We are two weeks away from the start of the NBA regular season. So I have decided to give you my NBA rankings complete with player(s) who could make or break their team, or if this team will tank their season to get a higher draft pick. Let’s start at the bottom and work our way to the top.
30. Philadelphia 76ers
They have no stars and barely an up and comer in Thaddeus Young. They’ll be lucky if they win 15 games this season.
Royce White: You signed a guy who doesn’t like to travel and has a fear of flying. Yeah, that’s going to work out fine.
29. The Phoenix Suns
The curse of a bad owner. It’s been downhill since Amare left and for the love of Odin, stop drafting point guards with every pick.
Eric Bledsoe: The former Clippers star could use this team to boost his stock. Look for him to have big numbers this year
28. Milwaukee Bucks:
You lose Monta Ellis and Brandon Jennings and gain O.J. Mayo and Caron Butler. That makes sense (complete sarcasm).
Tanked season: They aren’t a destination spot for stars young or old. The only way they’re going get better is via the NBA draft
27.Sacramento Kings:
They have the pieces to be better, but until your star player (DeMarcus Cousins) takes better shots enjoy the bottom of the barrel. They’d be higher if they were in the east.
DeMarcus Cousins: Good enough to be a future hall of famer if he ever matures.
26. Atlanta Hawks:
The Hawks need to do something and fast. They floated around the four or five seed with Josh Smith and Joe Johnson. Now they’re both gone and you’re stuck with Al Horford STILL at center. The Highlight Factory will now be known as the “Twilight Factory”. And by Twilight I mean the horrible vampires. They’ll be soft and suck. See what I did there?
Paul Milsap: He is going to ball and ball hard this season. A decent one to punch with him and Al Horford. Too bad neither of them are centers.
25. Orlando Magic:
Two words: No identity. They do play hard, so I will give them some crdeit.
Tanked season: Well, they should tank their season. Glen Davis is your go to guy. He’ll get ya 14 and 8 but he’s more of a second or third option.
24. Boston Celtics
I’m rating this team this low because I’m expecting them to be competitive to keep the fans, but tank the season for draft picks. Expect a big year from Humphries.
Jeff Green: With Rondo out for who knows how long, he going to have to live up to his potential.
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23. Utah Jazz:
No matter what’s going on with the Jazz, they remain competitive. Maybe it’s the clean Mormon living or the ghost of Malone and Stockton, but they’re never horrible. Too bad they’re in the west. Favors will improve all of his numbers this year and be considered for most improved.
Gordon Hayward: He is going to get a ton of minutes this year. He could easily use this as a way to show the world who he is.
22. Toronto Raptors:
If they keep Rudy Gay, they’ll make the playoffs at the 8 seed. They faired well when he was picked last season. I expect more of the same.
Tank: They will tank this season. Don’t expect Rudy Gay to be a Raptor after the trade deadline.
21. New Orleans Pelicans:
I’m curious to see where they’ll be around the end of March. The addition of Jrue Holiday was big. Defense on the perimeter and in the paint.
Jrue Holiday: An NBA All Star last year and he probably will be this year. I expect big things from him.
20. Charlotte Bobcats:
Al Jefferson will make all the difference for this team going from bad to decent. Only reason they rank higher is than the Jazz is because they’re in the east.
Al Jefferson: All of his number will go up this season. Will it be enough to put them from second worst in the league and worst in the league is up to the rest of the team.
19. Los Angeles Lakers:
Despite not having Kobe right now, they still have a Pau Gasol that can get you 20+ and 10 and a Steve Nash that while aged, can still distribute the ball and score better than most. Better than the bottom, but a horrible bench means not good enough for the top.
Nick Young: Word in La La Land is that Nick Young is looking to prove his worth. With Kobe out for a while.
18. Detroit Pistons:
A pretty decent roster with adding Smith and Jennings with Rodney Stucky and Greg Monroe. Add Billups to help Jennings become a better point guard and leader and we have a better than decent team here. They can possibly move up in the rankings as the season goes on.
Brandon Jennings: If Chauncey Billups can teach Bradnon Jennings a few things like good shot selection, he will be dangerous.
17. Washington Wizards:
I think I’m the only person with faith in John Wall. Plays great D, he can score, and pass. He just needs to cut down on the turnovers. Look at the turnaround the Wizards had when he came back. They’ll make the playoffs and maybe win a game or two.
John Wall: Scoring, passing, stealing, shot blocking, dunking machine.
16. Minnesota Timberwolves:
With Kevin Love and Ricky Rubio back, they’ll be ready to make up for a bad season. Too bad Love will be a Laker a season later.
Kevin Love: He didn’t play much last year and the owner said he’s not a franchise player. Watch for him to prove him worng.
15:Chicago Bulls:
Yep. The Chicago Bulls this low at 15th. Rose us back. But I don’t think it’s enough to make up a lack of scoring consistency and a soft Carlos Boozer.
Derrick Rose: The former NBA MVP took a year and some change off and took a lot of criticism. Now he’s back
14. Cleveland Cavaliers:
Based off of Kyrie Irving and a healthy Anderson Verajao along with youngin’ Tristan Thompson, the Cavs have a bright future. Add the siging of Jarrett Jack and Andrew Bynum (If he’s healthy) and this is going to be a tough team to beat.
Kyrie Irving: He started his career saying he could beat Kobe one on one and has continued to get better.
13. Dallas Mavericks:
Dirk is healthy, Monta “MontaEllisHaveItAll” Ellis has signed on the dotted line, and they pick up a sleeper with Dejuan Blair. They have a really good roster on the low. Watch out for them this upcoming season.
Monta Ellis: He now needs to prove he’s worth what he was asking for.
12. Portland Trailblazers:
I had a hard time picking 17 and 16 until I checked the Blazers’ roster. Aldridge and Lillard and Batum and Mo Williams. Not a bad triple threat. And that arena is always bumping. They could possibly be 12th if they stay healthy.
Damian Lillard: Rookie of the year to soon be NBA All Star
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11. Denver Nuggets:
Honestly, they’re just better than the other teams below them when healthy. I see another first round knockout in their future though.
Nate Robinson: He had a GREAT post season and did a fantastic job while Rose was out in Chicago. Mark my words, Chicago will regret not signing him.
10. Memphis Grizzlies:
They should be higher but they didn’t improve much from last season. Great defensive team for sure. But they still can’t score.
Defense: No one person. The play team ball and hard defense. That is what keeps them on the top.
9. Brooklyn Nets:
On paper, they should be a top five team. I’m going to reserve judgment until I see them play.
Joe Johnson: He HAS to play all year and through the playoffs. If he plays mediocre, then that puts pressure on KG and Pierce to play harder on their old bodies
8. Houston Rockets:
I’m still not sold on the Rockets just because they have Dwight Howard. Jeremy Lin isn’t a starting point guard in this league. If Dwight Howard develops some post moves and stops complaining and Harden continues to give up his Harden soul (See what I did there?) like he did last season, then NBA we have a problem.
Dwight Howard: Time to put up or shut up.
7. New York:
They still run New York until further noticed. Melo is going to ball out of control and can potentially be an MVP candidate if he can keep his cool this year. A healthy Iman Shumpert and Ron Art…Metta World Peace at the defensive end is going to cause a lot of problems for guys trying to score in the fourth quarter.
J.R. Smith: We know what Melo is going to do all season. J.R. Smith needs to play to his potential and not a head case
6. Oklahoma City Thunder:
Sorry, Durant and Westbrook need help on that team. We saw what happened when Westbrook went down. It exposed them. Can’t be a top five team if you lose it after one player goes down.
Serge Ibaka: With no third option, he’s going to need to do more than just block shots and rebound. He’s going to have to be their Horace Grant who scores more than fifteen a game.
5. Los Angeles Clippers:
All hail the new kings of the Staples’ Center. This team needs two thing: A good coach and they got one in Doc Rivers. Now all that’s left is hoping that Blake Griffin will start to play tougher. J. J. Reddick and Antawn Jamison were big big BIG pickups for their bench.
Blake Griffin: He HAS to stop playing so soft and HAS to rebound. The team will only go as far as he goes
4. San Antonio Spurs:
This is me sleeping on Tim Duncan and Greg Popavich. I don’t have enough faith that they can do what they did last year again. they’ll be a great regular season team though. Hopefully they won’t read this and take it personal. If they do, they’ll be number two again.
Gregg Popovich: He’s the reason the Spurs are as good as they are. Great coaching. And having Tim Duncan doesn’t hurt either.
3. Golden State Warriors:
A 100% healthy Bogut, Stephen Curry coming off a breakout playoff run, Triston Thompson, David Lee, and now Andre Iguodala. This team has all the pieces needed to be a top five team. Not to mention a great motivator and coach in Marc Jackson.
Injuries: It all rides on their team staying healthy. David Lee, Andrew Bogut, and Steph Curry are all injury prone. If they stay healthy then the Warriors are going to finals.
2. The Indiana Pacers:
A game away from the NBA Finals last year and they added a piece or two that was sorely needed. The only thing this team is missing is a premier point guard and they’re number one.
Danny Granger: Another tradable piece. If he can coexist with Paul George then Indina is number one.
1. The Miami Heat:
They still have the King and D Wade. They still have Bosh who’s good for a double double when he shows up and they added Beasley (who’s career will be saved thanks to LeBron) and you still have a deadly three point shooter in Ray All and the always ready to play BIRDMAN BIRDMAN!!!! To top it off, the rest of their bench isn’t too bad either.
Chris Bosh and Dwayne Wade: Both of these guys absolutely HAVE to play. The competition in the east is better than it has been in years and being the defending champs mean that every team is coming for your heads.
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By Mark Lynch
Twitter: @VeryRandom13
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