Welcome to the first installment of this season's POWER RANKINGS. The Power Rankings are fed by record, strength of schedule, strength of victory, margin of victory, and home/away percentages.
The pair of teams at 14-1 hit the #2 and #3 spots on our rankings, being eclipsed by the #1 San Antonio Spurs who sport a 10-2 record against a tougher schedule than both 14-win teams, a larger margin than Orlando, and more road than home games played. Their slightly worse record in games against .500+ opponents give me pause when projecting future rankings, and I'd expect them to be eclipsed when the Nuggets home/road schedule evens out, or the Magic play some fiercer competition, barring trades/injuries/etc.
Another few numbers that jump out at me are the Bobcats Strength of Schedule is 61% which is crazy high. This could be a playoff team when all is said and done, once they come to an easier run in their schedule. Although with a trade of Azubuike already posted, perhaps they'll slide back down anyway.
The Pistons 9-3 record looks a little soft against the weakest slate of opponents in the league, especially after dropping 3 out of 5 games against opponents with a winning record. That being said, the rankings don't particularly like any Central division team, so let's see how this plays out over the rest of the season.
As always, please feel free to reach out with any questions, comments, suggestions, etc.
