NBA Power Rankings [Week 2]
The power rankings are brought to you this week by guest-writer Mr. Big Shot. He shared my feelings that only the top 16 were necessary since a) writing these is tedious, and b) who gives a shit about the bottom 16 teams? I know I don’t care what he thinks about the New Jersey Nets. If you disagree with any of his picks, feel free to let him hear about it in the comments.
1. Boston 8-1: The Celtics are holding their opponents to a league best 84.6 points per game while scoring an average of 99.2 points per game, the largest point differential in the league by nearly 8 points. The rest of November will be a joke considering they don’t have to travel west of Indiana. They could easily have 15 wins come December.
2. Denver 6-3: Melo seems to have the “look” this season according to some pundits. Their division is weak and they should be at-or-near the top the entire season. Playing only 2 home games so far this season Denver hasn’t had its best weapon on the floor, the mile high air.
3. LA Lakers 6-1: With 7 of their next 8 games at home the Lakers should be atop the Pacific Division soon enough. Although the news that Gasol might be out to Christmas should scare Lakers fans. Kobe is back to being the Black Mamba this season and is leading the league in scoring….which is usually a bad sign for the Lakeshow.
4. Phoenix 8-1: Nash is back to his 2007 self dropping 20 assists in multiple games this season. The Suns are riding a 4 game winning streak into tonight’s big TNT game against their hated rivals from LA LA Land. A 5-1 road record is impressive but allowing 105 points per game is not. Their win in Boston was also impressive and if they beat LA we might have to reconsider their spot in the rankings.
5. San Antonio 5-3: As usual people are sleeping on the Spurs. They are 4-0 at home and 0-3 on the road, a trend that can’t continue for much longer. They are playing without Duncan and Parker yet still managed to beat the Mavs. They suffered a tough back-to-back road loss stretch last week in Utah and Portland. However, if Duncan’s ankle is worse off than reported this will be the highest they see themselves in the rankings.
6. Miami 6-1: Time to give Dwayne Wade some love. The Heat are rolling right now with 3 straight wins and holding teams to an impressive 88 points per game. This can’t possibly hold up so we might as well give the hometown guy some love while we can. If this does continue our dreams of seeing Wade in a Bulls uniform could be disappearing before our very eyes.
7. Dallas 5-3: Not really sure what to make of this team yet. With Josh Howard back will they play small ball and throw a lineup of Kidd, Terry, Howard, Marion, Dirk out there? Can Dampier become an unstoppable sixth man and be the x-factor? I do know that Dirk is playing like a man who just found out that his crazy ex-girlfriend was lying about having his baby, which is a good thing.
8. Cleveland 5-3: The Cavs are off to a bit of a rocky start but a win against Orlando last night could be what the doctor ordered. Lebron officially banned all questions about the 2010 off-season for the rest of season which should help a little. But as we have covered here before if Mike Brown continues to coach negligently this team will go nowhere fast.
9. Orlando 6-3: They have lost a step defensively giving up 97 points per game this season but have played both Phoenix and Toronto this season which could explain things. Their loss to the Cavs is a little worrisome but with Rashard Lewis coming back to the lineup they should be primed for a run to the top of their division.
10. Atlanta 6-2: The Hawks look legit this season with Joe Johnson taking on more of a leadership role. Giving up more than 100 points per game is always a concern but they appear a real contender this season for a top spot in the east.
11. Portland 6-3: Don’t let their record deceive you, they have wins against Minnesota and Memphis in the last week. They are however averaging 8.6 more points than their opponents, the third largest in the league.
12. Houston 5-3: The most boring team in the league by far. The addition of T-Mac should help them…lose in the first round of the playoffs.
13. Chicago 4-4: Our beloved Bulls are scoring only 88 points per game. Rose seems to be having some sort of sophomore slump or are our opinions of him inflated because of last years playoff performance. With the Circus coming to town next week this could be a rough ride for the Bulls.
14. Toronto 4-4: We needed another team from the Atlantic Division in here and the Raptors have been surprisingly entertaining thus far this season. They play zero defense but can score with anyone. They have to improve that road record of 1-3 if they want to be considered serious contenders for a playoff spot though.
15. Oklahoma City 4-4: Westbrook just went down with a predictable injury. This guy attacks the rim like Dwayne Wade and will be often injured as a result. They need him healthy to do anything in the loaded west.
16. Detroit 4-4: Hard to tell whats going on in Motown with Tayshaun and Rip missing most of the season so far. Ben Wallace looks alive again and the Pistons can stay with anyone in the East.
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