Power Rankings: Day 20
Jun 5, 2013 10:47:14 GMT -5
Post by donatello2424 on Jun 5, 2013 10:47:14 GMT -5
1. Chicago Bulls (13-1)
At 13-1 the Bulls own the league’s best record. Part of me wants to say that them being 13-1 is surprising. Their bigs don’t look that they should be as dominant, but they are. Their offseason addition of Kevin Love has really helped this team by giving them a steady 3 big rotation. All3 can rebound which is part of the reason why they are top 5 in rpg in the league. Their scoring is solid enough. Dakari Johnson brings blocking as well and is one of the best young bigs in the league. But why are we talking about their bigs? This team’s bread and butter are their wings. Da’Sean Butler is one of the best scorers in the league. 34 ppg is impressive. Scoring that on .554 fg% is down right insane. His defense could be better but this scoring more than makes up for it. Pairing Butler with Marcus Smart gives them a great scoring punch. Smart is one of the best pgs in the league. His scoring is good, not amazing, but his turnovers are low and his assists are high. The Bulls’ ppg differential is really helping them out. Their 1 loss came against the Spurs who used Harden to exploit Butler’s defense. This team would be deadly in the playoffs as they can exploit matchups.
2. Atlanta Hawks (10-2)
The Hawks jumped onto the scene this offseason after making the big offseason deal to bring in Anthony Davis and Shabazz Muhammed. The Hawks were able to add that duo to Alfonso Meanwell. Davis gives the Hawks everything you could want in a big man. He brings offense, rebounding, and blocking, which pairs nicely with Meanwell and his blocking and offense. Muhammed brings top notch scoring. By far the weakest position on the Hawks is pg Sergio Llull. Llull does all that the Hawks want him to do. He keeps his turnovers somewhat low and can add in 10 ppg. If a team is going to exploit the Hawks (like the 76ers did) they need to get Meanwell into foul trouble early. The Hawks are not a very deep team when it comes to top notch scoring. Meanwell fouling out quickly makes them weak with only Davis and Muhammed (with the occasional Malone or Llull going off). The Spurs defeated the Hawks by shutting down Meanwell as well. The hawks lack a stud pg to pair with their scorers and bench production.
3. Golden State Warriors (9-2)
To be honest, I am surprised they are doing as well. I think most people are surprised. As Jon said earlier, apparently Rudy Gay and John Wall is all you need to run the west. Gay is a good scorer, but Wall is the face of this team. His 30 ppg and low tos are perfect and everything you really want from a pg. The problem with this team is after those two, there is a huge drop off in talent. They do have some solid player; however their 3-5 are more like 5th starters or 6th men off the bench. Millsap has provided blocking and scoring, but his fg% is a bit low for a guy who is your default 3rd option. Humphries is a better percentage scorer but doesn’t provide the volume. They need a 3rd option who could be a high teens, low 20s scorer. I’m not sure how long they will stay at the top of the west as a result.
4. Detroit Pistons (12-4)
KD is still producing at a high level so it is no surprise to see the Pistons on here. KD Is actually scoring at the highest clip of his career. Jesus Brown has given the Pistons another scorer to pair with Durant, although his topg are a bit high. The Pistons also have a solid option in Bledsoe and Amir Johnson on the team, but make no mistake that Durant and Brown are the face of this team. Brandon Roy has been a solid bench scorer who gives them someone to come in and score when KD and Brown need a minute on the bench. Outside of Amir Johnson, their big rotation is a bit weak. They did just trade for Ricardo Wroten, who should be a decent starter for them with Cauley-Stein off the bench, but trading Roy might actually be a bad decision. They don’t have a solid guy off the bench who can come in and score. But as long as Johnson and Bledsoe can step up, they should be fine.
5. Dallas Mavericks (12-5)
Kyle Lowry continues to impress. Yes he is overpaid, but his 25 ppg and 2 topg is very nice, and is better than a majority of pgs in the league. Gerald Davis is the true gem of this team. 30 ppg, low topg, very solid all around. However he isn’t much of a passer or a rebounder, so his value is strictly this scoring. Steven Adams is the 3rd best player, but he is a confusing guy. His ratings would make you believe he should be a lot better than he is. 15 ppg, okay %s (would even say bad for a big), meh rebounding. They do have some scoring off the bench, primarily from their bigs. They need more scoring help but the HC looms over them. Mavericks aren’t in as bad of a situation as you might think. They are close to the HC, but they do have Oden coming off the books. Davis will want a big contract in a couple of season, but Lowry could always retire. The Mavs are a great example of a treadmill team. Not good enough for a title, can’t blow it up due to large contracts.
6. New Orleans Hornets (11-6)
An injury to Austin has kept the Hornets low for the first part of the season. We all know about how amazing Acy is, so why talk about him? Austin is probably their second ebst player when he is in form, but he isn’t and that is shown by his horrible fg%. Person is a unique player who fits this inside offense well. Faried is a wildcard player who I think is severely underrated. Good blocking who can score a bit. The Hornets should rebound from this first part and be a top team. However, I do think they have one glaring weakness. Right now, Royce White is injured. Their backups are Wroten and Lahn. Moy (who is a sf, is that even allowed) was their pg when Royce got injured during the sim. If Royce goes down for an extend time period and they have to start a Wroten, they could be in trouble. Of course we know if Acy or Austin goes down, they are in trouble as well.
7. New Jersey Nets (8-4)
The Nets have what could be the best 1-2 bunch in the league. Rose is flat out amazing. 34 ppg, shooting above .500, amazing. Marcus Sapp is also a top scorer as well. That aside, Terrance Ross is a decent option to pair with the two, but his ppg can be up and down (see Suns and Spurs games). Their bpg is solid due to Ibaka (4.2) and Hawes (2.9). They have some pieced together bench scoring (Sullinger, Zimmerman, Kanter), but they have no depth. If Rose goes down, who starts for them at PG? I think their big rotation could be better, but they can handle an injury there. Zimmerman might get some more playing time soon if order to keep some people healthy.
8. Toronto Raptors (10-5)
The Nikola Mirotic’s are solid, but not quite where they have been in year’s past. We all know Mirotic is a stud (would be curious to see him a 1-5 backup 1st option, ala Etienne). Alando Tucker is good as an inside scorer and nothing more. Martin Henderson is a frustrating player. Good ratings. By ratings alone he should be a 20 ppg scorer. Good fg%. Shitty production. DeMarcus Cousins is in the same boat. Good ratings, but production is iffy. His rebounding is mediocre and his blocking is amazing. His scoring could be better, and boy do the Raptors need it. Kyle Crawford has had to take on a role he is not used to as being a scorer. I think Carl leith could be a wildcard in the ppg department. He could be a teens scorer and should get some more pg (in addition to Harpring). Mikola is amazing, but their team is similar to the Hornets. They have one amazing player and depth. The difference is that the Hornets have some players to surround him with.
9. San Antonio Spurs (10-8)
The offseason addition of James Harden has really helped this team out. His 28 ppg is paried nicely with Crittes’ 24 ppg and the big duo of Jonas and Poppa. The Spurs have been a team that is up and down. When they are on, they can defeat the top teams in the league (Bulls, Hawks, Nets). When they are off, they struggled to score (Grizzlies game, though the grizz are better than their record suggests). The Spurs have gotten the injury bug with injuries to Harden and Poppa. I think they can afford an injury to Poppa in small increments (Frey can rebound, which is something). If they are healthy they are a dangerous team. But one injury to their score and they go spiraling. Their depth is not where it needs to be.
10. Los Angeles Clippers (9-7)
Did the west decide to take a year off? The Clippers traded way Davis and Shabazz and are still 9-7. Keyon Kittles is producing at an extremely high level, with 25 ppg and an above .500 fg%. Play is trying to trade him but no one seems to be biting. Ernie Skinner has taken well to being out of the shadow of Anthony Davis. 20 ppg and 10 rpg is good, not amazing but solid. Wooden and Stoffer are producing well, but their percentages need a lot of help. The Clippers are trying to blow it up and rebuild, and they have a good pg in Stoffer to do that with. That being said, they need to trade Keyon if they want a full rebuild. They recently shipped off Wroten for a first so that is a start, but Keyon will win them games by himself.
11. Seattle SuperSonics (9-8)
12. Memphis Grizzlies (7-7)
13. Sacramento Kings (8-8)
14. Orlando Magic (8-8)
15. Utah Jazz (6-6)
16. New York Knicks (6-7)
17. Denver Nuggets (7-8)
18. Phoenix Suns (7-8)
19. Indiana Pacers (5-7)
20. Cleveland Cavaliers (5-7)
21. Houston Rockets (4-6)
22. Washington Wizards (5-8)
23. Minnesota Timberwolves (5-8)
24. Miami Heat (4-8)
25. Philadelphia 76ers (6-10)
26. Portland Trail Blazers (3-13)
27. Los Angeles Lakers (3-14)
28. Boston Celtics (2-9)
29. Milwaukee Bucks (3-13)
