Here are my NBA Power Rankings for December 5, 2014. Enjoy!
#1. Golden State Warriors (16-2): The Warriors have won 11 straight games and are seeded #1 in the Western Conference. The most impressive part about this run is that they are doing this without David Lee.
#2. Memphis Grizzlies (15-3): The Rockets got even with them earlier this week, handing them just their third loss of the season. I do not doubt that the Grizzlies will bounce back from this, but they have some tough opponents coming to town like the Spurs, Mavericks, and Heat.
#3. Houston Rockets (14-4): Defeating the Grizzlies without Dwight Howard is beyond impressive. That is a really encouraging win for this Rockets team.
#4. Portland Trail Blazers (15-4): The Portland Trail Blazers are playing some really good basketball right now. They just need to hope the other good teams in the Western Conference like the Rockets, Warriors, and Grizzlies cool off.
#5. Toronto Raptors (15-4): The loss of DeMar DeRozan for the foreseeable future is a blow to this team, but it's a blow they can withstand due to the Eastern Conference being garbage.
#6. Dallas Mavericks (15-5): They have two legit closers in Monta Ellis and Dirk Nowitzki. That makes them really scary.
#7. San Antonio Spurs (13-5): I rarely say that there are "big games" in December, especially for teams like the Spurs. But I actually think tonight's trip to Memphis is a huge game for the Spurs. They need to remind people that they are still the defending champs.
#8. Los Angeles Clippers (13-5): They are currently riding on a six game winning streak. With games against the Pelicans and Suns at home coming up, that streak should extend to eight before they head out on an Eastern Conference road trip.
#9. Atlanta Hawks (11-6): Remember how we wondered how good these guys would be with a healthy Paul Millsap and a healthy Al Horford? I think we are starting to have that questioned answered. These guys look pretty good.
#10. Washington Wizards (12-5): Bradley Beal may be back, but now Nene is hurt and Paul Pierce has been dealing with a toe injury. Injuries are the only thing holding this team back from perhaps being the best team in the Eastern Conference.
#11. Chicago Bulls (12-7): Speaking of injuries, this team too needs to get healthy. Derrick Rose is back, but now it's Taj Gibson who is out indefinitely with an ankle injury. This team needs to get all its key players healthy so that we can know how good they actually are.
#12. Cleveland Cavaliers (10-7): During his last three games, Kyrie Irving has scored 24 points, 28 points and 37 points. If he keeps playing like this, these guys will be as scary as we thought they would be. Evidence of this is that they are currently on a five game winning streak.
#13. Phoenix Suns (11-8): They have a three game road trip starting tonight: @Dallas, @Houston, and @Los Angeles Clippers. These three games will tell us a lot about how good these guys actually are.
#14. Denver Nuggets (9-9): If they can consistently figure out how to win on the road, they could be a playoff team. Denver is always a tough place to play even when the Nuggets aren't terribly good and this year, the Nuggets are pretty good.
#15. Milwaukee Bucks (10-10): With the way these guys are playing under Jason Kidd, maybe the Nets made a mistake in letting him go.
#16. Miami Heat (9-9): People were buying the Heat as a sleeper team to win the East at the beginning of the year, but now it looks like that was wishful thinking. They are still a competitive team, but not a team we should take seriously as a contender.
#17. New Orleans Pelicans (8-9): Getting blown out by the Warriors on Thursday is just a reminder that even with Anthony Davis playing like a beast, this team still needs to get a lot better and provide him with more quality players.
#18. Sacramento Kings (9-9): Hopefully they can get DeMarcus Cousins back soon. I heard it was only a two game absence, so odds are good that they'll have him back by Monday.
#19. Oklahoma City Thunder (5-13): Why the sudden jump in the power rankings? Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook are back! These guys should be able to make the playoffs and start climbing up the power rankings. #19 is where they are gonna have to start.
#20. Brooklyn Nets (8-9): Paul Pierce did well to get out of Brooklyn. These guys seem destined for another mediocre season.
#21. Indiana Pacers (7-12): They've been trying to tread water without Paul George and they are starting to look tired. I don't see them making the playoffs and perhaps another high draft pick would do this team some good. Yes, I just mentioned the draft in December!
#22. Orlando Magic (7-14): The loss to the Warriors at the hands of Stephen Curry was heartbreaking given they actually played a championship contending team really well on the road.
#23. Boston Celtics (5-11): There isn't a lot for Celtics fans to be happy about. Rondo is still around and the team has lost 8 of their last 10 games.
#24. Utah Jazz (5-14): I honestly like what I've seen from this team. Gordon Hayward, Derrick Favors, Trey Burke, Alec Burks, Enes Kanter, and Dante Exum look fine. They are just in a brutal conference.
#25. Los Angeles Lakers (5-14): For all this talk about Kobe Bryant playing so well for his age, his team still sucks.
#26. Charlotte Hornets (4-15): I wrote a blog piece about their struggles earlier this week, so feel free to check it out. The short version is as follows: Lance Stephenson, Kemba Walker, and Gerald Henderson are struggling.
#27. Minnesota Timberwolves (4-13): Losing to the 76ers is depressing.
#28. New York Knicks (4-16): Amare' Stoudemire is finally playing like he's worth one-third of his contract!
#29. Detroit Pistons (3-16): I actually think they'll lose to the 76ers on Saturday. That's how bad it's gotten.
#30. Philadelphia 76ers (1-17): They won a game!!! Next goal for them to is get out of the #30 spot in my power rankings. A win over Detroit on Saturday might do the trick!
---Ben Parker: follow me on twitter @nba_lord
No comments:
Post a Comment