Power rankings are a fun project. Every place that covers NBA basketball has some, and every published set of rankings fosters plenty of discussion. With that in mind we here at The Friendly Bounce decided to get involved with our own set of power rankings, but as with all things here we did it with our own little twist. So welcome to the Friendly Bounce Power Rankings where we rank the league in order of fun, taking into account injuries, hot and cold streaks, off-the-court fun and anything else that deals with entertainment.
1. Golden State Warriors (LW: 1): Stephen Curry was already dancing plenty as the Warriors ran over the league. Now his Carolina Panthers are in the Super Bowl not far from Oakland. Expect some dabbing from Steph coming soon.
2. Oklahoma City Thunder (LW:2): The Thunder are 8-2 in their last 10, third in the West and still have Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant. Russ alone pushes them into the top three for fun purposes.
3. San Antonio Spurs (LW: 4): The Boris Diaw #NBAVote campaign came up short but the Spurs are the only team that looks in position to push the Warriors right now. Add Boris and Boban Marjanovic for non-play fun and San Antonio is along the league’s entertainment elite, even if they don’t want to be.
4. Toronto Raptors (LW: 11): I mentioned last time the Raptors could climb in a hurry and they have. Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan are wonderful on the court and somehow even better off of it.
5. Los Angeles Clippers (LW: 5): The Clippers remain tons of fun without Blake Griffin thanks to DeAndre Jordan, J.J. Redick and Chris Paul.
6. New York Knicks (LW: 3): The Knicks have fallen back down to earth as far as wins and losses go but Carmelo Anthony and Kristaps Porzingis remain a blast to watch.
7. Sacramento Kings (LW: 9): You still don’t know what you will get from Rajon Rondo and DeMarcus Cousins on a nightly basis. This week it was Rondo dunks and Boogie career-highs so they rise.
8. Portland Trail Blazers (LW: 10): C.J. McCollum and Damian Lillard will have the Blazers near the bottom of the top 10 most weeks they are both healthy.
9. Denver Nuggets (LW: 21): The Nuggets jump up mostly due to things involving other teams, but as they get more and more healthy they are getting more and more fun to watch.
10. Cleveland Cavaliers (LW: 6): With LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and J.R. Smith the Cavs have a kind of natural floor. But they are a mess right now.
11. Dallas Mavericks (LW:7): Really, really beat up right now including both members of the Dirk Nowitzki, Zaza Pachulia buddy cop tandem.
12. Washington Wizards (LW: 18): Still not great but John Wall is a blast on the court and the Wizards let Marcin Gortat show off his great personality off it this week.
13. Atlanta Hawks (LW: 8): Big drop for the Hawks this week. May have been more if Paul Millsap wasn’t so fun.
14. Boston Celtics (LW: 16): Boston feels like the next team to make a big jump up the rankings but they need something off the floor or someone to put down big dunks to do it.
15. Miami Heat (LW: 12): Somehow Miami isn’t that fun despite having Chris Bosh.
16. Detroit Pistons (LW: 20): All the Andre Drummond #NBAVote stuff had the Pistons ready to shoot way up the list. Then all the Andre Drummond free throw shooting happened.
17. Orlando Magic (LW: 13): Victor Oladipo hit a tough three to force overtime in a fun game this week but they need more Aaron Gordon to inject some more fun into things.
18. Charlotte Hornets (LW: 19): Kemba Walker is on fire right now which cancels out some of the injuries they are battling.
19. Los Angeles Lakers (LW: 15): Kobe Bryant has been on and off the floor recently but the young guys led by D’Angelo Russell have been not terrible.
20. Indiana Pacers (LW: 17): 4-6 in their last 10 and not much off the floor to keep Indiana in the middle of the pack.
21. Houston Rockets (LW: 22): The acquisition of Josh Smith can shoot them up this list in a hurry, even if the reasons may not be good for them.
22. Philadelphia 76ers (LW: 28): Nerlens Noel and Jahlil Okafor playing well is fun. Thanks, Ish Smith.
23. Utah Jazz (LW: 23): Healthier than they have been which should help. Now need to start playing well.
24. Memphis Grizzlies (LW: 26): At least they still have Tony Allen.
25. New Orleans Pelicans (LW: 24): They are playing better but Anthony Davis is not as fun this season and there is still too much Norris Cole and Tyreke Evans going on.
26. Milwaukee Bucks (LW: 27): At least they now have Gus Johnson.
27. Chicago Bulls (LW: 25): Derrick Rose is showing flashes and Jimmy Butler is really good. Still it feels like the Bulls are the same Bulls from the past few seasons.
28. Minnesota Timberwolves (LW: 14): It isn’t good in Minnesota right now. And there aren’t enough highlights to make watching that terribly spaced offense worth it.
29. Phoenix Suns (LW: 29): The Alex Len dunks and Archie Goodwin scoring binges this week were nice but they don’t make the Suns much more fun with all the instability going on.
30. Brooklyn Nets (LW: 30): They honestly don’t matter much at all. Which stinks because Brook Lopez deserves better.