S11 Post Sim 2 Power Rankings

[BigDaddyd8720]

Welcome in to another edition of BigDaddyD's power rankings. As always, these are 100% accurate and nothing will change for the rest of the season. So buckle up, buttercups and be ready to be excited or disappointed to find out where your team landed in these rankings.

24. Dallas Mavericks (3-12)- Bottom 3 in offense and defense, this team clearly is going towards rebuild mode which results in the worst point differential in the league at -22.1. They somehow managed to get a few wins but this team is on it’s way to a top lotto pick. They traded away everybody they could and still managed to find themselves over the cap, thanks to that Bernard King contract. It’s likely this team is a few seasons away from being back in the playoffs

23. Los Angeles Lakers (3-12)- On paper this team probably should be better. I’m not really sure how they only have 3 wins so far but here we are. Rodman is finally having a good season but outside of 32 year old Joe Barry Carroll, they really aren’t getting much scoring going. This team also doesn’t have their own 1st round pick in the upcoming draft so it’s going to be pretty important for them to make some moves so they don’t just give away a top lotto pick

22. New York Knicks- (4-10)- You could easily make the argument that the Knicks should be #23 since they are averaging less than 100 points per game and have a far worse point differential but yet they still have an extra win over the Lakers with a worse team on paper. The Knicks are firmly in rebuild mode so I don’t foresee them moving up these ranks too much, if at all.

21. Washington Bullets (4-11)- Another team that looks better in paper than their record but they lack an elite scorer. This team has nobody it can rely on to have the big game and that’s going to keep them out of a lot of games. I would expect this team either fully embraces the rebuild next season or they make some crazy moves to try and right the ship this season. The East looks pretty weak so they could very well make a move that gets them into the playoffs.

20. Atlanta Hawks (4-11)- I know I’ve said it a few times already but this Hawks team absolutely should be better than what their record says. They traded for Willis and Cummings this offseason and then signed Jeff Malone. There’s no reason this team shouldn’t be above .500 at this point. Other than poor coaching. If they can stop letting teams just score whenever they want, this team could be looking at a playoff spot. But being dead last in defense is not going to give this team much success

19. Detroit Pistons (4-11)- Anybody who thinks Rob Williams is a bad player is delusional. Averaging 16+ points per game and 8+ assists per game is pretty good for being on a bad team. Just imagine what he can do on a good team. If the Pistons had some better scorers, they could be looking at playoff contention but they are going the path of rebuild. I wouldn’t be surprised if we get closer to the deadline and teams come asking about Rob Williams to help them solidify themselves in the playoff race.

18. Cleveland Cavaliers (5-9)- The last of the negative double digit point differentials. Michael Adams looks like the best PG in the game this season and that’s about all the nice things to say about this team. They are going to have a rough time with the cap this season and next season, unless they make a move soon. But this is a team that could benefit from a weak conference as they are still well positioned to get themselves in the playoff race. There’s obviously a lot of basketball left so everybody is still in it but a lot of teams in the East already look to be in tank mode.
17. Utah Jazz (5-11)- I’m not exactly sure what the Jazz are doing this season. They have so much cap space that they could have tried to get someone in FA but didn’t. And now they are firmly in a position to take on bad contracts for picks and they aren’t. Or they could take on some big contracts from starters and get themselves in the playoff race this season. But they seem to just be staying put right now and that could lead to them being in the middle to back end of the lottery and not helping set themselves up for the future.

16. Philadelphia 76ers (6-8)- Another year, another inactive regular season for this team. Humphries and Dumars deserved better. What this team makes you realize is there are so many teams who are over the cap this season and are also bad and that’s just not a great combination. This team is going nowhere this season and hopefully humphries opts out of his contract so he can go to a team that is going to compete

15. Houston Rockets (6-9)- This team has good starters but no depth. So I can see them finishing around .500 but I don’t think they really do much if they get to the playoffs. They had a very rough start but most teams would if they started off with 6 road games in a row. After that, they got a few wins, one notably against the Kings. They get more home games in the next few weeks so maybe we see this team move closer to .500 and even make a run to the playoffs.

14. Charlotte Hornets (7-9)- Almost any team in the East that makes the playoffs this season is likely to have that happen because of the conference competition. But, the Hornets might be on to something. They definitely aren’t there yet but McCray, Webb, Hawkins, and Divac could be a solid starting lineup in the near future. McCray finally got a chance to shine and he is shining. 22.9 points per game to go with 9.2 rebounds per game will make him a great core piece for the next couple of seasons. I wouldn’t be surprised if next season we see the Hornets finally solidify themselves as a playoff team and not just get in because of a weak conference.

13. Denver Nuggets (6-8)- While they did have a rough go this past sim, they still remain in a good spot to fight for the playoffs. This is another team that is a season or two away from really competing. They have great young pieces like McMillan and Anderson but they probably need to dump the salary of Griffith and Ainge if they want to get back to competing sooner or even be able to bring in a top tier talent. Once they clear their cap space, they should find themselves back in the playoffs.

12. Portland Trailblazers (8-10)- The team that coined the phrase in this league of “can’t live on two timelines” is currently living on two timelines. Eddie A. and Buck are the “old” heads while they have plenty of young pieces like Newman, Campbell, and Williams. It’ll be interesting to see if try to move some key pieces to continue being the playoff contender they have always been, or if they will try to sell off Buck or Eddie to get younger. They already have two 1st for this upcoming draft so maybe they look to stockpile some more picks

11. Phoenix Suns (8-8)- We finally got to a team that has a .500 or better record. Karl Malone averaging 30+ is going to help keep this team in playoff contention but he’s going to need some help. Stockton and Daugherty are doing their best but after that, this team doesn’t have much in terms of scoring. One of those three goes down, and this team will become a bottom tier team right away. They are still fairly young overall so maybe they are just waiting for the young guys to get more experience but Stockton and Malone windows are closing sooner. They might need to look to make a move in order to get themselves in the conversation for home court advantage in the playoffs this season


10. Indiana Pacers (7-8)- This team is getting by with great defensive play. They also find themselves with a 5-3 road record. Once they figure out how to win at home, they could be looking to make some noise. But they are very weak at guards. McHale, Nance, and Bailey are great down low players but their guards are doing next to nothing on the outside. The game is slowly switching to more outside shooting and this team is not ready to adapt.

9. New Jersey Nets (8-7)- And finally we reached a team with a record above .500. This just goes to show how top heavy this league is this season. The 5 and 6 seeds in both conferences likely are going to be looking at quick playoff exits if this keeps up. But I digress, this Nets team is getting production from all of its starters. Gminski, Ellis, and Lever give this team the opportunity to score anywhere on the court. Having the #3 defense is also a great way to win games in this league.

8. Golden State Warriors (11-5)- I’ll admit I was a bit surprised the Warriors got off to the start they did. But they got wins against the Celtics, Timberwolves, and Nets so far. But 3-5 on the road is going to be what keeps this from becoming a great team. Of the current double digit win teams, the Warriors do have the worst defense, as they rank #21. But their #2 offense should help keep them in games for the most part. They added a bunch of talent this offseason and it’s working. Three players scoring 20+ points per game is going to make things difficult for opponents

7. Milwaukee Bucks (10-7)- Maybe its the Finals loss hangover, but this team is very different than last season. But, they are young and getting better so even if they miss the Finals this season, I wouldn’t be surprised if they are back in it next season and beyond. They beat the bad teams and lost to the good teams. It will look great on paper but once they get to the playoffs, they could struggle a bit.

6. Minnesota Timberwolves (11-6)- Charles Barkley is going for the MVP with 31+ points and 11+ rebounds per game. Should this team stay healthy, I would not be surprised at all if they make it to the conference finals, at least. They’ve only had one game against the Eastern conference so I expect that when they get more of those games, they jump up the standings even more. They do have a win against the Supersonics and Warriors which can help them take the division but losses to the Bulls, Kings, Spurs, and also Warriors might be what keeps them down if they can’t beat the good teams.

5. Boston Celtics (11-4)- This team is built to last. They are just young enough to where they’ve had control of the division for a few seasons and they will probably still have control over it the next few seasons as other teams get older. But while they did beat the Bucks in a down year, this team also doesn’t really have a good win on their resume. They beat the Nets but even they are struggling a bit. I do like the Celtics to make it through the east and get to the finals but they need to figure out some things before they get there. I wonder if Hot Rod was the piece they thought her would be.

4. Kansas City Kings (12-5)- For a brief moment it looked as though they might be able to take the division from the Spurs, but the Spurs proved quickly why they are the heavy favorites to win the championship again. Losses to the Rockets and Pistons recently hurt them a little bit. Avery Johnson is playing well for what they needed but will it be enough? As long as Thompson, Green, Wilkins, and Richmond keep scoring the way they are, then yes, it will be enough. But if they want to compete for the division, they are going to need to limit the losing streaks. The Spurs are going to win, any hiccups just separates them further. But, regardless, look for this Kings team to make noise throughout the entire season and postseason.

3. Chicago Bulls (14-2)- The Bulls have arrived. Getting Ralph Sampson in the offseason was huge for this team and was just what they were missing. #7 offense, #2 defense. They might finally be the ones to take away the division from the Bucks. And it’s possible they keep the division for multiple seasons. Their only two losses are to the two teams ranked ahead of them. That’s not bad at all. They beat the Bucks twice, Timberwolves, Warriors, Nets, Celtics, with a couple of them being on the road. This Bulls team is the real deal.

2. Seattle Supersonics (15-1)- Tied for #2 offense, #1 defense, #1 in rebounds and assists, amongst being towards the top of many other categories and on a 15 game win strreak, this Supersonics team might finally be able to achieve the success they have been looking for. While you can look at their schedule and see they only have two quality wins (Bucks on the road and Bulls at home) they are still handling business everywhere. These next few sims may prove if the Supersonics are the real deal or a bunch of phonies. I might be biased but I’m hoping they are the real deal.

1. San Antonio Spurs (14-2)- What a surprise. Who could have guessed the Spurs would be at the top of this list. #1 offense and wins against the Timberwolves and Nets on the road, and Bulls, Kings and Warriors. The Spurs look like they are going to continue dominating this league. The only real knock on them? Lack of depth. They really only have 6 players that can contribute. Which isn’t a problem if they stay healthy but should the injury bug strike, the Spurs could see themselves out of the championship race sooner. But we can’t play the game of what if when it comes to rankings. Right now, they are the top team in the league and the one that everyone has to beat. It will be fun soon though because once this sim is over, the next 3 sims feature the Supersonics vs Spurs. So maybe we’ll see just how well the Supersonics match up to the Spurs.

[greepleairport]

Just because you're writing it doesn't mean you CAN'T put yourself at #1

[BigDaddyd8720]

Objective: 2,440 words +6 points
Subjective: I won't award myself any subjective points since I'm helping Wig this season

Total: 6 points