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Greetings! I was reading the ESPN power rankings and thought it was just terrible. These guys clearly didn’t watch any Suns games and thought it must’ve been a fluke week so far. I don’t fault them completely but still taken back by the utter disrespect. Thought it would be interesting and fun to have us casual fans post our own takes of what the power rankings should look like.

I’m not going to pretend like I watch every minute of every NBA game, but I do follow the Western Conference a lot closer so I’m only going to do a Western Conference Power Rankings. Feel free to make your own once a week once a month or not at all. Don’t have to post a paragraph per team or anything like that either, to each their own.

So here’s my Power Ranking after week 1.

15. Sacramento Kings 0-3

I’m not surprised they are 0-3 to start the season because they’ve faced tough competition against the Blazers, Jazz, and of course the Suns. I am surprised and how badly they’ve looked so far under Luke Walton. Getting beat down by 29, 10, and 32, they are certainly looking like last years Suns team. They made some questionable moves this offseason though, letting go of WCS, signing Trevor Ariza, along with Harrison Barnes. Hield extension was great, meanwhile Bogdanovic might be getting disgruntled with the sixth man role.

14. Golden State Warriors 0-2

These guys are mortals not gods. Curry isn’t shooting well at all. DLo is having a hard time adjusting to his new team. These guys just got blown out by the Thunder. They have key injuries to Klay Thompson and Kevin Looney, but they’ll have to make due without Thompson all season. Right now their roster is made up of mostly G-League level players and even starting Marquese Chriss last game. They just don’t have the depth they used to have with big money going to Curry, Klay, Russel, and Green.

13. New Orlean Pelicans 0-3

Sure they don’t have Zion Williamson but nobody gets a pass for missing players. Ingram is finally starting to look like a cheaper, rawer Kevin Durant. I’m glad he’s on the Pelicans now and not the Lakers. Balls new jumpshot mechanics are looking crisper. They are still 0-3 but they aren’t getting blown out and are being led by their young players. Redick isn’t having the same success so far as he did with previous teams, and Favors to me has always just been a quiet good role player.

12. Memphis Grizzlies 1-2

Just so hard for me to watch any Grizzlies games. They’ve had the same boring defensive style for at least 12 years it seems. Anyway they lost to the Bulls at home when they were up most of the game and got a lucky win against the Nets. Impressive performance by Ja Murant in that game though. He needs to bulk up over the summer because he’s a walking stick right now.

11. Oklahoma City Thunder 1-2

Despite a dominating beat down of the Warriors these guys are still a bottom five Western Conference team. They might have the defensive prowess to keep them in games but they lack offensive power on a nightly basis to help them win games.

10. San Antonio Spurs 2-0

This is where things may get interesting. Some may say I’m just a Spurs hater, other might call be a bitter Suns fan, and both are true. Spurs beat two of the worst teams in the league and not very convincingly either. The Knicks were able to erase a double digit deficit in the first half to being up 6 with 6 minutes to go in the fourth quarter. The Spurs were able to rally and win but that’s what you’d expect from a veteran team led by Popovich. The Wizards almost stole one in SA too, so I’m not ready to give the Spurs a higher ranking until they beat some top tier teams.

9. Houston Rockets 1-1

This will change as the season goes on but Harden hasn’t had an easy transition so far from CP3 to Westbrook. He hasn’t shot particularly well, but Westbrook hasn’t missed a beat. Honestly thought Westbrook would struggle but that hasn’t been the case yet.

8. Dallas Mavericks 2-1

KP Doncic duo might be one of the most entertaining duos in the NBA this year and for years to come. They don’t have a good cast of role players IMO and will eventually lose to top teams in the conference because of this. So far they beat the Wizards which is to be expected, and the Pelicans. They could have actually been 3-0 but a coach’s challenge against the Blazers went against their favor. It was the correct call though.

7. Minnesota Timberwolves 3-0

Like the Spurs, the Wolves have had a fairly easy schedule so far going against all Eastern Conference teams. They should have lost to the Nets if it wasn’t for Jarret Allen choking on two free throws to close the 4th quarter. Wiggins caught fire and hit three threes in a row to close out the Heat on Sunday. KAT though is playing at an MVP level.

6. Portland TrailBlazers 2-1

This one hurts because I pegged the Blazers to be a top team in the Western Conference and since I live in the Portland area. Sure they won 2 but like I mentioned above they could be 1-2 if they didn’t get a call reversed against Dallas. Whiteside is playing well but he doesn’t have the same skill set as Nurkic who made the offense flow so much easier for the Blazers. Losing Aminu is underrated as he’s been their glue guy. Collins is expected to take on a bigger role but so far hasn’t delivered.

5. Utah Jazz 2-1

Mike Conley is having a putrid start to his Jazz career shooting under 30% thru their first three games. Joe Ingles isn’t adjusting well off the bench (at least for my fantasy lineup). Bogdanovic is playing well though and Gobert is still the Stifle Tower. I believe he held Steven Adams to under 20% shooting in their first game of the season. Anyway it might take Conley a month or two to adjust to his new team and find his role among the team.

4. Los Angeles Lakers 2-1

I’m low key hoping the Lakers just straight up struggle because their entire roster is made up of older veterans. Hoping Anthony Davis leaves this summer but also nervous because of what team he could potentially go to. Hopefully the Knicks. I’m not convinced they are a top 3-4 team in the Western Conference.

3. Los Angeles Clippers 2-1

They are who we thought they were! Even without Paul George they have a strong team. Suns were able to beat them without Ayton/Rubio, and I’m excited for the rematch when we our fully staffed and they got PG back.

2. Phoenix Suns 2-1

Yeah maybe the Suns are ranked too high, maybe you aren’t convinced this is real but I am! We’ve shown what we are capable of in the three games we’ve played. Playing tough gritty defense for 48 minutes, ranked number 1 in assists per game, moving the ball around. Booker offensively isn’t nearly as efficient as he has been the last two years but he’s making up for it by playing passable defense. He also finally has a team! Suns were one possession away from being 3-0 and being my number one ranked Western Conference team. If the Suns can maintain a .500 level by the time Ayton returns look out NBA!

1 Denver Nuggets 2-0

The refs gifted them the game against the Suns, but I still projected them to be the top team in the Western Conference. I will admit though they look beatable.

This is a little tough since I'd have to check strength of schedules and health. I also kind of hate judging other teams too prematurely. Also of course I am way too Suns biased to probably properly place them, watching them go toe to toe with two of the best teams in the west.....

will update with some rankings, at least for the rest of the teams once I look at some stuff.

Edit: Starting update....

I will start at the top I think...and a lot will go off of last year and I will take injuries into account.

1. Clippers - I am not entirely sure they deserve to be here, but they also are missing a top 10 player and are still adjusting. Obviously we just beat them without two of our top dogs coming off a b2b coming from the road, so it would be easy to say we are just as good, but I won't go that far yet.

2. Bucks - Again, this is based on last year...I know they have struggled, losing to a young Heat team without Butler, but they did beat Houston.

3. Philly - They could arguably be #1, but they did struggle a bit with Detroit....but again, mostly going off of last year.

4. Denver - Again, watching us against them means we should be in this top 4...but their season last year, super depth, adding Grant, getting Gary Harris and other injured guys back, Michael Porter, etc...they shot poorly against us which is rare for them. Now maybe that's our D, but we likely don't hold people to under 40% overall and 25% from 3 often, especially teams like Denver.

5. Raptors - Siakam and FVV have moved up to another level, and they have a ton of players with vast playoff experience. And they won a ring. Kawhi or no Kawhi, these guys will not be an easy out for anyone. They should maybe be ahead of Denver.

6. Jazz - I would have had them higher (edit-actually said that prior part prior to moving them up a little) to start the season but they seem a little disappointing, especially Conley. Almost put the Blazers here.

7. Lakers - Maybe they should be higher too...any team with LeBron and AD along with a shooter like Green will be tough, but those other teams have far greater depth...star power may prevail in the playoffs but they might struggle to win on b2bs and if their role players don't really step up.

8. Rockets - (forgot them until I got to 15 so decided to insert them here) This is a tough one...though their fit was weird with JH and RW but Westbrook playing great..Harden not shooting well but I'm sure that will improve, unless Westbrook is only playing well because they are letting him do whatever and doubling Harden.

9. Heat - They look tough (had them higher), and they are playing young players....Bam and Winslow are both passing like crazy, racking up assists, and then who the hell is Kendrick Nunn? They've been doing all this without Butler so far. This team will be gritty and tough.

10. Blazers - Lillard and McCollum and their great coaching is tough every year....they will continue to remain in the hunt.

11. Pelicans - This is with Zion...have to account for when they are healthy....they look pretty tough, and that's without likely their best player, or at least one of their two best players.

12. Pacers - With Oladipo, I think they fit here. Without him and with Lamb banged up and with so many new players, they are still adjusting.

13. Celtics - They should be tough, are well coached...wasn't sure if Kemba was a guy that could carry a good team, but he played well the other night. If Hayward comes back, that's big. They need a C though.

14. Mavs - Almost put the TWolves here because of what they've done, but the Mavs when healthy, and with their coaching, will be better....I think we will really see how good the Mavs are tomorrow when they play at Denver.

15. TWolves - They did beat the Heat who I ranked higher, but that was without Butler. Outside of that they beat teh Hornets bad and edged the Nets, but both on the road.

16. Nets - They should be higher than this, but they did lose at home to the TWolves and just lost to the Grizzlies, both by 1...and only beat the Knicks at home by 4. On second thought, after typing that, maybe they should be lower than this.

Hawks and Spurs - Spurs should be tough because they have vets, some good young guys and a great coach....so they might end up higher, but should probably be here. Hard to rank though because despite being undefeated, they haven't played anyone yet.

Hawks...Trae on fire, but despite being undefeated, haven't really played anyone yet.

Magic should be good, but they barely lost to Hawks and beat the Cavs. We will see how good they look tonight against the Raptors. They looked good in game 1 of the playoffs last year, but not so good after that. We will see.

Now, about us, based on our play so far, you could obviously put us #1. Based on what we know from last year of all these teams and players, and what we know about our players, you can't really put us #1 realistically. I was going to say we could/should be more like 6-12, but to weather my expectations, I wills say between 9-12 and be very happy if I am wrong and they are higher.

To me, it's all about coaching...this team has bought in to whatever Monty is doing....much like that 13-14 team did with Hornacek (that one had far less talent and won 48, but still didn't look nearly this good defensively). The west is far tougher right now though (I think, even though 48 missed then....from top to bottom, it's tough...especially with as good as we are, it goes 12-13 deep...maybe more...TWolves, Grizzlies and Thunder playing well too).

I imagine teams will adjust to us. But we will get Ayton back. It will be interesting to see how that impacts our team and where we are at that time.

We appear that we won't be an easy team for anyone to beat.

Nothing would surprise me with us. I watched us go from 28 to 55 wins after trading our best player for a rookie andn starting him the next year who led our team deep into the playoffs one year, and then watched us bring in a vet PG to play with many of the same players from a 29 win team and win 62 and get the 1 seed.

Both of those years we lost the WCF to powerhouses with top 10 all time players. Magic and Duncan

Then in 13-14 I watched a team projected to win like 27, win 48. So we are a team that has pulled out some major surprises.

At this point nothing would really surprise me. The playoffs are in a way tough to imagine, but also not so tough the way we are playing.

Now winning a round of the playoffs would be quite something though...I guess if we did that I might be surprised, mainly because we haven't gotten a taste of them yet....not many of our players have...especially past about the first round...except maybe Baynes, though Rubio went deep in FIBA.

And back in those KJ days leading us to 55 wins as a second year player, and guys like Hornacek who hadn't been and Majerle who was a rookie...you never know...the west had some very tough teams then too.

ESPN has the Suns at 22 and behind the 0-3 Pelicans.

My top 15 so far.

1. Nuggets - They are who we thought they were!
2. Suns - They ARE'NT who we thought they were!
3. Clippers - A top defensive team....who we EXPOSED.
4. Lakers - Buying Championships since......forever.
5. Hawks - Sneaky good.
6. Sixers - Not hard being at the top of the East.
7. Spurs - Spurs are always gonna Spur. Nothing ever changes despite who plays for them.
8. Wolves - Surprise team, but cake walk schedule so far.
9. Heat - Top defensive team in the East.
10. Blazers - I expected more honestly.
11. Raptors - Have done a good job despite the Kawhi Goodbye
12. Mav's - Its Doncic & Porz vs The World
13. Jazz - Conely has been a major major major downgrade from Rubio so far.
14. Rockets - Is it too early to start panicking yet??
15. Celtics - Doing what Boston always does. So smart to ditch Rozier for Kemba.

Also interesting to think how the west will look in one year... there are very few FA this summer.... for the most part it’s going to be the same rosters with 1 year of development or decline and a lot of stars on the decline. We are going to see a changing of the guard very soon as Suns/Mavs/pelicans/Kings improve.

Clippers-
will be worse. Another year of wear and tear on Kawhi/PH/Bev/Lou.. will they keep Harrel?

Lakers - Another year year of Lebron decline... likely will struggle to make the playoffs.... no picks.

Utah - Conley will be getting old, possibly will opt out.... no cap or FA options to replace value at pg. another year on Ed Davis and Bojan... will Mitchell development be enough to offset?

Spurs - Lots of aging core players.. does DeMarcus resign?

Houston- Another year on WB, Harden, PJ, Green and Gordon.

I think this is possible for west regular season standings..

1 and 2 - Denver/Clippers
3. Suns... that’s right!


Other then Denver/Clippers, every other team in the west feels like they have major flaws and we could realistically finish ahead of them with how we have been playing...

Wild. Suns efficiency through 4 games......

Half Court
Offense:: 4th (.98 PPP)
Defense: 3rd (.84 PPP)

Overall
Offense: 5th
Defense: 8th

I do see the Suns finishing the season with better offensive efficiency than defensive efficiency. Suns half court offense in particular appears quite sustainable - not top 5 sustainable but maybe top 8 or top 12. The skill level is just too good compared to average NBA teams.

The defense, while outstanding early on, relies upon max effort and has experienced a good bit of luck through 4 games.

What's up again! Here is my Power Rankings after week 2 in the books. Again, I'm only doing the Western Conference for now. I will be biased towards the Suns (and Spurs).

15. Golden State Warriors 1-5

It just goes to show that even if you have 3 all-stars on your team, you need actual NBA talent surrounding them. Unfortunate Curry got hurt, I really wanted to see how he'd play and how the media would portray him with such a bad supporting cast.

14. Memphis Grizzlies 1-4

Ja Morant was exciting to watch against the Suns, not much else can be positively said for the Griz. They are drafting guys that fit their system. Play tough defense, be a poor 3-point shooter. They are shooting under 30% from 3, worst in the Western Conference.

13. New Orleans Pelicans 1-5

I'm actually surprised as to how bad their veterans are playing. Holiday, Redick, and Favors haven't been performing like they should. Ingram is still playing well. I'm looking forward to seeing how Zion plays with this group, though I don't think he'll have as much of an impact as the media is making him out to be.

12. Oklahoma City Thunder 2-4

I think Steven Adams is having the hardest time adjusting to this new team, he is shooting 31% from the field! Chris Paul is averaging under 5 assists per game. They had some close losses to the Rockets & Blazers this week so it's hard to fault them too much.

11. Sacramento Kings 2-5

After starting 0-5, they managed to squeak out a 1-point win against the Jazz, and then had a confidence booster game against the Knicks. Still though, I believe many people had higher expectations of the Kings this season.

10. Portland Trailblazers 3-3

Ouch. They lose Zach Collins for a while with shoulder surgery to go along with Jusuf Nurkic. I think the Blazers need to find new trainers because their players seem to consistently get hurt. Furthermore that game against the Sixers was brutal. Up 19 in the 3rd, to being down 2 and hitting a huge 3 with 2 seconds to go, only to end up losing to a buzzer beater. Sounds like the Suns. This might be the season they end up slipping, though the injuries don't help at all.

9. Houston Rockets 3-3

I heard Mike D'Antoni might be on the hot seat? They took quite a beating against the Heat. This roster is comprised of mostly veterans so if they can't get it done, perhaps they look to retool around Harden again?

8. Utah Jazz 4-3

Yeah they beat the Suns, but I believe the Jazz got 16 FT's in the 4th quarter while the Suns only got 2. The game wasn't called fairly, and I'm unsure why the refs are giving the Jazz favorable whistles. Conley has yet to find his rhythm, and the Jazz are barely scoring 100 points per game so far to start the year. That just won't get it down come playoff time. Additionally, I didn't realize how badly they would miss Favors. They have a poor bench and likely may need to adjust their rotations. Personally think they should go back to starting Joe Ingles who isn't doing well in that sixth man role.

7. Minnesota Timberwolves 4-1

They only had 2 games this past week, against the Sixers and Wizards. They beat the Wizards without KAT which really isn't that big of an accomplishment IMO. They've had a favorable schedule so far, and this week they have the Bucks, Grizzlies, and Warriors.

6. San Antonio Spurs 4-2

Still hate them. They beat the Blazers and Warriors, but lost to the two LA teams. Tried watching the game against the Clippers and Lakers. Spurs are just boring and I fell asleep.

5. Denver Nuggets 4-2

Putting it out there that I don't like Murray. He's inconsistent and the Nuggets are going to regret giving him a max contract. People said Booker will be the most overpaid player, but look at Murray. Dude is putting up pedestrian numbers for a max contract. More importantly he was mocking Ricky Rubio when the Suns played them, like Murray has accomplished anything in this league. Jokic needs to lay off the Nuggets, he's been looking mighty gimpy running up and down the court.

4. Dallas Mavericks 4-2

They put up a good fight against the Lakers. They just don't have a good supporting cast around Luka/KP. Scary though because Dallas is well equipped to make a trade to improve their roster, but as of now I can't put them in the top 3.

3. Phoenix Suns 4-2

Another one point loss to the Jazz so I can't really put the Suns outside of the top 3 in the Western Conference. This week the Suns face some tough Eastern Conference teams so it'll be interesting to see what happens.

2. Los Angeles Clippers 5-2

They are looking really good without Paul George. Their loss this week was against the Jazz... without Kawhi Leonard so it's possible they could have been 6-1 with their only loss to the Mighty Suns!

1. Los Angeles Lakers 5-1

Geezus I hate putting both LA teams on top. Perhaps they drop 2 games this week so I can put them outside the top 5 where they belong.