Pre-Season No Credentials Rank = 30
Charlotte is horrendous, but at least Kemba Walker and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist look like competent NBA players.
29. Cleveland Cavaliers
Pre-Season No Credentials Rank = 20A promising start has been ruined by injuries to Kyrie Irving and Anderson Varejao. Similar to Charlotte, at least they can take solace in realizing that Tristan Thompson wasn’t a bust.
28. Washington Wizards
Pre-Season No Credentials Rank = 27Washington gets bonus points for playing hard despite an 0-14 start.
27. Orlando Magic
Pre-Season No Credentials Rank = 29Orlando drops to 29th if they don’t dump J.J. Redick for cap relief and a pick by the trade deadline.
26. Phoenix Suns
Pre-Season No Credentials Rank = 25True Story… I messed up and forgot to copy and paste my pre-season write-up for the Suns in the NBA preview (click here for proof). Trust me when I say my assessment would’ve been pretty spot-on with what has transpired so far.
25. Sacramento Kings
Pre-Season No Credentials Rank = 24Having been a bandwagon supporter of the Webber/Bibby/Divac era Kings in the early ‘00s, I’ll be sad to see the NBA leave Sacramento.
24. Detroit Pistons
Pre-Season No Credentials Rank = 28
Detroit
looks to have stumbled into something special with the pairing of Greg Monroe
and Andre Drummond. They’re a stud perimeter player away from Eastern
Conference playoff contention.
23. Toronto Raptors
Pre-Season No Credentials Rank = 26If Jose Calderon and Andrea Bargnani aren’t packaged together to bring an elite player north of the border, the front office deserves walking papers.
22. New Orleans Hornets
Pre-Season No Credentials Rank = 19Another team besieged by injuries, but even more importantly, the sad news that they will be called the New Orleans Pelicans next year.
21. Minnesota Timberwolves
Pre-Season No Credentials Rank = 21The fact that Minnesota is still within range of the eighth seed in the west while playing almost every game without Kevin Love or Ricky Rubio is the most underrated accomplishment of the 2012-13 season.
20. Dallas Mavericks
Pre-Season No Credentials Rank = 16Wisely punting the season to clear cap space, Dallas is the most likely destination for Dwight Howard if he opts out of his contract from Los Angeles.
19. Boston Celtics
Pre-Season No Credentials Rank = 4What happens when you have no size (Garnett is a warrior, and Sullinger has been a pleasant surprise, but they can only do so much), no dominant scorer (Pierce can’t do it every night, and neither can Garnett), and no 3-point shooting (Jason Terry has been a disappointment)? The 2012-13 Boston Celtics. Throw in the loss of Rajon Rondo (which won’t be as devastating as folks are making it out to be, the dude still can’t shoot. A little floor spacing won’t hurt), and Boston will do well to hold on to a playoff berth.
18. Philadelphia 76ers
Pre-Season No Credentials Rank = 11Andrew Bynum’s impending return (he’ll be effective, the dude is playing for a new contract) will lift Philadelphia into the Eastern Conference playoff picture.
17. Los Angeles Lakers
Pre-Season No Credentials Rank = 3In a perfect world, Los Angeles ships out Pau Gasol for multiple 3-point shooters, but with no assurances that Dwight Howard will re-sign with them during the summer, shipping out their other seven footer is a risky proposition.
16. Portland Trail Blazers
Pre-Season No Credentials Rank = 17Damian Lillard is the likely rookie of the year (barring a monster second half by Anthony Davis), but Portland is a big man and a bench away from serious contention.
15. Utah Jazz
Pre-Season No Credentials Rank = 22Utah still needs to trade one or both of the Al Jefferson/Paul Millsap duo, but their surprising performance in the West has delayed such a move from occurring.
14. Milwaukee Bucks
Pre-Season No Credentials Rank = 18Milwaukee looks frisky enough to give a #2 or #3 seed a run for their money in a first round series.
13. Atlanta Hawks
Pre-Season No Credentials Rank = 14Whatever happens this year is gravy for the Hawks, as they have their payroll in a place that will be able to take on a max contract during the off-season.
12. Houston Rockets
Pre-Season No Credentials Rank = 23The pre-season rank was established before the James Harden trade, so we would’ve been closer to the 15 range if ranking after the swap. There isn’t a team in more dire need of a power forward than the Houston Rockets. They should be calling Utah everyday.
11. Golden State Warriors
Pre-Season No Credentials Rank = 15Stephen Curry is the biggest All-Star snub of the past decade. Then again, he probably would’ve rolled his ankle during the game.
10. Brooklyn Nets
Pre-Season No Credentials Rank = 9It’s been a weird year for New York’s newest team, but things have improved since Avery Johnson was kicked to the curb.
9. Indiana Pacers
Pre-Season No Credentials Rank = 10It’s hard to believe I’m going to type this, but the Pacers will be worse off when Danny Granger returns, unless he embraces a sixth man role.
8. Denver Nuggets
Pre-Season No Credentials Rank = 8After a hellacious early season schedule, Denver has steadily climbed the Western Conference standings. Lack of a primary scorer will rear its ugly head come playoff time.
7. New York Knicks
Pre-Season No Credentials Rank = 13You have to like the Knicks formula of “one stud player, one stud defender, and a bunch of dudes that chuck 3s”. If they get hot in the playoffs, it won’t matter who they play.
6. Memphis Grizzlies
Pre-Season No Credentials Rank = 6The recent salary dump they dropped on Cleveland ensures that the Randolph-Gay-Gasol-Conley core will get one more crack at the playoffs.
5. Chicago Bulls
Pre-Season No Credentials Rank = 12
How Chicago has managed to stay within 3 games of the top seed in the East without Derrick Rose is truly miraculous. If he comes back at anything close to 100%, this will be the greatest obstacle for Miami in their quest to return to the Finals.
4. Los Angeles Clippers
Pre-Season No Credentials Rank = 7Their bench is fantastic, but will that really matter come playoff time when rotations get smaller? A move to acquire an elite wing player (perhaps consummated with a trade package centered around Erik Bledsoe) would raise the Clippers to another level come playoff time.
3. San Antonio Spurs
Pre-Season No Credentials Rank = 5Another year, the same old boring ass, competitive as hell Spurs.
2. Miami Heat
Pre-Season No Credentials Rank = 1Dwyane Wade looks more mortal by the day, and the lack of rebounding is troubling enough to drop Miami into the two hole.
1. Oklahoma City Thunder
Pre-Season No Credentials Rank = 2
Here’s your best team in the NBA. They haven’t missed a beat without James Harden, as Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook have done more than enough to make up for his absence. Serge Ibaka has blossomed into a legitimate third option on offense (to go along with his hyperactive shot blocking), and Kevin Martin has provided plenty of scoring off the bench. The roster is flexible enough to play big (Perkins-Ibaka-Durant-Sefolosha-Westbrook) or small (Ibaka-Collison-Durant-Martin-Westbrook). If they can solve the Miami Heat riddle, this will be your 2013 championship winning team.
No comments:
Post a Comment