Preseason Power rankings: A Bill Simmons and SI.com reporter J. Felders collaboration

[Conroy]

Good Morning all Bill Simmons here to bring to you the first power rankings of the season. J. Felders (there may be some truth to the rumor he is linked to Suns GM Xist) and myself are going to work together to bring these to you every 2 sim months. The first time around we decided to break it down by conference to mix it up a little bit with Felders tackling the West and myself handling the East. Go ahead and argue for or against the rankings and we'll try to defend our reasoning for how we ranked them.

First with the West:

#1 - Memphis
Peja adds outside skill to the traditional Grizz power game
#2- LA Lakers
Depth & versatility gives teeth to a new defensive gameplan
#3 - Minnesota
The additions of Stack and Odom allows them to build on last year's success
#4 - Golden State
I don't get how they do it, but small-ball works really well for them
#5 - LA Clippers
About the same position as last season's squad, Jay Williams' improvement is key
#6 - Houston
Loaded at every spot, only concern is youth
#7 - Denver
Underachieved last season, arguably improved in areas (Bibby)
#8 - Phoenix
Strong frontcourt, oddball backcourt. Houston's less talented counterpart
#9 - Seattle
McDyess/Pierce/Allen trio keeps them dangerous, but severe lack of depth cripples them immensely
#10 - Portland
Losing Kenyon will hurt big-time, as well as losing Jahidi White. Wuggie leaving makes this team a question mark
#11 - Sacramento
Still good, but depth is a problem. Brandon & Ratliff are declining, Ilgauskas & Van Horn are underachieving
#12 - Utah
Appears to have one too many guys at the SF/PF slot. Kendrick & Mo are key to competing for a playoff spot
#13 - Dallas
Jamal Crawford, Jake Tsakalidis, and Andris Biedrins give this team a bit more hope, and Hughes more help
#14 - San Antonio
I simply don't think Houston & Kidd can lift their under-average teammates to compete on a consistent level

Now with the East:

#1 - New Orleans
Defending champs, and upgraded the starting shooting guard in terms of stats by replacing McKee with Mo Pete.
#2 - Philadelphia
Tied the Hornets last year for best record and resigned their main free agent in Chauncey Billups who is continuing to improve.
#3 - Boston
Filled in gaping hole at SF. Jones needs to bounce back for them to have a title run
#4 - Washington
We know Kobe and Hill can get it done, but can Baker, White, and whoever ends up playing PG be enough of a supporting cast?
#5 - Milwaukee
Work hard, play hard. Not a flashy team by any means, but they know how to get the job done.
#6 - Chicago
Nash needs to contribute more than 13 and 9, if he does the Bulls could be a sleeper contender, if not an early exit in the playoffs is likely.
#7 - Orlando
Young, but very powerful, should be considered the sleeper Eastern title contender. The slightly tougher East Coast version of Houston
#8 - New York
Perhaps losing so much of their wretched excess from last season will help them. These next two seasons are do-or-die
#9 - Toronto
Clearly rebuilding, so I don't think this season will bother their GM much. Kenyon & Andre give this squad a good future, but the other players are average at best
#10 - Miami
Fixed disappointing SF unit from last season with Mash & Ariza. Swift needs to get it together if they want a playoff berth
#11 - Cleveland
No PG, an average C, and an underachieving SG means the playoffs are unlikely. Duncan may have to be traded
#12 - New Jersey
It really doesn't matter that Dwight, O'Neal, and Kirilenko are defensive beasts, because this team is almost exclusively made of centers & power forwards.
#13 - Detroit
Losing Iverson will hurt big-time. They struggled last season, so even if rookie Kevin Martin and the aging Sam Cassell can fill the void, any shot at the playoffs is unlikely
#14 - Atlanta
Should expect improvement this year. Rose needs to be moved to SG to avoid conflict with Kirk
#15 - Indiana
The Indiana Shaquilles have almost no shot of being better than they were last year, which wasn't good anyway. They lose Odom & Mo Peterson, and gained.......

[Pelicans78]

6th in the west? Didn't expect to be that high. The pressure is really on now to start winning.

[BallSoHard]

Great job guys.

Good comments about the Warriors. My gut tells me they're lower but they always seem to do well so you can't lower them. I'd probably have Dallas at the bottom (no fault to the current GM) because they're just talent void. At least the Spurs have Houston and Kidd.

As far as the top of the West, I have the T wolves at paper favorites because they're just good at every position. Grizz until they fill in their 1 position are 2.

[Xist2inspire]

@JeezyF.Baby: Don't get too cocky, teams #6 through #8 in the West. I had a hard time keeping Portland out of things so soon after their Finals run, as well as claiming that traditional playoff squads such as Seattle & Sacramento wouldn't make the cut this time around. I had to base those decisions on depth & GM activity. #6 through #11, and even #12, can almost be considered interchangeable, as #9 through #11 still have the star power. We shall see.......

[TrayWithAnA]

Any press is good press

[Soundwave]

If only I had a really good SF?

Anyone know where I can find one?

[BallSoHard]

If only I had a really good SF?

Anyone know where I can find one?

Here Washington had one

[BallSoHard]

Hear

[c_prej]

Man i go from not having any depth to having to much depth? We will see

[Xist2inspire]

Well, now. Bill's turned things over to me for this installment of the Power Rankings, the first to feature all 29 teams in one complete ranking. 33.3% of the season is done. There's still a lot of basketball to be played, but some teams have separated themselves from the pack early. So let's see:

#1 - New Orleans (Last seen: #1 in East preseason rankings)
Can we just give them the title already? Honestly, there's not much I can say that we don't already know. Excellent job, AD23forMVP.

#2 - Philadelphia (Last seen: #2 in East preseason rankings)
Well, if any team can take issue with the Hornets being favorites, it's this squad. It's been a while coming, but they're here, and it doesn't look like they're slowing down. DAT JAMISON. DEM CAMBY BLOCK PARTIES. DAT HOME RECORD.

#3 - Milwaukee (Last seen: #5 in East preseason rankings)
Bambi's all grown up. Gilbert Arenas' insane improvement has propelled this squad to new heights. Fear the deer, indeed.

#4 - Washington (Last seen: #4 in East preseason rankings)
This team stumbled a bit coming out of the gate, but they're pulling it together. Again, it's not about Grant & Kobe, but it's about Vin rallying the rest of the team to help the cause.

#5 - Sacramento (Last seen: #11 in West preseason rankings)
So here's our first Western team. The power of teamwork indeed. Everybody's chipping in, and I mean everybody, which makes any questions we had about them in preseason null and void. But, the question now is: How much did Van Horn mean to this team?

#6 - Houston (Last seen: #6 in West preseason rankings)
See what happens when you justify your pay, Etan? The Rockets are a team that preys on the weak, but their inexperience shows when playing tougher opponents. Still, the regular season is all about beating who you're supposed to beat to get to the playoffs. The Rockets beat who they're supposed to beat, as as long as they do that, the playoffs await.

#7 - New York (Last seen: #8 in East preseason rankings)
Wow. Cleaning out last season's clutter has allowed this team to settle down and focus, which has translated into wins. They're experiencing a power surge right now, let's see if they can keep it up.

#8 - Boston (Last seen: #3 in East preseason rankings)
Something tells me they were hoping Childress would develop faster than this. As it is, this version of Boston looks suspiciously like last season's version of Boston: Good enough, but lacking the X-factor that brought another title to Beantown in 2002.

#9 - LA Lakers (Last seen: #2 in West preseason rankings)
Early injuries have damaged the Lake Show's chemistry, but it looks like they're slowly recovering. We've seen glimpses of how deadly this team can be when the pieces are clicking, so their hopes rest on getting on the same page consistently as soon as possible.

#10 - Memphis (Last seen: #1 in West preseason rankings)
They've slowed down after a promising start, which leads us to ask the question: Did they merely swap out Jalen for Peja? If so, what we're seeing now from the Grizz has a chance of becoming the norm.

With the Top 10 completed, I must ask you to stay tuned for #11 - #29. My fingers are killing me.

[BallSoHard]

Hard to disagree with any of these

[IamQuailman]

Lovin' it!

[bojangles837]

DAT JAMISON. DEM CAMBY BLOCK PARTIES. DAT HOME RECORD.[/I]

YEA YEAHH

[Pelicans78]

Can't complain about being 6th after being 95-151 the last three seasons. Still 5-5 the last 10 games and 11-9 the last 3 sims. Still afraid to tinker on the gameplan.

[Xist2inspire]

.....and we're back! I seem to have a little crashing problem, so I'll just get the rest out there now, and how about some fan interaction? If anyone has any questions or wants to hear my thoughts on the remaining teams on the list, just say so in the comments!

#11 - Golden State
(Last seen: #4 in West rankings)

#12 - Atlanta
(Last seen: #14 in East rankings)

#13 - New Jersey
(Last seen: #12 in East rankings)

#14 - Chicago
(Last seen: #6 in East rankings)

#15 - Minnesota
(Last seen: #3 in West rankings)

#16 - Dallas
(Last seen: #13 in West rankings)

#17 - LA Clippers
(Last seen: #5 in West rankings)

#18 - San Antonio
(Last seen: #14 in West rankings)

#19 - Utah
(Last seen: #12 in West rankings)

#20 - Cleveland
(Last seen: #11 in East rankings)

#21 - Miami
(Last seen: #10 in East rankings)

#22 - Portland
(Last seen: #10 in West rankings)

#23 - Denver
(Last seen: #7 in West rankings)

#24 - Detroit
(Last seen: #13 in East rankings)

#25 - Orlando
(Last seen: #7 in East rankings)

#26 - Toronto
(Last seen: #9 in East rankings)

#27 - Seattle
(Last seen: #9 in West rankings)

#28 - Phoenix
(Last seen: #8 in West rankings)

#29 - Indiana
(Last seen: #15 in East rankings)

So that's it, all 29 NBA squads ranked. Remember, I'd like to see some participation from the masses, so no matter if you're a fan, a coach, or a GM, if you've got a question about your team's ranking or would like to hear some thoughts on them, sound off!

[Conroy]

@SportsGuy: biggest difference with J Felders this time around was me fighting for my Celtics to get in the top 10, where to put the Lakers, and does Atlanta deserve to be higher, lower, or just right?

[Pelicans78]

Boston and the Lakers have each defeated Houston twice.

[Xist2inspire]

Boston and the Lakers have each defeated Houston twice.

@JeezyF.Baby: Hence the "prey on the weak" comment. Again, the thing with Houston is they win the games they're supposed to win, aka The Easy Ones. Both Boston and LA do not do that consistently, and in the case of LA, we're not even sure if they can jell. Ideally, Houston will take their losses to tougher teams as a learning exerience, so that when the playoffs roll around (their reward for consistently taking out the trash), they will have learned how to hang with the big boys. That's what the regular season is all about for a young, emerging contender.

[Pelicans78]

@JeezyF.Baby: Hence the "prey on the weak" comment. Again, the thing with Houston is they win the games they're supposed to win, aka The Easy Ones. Both Boston and LA do not do that consistently, and in the case of LA, we're not even sure if they can jell. Ideally, Houston will take their losses to tougher teams as a learning exerience, so that when the playoffs roll around (their reward for consistently taking out the trash), they will have learned how to hang with the big boys. That's what the regular season is all about for a young, emerging contender.

I can't argue with that!!!

Another thing I notice is alot of the good teams use a slower pace which makes the Rockets struggle. The Rockets are at their best in an uptempo setting.