(Part One) Preseason NBA Power Rankings Unfiltered: What Other Publications Are Actually Trying to Say
Tired of other publications dancing around the subject on your favorite team? Look no further as we give the honest, uncomfortable truth about every NBA team
Preseason NBA Power Rankings (9/28/21)
Milwaukee Bucks (46-26, NBA Champions)
The Bucks enter the season as defending champions, saving head coach Mike Budenholzer from having to work retail and being forced to extend him for three years even though he was a Kevin Durant toenail away from being fired. Giannis Antetokounmpo overcame his knee being forced backwards into a 45-degree angle to cap off a historic performance in the NBA Finals, and other than losing PJ Tucker the roster remains relatively the same. Keeping Bobby Portis and getting Donte DiVincenzo back is a plus, but in order to repeat Giannis will have to go superhuman again to hide the fact Jrue Holiday has a good playoff game once every four tries and that Budenholzer is well, untouchable now. He might keep getting extensions like Rick Carlisle in Dallas, when they didn’t win a single playoff series after the 2011 title. It’s probably time to move off of Brook Lopez’s goofiness and make Giannis the full-time center, but the Greek Freak has already saved this franchise from being relocated and given Khris Middleton a huge payday, so fuck it, they’ll be in the mix. The Bucks need to win the buyout/trade deadline market again, because on paper their depth isn’t as good as Brooklyn’s. Giannis actually cares about the regular season, so he could very well win his third MVP, as he should because he called out everyone who’s ever been on a super team to chase rings. One of a kind. He’s already a top 25 player ever, with room for much more.
Brooklyn Nets (48-24, Lost Second Round (3-4 to MIL)
Kevin Durant may be “sensitive” to some, but he’s no dumbass: He knows Kyrie Irving is one spiritual experience away from never being seen on a court again. This is why he was pushing so hard to trade for James Harden, who before last season is actually pretty durable (70ish games played every season.) Harden on one hamstring and Kevin Durant playing every minute of playoff games nearly made the finals, so on pure talent alone they should be the favorites to come out of the east. Here’s the problem: The Nets looked dominant with various two-man pairing last season (22-5 with Kyrie and Harden, 9-2 with Durant and Harden) but with very limited game action last season with all three, and with more uncertainty surrounding Kyrie’s refusal to get the vaccine and Harden’s willingness to stay in shape, the Nets are gonna be lazy as shit again in the regular season. Also, do we know Steve Nash is actually a good coach? They hired Mike D’Antoni last season to be his “assistant”, but it felt like a bike with training wheels. D’Antoni is no longer there, and Nash might be lucky this was his first coaching job. This team will probably make the Finals, but it’s like standing an anxious person next to a beehive and telling them to stay still, it can go sideways real quick. If they get eliminated again, Durant will likely face significant scrutiny from media types who already hate him. But you should root for them if you want to know the answer to this: How many fans would even show up to a Nets Parade? Not sure, but with Durant healthy, we have a good chance to find out.
Los Angeles Lakers (42-30, Lost First Round (2-4 to PHX)
Listen, the first LeBron James dunk of the season is gonna be followed by announcers fawning over “Year 19!!!!” and yes, James will probably have his normal numbers and his longevity is admirable. Here’s the truth: This team is going as far as Anthony Davis takes them. James turns 37 in December, and two out of his three seasons with the Lakers have been derailed by major injuries. With a four-month break for Anthony Davis to avoid somehow injuring himself again, the Lakers did win a title, but in a normal scheduled season Davis’ numbers plummeted due to nagging injuries. He got injured right as the Lakers were going to seize control against Phoenix, and it was clear LeBron alone isn’t enough in the west. Can AD stop acting like he got hit with an IED every third game? Doubtful. They lacked three point shooting last season, so they just said fuck it and doubled down by signing Russell Westbrook and the corpse of Trevor Ariza. The oldest roster in the league signed every free agent imaginable, but I actually liked brining in Monk and Nunn. LeBron privately never wanted to play with Carmelo Anthony until his ego was nerfed so much to where he’s a spot bench guy, because he isn’t a winning player. This team is the best in the west, but for comedic purposes watch how many death glares James gives Westbrook after an ill-advised heave at the end of the game. This team is a must watch, and we will know by January if this team starts to click like 2020 or half the roster is traded.
Phoenix Suns (51-21, Lost NBA Finals to MIL (2-4)
Everyone is going to shit all over the Suns finals run because they faced an injured opponent every round, but give Suns fans a break: They had to endure probably the worst decade of basketball of any team not named Sacramento or Minnesota. The Suns did so well last season everyone forgot how bad of an owner Robert Sarver is, and Monty Williams is probably the nicest dude in the league, so just be quiet. On a serious note, with the Lakers being highly injury prone and the one team I thought would have beat them in the Clippers missing their best player for most of the season, the Suns are a sneaky bet to get back to the Finals. It will depend on two things: Chris Paul not absolutely falling off a cliff, and the development of Booker, Ayton, Mikal Bridges and Cam Johnson. If two out of the four make a sizable leap, it can offset Paul and this team will be the best in the western conference. The new guard is quickly catching up to the established stars of the league, and this team has two of the six best players under 26 years of age. General Manager James Jones built this team perfectly for the modern NBA, with four positions that can shoot both in the starting lineup and coming off the bench. What I am saying is sleep on this team at your own peril. Is Ayton and new signing JaVale McGee enough to deal with Davis or Giannis? Not sure, but I can’t wait to find out. Bonus points to the fact that their crowd was amazing in the playoffs, it was like Miami Vice mixed with Valley narcotics, unreal energy.
Utah Jazz (52-20, Lost Round 2 (2-4 to LAC)
The Jazz finished first in the west last season largely thanks to Donovan Mitchell taking another leap and the addition of Mike Conley. They shoot a ton of threes on purpose and plop Rudy Gobert in the middle to do everything else. Gobert won his third defensive player of the year award (the same as Kawhi and Draymond combined) largely because of the worst kept secret in the league: other than Royce O’Neale, every other player can’t consistently guard the guy in front of them, so Gobert is forced to chase blocks to keep them in games. Even Conley, who has a reputation as a good team defender, has lost a step due to age. This formula works well against almost every team which is why they rack up regular season wins, but a select few teams (Brooklyn, LAC, LAL, DEN,) have the personnel to run lineups to draw Gobert away from the rim. The Clippers bullied Gobert so badly in their game six elimination loss that Adam Silver should have retroactively given his DPOY to Ben Simmons that night. It’s a problem they won’t be able to fix unless they take Gobert off the floor (don’t have a small ball five still) or acquire better wing defenders (Rudy Gay isn’t it.) The Jazz are a good, not great team, that will win 57 games, and no one will give a shit because the teams they will run into on their title quest all can expose their weakness. They will need massive injury luck or Donovan Mitchell taking a Dwayne Wade like year five leap to get out of the west and get ready to listen to “The Jazz are different!” for six months again this season. Gobert is simultaneously the most overrated and underrated player in the league because he does provide defensive value, it’s just in a skill (rim protection) that doesn’t matter when you’re getting shat on from 27 feet.
Denver Nuggets (47-25, Lost Second Round to PHX (0-4)
I would have the Nuggets at number four in these rankings if I knew I was getting a full season of Jamal Murray, but because I’m not and I don’t know how he will look coming back around February, I have them as third best in the west. Why? Because Nikola Jokic is that good. The newly slimmed-down Serbian had the 10th greatest season in NBA history last year based off of Player Efficiency Rating, and while he might not have won MVP if Joel Embiid didn’t get hurt, he is still a deserving winner and durability is a major asset to have as a big. Denver inked Michael Porter Jr. to a new five-year deal, and his shooting efficiency and continued growth could see him blossom into a 25 PPG scorer very soon. The Nuggets were good enough to win a playoff series against Damian Lillard with a backcourt of Facundo Campazzo and Austin Rivers, so what’s keeping this team from being a surefire title contender? Two things: When Murray is out, Jokic is the only real playmaker that will play big playoff minutes and shot creation can stagnate significantly in the half court, which happened against Phoenix. Second, if NBA history holds true, having two of your three best players be subpar defenders almost always comes back to bite you in the ass. Jokic and MPJ struggle to defend more athletic players, and Murray coming off a knee will be average at best. Michael Malone might set a record for disgusted stares at MPJ walking off the floor after a blown assignment. Denver tried to fix this by adding Aaron Gordon, but he’s only one player. Other than signing Jeff Green (which I like) I’m not sure they’re THAT much better this season than last.
Philadelphia 76ers (Lost Second Round, 3-4 to ATL)
After Daryl Morey seemingly fixed this team during his lunchbreak last offseason by fleecing Dallas for Seth Curry and signing Danny Green to improve spacing, Philadelphia finished as the one seed in the east which ratcheted up title expectations. Then, we saw Ben Simmons refuse to shoot a one-foot layup over Trae Young and Doc Rivers get out-coached by Nate McMillan. Rivers then threw Simmons under the bus after the game seven loss to Atlanta, to the point Simmons just said fuck you guys and is demanding a trade. The incident led Rivers to evade most of the criticism that was headed his way for choking another series lead with the superior team. Simmons and Embiid don’t fit, and Simmons deserved criticism, but the team will be worse without him. Morey knows this too, which is why he’s trying to rob teams in return to offset the loss of an elite defender and playmaker. Embiid is an MVP-level talent, but other than Tobias Harris there aren’t many guys who can create their own shot. Tyrese Maxey is nice but is still young and Embiid is so injury prone that without Simmons this is no more than a good eastern conference team. Morey learned a valuable lesson: when a player like James Harden is available, just do the trade and get Harden. Instead, he went to your direct rival and now Morey has to watch another Durant super team ruin his title chances. At least Philly fans don’t demand a lot, right? Oh wait… good luck Daryl!
Atlanta Hawks (41-31, Lost East Finals 2-4 to MIL)
If not for an ill-timed Trae Young foot injury, the Hawks somehow found themselves tied 2-2 with a Giannis-less Bucks team and very well could have made the Finals. Atlanta in an NBA Finals? Yeah.. maybe last season doesn’t count. I couldn’t take Atlanta pretending to act like they care about basketball. But when you look closer, all of the ingredients are there for this team to be right in the mix for the top seed in the east. They aren’t better than healthy Brooklyn and I think they come up short again vs Milwaukee, but the latter point I can’t say with complete confidence. After Nate McMillan took over as coach, they had the third best record in the league and provided a structure for Trae Young to operate in. GM Travis Schlenk, who was an assistant with the Warriors, basically just copied the Warriors and built this team in that image. Young isn’t Steph Curry (he’s more of a Nash/Harden hybrid) but his supporting cast is quickly growing around him. No team has drafted better than Atlanta the last 3 seasons, and with DeAndre Hunter healthy and John Collins returning, this team is all growing at the same time. Keep an eye on Sharife Cooper, Jalen Johnson and Onyeka Okongwu this season, two rookies and a second-year player whose games transition easily to the NBA level. If Trae Young doesn’t turn into Elfrid Payton with the strict new NBA rules on ref-baiting, this team will be in contention again.
LA Clippers (47-25, Lost Conference Finals to PHX 2-4)
Kawhi Leonard says he wants to play this season, but because of his status this team is outside of the top four in the western conference. Jerry West and Lawrence Frank used free agency to try and offset the loss of Kawhi, signing Eric Bledsoe and Justise Winslow. All hope isn’t lost as the return of Serge Ibaka and Nic Batum provide excellent depth, and Paul George has proven he can win as a solo star before. The revival of Reggie Jackson as a clutch playoff performer was something no one saw coming, but will he have the same desire after getting paid this summer? In some ways, the Clippers roster can win a playoff series without Leonard, but last season may have been the easiest chance for them to finally make it out of the west. George silenced some of the Playoff P criticism, but still had some below average games. Now imagine Eric Bledsoe AND George Paul on the same playoff court. Bledsoe is so bad in the playoffs George must be thrilled that people won’t focus on him as much. It would be foolish to write them off completely as Ty Lue showed he is more than just a LeBron punching bag, but right when you start to believe in the Clippers to reach the promised land some weird. shit. always. happens. Like Kawhi landing inauspiciously and then finding out four days later he tore his ACL, like what? The Clippers will be playoff regulars as long as Steve Ballmer owns the team, but I’ll put my money on them never seeing a finals with this current group.
Miami Heat (40-32, Lost First Round 0-4 to MIL)
If you want to talk about a team that had the most bizarre season last year, the Heat might be it. They lost 10 games to teams who missed the playoffs, won 11 of 12 in one stretch then lost six straight. Jimmy Butler missed 10 games due to COVID, and they went 2-8. This season they replaced old and aging Goran Dragic with older but slightly better Kyle Lowry, and also signed PJ Tucker from Milwaukee. What they’ll get out of both will determine this team’s ceiling, but there’s a chance they can finish third in the east if Jimmy Butler and Duncan Robinson have better offensive seasons. Bam Adebayo improved his scoring output but is still limited offensively. If this team struggles again, we might see abrasive Jimmy Butler come back, and you have to wonder how much “Heat Culture” will matter if the guys around him don’t meet Jimmy’s expectations. One of those guys is Tyler Herro, who was too busy getting Instagram models pregnant and didn’t improve in any area and is a traffic cone on defense. Whether or not it was true that the Heat said Herro is untouchable in any Harden deal, I think the Heat would be open to trading him if the right deal came up. This is a playoff team, but not one that should be considered a contender unless Lowry and Adebayo have career years. Also, Victor Oladipo is on this team, but he maybe has 0.5 workable knee tendons, and unless that notorious Miami medicine fixes him, he is just a name at this point.
New York Knicks (41-31, Lost in First Round to ATL 1-4)
If the image of Julius Randle stinking up the joint in the playoffs is the last thing you remember about the Knicks last season, don’t let that make you think this team isn’t worth ranking this high. After the much-criticized Tom Thibodeau hiring, he went full classic Thibs and guided this team to the top ranking in both defensive efficiency and points allowed. Part of that is the team played at the slowest pace in the league (98.2, league high 106.4) but they have legitimate personnel on the defensive end with Nerlens Noel and Mitchell Robinson at center, and the team overall gives a fuck, which led Knick fans into chanting “We want Brooklyn.” The return of Robinson this season just adds to the depth they will have this season, including Derrick Rose and Alec Burks. While they won’t beat any of the top east teams, the hiring of Leon Rose in the front office and Dolan just getting out of the way to work on his failing music career is a welcome sign. Their lack of offensive structure and weapons were exposed in the playoffs, but they tried to rectify that by signing Kemba Walker and Evan Fournier in free agency. I’m convinced the Knicks saw Fournier beat Team USA and thought they knew something no one else did, because $78m is a lot of money. As long as Knick fans aren’t delusional about expectations, this team is in a perfect situation to grow because all of the scrutiny and noise is coming from Brooklyn right now. It’s now on RJ Barrett, Obi Toppin, and Immanuel Quickley to continue developing, but I think they will. Just save all the “We want ___” nonsense until 2023. The goal this season is to win a series.
Dallas Mavericks (42-30, Lost in First Round to LAC 3-4)
After narrowly losing to the Clippers again, one thing is clear: Give Luka Doncic another star and this team could potentially win the west very soon. It should be clear to everyone they aren’t that far off, so what did Mark Cuban and the front office do? Not improve the team this offseason, or at least not sign another playmaker to take the pressure off of Luka Doncic. His astronomical 40% usage rate in the series against LA was unsustainable and caused his performance to drastically decline in fourth quarters. Their big offseason acquisition was… Reggie Bullock? Nice shooter, but he can’t create his own shot. Kristaps Porzingis might be the softest “big” in the league, and him floating in and out of games is maddening to watch. There’s a chance Doncic can level up, win his first MVP award and finally win a playoff series if the matchup is right, but they are no closer to maximizing Doncic than they were last year. The hiring of Jason Kidd as head coach from Rick Carlisle is a clear downgrade as well, and the offseason dumpster fire chronicled in The Athletic isn’t a great sign for the long term. Having a coach who played Giannis at point guard and a shadow GM who is a failed sports gambler is a recipe for.. well entertainment at least. Cuban has largely avoided criticism for failing to ever sign a free agent and making questionable hires, and there’s no reason to believe the Mavericks will get Doncic the help he needs anytime soon.
Portland Trail Blazers (42-30, Lost in First Round to DEN 2-4)
The Blazers are like the dude who keeps trying to convince his ex he’s changed, only two weeks in you realize it is the exact same. But with Portland, it’s the exact same in such an annoying way that you’re not sure who’s really at fault. Yes, Neil Olshey should have been fired years ago for some atrocious signings (Remember Allen Crabbe?) But at least they fixed one problem and got rid of the perpetually predictable Terry Stotts as head coach. The Blazers had a PR disaster hiring Chauncey Billups with the notoriously harsh northwest media, but with Billups I feel like he could have the makings of a good head coach. The real elephant in the room is the fact their two best players give no shits about playing defense. Zero pride was seen when Facundo Campazzo and Austin Rivers looked like Prime Manu Ginobili, knocking the Blazers out in six games. It’s a series that defines this pairing in a lot of ways: for every big series they win, there’s two to three series they lose in explicably. The one year they had a slightly good defense wing (Moe Harkless) they made the conference finals, and they walk into this year with another smaller shooting guard in Norman Powell at that position. I liked the additions of Larry Nance and Cody Zeller for depth, and Anfernee Simons might take the next step in his career this season, but until their two best players actually try on defense, the frustrating ceiling that exists with this team is still going to remain in place. Lillard hinted at wanting out early in the offseason, and he might again once he realizes that this team is no better than it was four years ago.
Golden State Warriors (39-33, Lost Play-in to MEM)
The Warriors were on pace to finish somewhere around the six seed or higher in the west when Stephen Curry was on the floor (37-26 with him, 2-7 without) which underlies the problem: With Klay Thompson not returning until January, who else steps up on this team? Andrew Wiggins is at risk of only playing half the season due to San Francisco’s vaccine mandate, and you know it’s a bad sign when he’s openly telling people he’s ok with losing $15.8 million dollars. Curry seemed pissed in a way only Curry can, but one of these days I wish he would just rock the boat with management like LeBron James does and call ownership out for not trying to chase championships anymore. C’mon Steph, just once tell Joe Lacob to stop being a cheap ass and prioritizing 18- and 19-year-old development over chasing Ben Simmons on the trade market. Many publications will have this team ranked higher because of Thompson’s return, but don’t buy it. He will be on a minutes restriction for much of the season, and when Draymond Green isn’t busy ass-kissing his Klutch bosses, how much will he actually care this season? I did like taking a flier on Otto Porter, a former third pick who might have to play big minutes cause of esteemed vaccine scholar Iggins Wiggins of Andrew. It’s clear ownership is now making financial decisions instead of winning ones, which is a shame. Jordan Poole might be the key to keeping this team afloat for much of the season, and while I like him expectations need to be realistic for this team: Its older dudes and kindergartners.
Boston Celtics (36-36, Lost First Round to BKN 1-4)
Four years into Jayson Tatum’s career, and the point guard he’s meshed the best with has been Terry Rozier, a bucket-getter who doesn’t need to demand touches like Kyrie Irving. This year, the Celtics wisely took a cheap flier on Dennis Schroeder after he fumbled the bag in Los Angeles, and they’ll get a motivated player looking for a payday (similar to Terry) who was unfairly criticized last season. He caught COVID right before the playoffs and was never the same, and at $5.9 million, the Celtics add an 18 PPG scorer who doesn’t need to dribble the ball and stagnate the offense and is in better physical condition than Kemba Walker was. Add in the return of Jaylen Brown who had a career season last year (24 PPG, 39% 3P) and the Celtics could be the dark horse of the Eastern Conference. Brad Stevens transitioned into a front office role while Ime Udoka takes over as head coach. The early returns on GM Stevens have been interesting: Bringing back Al Horford, the Dennis flier and signing Josh Richardson. Depth is still a concern, but Stevens tenure will be made on the trade market and free agency. Udoka is promising, but holy shit can we get Tatum back in the national spotlight? Any semi-competent team and he’s mentioned in MVP talks. Boston brought back Marcus Smart, but deep down if things go sideways again, he’s gonna be the first guy shipped out. If Boston can be more aggressive in the front office and limit turnovers on the court, they can be one of the rebound stories of this season. It is rare to have two elite wings on one team at the same time, they just needed other playmakers to supplement. Over to you Dennis…