NBA Power Rankings Week 3
Monday, November 16, 2009Posted by Neil Conklin
Eight teams from last week’s top ten lost this week, including all of the top six. The teams that didn’t? Cleveland you would expect, as they seem to be getting back on track after a slow start. But Atlanta? Everyone has conceded since the beginning of this season that the Hawks are a top four team in the East. But did anyone really expect to start uttering them in the same sentence as the Celtics, Cavs, and Magic? This week has left us with a few big questions…
Are the Hawks for real?
They’ve got the best record in the East, and they came away with a W after their first real test, a road game in Boston. They’ve got two of the top ten shot-blockers in the league. They’ve got a go-to scorer. They’re young, but still somewhat playoff tested. They’ve got a clutch point guard, some good shooters, and a 6th man off the bench that can score 20 on any given night. That all being said, I’d have to see some more out of them before I could believe they’d win a playoff series vs. any of the 3 aforementioned teams.
Who is the second best team in the West?
The three candidates: Denver, Portland, and Phoenix. The Suns are the big surprise here. Most didn’t even think the Suns would make the playoffs, but now they look like they could win 60 games again. In retrospect, what’s the difference between this Suns team and the ones before Shaq that just ran up and down the court and tried to outscore you? Sure, Mike D’Antoni is gone, but the West is a weaker conference now. I like Denver, but right now I’d have to say Phoenix takes the 2-spot out West when all is said and done.
Is Milwaukee a playoff team?
Anyone that isn’t picking Brandon Jennings for ROY now is nuts. This kid can flat out score. Name ten other NBA players that can go off for 55 in one night (or 29 in a quarter for that matter). A rookie? That’s unheard of. In fact, it hasn’t happened in almost 50 years! The Bucks are 5-3 (nearly 6-2 after an overtime loss to Dallas) without Michael Redd. When he gets back, watch out. The answer here just may be yes.
Enough of that, let’s get to the rankings…
1. Hawks (9-2): Last week: 7
2. Lakers (7-3): Last week: 2
3. Celtics (8-3): Last week: 1
4. Suns (9-2): Last week: 3
5. Magic (8-3): Last week: 4
There’s just to other way to put it. Despite the fact that everyone knows the Lakers and the Celtics are still the teams to beat come playoff time, Atlanta is playing the best basketball in the league right now. They continue to turn heads. Both L.A. and Boston lost 2 games this week, and Atlanta has won 5 in a row, the last two coming in Boston and at home against Portland.
L.A. needs to wake up before they find themselves in a race for home court out west. They’re not going to just run away with it this year. As for the Celtics, a couple of lackadaisical performances against Atlanta and Indiana, and they find themselves in a similar position. Cleveland is coming back strong after a slow start and Atlanta looks like they are for real. This is a wakeup call for them.
6. Cavaliers (7-3): Last week: 8
7. Nuggets (7-3): Last week: 5
8. Mavericks (8-3): Last week: 6
9. Heat (7-2): Last week: 9
10. Trail Blazers (8-4): Last week: 11
A Florida sweep on the road and a win back home against Utah has the Cavs back on track. Whether or not they have found the best way to utilize Shaq is a different story.
Destroying the Lakers at home made most forget about the loss Denver suffered in Utah. If they want to be a top 5 team, they’re going to have to win games like that.
Exact rankings may vary, but there won’t be much argument over these teams being the top 10. They seem to be the teams to beat, although Miami might need to beat a worthy foe before people start looking at them.
11. Rockets (6-4): Last week: 12
12. Bulls (5-4): Last week: 10
13. Spurs (4-4): Last week: 13
14. Raptors (5-5): Last week: 14
15. Bucks (5-3): Last week: 22
16. Thunder (5-5): Last week: 17
17. Pistons (5-5): Last week: 18
18. Jazz (4-6): Last week: 15
19. Pacers (4-3): Last week: 25
20. Kings (5-4): Last week: 24
Talks of the Spurs dynasty coming to a close are going to get louder if S.A. doesn’t figure out a way to start winning more consistently. For now, we can assume that getting Richard Jefferson and some other newcomers incorporated into the system is just taking some time.
The Bucks make the biggest jump of the year this week behind the outstanding play of Brandon Jennings. The Kings and Pacers climb out of the bottom 10 (though for how long, who knows), behind a couple of 4 game winning streaks. The Jazz continue to fall victim to a tough early schedule, losing to Boston and Cleveland on the road this week.
21. 76ers (4-6): Last week: 19
22. Clippers (4-7): Last week: 23
23. Hornets (3-8): Last week: 16
24. Warriors (3-6): Last week: 26
25. Bobcats (3-7): Last week: 20
26. Wizards (2-7): Last week: 21
27. Grizzlies (2-8): Last week: 27
28. Knicks (1-9): Last week: 28
29. Timberwolves (1-10): Last week: 29
30. Nets (0-10): Last week: 30
It’s tough to say that anyone believes New Orleans is actually this bad, but after firing Byron Scott and losing Chris Paul for a while, the Hornets are going to find themselves down here for a while.
In order for Philadelphia to have any hopes of making the playoffs, Elton Brand needs to wake up and start earning his money. As for Washington, by the time Antawn Jamison gets healthy and back into the mix, it might be too late. The playoff hopes for both of these teams looked good in the pre-season, but are starting to look grim now.
Moving just a little down the list, we have New York, which is looking less and less appetizing to every summer of 2010 free agent to be. There’s Minnesota, whose leading scorer, Al Jefferson, is scoring just a measly 15 points per game. Then, we have New Jersey. Hold your breath Nets fans, because if you don’t get a win in the next week, you could be staring history in the face. If the Brooklyn Nets to be don’t get a win by the time their future state rivals leave town on Saturday, they’ll have to get it on a 4-game west coast trip or come to grips with the magical 0-17. Game 18? Home against Dallas.
Yes, that’s right. I’m already looking at the Nets’ schedule on a game-by-game basis to see when they’ll nab that first win. You’re going to try and tell me you’re not?
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