that many called the NBA Finals occurred in the second round of the Western Conference playoffs between the Spurs and the Phoenix Suns. The Steve Nash-led Suns gave the Spurs their biggest push of the postseason, slugging it out in a physical six-game series. Phoenix (61-21 last season) is the front-runner to knock off San Antonio in 2008. Nash will again team with Amare Stoudemire to make a push for the Larry O’Brien Trophy. The key for the Suns will be to retain Shawn Marion, who led the team in steals and blocked shots last season. Marion wants have a bigger role on offense, which is something the Suns will have to work out if he will be a Sun come tip-off time this fall.

The team the Spurs faced in the Conference Championship was the Utah Jazz (51-31), a young, up-and-coming team with a veteran coach who has been gunning for a title since 1982. Point guard Deron Williams and forward Carlos Boozer evoke memories or John Stockton and Karl Malone with their own rendition of the pick-and-role offense. Both elevated their games in the postseason, carrying their team past the Houston Rockets and the feisty Golden State Warriors. Coach Jerry Sloan has his best team since the Jazz played in consecutive NBA Finals in 1997 and ’98, and should have the team intact to make a title push next season.

That Warriors team that Utah dispatched did their own damage this post-season. Golden State won 16 of their last 21 regular season games to reach the playoff for the first time since 1994. Not being content with merely gaining the eighth spot, the Warriors (42-40) made history, becoming the first team to beat a 67-win team in the first round. They achieved this by knocking off the Dallas Mavericks, the team with the most wins in the NBA’s regular season. Coach Don Nelson’s scrappy bunch of misfits plays a running-Rebel style of basketball, a 48-minute track meet. Point guard Baron Davis rebounded this season, and mixed with Stephen Jackson to form one of the best duos in the playoffs. The eventual downfall of the Warriors was their lack of offense in the paint, along with their lack of rebounding. Acquiring a good big man could be the missing link to a championship push for the Warriors.

A team that developed at mid-season was the Denver Nuggets (45-37). Star forward Carmelo Anthony was suspended a substantial amount of games for a brawl, but eventually teamed up with free agent acquisition Allen Iverson to form a formidable one-two punch combination. Along with the tough rebounding of Marcus Camby and the coaching of legend George Karl, Denver struck gold on a winning tear near the end of the season to claim the sixth. The biggest problem that denied Denver of advancing past the first round was a lack of depth. Veteran Steve Smith was the best option off the bench, and more talent will be needed from the subs for the team to be able to compete with the best of the west.

The biggest problem in Houston is their inability to advance past the first round. The Rockets (52-30) soared to a 3-2 lead in the first round against Denver, only to fall in back-to-back games, costing coach Jeff Van Gundy his job. Now entering is former Sacramento Kings headmaster Rick Adelman, a man who took the Portland Trailblazers to the NBA Finals in the early’90s, as well as coaching the Kings to the Western Conference Finals in 2002. His experience could be last key to getting stars Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming into the post-season win column. The Rockets also need more from role players Bonzi Wells and Shane Battier to be a real title contender.

Finally, we have the trouble in Tinsel Town. NBA scoring champion Kobe Bryant apparently wants out of LA after 11 stellar seasons in the purple and gold. Kobe is unhappy with the team’s lack of success since the team disbanded after their 2004 Finals loss to the Detroit Pistons. Since that season, Los Angeles (42-40) has not gotten better then a seventh seed in the playoffs, and have suffered two straight first round exists to the Suns. Lamar Odom has elevated his game, but Kwame Brown and Smush Parker have not gotten much better over the last three seasons. Bryant wants either immediate change a trade, thus completely ending any resemblance of the current LA team, and the great Lakers squad of earlier this decade. Do not get exited West Conference fans, however, because sources say that if Kobe does indeed leave, it will be somewhere in the Eastern Conference. Regardless, the balance of power in the NBA is back in the Western Conference, and looks to be there for a while.

Have a question or comment for Bryan? Email him at bryandeardo@sportsgrumblings.com