Weak Schedule or Not, Boston Rules the Rankings
This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.
Welcome to the inaugural edition of the NBA Power Rankings. Much as my cohort Kevin Greenstein does for the NHL, I’ll be posting these every Tuesday to give readers of The New York Sun the lay of the land in pro hoops.
What are the criteria, you ask? Well for starters, this is a subjective list, meaning it’s my opinion on where teams stand rather than a statistical ranking. Yes, the numbers are a factor — they always are with me. But doing it this way allows me to take into account other factors — injuries, hot and cold streaks, etc. — that I otherwise couldn’t.
As for how I do it, my rough guide is “50% forward, 50% backward.” In other words, much of the ranking is based on what the teams have done so far, with an emphasis on recent results, but the rest of it is a look ahead at what their future holds. This is an important distinction: Even this early in the season, there are some teams (like the Clippers) for whom the past looks better than the future; while for others (like Dallas) the opposite is probably true.
With that said, let’s move on to the list. The no. 1 spot shouldn’t be any surprise; after that, let the debate begin (All records through Sunday’s games).
1 BOSTON CELTICS (14–2): The only two quibbles about the Celts thus far is that they’ve played a rather weak schedule, and that they’re at risk for wearing out their three All-Stars for when the games really matter.
2 SAN ANTONIO SPURS (15–3): The defending champs should be fine even if Tim Duncan misses a few games — Manu the Magnificent and Tony Longoria have been so good that Duncan has arguably only been their third-best player.
3 ORLANDO MAGIC (15–4): Is it me or does this team play every night? At any rate, they’re playing extremely well, capping a lengthy West Coast trip with a solid win in Los Angeles and looking like the Celtics’ main threat in the East.
4 UTAH JAZZ (12–5): Second-year pro Ronnie Brewer has made Jazz forget Derek Fisher … so much so that they shockingly booed Fish on his return to Salt Lake this week.
5 PHOENIX SUNS (13–4): If you can go 13–4 and still have most onlookers fairly convinced that you’re playing at less than peak capability, that’s a pretty scary thought.
6 DALLAS MAVERICKS (11–6): This ranking is based more on respect than results. The Mavs have played some mighty unimpressive basketball the past two weeks, but everyone still looks at this roster and sees 55–60 wins.
7 NEW ORLEANS HORNETS (12–6): Chris Paul has been the league’s most underrated player so far, quietly playing MVP-caliber basketball from the point to keep the surprising Hornets in the playoff mix.
8 DETROIT PISTONS (11–5): They’re losing ground on the East’s top two seeds, but maybe that’s not such a bad thing — Pistons have always handled being the underdog much better than being the favorite.
9 GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS (9–7): Anyone remember that 0–6 start? Warriors are 8–1 since the return of Stephen Jackson from suspension, and should continue rolling until Baron Davis’s next injury.
10 HOUSTON ROCKETS (9–9): An incredibly tough early schedule gives way to some easier dates, but that won’t help unless they get more scoring from the secondary players and Yao sees the rock a little more.
11 DENVER NUGGETS (11–7): An up and down start isn’t so concerning when you consider all the injuries they’re dealing with. Once players such as Nené, Chucky Atkins, and Steven Hunter come back, these guys could be dangerous.
12 LOS ANGELES LAKERS (9–8): Speaking of Derek Fisher, Jordan Farmar seems poised to take his job in L.A. For now, he’ll have to be content headlining one of the league’s best second units.
13 CLEVELAND CAVALIERS (9–9): Hard to dock the Cavs too much for getting blown out without LeBron — we already knew they weren’t any good without him, so does this really change things any?
14 TORONTO RAPTORS (9–8): Another team dealing with injury issues, as Chris Bosh and T.J. Ford — arguably their two best players — both have spent time on the shelf.
15 INDIANA PACERS (9–9): Jim O’Brien will be in the mix for Coach of the Year if he can get this deeply flawed team into the Eastern Conference playoffs. He’s got them at .500 with Jermaine O’Neal having done little.
16 MEMPHIS GRIZZLIES (6–10): A better team than people realize, and one that should be more potent now that Darko Milicic is back and sharpshooting Spanish rookie Juan Carlos Navarro is in the rotation.
17 WASHINGTON WIZARDS (8–9): They’ve made a nice recovery from an 0–5 start and Arenas’s injury, but one still wonders how they’ll fare without Agent Zero for the next three months.
18 MIAMI HEAT (4–12): You may think I’m crazy for keeping them this high, but once Dwyane Wade starts playing like the Dwyane Wade we all know, everything else may fall into place.
19 MILWAUKEE BUCKS (7–8): They undid the good of a 7–4 start a a come-from-ahead loss against the lowly Knicks at the Garden.
20 ATLANTA HAWKS (6–9): The Hawks have a home-friendly schedule over the next month, and will need to take advantage if they hope to end the club’s league-leading eight-year playoff drought.
21 SACRAMENTO KINGS (6–10): Um, wasn’t Spencer Hawes supposed to be a post player? Instead the rookie 7-footer from Washington rains 20-foot rainbows but hardly ever gets it on the blocks.
22 PHILADELPHIA 76ERS (5–11): Interesting subplots abound in Philly — Andre Iguodala seems intent on gunning his way to a new contract, while Louis Williams is pushing Andre Miller for the starting point guard gig.
23 CHICAGO BULLS (4–10): The Bulls started showing signs of snapping out of their season-shooting slump with wins over Atlanta and Charlotte, but they’ll need to do much more to get anywhere close to preseason hype.
24 NEW JERSEY NETS (8–9): I’m probably giving them too much credit; they’ve been that bad in the early going, as I pointed out yesterday. But the supporting cast can’t really be this awful … can they?
25 LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS (6–9): They’ll probably keep sinking, but keep an eye on Chris Kaman. The 7-footer went for 22 and 22 on Sunday and his numbers on the year (18.7 points, 14.1 boards) are All-Star caliber.
26 CHARLOTTE BOBCATS (6–9): The ‘Cats once again have been declawed by injuries and have dropped five straight, but one piece of good news is that rook Jared Dudley looks like a keeper.
27 PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS (5–12):Expectations got way out of line after they swept an early-season four-game homestand. Of late their offensive limitations have become apparent, especially with Brandon Roy in a horrific slump.
28 NEW YORK KNICKS (5–11): Grant Hill joins Flip Murray in questioning the Knicks’ effort. When even the opponents think they’re mailing it in, you know there’s a problem.
29 SEATTLE SUPERSONICS (3–15): Kevin Durant’s wobbly rookie season continues, as he followed up his best game as a pro (35 points in a win over Indy) with perhaps his worst (2-for-12, six points in a loss to Golden State)
30 MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES (2–13): Kevin McHale will win Executive of the Year if the Celtics keep playing this well.
jhollinger@nysun.com