Welcome in all you beautiful people!! Fresh off of the preseason results, I felt now would be a good time to give my opinion on where I think teams stand this season. Some teams are poised to make that championship run, while others will be swimming in the bottom of the dumpster. I’m sure these rankings will look very different by the time the season ends, but for now, let’s have fun and say these rankings are totally accurate and completely unbiased so there can be no dispute that each team belongs in their spot. So with that, let’s get down to the nitty gritty.
24. Golden State Warriors- I don’t think anyone is surprised here. Averaging roughly 86 points per game and going 0-6, while their best player is arguably a 19 year old rookie. This team is clearly in tank mode so we likely won’t see too much more from them this season.
23. New York Knicks- Another team that is clearly a few years away from being competitive again. Barely averaging 100 points per game, while also going 0-6. It’s going to be a race between the Knicks and Warriors to see who gets Gary Payton in this upcoming draft.
22. Utah Jazz- They have some pieces in place that could help be competitive but they definitely need more. 3rd worst offense this preseason isn’t going to help them win many games. It’s a shame that Dennis Rodman didn’t turn out to have a better career here.
21. Phoenix Suns- This team better figure out something quick or else Stockton and Malone will join the list of wasted talents. They still have a few more great seasons with them but their window is closing fast and this team does not have the weapons around them to push them into the playoffs.
20. Los Angeles Lakers- I feel like the Lakers are actually too low on this list but they had a pretty bad preseason, finishing with the 3rd worst point differential. I imagine they clean it up for the regular season but for now, this team may be heading in the wrong direction.
19. Charlotte Hornets- I’m not sure this team performs better than last season’s team. No true superstar on their team and they have 7 players 29 or older. This team is already looking closer to rebuilding than competing and they are only on their second season. But it wouldn’t be the worst thing for them to tear it down already and set a new foundation.
18. Washington Bullets- Trading away Magic Johnson definitely sent the league into a state of shock for a minute. Especially after a 57 win season, it looked like they may hold on to Magic and try to continue to build around him for a couple more seasons. He is 30 so maybe they wanted to get out while they were ahead and start the rebuild sooner
17. Dallas Mavericks- This team has been in cap hell for what feels like forever. But it’s really only been two seasons. And with that, they don’t have very many options to help improve their team. And I’m not sure much changes after this season. Their top 4 players are all going to be leaving their prime within the next couple of seasons so their window to try and win is all but closed at this moment.
16. Indiana Pacers- Not a great preseason but this team feels like it’s one more offseason away from being back in the playoff race. They need to get some younger big men and once they do, look for them to be making some playoff runs.
15. Philadelphia 76ers- I’ll be honest, I didn’t want to rank the 76ers this high. We’ve seen this for many, many seasons now. Their team on paper should compete but the GM just seems to disappear during the regular season and lets the team go on autopilot. I really do hope they start taking things seriously because this team could be fun and dangerous
14. Chicago Bulls- Patience is key. I don’t think this Bulls team has a chance at winning the title this season, but boy do they look really close to making multiple playoff runs. Eddie A. Johnson is going to start showing some decline in the next season or two, but they have so many young guys that should be ready to play by the time that happens. I wouldn’t be surprised if in a couple of seasons, this is a team we look at and ask “where is their weakness”?
13. Atlanta Hawks- This team isn’t really that close to being a contender. But they are moving in the right direction. They should be able to string together a bunch of wins, but I wonder if it might be more of the same for the conference and they get into the playoffs because of how weak it may be.
12. Minnesota Timberwolves- New kids on the block (kinda). Good luck to everyone this season. Not saying the Timberwolves should be a lock to win it all but this is on its way to being a real problem. Getting Robinson, Hardaway, and Barkley in the same offseason is wild. We know this GM can get the most out of his players so it will be fun to watch this team compete this season. They just really need to figure out their defense. Giving up 126+ points per game is not going to help them win many games
11. Kansas City Kings- I wouldn’t be surprised if the Kings end up being the perfect example of that preseason doesn’t matter and they just wanted to get their guys some reps. They are still young enough to where they don’t need to push this season but we all know Chad is not going to back down. I can definitely see this team competing for the division title by the end of the season.
10. New Jersey Nets- There is virtually no reason this team shouldn’t be a top 4 team in the conference this season. But this team better make that playoff run very soon. Fat and Dale don’t have too much longer before we see decline and Gminski is even older than them. But for this season and at least next season, look for the Nets to be towards the top of their conference.
9. Denver Nuggets- Are the Nuggets back? Probably not but boy did they make some incredible offseason moves. Griffith is really the only player they have to worry about age but he’s only averaging 21 points per game for his career. That shouldn’t be that hard to replace. I don’t think many people expected the Nuggets to look ready to compete this season but here they are.
8. Detroit Pistons- The Pistons have got to find a way to break through. They started their playoff runs very young so it feels like all of their players should be ancient by now but they are all either right smack in the middle of their prime or just coming up on the end of it. They will have to make a decision soon on whether or not they feel this team can break through and bring home the championship or if it will be time to sell off players and start over
7. Houston Rockets- The Rockets have been waiting for the right time to strike and that time might be now. Patrick Ewing probably should have been MVP last season but that’s a different discussion. Fresh off a 50+ win season, don’t be surprised if they do it again this season and maybe even compete with the Spurs for the division lead.
6. Cleveland Cavaliers- This may be a product of their easy preseason schedule but they still held their opponents to under 100 points per game on average. Is it a sign that their defense is elite? Or do we find out quickly this team is fraudulent? Time will tell, but for now, they could very well find themselves in the playoffs. Although I do expect them to drop a bit once the regular season starts
5. Portland Trailblazers- One would think that trading away McHale would mean this team’s championship window is closing, but really they just got themselves younger and actually opened their window a bit more. They likely need PG help but Lester Conner is still good enough to handle the spot for right now. Lasalle is coming off a broken leg so we’ll see how he handled the recovery but he should still be an elite asset for this team down low.
4. San Antonio Spurs- So close to glory last season. And then they went and added Magic Johnson to this already loaded roster. Maybe they just need some time to get comfortable playing with each other, but this team should be ready to push for that 70 win mark. MJ did seem to have a bad training camp so we’ll see if he can bounce back from that and be the MVP he was last season (or at least, the MVP runner-up in my mind)
3. Seattle Supersonics- This ranking is going to bite me in the butt, I can feel it. But they were really close to going a perfect 6-0 in preseason but a disastrous 4th quarter against the Bucks ruined that. They need to make sure they don’t have those meltdowns in the regular season. Also, this team has shown over the years that they love to turn the ball over. They really need to clean that up if they want to feel like they can compete with the best.
2. Milwaukee Bucks- Fresh off another championship season, I’m not sure there is anything really negative to say about this team. They seemed to pick up right where they left off last season so I imagine they will be playing for that first round bye yet again. They also don’t look like they will be slowing down any time soon. Even though they just traded away Barkley.
1. Boston Celtics- The only team to go undefeated this preseason while also being tied for the highest point margin, The Celtics might finally be ready to take down the Bucks in the East. They were really close last season but this Celtics team already looks like they might be the best team in the league. And their core is still very young so look for them to be at the top of this list for many years to come.
Well, thank you for reading and spending this time with me. It will be fun to see how this season turns out and just how wrong these rankings really are. Good luck to everyone and hopefully we don’t let the Bucks win another championship.