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.......