CP3 may have stolen from OKC last night, but there's no need to worry.
1. Oklahoma City Thunder (PR=2, 42-16)…In all honesty, this was 1 of the toughest weeks ranking the top 5 yet. Why? Because none of the top-tier teams had stellar weeks. The Bulls went 2-1, but D-Rose had to sit again after being back for only a game. The Heat went 1-2, getting beaten up by a rugged Memphis team and losing despite playing well against Boston (both at home). And the Spurs lost 2 in a row after getting their 11 game win streak snapped. Why not give the number 1 spot to OKC, who in the 1st 10 weeks of these rankings was never ranked lower then 3rd, but had somehow never held the top position? The Thunder would have had a 3-0 week if it weren’t for the efforts of CP3 last night, but the Thunder continue to have the most talent-laden roster in the league from top to bottom. Memphis’ size and style of play gives them problems, but you would have to think OKC would be heavily favored in a playoffs series with any other team in the West.
2. Chicago Bulls (PR=4, 44-14)…Odd week for the Bulls, who went 2-1, but their only loss came in the 1 game D-Rose played in. I’m honestly not sure what to make of Chicago at this point. They still have the league’s best record, they have done it with their best player being out of the lineup for seemingly half of the season, and they play the best team defense out of any contender. Also, if the Thunder are the league’s deepest team, then I think it’s fair to say that the Bulls have the best set of role players in the league for a team’s particular system…but something just doesn’t smell right about this Bulls team this year. To me, I’m not sure they have done anything to improve themselves from last season, and that team was only good enough to lose in 5 games to Miami. If they are still counting on Rip Hamilton to be that difference maker, I’m not sure that’s good enough. And if Rose can’t get on the court (and stay on the court), it’s a moot point anyway.
3. Miami Heat (PR=1, 40-16)…Not sure how to categorize Miami’s week either, but despite climbing to number 1 last week, I think it was only right to drop them a few spots due to their recent dip (only 0.500 in their last 10 games). The home loss to the Grizz is forgivable. Memphis is 1 of the league’s hottest teams over the last few weeks, and their unorthodox style makes them a tough matchup for a lot of teams. The loss later in the week to Boston at home was more troubling though. The Heat actually seemed to play well, but Boston just played better. Now, anyone who watched that game might say it was just 1 of those nights. The C’s shot like 60% from the field for the game, and it’s not as if they were getting wide open layups…in fact, it seemed like almost all of their shots were contested jumpers, but they just happened to go in. Still, the Heat still struggle in certain areas against the Celtics. KG seems to absolutely own Chris Bosh, and Rondo pretty much always has his way with Mario Chalmers. As funny as this would have sounded earlier in the year, Boston is probably the 1 team in the East that Miami doesn’t want to see come playoff time this year.
4. LA Lakers (PR=5, 37-22)…1st time this year cracking the top 4 this year for the Lakers. Unless Coach Pop decides to sit Manu, TD, and Parker for the rest of the regular season, I can’t see them catching the Spurs for the West’s number 2 seed, but they will be dangerous none of the less. LA has played well even with Kobe getting some R&R this past week, and while we have seen all the reasons why they “can’t” contend this year (player-coach issues, Kobe being old and beat up, Kobe taking too many shots, their overall lack of team foot speed, etc.), we are now starting to see the reasons they should be taken seriously as well (he’s still Kobe f****** Bryant, their twin towers, and their slowdown tempo, which should be much more conducive to the postseason).
5. San Antonio Spurs (PR=3, 40-16)…Out of all the top teams, I feel like I write about the Spurs the least per week, but that lack of attention kind of fits their team’s overall personality anyway. Gregg Popovich won’t hesitate to rest his vets (like he did in a loss at Utah) the rest of the regular season with a playoff ticket already punched, but a home loss to the Kobe-less Lakers with Duncan, Parker, and Ginnobli all in the lineup last night was somewhat of a surprise. It kind of shows this team’s quandary though…the Spurs will finish the regular season with 1 of the best records in the West, and their professionalism and experience make it possible for them to beat just about anyone (well, except for Memphis maybe), but I could see them losing to just about anybody (except Houston maybe) as well.
6. Boston Celtics (PR=Not Ranked, 34-24)…Hey, I’ve been doing a top 5 all year, not a top 6. What gives?!? Well, I was going to do a full team examination (similar to the Clippers and Heat posts from the last few weeks) on the C’s, but after reading Bill Simmons’ Celtics column this morning I couldn’t bring myself to do it. Damn you, Sports Guy…if only I was monetarily compensated to bang these posts out, then I would have beat you to it. But what about these Celtics? Remember a few years ago when they made the Finals and eventually lost to the Lakers in 7 games? Well, they were written off that year as well. I think through 60 games or so, they were just about right at 0.500. This year they started 15-17. Paul Pierce looked like fat, old, bizarro-world Paul Pierce. Ray Allen was in and out of the lineup with various injuries. KG looked like he was playing with rusty C-V joints as knees. Rajon Rando was, well, being Rajon Rondo: being difficult to deal with, going through 1 of his “downer” moods, throwing balls at referees, and spawning trade rumors. Now, the Celtics look like some kind of “remix” of what they’ve been for the last few seasons. Too much is being made of KG’s “move” to center. He is doing all the same things he had done playing alongside Perkins, Big Baby, Shaq, Jermaine O’Neal, and any other big guy they have trotted out there alongside him since he’s been in Boston. But I must admit he has really been balling lately. The explosiveness and ability to finish in traffic is probably gone forever, but he has been knocking down midrange jumpers at a rate that I can’t remember him ever doing before. Pierce looks like he has worked himself back into game shape, and he is beginning to look a lot like the Paul Pierce of old as well. Rondo is in an “upper” mood now, and he’s flirting with triple-doubles almost every night. Ray Allen is back in the lineup again, and he seems to be enjoying his new sparkplug role off the bench. And how about his replacement, Avery Bradley? Bradley doesn’t have nearly the offensive cache that Allen has, but his tremendous on-the-ball defense gives Boston a different defensive look. Previously, their strength on D was their ability to protect the rim. Now, it’s the ball pressure that Rondo and Bradley can apply on the outside, and the havoc that that creates. The state of the team could change at any moment. KG’s jumper could stop falling, thus negating the Celtics’ ability to stretch defenses. Or any of the original Big 3 could break a hip or something any minute. Or something could send Rondo into another sulking, pouting mood. Because of all that, Boston’s current run seems tenuous, but it’s definitely made things more interesting in the East.
The monkey wrench has officially been thrown into the mix.
25. Golden State Warriors (PR=Not Ranked, 22-35)…Did a top 6 this week, so might as well do a bottom 6 too, right? The Warriors were not going anywhere this year anyway, but they traded away their best player, and with Bogut hurt basically got nothing back in the short term. This could be ugly the rest of the way this year.
26. Toronto Raptors (PR=Not Ranked, 20-39)…Oh, Canada…slipped back into the bottom 5 following 4 L’s in a row.
27. New Orleans Hornets (PR=28, 16-42)…Would have won 4 out of their last 5 if it wasn’t for a 2 point L to the Lakers. Plus, former Terp Greivis Vasquez has been getting a lot of run lately, so that’s reason enough to move them up another spot.
28. Washington Wizards (PR=29, 14-44)…My Wizards own, and I mean “own,” the Charlotte Bobcats this year. Too bad they are 11-44 against everybody else. They have won 2 in a row though, which goes against the strategy of bottoming-out to get more ping pong balls for the draft lottery. Come on, guys…get back to playing hard but still losing.
29. Sacramento Kings (PR=26, 19-40)…Ok, ok, I know. The Kings are 2 games ahead of New Orleans, and 4 games ahead of the Wizards in the loss column, but their losing streak is now up to 6 (and their last loss was to the Hornets), and 3 of their last 7 games this year are against OKC. Have fun with that.
30. Charlotte Bobcats (PR=30, 7-49)…The Bobcats are now reaching the level of the historically bad. Their current 13 game losing streak is only rivaled by their 16 game slide from earlier in the year.
Rising: New York, LA Clippers, and Memphis (coincidentally, I think I mentioned the Grizz as a bad matchup for 3 teams in the top 6…hmmm)
Falling: Minnesota (everyone’s 1 time darkhouse pick in the West has now lost 7 straight)
Love's concussion last night only added insult to injury for the Wolves.
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