NBA Power Rankings: The Houston Rockets are a real threat
After a brief hiatus, FanSided’s NBA power rankings are back.
The churn of the NBA season means constant motion in the standings, teams rising towards the playoffs and others falling into the lottery. Here’s our best assessment of where all 30 teams sit today.
30. Brooklyn Nets (8-30)
Danny Ainge probably watches Nets games more closely than Brooklyn Nets fans these days. I wonder if Billy King’s statue should be outside of Barclays Center or TD Bank Garden?
29. Miami Heat (11-29)
The Miami Heat are tanking. Not only are they tanking, they’ve signed an actual tank to a 10-day contract. That Pat Riley is one helluva executive.
28. Dallas Mavericks (11-27)
A sentence I never imagined writing a year ago: Harrison Barnes is one of the best isolation players in the game.
27. Phoenix Suns (12-26)
Maybe now they’ll let Dragan Bender get some time on the court. Or not.
26. Philadelphia 76ers (11-25)
*RAISES SHIRLEY TEMPLE* “A toast to Joel Embiid! May he continue to dance his heart out after wins and troll famous Instagram users!”
25. Los Angeles Lakers (15-27)
Here lies Luke Walton’s Coach of the Year hopes and dreams. May we remember the good times his candidacy brought us all.
24. Denver Nuggets (15-23)
The Nuggets looked the part of playoff party-crasher to begin the year, but they’ve fallen more inline with what was expected of them as of late. However, if a team scores 140 points in a game no one watched did it actually happen?
23. Minnesota Timberwolves (13-26)
Just when I was ready to throw in the towel on the Minnesota Timberwolves, they find a way to pull me back in. Tom Thibodeau’s bunch impressively beat the scorching hot Houston Rockets without Zach LaVine.
22. Orlando Magic (16-24)
Can you believe these guys traded Victor Oladipo and Domantas Sabonis for Serge Ibaka? But on a brighter note they seem to be finally figuring out how to properly use Aaron Gordon.
21. New Orleans Pelicans (16-24)
What if I told you, the New Orleans Pelicans were a top-10 defensive team and ranked bottom-third in offense?
20. New York Knicks (18-22)
The New York Knicks are in the midst of a prolonged downward spiral. But that’s just a necessary part of any Knicks season so nothing to see here, move along.
19. Detroit Pistons (18-23)
Stan Van Gundy finally built his wall when he let Boban Marjanovic defend the inbounds late in a tight game against the Porland Trail Blazers.
18. Chicago Bulls (19-21)
When you get benched on your own bobblehead night it might be time to start looking elsewhere for employment (I’m looking at you Rajon Rondo). Also the city of Chicago needs to riot if Gar Forman and John Paxton decide to trade Jimmy Butler.
17. Sacramento Kings (16-22)
I would like to start a petition that makes it a requirement that DeMarcus Cousins interviews any and all media post game. His latest foray into journalism was golden and I think I’ve watched the clip 10000000000000000000000000 times since it’s been online.
16. Portland Trail Blazers (18-23)
While everyone is busy trying to split up Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum, the Trail Blazers have quietly started to resemble the team we saw last season.