Week 3 Power Rankings
Nov 8, 2016 15:04:20 GMT -5
Golden State Warriors (Caleb), Philadelphia 76ers (Chris), and 5 more like this
Post by Indiana Pacers (Jon) on Nov 8, 2016 15:04:20 GMT -5
Week 3 Power Rankings
Will anyone dethrone the star-studded Bucks?
Will anyone dethrone the star-studded Bucks?
1 Bucks (2-0)Led by two superstuds in Giannis and CP3, the Bucks are sure-fire contenders and the top dogs of the league at the moment. Jacoby and the Bucks are leading the league in scoring and by a large margin. The loss of Crowder and Stephenson hurt but the return of Gary Harris should lessen the blow. The Bucks look like favorites to come out of the east at the moment.
2 Kings (2-0)David and the Kings are surprising a lot of people, leading the west in scoring. 8 players average nearly 20-fpg a game, led by Melo, Blake and Dragic. The surprise of this team is the Nets duo of Kilpatrick and Trevor Booker. Booker is killing it, averaging 30-fpg. Kilpatrick is getting every opportunity to show out for the injury prone and terrible Nets squad. It is early in the season but the Kings could come out of the tough western conference.
3 Grizzlies (2-0)All the talk of Karl Anthony-Towns has clouded the production of guys like DeRozan, Plumlee, and Dieng, who are contributing at elite levels. Tim Frazier has been great for Luke and the Grizzlies but how long will that last? The return of Jrue Holiday will have a major effect on this team. At the end of the day, KAT is going to have to put the team on his back and this team goes as far as that is.
4 Pistons (2-0)A little surprise to see them doing so well but they are getting production from nearly every player on the roster. Kawhi is leading this team while averaging 43-fpg. Kevin Love, Lavine, and George Hill are all producing 20+fpg. With a solid core and solid role players, the Pistons look legit and are on the tail of Jacoby’s Bucks.
5 Warriors (2-0)Nurkic has arguably been their best player, almost hitting the 30-fpg mark. Caleb and the Warriors are looking good and they don’t even have one guy averaging 30-fpg. Jimmy, Tobias Harris and Batum are all bound to average 25+ fpg and make a great trio. Teague is playing some terrible basketball but that should turn around eventually. The Warriors are not producing to their potential, which is scary considering they are 2-0 and a top 5 scorer in the west.
6 Jazz (1-0)As expected, TJ has a great looking squad. Gobert, Conley, McCollum, Gay, and TT form probably the best starting 5 in the league. Coming off a bye, TJ should be able to take down the Nuggets in what should be a great matchup. The more I look at this team, the more I like it. Dirk, Patty Mills and Cody Zeller are great to go along with the stud filed starting lineup. J-Rich should also produce when he is fully healthy. I wouldn’t be surprised at all if TJ came out of the west.
7 Mavericks (1-1)James Harden is a stud and will finish as a top 2 scorer. Royce has built a great supporting cast for Harden. Barea and Taj Gibson are producing 25+ fpg, which is a pleasant surprise but Brook Lopez is going to have to pick up the slack for this team to make a playoff run. The Mavs are top 3 scoring in the west currently and had a tough first week loss against Kevin’s Nuggets, they should be able to bounce back against the Suns.
8 Hawks (1-1)John and the Hawks had a tough week 1 loss to the top scoring Pistons, but this team looks great moving forward. Lowry, Ariza, D-Rose and even Jon Leuer are all producing 20+ fpg, great production from a solid group. A top 3 scorer in the east, the Hawks will go as far as DeAndre Jordan takes them but he hasn’t been showing out compared to last year. I expect DeAndre to turn it around and start producing at an elite level, in turn the Hawks should improve every week.
9 Spurs (1-1)I’m not really sure how Chris does it, but he consistently fields a great team. The Spurs are a top 5 scorer in the west and not one player really stands out. Greg Monroe is their leading scorer averaging just under 30-fpg. The team is filled with solid guys who simply produce. The Spurs should only improve, as Rubio and Sullinger will eventually return. They had a big win against the Nuggets last week and should continue their success against the Lakers in week 3.
10 Nuggets (1-1)I feel for Kevin here, he has had extremely tough schedule with the Mavericks and Spurs. Things do not get easier as he faces TJ and the Jazz in week 3. It makes it even worse that Barton could be out for an extended period of time. Some good news for the Nuggets, Darren Collison will be back this week and should produce right away. The Nuggets are going through a rough patch in time but they look solid with KD leading the way and Steven Adams producing well enough. Favors is going to need to step it up if the Nuggets want to make a deep run in the playoffs.
11 76ers (2-0)A bunch of young studs are carrying this team to an undefeated record. D’Angelo Russell, Porzingis, Embiid and Rodney Hood all look to be perfect building blocks for this young squad. Ty Lawson’s production is almost guaranteed to go down with the return of Collison, which will have a huge impact on the 76ers, but they should still be a great team. Before the season started, many probably thought they had no chance to make the playoffs, but right now, they are one of the ten 2-0 teams in the league.
12 Raptors (2-0)Draymond is looking great in a new role for the Warriors and leading this Raptors team to an undefeated record. Gortat has also looked great as he is producing at a top 6 center level. Devin Booker and Gallinari round out this sneaky solid squad that Kendrick Perkins has put together. They face a tough matchup against the Celtics this week but will look to continue their undefeated record.
13 Pacers (2-0)They go as far as Russell Westbrook takes them. Julius Randle has looked great but other than that, the Pacers don’t have much else. Biyombo, Crabbe and Wes Matthews are all just average. Noel’s return could play a huge role on this teams success. But this goes back to Westbrook, it is his team and we will see how far he takes the Pacers.
14 Knicks (2-0)Injuries or whatnot have been hurting the Knicks - Holiday has had an unfortunate turn of events in his life and Middleton got hurt before the season even started. TJ Warren may be the biggest surprise in the league, the dude is killin it, averaging nearly 30-fpg. JaMychal Green was also a great pick by Tyler as he is getting the minutes to produce. John Wall sitting back to backs can’t help the Knicks cause but they are still undefeated. After this weeks bye, there should be a battle of unbeaten against the 76ers.
15 Timberwolves (2-0)Anthony Davis and Damian Lillard. Two young super studs that are simply carrying this team. MKG is the only other player who is producing for the Wolves. This team is top heavy, extremely top heavy. They have multiple guys who have been cut or are currently in the D-League. The two headed monster of AD and Lillard should lead them to some wins but they have yet to really play a solid team in the west. This week’s matchup against the Thunder should be a good test.
16 Bulls (0-2)Charlie has had some tough luck so far, Westbrook single handily beat him week 1 and Jacoby’s Bucks almost dropped 900 on him week 2. This team will make the playoffs – Whiteside, Aldridge and Bledsoe form one of the best trios in the league. Mirotic has also looked very good this year. The Bulls are a top 5 scorer in the east and will look to bounce back from this 0-2 hole against a solid Hawks team.
17 Clippers (0-2)Trey, like Kevin’s Nuggets, has been handed a tough schedule. The Clippers have lost to two undefeated teams and these next two weeks do not get any easier against the Grizzlies and Mavericks. Trey has put together a scary good team. Isaiah Thomas looks great and Sergio Rodriguez has been producing great numbers. Now just imagine a fully healthy squad with Tyreke and Ben Simmons. Trey and the Clippers have a bright future ahead.
18 Thunder (1-0)Loren has built a solid squad, Milsap is still a stud, putting up great numbers. But the Jeremy Lin injury really hurts as he was averaging 27-fpg and Klay’s production has concerned me. They are coming off a bye and face an interesting matchup against the Wolves – I expect the Thunder to be a middle of the pack team in the west unless something changes.
19 Wizards (0-2)The Wizards probably have the best big man duo in the league with Dwight and DeMarcus Cousins. The Reggie Jackson injury has been hurting them as they almost snuck out a win against a great Pistons team. Porter has been great, nearly averaging 27-fpg. The Wizards could turn some heads once Reggie Jackson is back, don’t be surprised to see them in the playoffs.
20 Celtics (1-0)Avery Bradley looks like a completely different player, averaging nearly 36-fpg. Yacob has a very solid team but they are underperforming. Rondo, Beal and Jokic are all due for big games so I expect the Celtics to continue to get better as the season goes on. This team could be a sneaky good playoff team. They will try to unseat the undefeated Raptors this week.
21 Pelicans (0-2)The Pelicans have a stud in Andre Drummond but not much else. Alex Len, Justise Winslow and Delly are decent but aren’t enough to make the Pelicans legit playoff contenders. The trade of Afflalo should only help this team but it still may not be enough for this team to contend in the west. At this point, the Pelicans can just hope Hoiberg frees Bobby Portis.
22 Rockets (1-1)Steph is still Steph but the Rockets lack the depth needed to be a contender in the west. Its unfortunate that Horford got hurt because the Rockets have only 8 players on their roster. Harrison Barnes is a good option at SF and the Rockets have a solid trio, but other than the 3, they have almost nothing. Depth is needed for this team. They face a tough matchup against the Kings.
23 Heat (0-2)The Heat have a very solid team but are over cap and have no owner in the ESPN league. Oladipo has been underperforming but he should pick up the slack soon enough. D-Wade, Louis Williams and Pau Gasol are all really good contributors but again, this team is over cap. They shouldn’t even be ranked this high because of their cap situation but they do have solid pieces.
24 Suns (0-2)The Suns have solid building blocks in Schroder, Vucevic, Kris Dunn and Marcus Smart but the production isn’t there for a few of these guys. Dunn and Smart could be studs in this league because of their defensive stats but they need the playing time to reach their potential. This team could be dangerous down the road but as of now, they are a bottom feeder.
25 Magic (0-2)Perry has a solid squad with a bunch of young talent. Myles Turner is solidifying himself as one of the best centers in the league. Kanter and JV are a great supporting cast to Turner. Hayward has looked good in the few games he has played returning from injury. They have a hole at PG but this team is young and improving each week. I don’t expect them to make the playoffs but this team will show flashes of greatness.
26 Lakers (0-2)This team is really underperforming, Brandon Knight has looked awful with his playing time and Ibaka has not been doing much. Even Paul George has gotten off to a slow start, things will get better for this Lakers squad but they currently look like a mess. These guys can turn it around but they will have to do it quick in a loaded western conference. They have a tough matchup against the Spurs this week.
27 Blazers (0-2)Kemba Walker is a stud and putting up the numbers to back it up. Unfortunately for the Blazers, that is the only thing they have going for them. Wiggins is great but just not in this scoring format as he is averaging less than 18 fpg. Aminu has been their second best player, which says a lot about this team. I expect some moves to be made by the Blazers, if not they are going to be a consistent lottery team.
28 Hornets (0-2)Giggsy has a great core of guys in Marc Gasol, Eric Gordon, Ingram and Okafor but they do not have much depth behind them. Terrence Jones looks great but the Pelicans are a mess, Jaylen Brown is getting minutes because of Crowder’s injury but other than that, there really isn’t much there for the Hornets. It’s not like the Hornets are here to win games, Giggy’s most recent block stated, “Marc Gasol, Eric Gordon, and Danny Green is too good to be in my team. Please send me offers.” Is it tanking season already?
29 Cavaliers (0-2)Kyrie and Elfrid Payton are the only two averaging more than 20-fpg on this team but they are loaded with young talent. Buddy Hield, Poeltl, Jamal Murray, Wade Baldwin and Larry Nance have all flashed their potential this year. I do not expect much from them this year but they will be fun to watch and have a bright future.
30 Nets (0-1)Aaron Gordon, Jabari Parker and Mudiay - Three guys who will all eventually be great players, but at the moment they are youngsters with potential. The Nets will be an exciting team to watch in the future but as of now, they are the worse team in the league. Ending on a good note, Jake Layman did go bonkers last week and dropped 27 fp.
ive had some rough luck so far but ill be there at the end (insert ignorant comment from yacob/TJ below )
