What is the Lenovo Stat?
The Lenovo Stat shows the power of teamwork. It's a way of showing the best-engineered/best combination of players on the court. The Lenovo Stat is a plus/minus statistic that looks at the point differential when players are both in and out of the game, to see how the team performs with various combinations. The Lenovo Stat can look at a variety of combinations – including the best two-player, three-player and even five-player combinations for each game.

Be sure to tune in to NBA TV on Thursday, April 19 at 10 p.m. ET for the Lenovo Playoff Preview. In the meanwhile, here is a look at the top Lenovo performers through the 24th week of the 2006-07 NBA season:

	+ 269	T. McGrady, R. Alston, S. Battier, Yao, C. Hayes
	+ 215	E. Dampier, D. Nowitzki, J. Terry, J. Howard, D. Harris
	+ 165	S. Nash, S. Marion, R. Bell, A. Stoudemire, L. Barbosa

The Rockets clinched homecourt in the first round of the playoffs with Tracy McGrady's 39-point, 11-rebound, nine-assist perfomance against the Suns on Monday. While Dallas' and Phoenix's top five-player combos will finish behind Houston's, the Mavs and Suns will enter the postseason as the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds in the West. The Phoenix lineup featuring Leandro Barbosa passed the group with Boris Diaw for the third Lenovo spot.

Another point on the five-player combos to consider:

The Houston Rockets have by far and away been the most improved Lenovo team this year. After struggling to a 34-48 season last season, the Rockets have rebounded this season to a 52-29 mark with one game remaining. Last year’s best five-player squad of Rafer Alston, David Wesley, Tracy McGrady, Juwan Howard, and Dikembe Mutombo could only muster a +25 all year long. This year’s squad of Alston, McGrady, Shane Battier, Chuck Hayes, and Yao Ming is the Lenovo team of the year with a +269.

	+ 339	S. Nash, S. Marion, A. Stoudemire, R. Bell
	+ 322	T. McGrady, R. Alston, S. Battier, Yao
	+ 320	S. Nash, S. Marion, A. Stoudemire, L. Barbosa

A whole lot of jostling occurred in the four-player combos since last week. Dallas' group of Erick Dampier, Dirk Nowitzki, Jason Terry and Josh Howard dropped out of the top three, making way for Phoenix's Steve Nash, Shawn Marion, Amare Stoudemire and Raja Bell to nab the top spot. The Rockets drop Chuck Hayes from their top five-player combination to settle in as the No. 2 four-player tandem.

Another point on the four-player combos to consider:

Anthony Parker has been a key part of the Raptors all year long, but has especially turned up his game since returning from an ankle injury a few weeks ago. Averaging 17.2 points and shooting 47 percent from three point range over the past 11 games (Toronto has gone 9-2), Parker has shown that his play will have a major impact on how far the Raptors go in the playoffs. His importance to the team is also reflected in the Lenovo Stat as he is positioned on the top 11 four-player combinations on the Raptors.

	+ 499	S. Nash, S. Marion, A. Stoudemire
	+ 457	B. Bowen, T. Duncan, T. Parker
	+ 447	S. Nash, S. Marion, R. Bell

Nash, Marion and Stoudemire are the gold standard in the NBA of a dominant trio and their Lenovo standing only fortifies their position. The Suns' group used a +39 week to create separation from the surging three of Bruce Bowen, Tim Duncan and Tony Parker from San Antonio. The Rockets' Tracy McGrady, Rafer Alston and Shane Battier dropped out of the top three and were replaced by Nash, Marion and Bell.

Another point on the three-player combos to consider:

Dallas, Phoenix, San Antonio, and Houston hold all of the top 50 three-player combinations in the Western Conference. This is not that surprising since they have the top four records in the conference. However, what is surprising is the lack of representation from Utah, the fifth best team in the West. Despite only being two games behind Houston in the standings, the Rockets have 12 three-player combinations that are better than the Jazz’s best combination. The two teams will meet up in the first round of the playoffs and if the Lenovo stat holds true, the Jazz should win fairly handily.

	+ 643	B. Bowen, T. Duncan
	+ 610	S. Nash, S. Marion
	+ 545	T. Duncan, T. Parker

The forward-guard combo proved to make up the top three duos with Duncan pairing with Bowen and Parker and Nash teaming up with Marion.

Another point on the two-player combos to consider:

Last week we called out Antonio McDyess for his stellar stats of late. This week he continued his great play with the help of Chauncey Billups - as the two have the top two-player combination over the last 10 games, +124. To put this in perspective, when McDyess and Billups have been on the floor together, the Pistons are outscoring opponents at a rate of 29 points per 48 minutes, by far the best rate in the league for tandems playing more than 15 minutes per game together.

	+ 760	T. Duncan
	+ 618	S. Nash
	+ 608	D. Nowitzki

So this what it must feel like for the presenter to open up the envelope on Oscar night. "And the Lenovo goes to ... Tim Duncan!" The Spurs' center ended up running away with the top spot, leaving MVP candidates Nash and Nowitzki in his dust.

Another point on the top individuals to consider:

The Lenovo breakout performance this year belongs to Luol Deng. In his third season the Bulls forward set his career high in scoring (18.8 points), field goals (52 percent), free throws (78 percent), rebounding (7.0 per game), and steals (1.2 per game) all while starting every game this season. He also leapt past Billups and LeBron James to secure the best individual mark in the Eastern Conference, +422, which is a huge leap from last season’s +73.