| RANK | TEAM | THE RUNDOWN | LAST |
| 1 | HEAT (66-16) |
They really didn’t need Mike Miller, who was amnestied and fell into the lap of his original team, the Grizzlies. He was nice to have around when somebody, anybody, needed to hit a big 3-point shot in a closeout game. But that job will now fall to Rashard Lewis or Ray Allen or LeBron. They are all capable. | – |
| 2 | PACERS (49-32) |
If I was a gambling man, I’d pick them to win the title — and I would get some very decent odds. The Luis Scola trade put them right up there with Brooklyn as the team that improved the most over the course of the season. Chris Copeland will be a key contributor off the bench, but what will make or break this team is the play of guards George Hill and Lance Stephenson. | – |
| 3 | NETS (48-33) |
Paul Pierce will not have to be the de facto point guard, as he was after Rajon Rondo’s injury. Kevin Garnett will not have to be the de facto center, which he was for the past two seasons. Andrei Kirilenko and Andray Blatche can get them past the Pacers. Jason Kidd can be the good cop, Garnett will be the bad cop. They will be fierce. | – |
| 4 | SPURS (58-24) |
In case you’ve forgotten, Gregg Popovich cost this team the title. He is not a genius anymore. Great coaches don’t do things in Game 6 of the NBA Finals the same way they do things during the regular season. They adapt to the situation. It’s called tactics. It’s called adjusting on the fly. He did neither. And he acted like a jerk during his podium time. Time to lighten up, Pop. Show some class. Show some savvy. | – |
| 5 | THUNDER (60-22) |
On principle, I should be ranking them beneath the Rockets (Sam Presti is no genius either, but at least he didn’t coach his team out of a championship, a la Pop.) The fact of the matter is that Kevin Durant is a more valuable player than Dwight Howard, and the same goes for Russell Westbrook when comparing him to James Harden. They’d better hope they have something in Jeremy Lamb. | – |
| 6 | GRIZZLIES (56-26) |
Well, they finally found their shooter in Mike Miller. And they found a way to keep Tony Allen at an affordable price (One day, defensive stoppers will be paid like 7-footers). They also pulled off one of the best under-the-radar acquisitions by getting Kosta Koufos from the Nuggets, which will reduce the wear and tear on Marc Gasol. If they can get Nick Calathes to back up Mike Conley, they’ll compete for No. 1 seed. | – |
| 7 | CLIPPERS (57-25) |
Doc Rivers? A vast improvement over Vinny Del Negro. J.J. Redick and Jared Dudley? Two glue guys that will provide what Chauncey Billups and Grant Hill were supposed to provide but never did. What will be their undoing when all is said and done? The free throw shooting of Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan. | – |
| 8 | KNICKS (54-28) |
We should penalize them with a double-digit ranking simply for the idiocy of trading for Andrea Bargnani. But the acquisition of Metta World Peace (or Whole Foods Guacamole Dip, if that’s what he indeed changes his name to) is going to make a world of difference when it comes time to have a defensive stopper in the playoffs. The Nets made the bolder moves, but the Knicks can compete with them if Amar’e Stoudemire has a real role. | – |
| 9 | WARRIORS (47-35) |
Every single team needs a defensive stopper. Personally, I’d rather have Tony Allen than Andre Iguodala, because Tony won’t be tempted to take the key shot of the game. Iggy? He’ll do it enough times to make Dubs fans shake their heads and ask why Stephen Curry or Klay Thompson didn’t get a chance. X-factor for these guys is Andrew Bogut’s health. | – |
| 10 | BULLS (45-37) |
Dear Derrick Rose: That bullshit you pulled last year should prompt adidas to fire you as an endorser. “Wear these shoes, but don’t play basketball in them.” Have the goods to get Pau Gasol. It’ll cost them the No. 1 pick the Bobcats owe them, plus another No. 1, plus the rights to Nikola Mirotic, plus a couple guys to make the money match. But with Gasol, they can beat anybody. | – |
| 11 | ROCKETS (45-37) |
Congratulations to Daryl Morey for landing Dwight Howard and James Harden within the space of 10 months. Now, what are you going to do about Jeremy Lin? Put him on the bench again in the playoffs and let Patrick Beverly and Harden handle the playmaking chores? This team has four great starters. You need five. | – |
| 12 | WOLVES (31-51) |
No question they will miss Andrei Kirilenko, but they did just fine the previous year without him with Kevin Love being a 20-20 machine. He still has that in him. Had a strong draft and made a nice signing by adding Corey Brewer (see repeated references to defensive stoppers, and how everybody needs one). | – |
| 13 | CAVALIERS (24-58) |
And while we are on the subject of sleeper teams, let us not forget the East. Not only will they be one of the NBA’s most enjoyable teams to watch, they will become what Chris Paul and Blake Griffin became two years ago, with Kyrie Irving and Anthony Bennett filling those roles. Plus they get a healthy Anderson Varejao back. | – |
| 14 | PELICANS (27-55) |
Three things you need to compete with the very best: An All-Star point guard (Jrue Holiday gets the check mark), an All-Star center (Anthony Davis is well on his way) and a 3-point shooting machine (Ryan Anderson is a known commodity in that department). They are the West’s sleeper team. Mark my words. | – |
| 15 | PISTONS (29-53) |
Joe Dumars did a lot better in free agency this time than he did last time (remember Charlie Villanueva and Ben Gordon?) beginning with getting Josh Smith for less than the max, then adding Brandon Jennings to address the team’s biggest weakness — point guard. The front line was already solid with Andre Drummond and Greg Monroe, and they might even win a postseason game with Mr. Big Shot back on board. | – |
| 16 | HAWKS (44-38) |
Didn’t bid against themselves for Jeff Teague, and retained him at a reasonable number — which will allow Lou Williams to continue heading up the second unit. Lost Zaza Pachulia but picked up Paul Millsap and Elton Brand, which will allow Al Horford to play a lot more center than he did a year ago. | – |
| 17 | KINGS (28-54) |
Pulling their offer to Andre Iguodala may have been the smartest move they made. They don’t need to clog their cap with 30-somethings. Still have the league’s No. 1 head case (DeMarcus Cousins) who could become the league’s No. 1 center if the right coach can pull the right strings (Good luck with that, Mike Malone). Made a nice value signing in getting Carl Landry. | – |
| 18 | NUGGETS (57-25) |
Look no further for an example of how quickly things change in the NBA. Coach of the Year George Karl was fired. General manager Masai Ujiri left to take over the leadership of the Raptors — and was able to find a taker for Andrea Bargnani. Andre Iguodala left as a free agent. Starting center Kosta Koufos was traded. Is this still a playoff team? At this point, methinks not. I like the Kings better. | – |
| 19 | MAGIC (20-62) |
We can safely anoint Rob Hennigan as the winner of the Dwight Howard sweepstakes. Nik Vucevic will be an All-Star next season, Tobias Harris was an absolute steal in the J.J. Redick dump job, Victor Oladipo is going to be the next Dwyane Wade, and they’ll be under the salary cap once Hedu Turkoglu is cut (only half his $12 million salary is guaranteed.) | – |
| 20 | CELTICS (41-40) |
As much as it appears they are going to be major players in Tankapalooza, there is one problem. They still have Rajon Rondo on their team, and that guy is capable of winning 16-20 games all by himself. We fully expect him to be traded (he is probably No. 2 on the Most Likely List behind Pau Gasol), and the sooner that happens the sooner the Celtics can get into the Andrew Wiggins mix. | – |
| 21 | LAKERS (45-37) |
It is August, so I will take a swig of the purple and gold Kool-Aid, put aside my skepticism and buy into the talk that Kobe will be ready for Opening Night. After all, it’s only a torn Achilles. Just like the common cold, some would have us believe. | – |
| 22 | BLAZERS (33-49) |
Is Robin Lopez going to be a better center than J.J. Hickson was? Because aside from drafting C.J. McCollom, not a lot has been done here in terms of upgrading the roster in the NBA’s toughest conference. Hard to see them being better than a 35-win team. They’d be ranked ahead of Lakers if I wasn’t drinking the Kobe Kool-Aid. | – |
| 23 | JAZZ (43-39) |
Three starters are gone, and they were three pretty darn good starters — Al Jefferson, Paul Millsap and Mo Williams. The front office did a nice job taking Golden State’s flotsam and getting a pair of first-round picks, and drafting Trey Burke was solid. He could be ROY if win total reaches 30. | – |
| 24 | BUCKS (38-44) |
After last year’s late-season meltdown, it was time to take out the dynamite. They will get a lot more bang for the buck in the backcourt from Brandon Knight, Gary Neal and O.J. Mayo in comparison to what they were paying or would have had to pay Monta Ellis, Brandon Jennings and J.J. Redick. Can’t understand why they gave away Luc Richard Mbah a Moute. | – |
| 25 | MAVERICKS (41-41) |
The summer’s biggest losers. Can’t fault Mark Cuban for going all-in cap wise when players such as Dwight Howard and Chris Paul were going to be on the market, but sometimes all-in pushes backfire. If they start 2-18 or 3-17, will Dirk want out? One would think so. | – |
| 26 | WIZARDS (29-53) |
Giving John Wall a max contract extension goes down as the summer’s second-dumbest move (nobody can supplant the Knicks’ acquisition of Andrea Bargnani). There is talent here, no doubt, and the club’s surge in March and April was certainly promising. Coming out of the gate strong will be key to their season. | – |
| 27 | RAPTORS (34-48) |
Nominations for executive of the year are now closed. Masai Ujiri would have traded Bargnani for a bag of basketballs, and he fleeced the Knicks for Steve Novak and a first-round pick. Does Masai have the cajones to trade Landry Fields back to the Knicks, too? | – |
| 28 | BOBCATS (21-61) |
Why on Earth Al Jefferson chose this as his new home defies explanation. Can’t imagine Cody Zeller is too happy about it. Still owe a first-round pick to Chicago for the Tyrus Thomas trade. Will be paying Ben Gordon $13.2 million this season. At least they’ll be better than the Sixers. | – |
| 29 | SUNS (25-57) |
They are owed three first round picks (Indiana, Lakers, Timberwolves), and they don’t have any dead money on their cap after next season. But those are the only nice things we have to say. | – |
| 30 | SIXERS (34-48) |
Repeat after me, Sixers fans: “Andrew Wiggins, Andrew Wiggins, Andrew Wiggins.” Could be the worst team in NBA history. | – |
Chris Sheridan is publisher and editor-in-chief of SheridanHoops.com. Follow him on Twitter.
Pages: 1 2
I have been browsing online more than 4 hours today, yet
I never found any interesting article like yours. It is pretty worth enough
for me. Personally, if all webmasters and bloggers made good
content as you did, the net will be a lot more
useful than ever before.
Finally We Have A Real Analyst RT Im A Rockets Fan @ Heart But I see The Same Thing Rockets Have 4 Starters But Missing 5 Starters The PF position…. DRose Let THe Whole City Of Chi,team, & Himself Done Mentality Not Ready.. But Cleared 2 play In Feb. Everything about this situation screams out selfish. I wonder if Kobe Will Be ready Mentailty Come Dec. #Sarcasm RT….I thought I was The Only Anaylst That Saw The Cavs, Wolves & Pistons Making the playoffs RT & They MT Shock alot of Teams… If U want 2 Win in the NBA U Have To Have SuperStar Power Just Ask SuperStar GMs Ainge & Morey that ? RT…Agree W/ U about The Bargnani if theirs any team that makes bad trades its the knicks Note: 2 All GM S RT.. I Even Think the OKC will never be the same w/ out Harden True SuperStar Like KD.. Russ Is Good For The Team But Also Hurts ThisTeam But Who Else Is Their The Offensive Power In Perkins& Ibaka + KD Had Way 2 Many Techincals Last YR=WestBrook Any1 ….Off Topic But Conlusion Any1 Kirilenko Russian Nets Owner Is Russian Turned Down 10 Mil from Spurs & Wolves For 3million RT..Back 2 Topic Rockets Will WIn This Ring This Yr2 Much talent surrounded Around The Best 2 Guard Harden & THe BEst Center In THe Game D12 I Wont Be Shocked..But The List Looks RT Real Anaylst Chris Sheridan #Respect Your List & Sarcasm
You said a lot but it amounts to nothing end your opinion and opinions are like holes everybody has o e somewhere on their body. It seems you are like the many nitwits who want to tell someone what they should do with their body rather than allow that player to determine when he is ready. I bet in your life you would not allow anybody to tell you how to deal with your life issues but your feel you have a right to demand it of someone else. You are like the nitwit author who feels he knows best how someone should deal with their own injury and play when he does not feel ready . Please let it go its his decision not yours or the nitwit who wrote that crap statement.
Bulls 10 wow what a rip and furthermore to harp on Rose well knowing these writers trying to get al large amount of readers and reply’s to their article why not get critical about players and teams.
Sheridan…he top few teams are probably correct but after that this list is a mess!
and you cannot be serious with your trade proposal of two bulls first rounders PLUS Mirotic PLUS boozer (to match salaries) for Pau Gasol. Mortgaging three probably future rotation players for a 33 year old man with shoddy knees, when the bulls are hardly in a win-now situation?
I agree what a nitwit to think the Bulls will trade all that for an old man
Keep sleeping on the nuggets. We enjoy it out here.
Yea you are right Nuggets are a good team
So Great They Lost Their Best Player Iggy Lost GM Of the Year Top 5 GM & Lost The Coach OF The Year In George Karl REBUILDING ANY1
There is no way the pistons are 7th in the east and no way cavaliers are better than the pistons. 6th seed in the east is the lowest the pistons will be in 13 – 14, possibly even higher. watch the fun.
You can see that the first 5 teams in the East Bulls, Heat, Pacers, Nets and Knicks are teams that are going to finish in the top 5, but as for 6-8 you will have the Cavs, Pistons, Wiz, Bucks and Hawks all fighting for those last 3 spots
If Mo Williams is a “pretty darn good starter”, then how come he’s still a free agent and absolutely zero NBA teams are interested in him starting for them?
I think that Mo Williams would be a wonderful addition to a team seeking a veteran presence off the bench. He is a pretty good three-point shooter, and I am sure some playoff bound teams could use him. He will have to accept less money though.
I think what has plagued him is his overall average to above average play over his career. He can straight out shoot and defend, but he is no All-Star.
Thoughts?
Mo Williams can’t defend at all and he isn’t a highly efficient player. Mo Williams can defend? Are you serious?
great site
That’s way too much for the Bulls get Gasol. Basically trading away your future picks and Mirotic for a 33 year old guy with shoddy knees. Besides that, your ranking of the Bulls at 10th is almost laughable. It’s like you’re punishing the Bulls because you’re mad that Rose didn’t come back last year. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Bulls won 60 games if they can stay relatively healthy. They have the 2nd best coach in the NBA (behind Popovich) and went to the 2nd round with a roster of backups and injured guys.
On RealGM.com there is a Wiretap saying that Nikola Pekovic wants a $15M dollar contract per year which is crazy to say the least (since he is probably not worth that, but asking for it is not bad, I guess as he is a legit NBA center).
However is there any team that can offer him a $15M/year? The only team that comes to mind are the 76ers. The Timberwolves are already stacked in the backcourt, and losing Pekovic and possibly Love down the road would really hurt.
Any thoughts?
Why should Rose have risked re-injuring his knee coming back against a dominant and healthy Miami team when the Bulls were already without Hinrich and Deng and with Noah playing hobbled?
Try tearing your ACL and coming back from that.
You really need to let go of the Bargnani deal, Chris.
The Knicks gave away nothing for him, also saved cap space, and if – yes, I said if – he can spread the floor and hit some jumpers with some consistency, then it will be a steal.
If he does none of that, it’s like having an Italian Steve Novak – for $4 mil less than the real Steve Novak.
Calling it idiocy only makes you look like an idiot, honestly.
I wonder what exactly the Sacramento Kings did this summer to possibly leapfrog all those teams. Let their second best guy go, piled on more mediocre PFs, their rookie looked like a bust in summer league. But now a playoff fringe team over the Nuggets, right?
Mavs at 25…really?
We all can concede the absolutely collossal FAIL that last year was…Dirk started the year barely right, then missed 40 games, and wasn’t right for a few more…they were 41-41 and had the 17th best record in the league.
I realize they didn’t get Dwight, but we ALL can look at last year’s roster and this year’s roster and anyone with a brain can see the team is obviously better…at the VERY least at the brains of just about every PG on the roster…
Realizing that, with a healthy Dirk, how in the world can you say they get 8 spots worse?
Let’s face it…you mailed it in after 1-12 and didn’t really give a rip what you put after that…either that or you obviously don’t really watch basketball and have totally fooled someone into getting the job you have….eos.
Seriously bro? You put Mavs at #25 and think teams like the kings, magic, and bucks going to be better than the mavs? I seriously question your nba knowledge. Dirk missed the 1st 29 games of the season last year and mavs had a scrub lineup last year yet still almost made the playoffs. If not for Dirk missing the first 29 games of the season, Mavs would definitely be making the playoffs for the 13th straight year.
Mavs upgraded from Mike James to Jose Calderon
Upgraded from the choker Mayo to Monta Ellis
Upgraded from a center that played no defense in Kaman to a player that plays defense as a center in Dalembert
Mavs are deep. They have player on their bench like Brandan Wright, Dejuan Blair, Ellington, Ledo, Shane Larkin, Harris, and so many more.
I just don’t understand your hate
I agree that Mavs, Wiz, Nuggets Raptors too low and Pelicans, Magic, Wolves, Jazz, Celts too high.
Mavs should be about same as Wolves and possibly Nuggets – competing for last playoff spot.
Knicks and Rockets should switch places, but then Sheridan has a lot of Knick fans reading this.
Clippers should be competing for best record in West.
He will have time to digest lineups and make changes for Sept.
I don’t expect Rondo to traded, as long as he gets along with his coach and teammates.
I agree that Gasol likely will be traded, when it becomes apparent that Lakers aren’t going anywhere.
Nets won 49, not 48 games this past season (same #wins as Pacers).
I agree that best 3 teams in NBA are in the East. It shouldn’t be that hard to rationalize, as OKC got weaker and SA got older.
Nets added 7 (that SEVEN) desirable players from the core 8, and lost only 1 desirable player (CJ Watson). They also upgraded at Coach, with Frank doing the X’s and O’s and Kidd pushing players to play harder and smarter.
I like you pick of Pistons being higher than Nuggets.
Really enthused by all the Pacers offseason moves. They will only continue to get better. However, one trade I would like them to consider making before the deadline is Stephenson, Granger, and a future first round pick for Rajon Rondo and Courtney Lee. Larry Bird stated that if Solomon Hill continued to improve he could see him playing major minutes after the all-star break. With Paul George, Danny Granger becomes redundant. Meanwhile, the Cs are looking to move some of their sg and Lee’s multi-year contract. Everyone knows Rondo is not going to be all in for Project Tank. The only missing piece to the Championship puzzle for the Pacers is a pg who can better orchestrate the offense (i.e. Rajon Rondo). Thoughts?
I think this is a great move for both teams. The Cs seem intent on losing. They are not going to lose enough games with Rondo: unless he sits until January. All he knows is winning. He would be a great addition to the Pacers. Meanwhile, the Cs would get Danny’s expiring contract, young talent in Stephenson in return, a draft pick, and they would get to unload the money they owe Lee. Good Trade. The Pacers would move to #1 on the power rankings with that acquisition.
i think they should send the contract of G.Wallace to indiana in that trade… it would be a wiser move for the celtics
Who wrote this? Dear Derrick rose bs really? Critical sports writer who couldn’t beat my 8 yr old son in a one on one match.
I really have to question your credibility here with the Mavs at #25.
Last season was the worst case scenario for the Mavs. Strike out on Deron in the offseason. Dwight gets traded to the Lakers. Dirk can’t start for half the season due to surgery. Darren Collison and OJ Mayo have the BBIQ of leg warmers and can’t get the ball to Dirk even when he finally does come back. Biggest offseason acquisition Chris Kaman has the mobility of a butterstick on defense and gets DNP-CDs. The Mavs sign various guards off the street, like Derek Fisher. Derek Fisher starts. Derek Fisher gets his contract waived only to play for another team later in the season. Mike James starts.
In spite of all that, we were still in the playoff race until the last several days, winning at a 50-win pace post all-star break with no training camp and with no defense. And yet with an ostensibly healthy Dirk (who was back to his old game-changing self as he regained his form) and upgrades at every position to better fit his skillset, you’re saying there’s no improvement there and they’ll go 2-17 to start next year, when even the absolute worst stretch last season without Dirk didn’t come close to approaching those levels of ineptitude?
I would be willing to bet everything I have that there will be at least 6 teams worse than the Mavs next year.
Sheridan? Want to wager?
Power rankings do not denote finishing position at the end of the season. They are about who is hot right now.
The Mavs cannot be said to be hot right now.
Not a bad effort given the time of the year , and I have actually already placed a lazy $20 on the Pacers
I hope the Pistons do well with their roster but they may lack the chemistry so I’ll go with you on where you have them for this exercise
Disagree with where you have the Blazers positioned , realise they have an unhappy big man but they now have a bench that is at least three deep compared to non existent .
As strange as it may seem to the average fan, the Sacramento Kings should be higher on your rankings. Let me explain…
The new ownership (Vivek Renadive) has brought a radical top-bottom change to the organization. Now the Kings for the first time in years actually spend money to make the team better. They hired much better executives and new coaching staff to deal with both the on court X ans Os, the GM diplomatics/research and the advanced stats technical section. You can add to that the return of the enthusiasm of one of the best fanbases in the NBA (if I’m not mistaken, the Kings and the Warriors are first in season ticket sales at the moment), and finally the construction of the new arena has begun. We are talking about a total revolution in Sacramento. They have to reflect all that on the floor of course, but since this is the “Summer” rankings, you have to rank them higher and take under your consideration much more than just who signed/waived who.
Thanks
I see you are a fucking moron as usual. How did that work for you in 2011? Without looking it up I am pretty sure in the last 11 years even with last year’s crap team, they have not finished the season as the 25th best team or lower. Put down the crack pipe.
These rankings are a little shaky. Miami and Indiana are accurate, but the rest is really a bit of a mess.
Brooklyn better than a San Antonio team coming off a 7 game series vs Miami? This is a BKN team that, when healthy and with a more proven coach, couldn’t beat an incredibly hobbled Chicago squad. Pierce and Garnett will make them better, but how much is the question – this is a big leap for a team that will struggle in an increasingly more difficult eastern conference. They’re the third or fourth best team in the east, but in the league? That’s a big stretch.
The Thunder, meanwhile, have let their bench go to pieces, and are counting on Lamb making a leap from d-league player to impact guy off the bench. Reggie Jackson showed flashes of solid backup pg skills in the playoffs, but Scott Brooks still doesn’t know how to effectively use Ibaka, Durant and Westbrook together. They have the best combo of superstars of any team in the league, but seriously lack depth or quality coaching.
The Grizzlies have made some strides, but adding one shooter on the wrong side of 30 is definitely not a cure-all for their anemic perimeter shooting. They also still leave a lot to be desired at the SF spot. Their defense is elite, but they will still struggle to score until they have a trustworthy shot-creator on the wing, whether he starts or comes off the bench.
The Knicks signing World Peace does little to nothing for them; it’s, at best, a ‘name brand’ signing. He is a nice shooter, but his once-dominate defensive game is a thing of the past. He gets repeatedly abused by quicker forwards who blow by him, or taller forwards who just shoot over him. The Knicks also lost Novak to TOR in the Bargnani trade. This is a team that will struggle to crack the top 4 in the WEAKER conference, so ranking the ahead of teams like the bulls, w’s and rockets seems absurd.
Chicago is primed to make a big splash. This is a team that held their own for an entire season without their motor, won a first-round series, and added a big shooter in Mike Dunleavy, who will match or eclipse Belinelli’s output from this past season. They are getting back a player who was recently named MVP. It’s hard to ignore that.
Golden State and Houston both made radical improvements to their roster – Houston needed rim protection and GS needed an upgrade in wing defense, and both teams got top shelf talent in that regard. Both teams are also better-coached than the Knicks, and more talented from top to bottom. Like I said, NYK are going to struggle just to crack the top 4 in the east, so ranking them above west teams that could win 55 games and still not have home court int he playoffs is silly.
I like where you have the Wolves, Pelies and Cavs, but not in this particular order – the wolves have the best (when healthy) player of the 3 teams, but lost a key defensive wing player in AK47, and look to have next to nobody to play above-average defense on their roster. The Cavs, meanwhile, have Varejao and Bynum, and added Earl Clark, who has shown flashes of being a decent defender. Kyrie also impacts the game in such a wide variety of ways that the Cavs really look playoff-bound. The Pelicans, unlike the Wolves, took a big step forward defensively when they traded for Holiday. They also added another ball handler who can create in Evans, and Davis is bound to have a better year than his past injury-riddled season. If they stay healthy, the Southwest division might have 4 teams go to the playoffs this year.
PJ is a proven coach? He’s one of the worst coaches in the league. Having coached before doesn’t make you proven. He was terrible and absolutely outcoached in that Bulls series.
You think the Cavs and Pelicans are better than the Pistons right now? I don’t see it but maybe you see something I don’t. Kyrie, Varejao and Bynum can’t stay healthy for the Cav, and Eric Gordon can’t stay healthy for the Pelicans.
No complaints here. That top 10 is too hard to accurately depict right now regardless, but I personally would of switched 5-6 and moved the Knicks to 10, while pushing Golden State and Chicago up.
As far as the Mavericks at 25? I would make a case that the Wizards may need to get bumped a notch over them to be honest, but we’ll see how the season go. These rankings are always subject to change of course, and this coming season looks to be as much of a roller coaster as one we’ve ever seen.
Celtics ahead of the Lakers??? Really? After losing their whole team except Rondo, I don’t get it…enlighten me
Doesn’t matter if they are ahead or behind Boston. The Lakers are garbage.
It is physically impossible to be garbage with The Black Mamba on the roster
Tell that to the 2005 Lakers. Or even last year’s Lakers (43-37 before his injury). Lottery team.
Last years Lakers could have made a Spurs-like run had the injury never happened…they were playing some good ball since the break
Nice job hiding your hate for the Spurs and Gregg Popovich.
Did you forget the Bulls had the best record in the NBA the last two seasons they had Rose? Noah has improved, and Butler has arrived and should continue improving. And why the hate on Rose, the Bulls clearly couldn’t have beat the Heat last year with Rose just breaking into the lineup, so he bought himself an extra five months for his leg and confidence, something many NBA players with ACL tears say they wish they would have done, and believe would have had short and long term benefit to their careers. Rose is still a kid with this best yet to come, and the odds of him returning stronger are undeniably higher with the extra time.
Sheridan.. come on… Seriously!? Mavs at #25 and then you reference Nick Calathes, a guard who hasn’t played a minute in the league and wasn’t even worthy of the 3rd PG spot on your ever-so-terrible Mavericks, as a guy who potentially helps the Grizz compete for the #1 seed in the West???
I have seen Calathes play more than a dozen times. He has been coached by one of the craziest geniuses in the world, Zeljko Obradovic. He will be around the NBA a long, long time.
I’m sure the Mavs have seen Calathes play more than a dozen times too, and they went with Calderon, Harris, Mekel and Larkin and avoided signing Calathes either now, or for the past few years when we surely could have used a decent backup PG. Maybe the Mavs FO is stupid or something?
Maybe the Mavs office are stupid?
Let’s see, they signed Calderon, Harris, Mekel and Larkin.
What do you think?
Sheridan you weak.
Bulls will have the best record in the league again with Rose back.
Dallas at 25? They were a 500 team last year and improved at the 1, 2, and 5…
I agree!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Ellis, calderon, and dalembert makes them so much better. Should be fighting for that 6-8 seed in the West. Sheridan you do not know what you are saying. Dirk can win games by himself and still does. Never ever believe the Bucks and Celtics are going to be better than the Mavs this year.
#1-11 is pretty solid and hard to argue with.
#12-26 is quite laughable and looks like it was “mailed in”, especially when teams who are clearly trying to tank are ranked higher than those clearly making runs for the playoffs. Some strong biases coming through?
Specifics, plz.
How are you basing your ranking? Are you ranking them on how you believe they will finish the season in regard to record? Or in regard to whether they are “hot” right now? If it is in regard to record I believe that you may be letting some biases about moves that are “sexy” influence you far too strongly.
So you called the list laughable and then when asked for specifics you had to get clarification on what the list was actually for.
Is there a plugin that turns all comments into ‘herpderp’?
Yes “laughable” is absolutely the description either way. Why? Well if you would actually pay attention to the rankings you would see that it CANNOT be who is “hot” right now unless that only applies to 12-26. 1-11 is clearly about how teams are going to do in regard to record or playoff performance for if it was about “hot” offseason then the Spurs and OKC should be nowhere near the top. There is clearly a double standard going on that is not explained and switches mid-rankings: laughable. OR it is just completely incoherent: laughable.
greast list I believe Miami will win it all bou P acers will give them hell O den will be great addition come playoff time if he stays upright /beat basket website I have come a cross very wll writen &informative.
Wow, how badly are you and everybody else underrating the Mavericks? Their bench alone is already better than their starting lineup last year, and Dirk should be healthier. They still were .500 and a game or two out from the playoffs with Dirk missing much of the year and Mike James as our starting PG. They’re now at least 11-12 spots deep with quality players, and if Calderon-Ellis works out with Dirk, they should almost certainly be back in the playoffs.They improved at every spot, so why would they start the season 2-18? That’s only even a possibility if Dirk goes down with injury again.
Also think you’re underrating the Wizards pretty badly. If healthy, they too should make the playoffs in the East.