Tag Archives: warriors

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Unlocked … 2012 NBA Season Report #5

With football gone, now we are getting the important stuff.  How have the rankings changed since we last did this?

  1. (1) Bulls (23-7)
  2. (3) Heat (22-7)
  3. (2) Sixers (20-9)
  4. (4) Thunder (21-6)
  5. (8) Spurs (19-9)
  6. (6) Hawks (18-10)
  7. (5) Blazers (15-13)
  8. (7) Nuggets (16-12)
  9. (13) Mavericks (18-11)
  10. (9) Lakers (16-12)
  11. (11) Clippers (17-9)
  12. (10) Celtics (15-12)
  13. (14) Rockets (16-12)
  14. (12) Pacers (17-10)
  15. (17) Magic (18-11)
  16. (15) Grizzlies (14-14)
  17. (16) Timberwolves (13-16)
  18. (18) Jazz (14-13)
  19. (21) Warriors (11-14)
  20. (19) Bucks (12-16)
  21. (22) Knicks (13-15)
  22. (20) Suns (12-16)
  23. (24) Cavaliers (10-16)
  24. (23) Hornets (5-23)
  25. (25) Raptors (9-20)
  26. (26) Kings (10-17)
  27. (28) Wizards (6-22)
  28. (27) Nets (8-21)
  29. (29) Pistons (8-21)
  30. (30) Bobcats (3-25)

Some notes:

  1. We start with a trip to Oakland and the league’s most Quixotic fans – Warriors fans.  For anybody who watched their shocking upset of the Mavericks in 2007, the ability of the fans to lift a team is palpable there – it sounded like the old Chicago Stadium, and that’s saying something.  Alas, that upset has been the extent of the highlights on the court.  Indeed the last few years we have had bad teams, but entertaining ones that could light up the scoreboard.  With Mark Jackson taking over as coach, there was a commitment to a more defense, championship timber club.  What is interesting though is that the defensive culture in Golden State is still as lax as ever – while the offense is actually much better.  The numbers are a bit muted as these Warriors are middle of the road in terms of pace – but this is the most efficient offense (relative to the league) Golden State has had recently.  What is particularly interesting comparing side by side is how little things have changed.  They still shoot the three both very well and very frequently.  They still don’t get to the line hardly at all – and they are a pretty shaky rebounding team (and indeed substantially worse offensively).  However – they take care of the ball a bit better and are shooting their 2-pointers a lot better, enough to be 4th in the league in FG%.  This is also though a harbinger of rough times maybe – 2 pt FG% is pretty fickle, and one thinks there might be some regression coming.  Scanning the personnel, it is not like there is a huge change in the shape of the offense.  The defense as mentioned before is as bad as ever – and they are still a horrendous defensive rebounding side, and are near the bottom in sending opponents to the line.  Jackson has the team gambling less defensively – but it has not shown in the final results.  The Warriors have a ways to go for the positive changes in ownership to reflect in the product.
  2. Checking in at 18-11, and starting to move up the ladder are the Magic.  Of course 2 weeks ago, we left them with a disastrous week, featuring a 56 point outing at Boston and blown 27 point lead hosting Boston (yay Boston).  Since then though the Magic have perked up.  Really, we always hear about the psychodrama surrounding Dwight Howard – but possibly he has found some contentment (or resignation) in the current situation.  Despite the Magic’s offensive issues a couple of weeks back, where they had been struggling was on the defensive end of the floor.  Last year the Magic were 3rd in the league defensively despite having very little defensive muscle besides Howard.  Earlier in the year the team had been scuffling, but we see them up to 12th now.  The Magic in the past have focused on defending without fouling (not gambling) and superior rebounding.  This year, the rebounding has been there but the attention to detail in defense has not – but it has improved.  Magic up to a reasonable 11th in FG%, and so up their fortunes have come with it.
  3. This week’s edition would be incomplete without noting the jump the Knicks have made.  I have no real metric argument here, just a chance to rant a bit on Jeremy Lin.  The Knicks themselves are still a shaky offensive team with a surprisingly good defense considering D’Antoni’s reputation (2nd in the league in forced turnovers, 7th in defensive rebounding – they just don’t give up a ton of looks at the basket which makes up for their meh FG%).  But Lin of course has had the best first 4 starts in league history.  You have to be realistic of course – he is not this good, very few players are.  That said, he is 6’3″ 200 lbs – basically Chauncey Billups’ size.  He has a lot of steals, rebounds, gets to the line a lot.  Unlike most small school kids, he is an elite athlete.  He needs to shoot better, but that you can improve.  Lin is a rotation caliber PG right now, and the Knicks have none of those – and there is no reason he cannot be a solid starter for a long time.
  4. The big move up this week has been Dallas.  At 18-11, it is amazing to see Rick Carlisle cobble together this start despite the issues they had with conditioning and injuries.  More amazing is how despite losing Tyson Chandler, the Mavericks have remade themselves into a defensive juggernaut.  They are 18-11 against a solid schedule despite being 20th in offense (still not getting to the line, still not getting second shots, but now missing the shots they DO take).  Instead the historically underwhelming (or undervalued) Mavs D is carrying them this year.  Yeah Odom has sucked on offense, but he is a very useful defender.  So is Vince Carter despite his reputation, and Brendan Haywood has successfully impersonated a competent C this year.  All that adds up to a team that is 3rd in FG defense and 5th in forcing turnovers.  The Mavs are top 10 in TS% and shot prevention – and that has allowed them to survive themselves.  Given the reputations and past performances of their top guys on offense – this is nothing but good news for the long term.
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Dare to be Stupid – Deron Williams Too??? (and more)

At first glance, the thesis of Isiah Thomas pulling the strings on the Knicks makes sense.  The Knicks giving up 4/5 of their starting lineup for two players while the Nets gave up less for a better player – that is definitely something Isiah would do.  That cynicism aside, this deal is a bit more complicated.  While we’re at it, we’ll add Golden State into the soup:

The Nets get Deron Williams, Dan Gadzuric and Brandan Wright

The Warriors get Troy Murphy

The Jazz get Devin Harris, Derrick Favors, the Nets unprotected 2011 first round pick and a Top 7 protected pick from the Warriors.  (At this second, the Warriors have the 11th worst record in the league – so there is a half-decent chance the Jazz will get to cash this in.)

The Warriors get Troy Murphy’s expiring salary and were able to dump Brandan Wright – whom they had no plans for, and Dan Gadzuric’s toxic contract.  This was a cap clearing move – hooray them.

For the Jazz, this is a weird deal.  They had considerable leverage with Deron Williams – with Jerry Sloan leaving, it seemed they could have tried to rebuild in a manner to keep him around.  Yet they jumped ship on the deal.  That said, they got a ton back for him.  Devin Harris is a legitimate NBA starting point guard.  Whether he is very good or just solid good is up to the observer – but he is young and he can play.  Derrick Favors is a huge upside big with defensive ability – the Jazz bigs currently are solid upside bigs with no defensive ability.  It’s a complimentary skill set, which we like.

The Nets ultimately are placing a massive bet on the collective bargaining agreement.  If the cap is lowered, or a franchise provision is put in – the Nets will have made out great.  If Deron Williams can just leave willy nilly – this is a ho-ho-horrendous move.  The downside – as Stephen A Smith wrote in his usual “I wrote this in crayon” sort of way:

Next season is an entirely different matter, specifically because Williams will be in the last year of his deal and can opt out of his contract in 2012. The disaster scenario is staring Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov squarely in the face. It’s a scenario that could have Williams, from a vantage point just across the Hudson River, witnessing the resurgence of a Knicks franchise inching to within an All-Star point guard of legitimate championship contention. Now imagine Williams as the missing piece, with Gotham City clamoring for his arrival.

Actually – maybe he wrote it in magazine clippings like mass murderers on TV movies do, but I digress.  That is the obvious downside – that Deron Williams takes his show somewhere else because he does not want to wait for Team Rocka to show up in Crooklyn in two years.  But with the rumbles on the labor front – there is a better chance the Nets will keep Williams than there is that he will be anywhere else – and certainly better than the odds of Stephen A’s wet dream coming true.

The Nets are not close to a title from this move.  But then, neither are the Knicks despite bleating to the contrary.  (if they manned up and dealt Chauncey for Steve Nash, things might change)  But in the long run, they have a bit more movement potential than the Knicks do.  Either way, it will be interesting.

************************************************************************

A smaller trade of note, something more in the line of what you’d expect around the deadline, a pseudo-contender trying to position themselves:

Hornets get Carl Landry

Kings get Marcus Thornton and $$$

For the Hornets, they want to win as much as possible while they still have Chris Paul.  Carl Landry gives them a potentially huge weapon for their desperately thin frontcourt.  Off the bench, he was brilliant for the Rockets in the past – he can do that here.

For the Kings, they get a fun bench gunner and a lot of money.  I have nothing else to add.

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2011 NBA Preview: Teams 30-25

The first part of our 2011 NBA Preview started with last year’s rankings recapped.  But of course, that was LAST year.  What about this year – and shouldn’t an NBA preview feature wanton, almost certainly incorrect assessments about who is most likely to raise the banner next season?  But of course!  But to reach the top, we start at the bottom, so we count down the teams to the favorite to take home the gold.

30. Minnesota Timberwolves (29th ranked in 2010, 29th offense, 27th defense)

After a season where GM David Kahn decided to stockpile point guards – we now have a situation where he decided to stockpile small forwards.  We have #4 overall pick Wesley Johnson – who has NBA talent but is 23, so one wonders if he has any star future – we have the highly fungible Martell Webster, Corey Brewer – a glue guy on a team desperate for stuff to glue together, and Michael Beasley – who really should be playing power forward.  Alas, Kevin Love is occupying that spot because Kahn has been seduced by Darko Milicic as a center with a pulse.  The team has a lot of depth, but I am not sure any of them besides Love are any good at all.  They are horrid on both ends of the floor and there is not a lot in their offseason that offers evidence of change.  Kurt Rambis’ attempts to fit these guys into the triangle also showed real questions about his ability to coach a CYO team.

CAN WIN THE TITLE IF: A Godzilla like space creature comes in and marauds every other city in the country but, due to a fear of Prince music, leaves Minneapolis untouched.

29. Toronto Raptors (17th overall in 2010, 5th offense, 30th defense)

The Raptors, like many of the teams in the toilet bowl section of this preview, are a series of complimentary players waiting for a superstar to save them.  Of course Chris Bosh, their best player, walked out the door to fulfill a pinky swear promise with Wade and LeBron, and left this Charmin-soft band of misfits behind.  Props to Brian Colangelo for foisting Hedo Turkoglu’s deal on the unsuspecting Phoenix Suns, but what is left here might be the single least intimidating team in NBA history.  With Jose Calderon, Andrea Bargnani, Linus Kleiza, Leandro Barbosa – they can score and shoot well.  They were the 5th best offense a year ago, and that will suffer with Bosh’s absence – though they should still be middle of the pack.  However, their appalling defense of a year ago (not just 30th, but 30th by a larger margin than the difference between 29th and 25th) figures to be even worse too.

CAN WIN THE TITLE IF: The NBA changes its rules to allow all games played in Canada to be decided by a game of 21 or Knockout.

28. Detroit Pistons (28th overall in 2010, 21st in offense, 26th in defense)

The real surprise over the years as the Pistons have fallen apart from their 2003-2008 heyday is how they still play a molasses slow pace, but are now incredibly easy to play against.  26th in defense!  How?  After losing Flip Saunders, their offense faded from super efficient to pretty shaky, but the defense has slid too.  We know Charlie Villanueva and Ben Gordon are not defensive aces, but Tayshaun Prince (when healthy), Richard Hamilton, Ben Wallace (who to be fair, had a good season) – where is the accountability?  Really there feels like there is just a depression over the franchise – this has not been a crash, but a gradual descent into irrelevance, kind of incredible given that they were in the semifinals as recently as 2008.  The ownership change to Mike Ilitch, who knows winning with the Red Wings and Tigers, will help – but not yet.

CAN WIN THE TITLE IF: The clock turns back to 2004.

27. Cleveland Cavaliers (1st overall in 2010, 3rd offense, 8th defense)

The #1 team of last year is 27?  How?  Ummm … I don’t know.  Seriously, what LeBron’s loss will do for their previously 3rd ranked offense cannot be overstated.  Their offense relied on having lots of good shooters and LeBron to slice them up.  Now?  Well Ramon Sessions is a good pick and roll point guard, but nobody would call him a LeBron playmaker.  Actually the cupboard is not that bare on some level, Hickson and Varajeao could be a very good frontcourt and they did defend well in the past.  I would not be surprised if they did better, but I am not sure where the offense comes from.

CAN WIN THE TITLE IF:  They trade for Antawn Jamison to give LeBron that help … oh wait a minute.

26. New Jersey Nets (30th overall in 2010, 30th offense, 25th defense)

The 12-70 Nets can’t get a whole lot worse than last year.  Considering this team flirted with East postseasondom in 2009, and Devin Harris and Brook Lopez have all star ability in them, there are some raw materials.  I loved the pickup of Anthony Morrow, who is one dimensional, but elite at that dimension (shooting the rock).  If they surprise me, they have the pieces to do so.  That said, their first round pick, Derrick Favors, is more a guy to dream on in the future than the present.  Their coaching will be somewhat improved with Avery Johnson (since Kiki Vandeweghe was just a sacrificial lamb) although Lawrence Frank is not at all a bad coach – the marginal improvement from the beginning of last season to this year is pretty small.  Really I just don’t see how they got THAT much better despite all their claims about cap space.  Travis Outlaw does not an offseason make.

CAN WIN THE TITLE IF: Well, they add Carmelo Anthony without seriously injuring the core i.e. just moving Favors, they start becoming interesting.  They have the cap room and assets to make a big move, so on some level this is a team that can at least dream – just not with this roster.

25. Golden State Warriors (22nd overall in 2010, 14th offense, 28th defense)

The best thing that happened to them is that Chris Cohan sold his team.  I know nothing about the new owners, but if they are just adequate that will be plenty.  This year’s team will not bear the fruit of this infusion of competence, but still one of the best markets in the league has hope again.  The team will be fun. Stephon Curry is one of my favorite players in the league, though he is paired with one of my least favorites in Monta Ellis.  They will run and score – their pace last year was the fastest in the league by a wide margin.  They will not defend – and getting David Lee in the offseason only makes that worse – although new coach Keith Smart might at least pretend since unlike Don Nelson, he will give a shit.  Also unlike Don Nelson, Smart might play Brandan Wright, who has been either injured or treated unconscionably by Nelson in the past.  There is talent even if they can’t guard a traffic cone.

CAN WIN THE TITLE IF: The playoffs occur at Rucker Park.  Really at least the last three teams in this section still have some ceiling – maybe not title ceiling, but could at least keep their fans flipping the sports pages until March.  The Warriors will be zany, and they will unearth good NBDL talent – but this is still a year or two away from being really somebody.



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2010 NBA Draft Preview and Offseason Musings

Before we dive into the NBA Draft, a couple of trades worth commenting on:

Golden State Warriors trade Corey Maggette to the Milwaukee Bucks for Charlie Bell and Dan Gadzuric – THIS is a pretty clear talent win for the Bucks.  Maggette gets a reputation as a loser and many critics point to his contract as being an albatross.  Both of these reputations are stupid.  Maggette has been on a lot of losing teams – he is not a transformative player, is a shaky defender and a less than enthusiastic passer.  However, what he can do is flat out score – and he has always been able to flat out score … and does it so efficiently that he absolutely justifies his salary.  The Bucks who need as much offensive punch (especially off the bench) that they can get need a professional scorer.  And all they had to do was trade two crappy players.  Thank God the Warriors are being run by retards (I’m sorry, that is an insult to the handicapped).

New Jersey Nets trade Chris Douglas-Roberts to the Milwaukee Bucks for a 2012 2nd rounder: Basically, the Nets had a team option on CDR, so they could have cut him.  So instead, they trade him for a bag of basketballs.  For the Bucks, who are trying to improve their wing punch with John Salmons testing out free agency – this is another possibility.  CDR has some potential as a rotation player – and it costs them nothing so why not?

Miami Heat trade the 18th pick in the draft and Daquean Cook to the Oklahoma City Thunder for 32nd pick in the draft: The Heat are clearly setting their cap up for a mega free agent bid to play with Dwayne Wade.  They did not need a guaranteed contract.  The Thunder are still being smart so they collect assets.

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Oh how the worm turns in the NBA.  Just as rigor mortis is setting in on the corpse of the season past, we have next year to look forward to already.  Fortunately, unlike the NFL Draft – we all know more of the players here.  I mean I am not perfect here – but it’s not like there are interior linemen that I have to fake having a reasonable opinion on.  Now – last year’s draft class at the time of the draft seemed pretty horrible.  You had Blake Griffin and a bunch of chub.  But as it turned out, Griffin missed the entire season while Brandon Jennings, Tyreke Evans, and Stephen Curry ended up making this one of the great depth classes of recent vintage.

So how did so many fans miss the boat?  Personally, I blame college basketball – whose ego driven coaches, wildly physical post play and defense that discourages movement, have made  it very hard to project kids.  Never has the fundamental gap between the pro and college games been larger.  I mean the 2010 National Champions contain a grand total of one player who I’d bet more than $1 on being a 10 year starter in the Association (hint: it’s not Singler).  But the college game is slower, with more ways to clog the lane.  It is great for shooters (look at how JJ Redick became a National Player of the Year) but real NBA friendly games can be squashed. (calling Ben Howland)  The NBA has created a speed and rhythm game that just requires a different sort of ath-a-lete.  So while this crop of kids seems meh on the surface – there could be a lot of good pros who are being stepped on by slow Hickory High-style college systems.  This draft looks fairly thin talent-wise after five or six players – but let’s give some time.  As always, this is a combination of should and will – I am not trying to GM 30 teams – but I have no inside info.

1. Wizards – John Wall, PG, Kentucky – the clear best pro prospect this year.  He is big, he is fast, and while he is not a great shooter – his shot is not at a bad place fundamentally.  The court vision is there, and at Kentucky he had a knack for giving the team exactly what it needed.

2. Sixers – Evan Turner, SG, Ohio State – mediocre athlete who can’t shoot – but has a load of basketball skills.  He is the best college basketball player of 2009-2010.  Really Sixers don’t need him – but Doug Collins is a terrible coach with projects.  Evan Turner does not need much teaching.  He has a Brandon Roy ceiling – and that is either a good thing or a bad thing depending on how you view it.

3. Nets – Derrick Favors, PF, Georgia Tech – Favors’ numbers are mediocre at Tech.  His guards and coach were AWFUL.  The talent is clear.  Favors is not ready to dominate now, but neither are the Nets.  But this gives the team a pretty good place to start.

4. Timberwolves – Wesley Johnson, SF, Syracuse – I am not really sure what the Timberwolves will do.  If they move Kevin Love or Al Jefferson – DeMarcus Cousins makes sense here.  That said, Johnson is a safe pick.  Runs the floor, good defender.  He is probably not an all star – but a good starter.

5. Kings – Greg Monroe, PF, Georgetown – The Vlade Divac comparison is apt.  So is the homeless man’s Bill Walton.  Super high basketball IQ.  Not a great athlete, but everything he does well has value on a pro team.

6. Warriors – DeMarcus Cousins, C, Kentucky – The best talent in the draft and the biggest character risk.  The Warriors are crazy too – this is a good match.

7. Pistons – Ed Davis, PF, North Carolina – Pistons want size and toughness.  Ed Davis might be neither, but he is the best guy on the board to possibly do it.  If he played with Ty Lawson he’d be a star – but he didn’t.

8. Clippers – Al Farooq Aminu, SF, Wake Forest – Really he is the best value bet for me in this draft.  That is the odds that he can be a superstar that a bookie might give me could make this a real high expected value.  He has the athleticism and shot blocking that tracks well.  He also does not shoot well and has an iffy motor.  But the Clippers should swing for the fences.

9. Jazz – Luke Babitt, SF, Nevada – Babitt is an elite shooter and scorer.  The Jazz need some wing help, and some scoring off the bench.  Also, he is a no nonsense kid – he and Jerry Sloan seem to just make sense.

10. Pacers – Gordon Hayward, SG, Butler – Hooray marketing!  Really the Pacers want to deal this for some guard help.  None of the bigs here are great values.  And it would move merchandise.

11. Hornets – Paul George, SG, Fresno State – this is a ceiling pick.  The Hornets need wing scoring – and when you play with Paul, the chance to be an explosive player are high.  It’s a gamble but worth taking.

12. Grizzlies – Xavier Henry, SG, Kansas – Rudy Gay is almost certainly gone.  There is an opening and Henry has the most upside.

13. Raptors – Cole Aldrich, C, Kansas – the Raptors need size badly.  Aldrich is not a great athlete, but he has the basic skills to have a pretty good NBA career – or at least one with sustained employment.

14. Rockets – Ekpe Udoh, C, Baylor – Yeah he’s 23.  But he is still learning the game and the Rockets need some size to make up for Carl Landry’s new home.

15. Bucks – Patrick Patterson, PF, Kentucky – Patterson is not special, but he has been productive and is a hard worker.  Skiles will appreciate his coachability.

16. Timberwolves – Jordan Crawford, SG, Xavier – Wolves have a chance to load up on wings this draft – here they go

17. Bulls – Avery Bradley, SG, Texas – can back up both guard spots.  Good defender and can shoot at the NBA level

18. Thunder – Daniel Orton, C, Kentucky – Orton is RAW but the athleticism is there.  Thunder have 3 picks and so can shoot the moon a bit.

19. Celtics – Damion James, SF, Texas – Celtics could move out of the draft and try for a title in 2011 – or they could try to move up using Rasheed Wallace’s contract and pending retirement.  Bledsoe has a bit more ceiling possibly and James is a bit of a tweener.  But his motor, defensive skills and maturity make him a fit here.  He can step right in to a good team and be credible.

20. Spurs  – Solomon Alabi, C, Florida State – Obviously this is not Tim Duncan’s replacement.  But it might be Antonio McDyess’.  Alabi has a good hoops IQ and has good shot blocking skill.

21. Thunder – Kevin Serraphin, PF, France – Somebody they can store overseas given three picks.

22. Blazers – Lance Stephenson, SG, Cincinnati – Blazers have enough size.  What they could use is some wing help – Stephenson had an up and down year at Cincy, but the talent is there possibly.

23. Timberwolves – Tibor Pleiss, C, Germany – three picks available, they will stuff one in Europe

24. Hawks – Craig Brackins, PF, Iowa State – his desire is a question,  but his inside/outside game isn’t.  He could really thrive and the Hawks could use the versatility, especially on offense.

25. Grizzlies – Larry Sanders, PF, VCU – has raw skill and could be a shot blocking force.  Grizzlies have 3 picks, can afford to take a flyer.

26. Thunder – Devin Ebanks, SF, WVU – Ebanks can’t shoot.  But he can defend, is an elite athlete and tracked REALLY well last year as a prospect.  There is something there.  So why the hell not?

27. Nets – Jordan Crawford, SG, Xavier – The Nets need TALENT.  Crawford might have attitude problems – but he can score and provide energy.

28. Grizzlies – Greivis Vasquez, SG, Maryland – Vasquez is slow and can’t defend.  But he is a winner – and has so much versatility on the court.  He is a good attitude player.

29. Magic – Dominique Jones, SG, South Florida – the kid stays home.  He might not be a great shooter, but a streaky one.  Magic like floor spacers.

30. Wizards – Dexter Pittman, C, Texas – this is a heart pick.  Obviously his weight is a huge issue.  He had to cut out of the combine process due to an unfathomable tragedy.  But in the right program – and Leonsis and the Wizards can be this program – his talent is undeniable.  Just watch his good games at Texas for proof.  He could be the biggest home run swing of the night.

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Week 16 NBA Power Rankings

Well, technically this is Week 17, but since last Tuesday was the first game back from the All Star break and we supplied some all star break rankings then, I will cheat and keep the sequence going.  As always, you can find the methodology here:

Rank Team W L Off Def Road SOS Rating
1 Cavaliers 43 14 104.475 (3) 97.085 (7) 1.781 3.178 (27) 12.348
2 Magic 38 19 102.294 (7) 96.261 (4) 1.781 3.424 (21) 11.238
3 Lakers 42 14 101.542 (11) 95.708 (3) 1.563 3.643 (12) 11.041
4 Celtics 35 19 100.485 (13) 95.385 (1) 1.944 3.24 (24) 10.285
5 Thunder 33 21 99.71 (16) 95.461 (2) 1.815 3.688 (11) 9.753
6 Jazz 36 20 101.985 (9) 97.929 (11) 1.625 4.051 (2) 9.732
7 Nuggets 37 19 104.284 (4) 99.731 (14) 1.688 3.485 (16) 9.726
8 Spurs 31 23 102.036 (8) 97.821 (10) 1.62 3.29 (23) 9.125
9 Hawks 35 20 103.565 (5) 100.136 (16) 1.782 3.831 (8) 9.042
10 Suns 34 23 106.384 (1) 103.048 (26) 1.842 3.643 (13) 8.821
11 Mavericks 36 21 101.571 (10) 98.835 (12) 1.842 3.895 (5) 8.473
12 Heat 29 28 100.042 (15) 97.394 (8) 1.904 3.88 (7) 8.431
13 Blazers 32 26 102.841 (6) 100.715 (18) 1.569 3.941 (4) 7.636
14 Rockets 28 27 99.286 (17) 99.346 (13) 1.782 4.225 (1) 5.947
15 Bobcats 27 28 97.223 (23) 96.841 (5) 1.782 3.539 (14) 5.703
16 Raptors 31 24 104.498 (2) 103.936 (30) 1.718 3.186 (26) 5.466
17 Bucks 27 28 96.52 (25) 97.033 (6) 1.845 3.002 (28) 4.334
18 Hornets 30 26 100.164 (14) 101.119 (19) 1.75 3.306 (22) 4.102
19 Bulls 29 27 95.741 (27) 97.47 (9) 1.875 3.429 (20) 3.576
20 Grizzlies 28 27 100.652 (12) 103.053 (27) 1.718 3.766 (10) 3.083
21 Warriors 16 39 99.268 (19) 102.457 (24) 1.718 3.888 (6) 2.417
22 Kings 18 38 98.668 (21) 102.575 (25) 1.875 4.01 (3) 1.978
23 Sixers 21 34 98.923 (20) 101.684 (21) 1.782 2.956 (30) 1.976
24 Clippers 23 33 96.974 (24) 100.438 (17) 1.75 3.487 (15) 1.773
25 Knicks 19 36 99.273 (18) 102.083 (22) 1.527 2.99 (29) 1.707
26 Wizards 20 34 98.288 (22) 102.367 (23) 1.685 3.485 (17) 1.091
27 Pacers 19 37 95.073 (28) 99.921 (15) 1.813 3.234 (25) 0.198
28 Pistons 20 35 96.399 (26) 101.661 (20) 1.591 3.452 (18) -0.219
29 Timberwolves 13 44 94.715 (29) 103.244 (28) 1.719 3.449 (19) -3.361
30 Nets 5 51 92.102 (30) 103.75 (29) 1.813 3.773 (9) -6.063

What has the first week back from the break taught us?

  • Trades take time.  Cleveland made the huge Jamison deal then promptly lost 3 in a row.  Their lead in rating score dipped from 15.9% over 2nd place to 9%.  Does this mean life is over?  Of course not, but there is an adjustment period, and if it is long enough, there might be ramifications in April.
  • The Celtics if they defend like they did against LA and Portland, can beat anybody.  If they defend like they did against Denver, not so much.
  • Denver provides the shock and awe, but in terms of power – they are the 3rd best team in their DIVISION.  Their defense is only middling – while the Thunder look extremely capable.
  • The Warriors are trying to lose given how Nellie coaches that bunch …  but only 21st – they can’t even do that properly.
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NBA Trade Thoughts: Stephen Jackson to the Bobcats

Here are the gory details.  Some thoughts:

  • If the rumors of the Cavaliers offering Delonte West and Wally Sczerbiak’s corpse were true – the Warriors turned down some real cap help.
  • While Bell offers “grit” and other white player properties, and Radmanovic is a decent shooter with a lousy contract, neither of them will be on the next good Golden State Warriors team.  There are no draft picks or anything coming their way.  Of course this is the coach who doesn’t play Brandan Wright and Anthony Randolph – so maybe Nellie would be the wrong coach for this.
  • I am not sure if Nelson (the de facto GM – and a bad one to boot) intended to deal Jackson to an NBA Siberia, but I can see vengeance in his heart.  He extended Jackson (unconscionably) and gets rewarded with him begging to leave.  But that’s cold – especially when you spite the Warriors to do so.
  • For the Bobcats, it gives them some offensive help.  For their impotent attack, any help is useful.  That said, Jackson offers no utility for them – except that he was dealt early enough to maybe be spun at the deadline (to a team, like Cleveland maybe).  Of course Charlotte might be too incompetently run to warrant such respect.
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Week 2 NBA Power Rankings

If you want the methodology, go back to Week 1:

Rank Team W L Off Def Road SOS Rating
1 Celtics 7 1 103.531 (7) 87.765 (2) 1.75 0.844 (29) 18.359
2 Heat 5 1 101.608 (13) 91.216 (4) 1.167 3.471 (16) 15.029
3 Rockets 4 2 103.308 (8) 96.995 (11) 1.75 6.575 (2) 14.638
4 Lakers 6 1 101.267 (16) 94.329 (8) 1 5.551 (5) 13.49
5 Blazers 4 3 101.749 (12) 96.188 (10) 1 6.601 (1) 13.162
6 Mavericks 4 2 101.593 (14) 94.242 (7) 1.75 3.505 (14) 12.606
7 Nuggets 5 2 106.883 (3) 100.163 (15) 2.5 2.792 (21) 12.012
8 Hawks 5 2 104.938 (6) 100.19 (16) 2 4.796 (8) 11.543
9 Thunder 3 3 95.693 (23) 92.266 (6) 1.167 6.568 (3) 11.162
10 Suns 7 1 106.563 (4) 102.543 (20) 2.625 3.071 (20) 9.716
11 Cavaliers 4 3 98.068 (19) 91.808 (5) 1.5 1.925 (27) 9.685
12 Magic 5 2 105.351 (5) 103.003 (21) 2 2.293 (26) 6.642
13 Spurs 3 3 107.107 (2) 106.852 (28) 1.75 3.761 (12) 5.765
14 Bucks 3 2 90.176 (28) 86.328 (1) 2.1 -1.071 (30) 4.877
15 Raptors 3 4 111.23 (1) 111.922 (29) 2 3.361 (18) 4.669
16 Bulls 4 2 91.286 (26) 95.196 (9) 1.75 6.366 (4) 4.205
17 Clippers 3 5 97.808 (20) 97.828 (13) 1.313 2.329 (25) 3.62
18 Hornets 3 5 100.643 (17) 104.083 (24) 2.188 4.773 (9) 3.521
19 Pistons 3 4 97.447 (21) 98.78 (14) 2 2.519 (23) 3.186
20 Wizards 2 5 96.18 (22) 100.579 (17) 2 5.491 (6) 3.091
21 Pacers 2 3 93.661 (24) 97.561 (12) 1.4 5.407 (7) 2.908
22 Kings 3 4 103.213 (9) 105.374 (26) 2 2.409 (24) 2.248
23 Jazz 3 4 100.17 (18) 103.915 (23) 1.5 4.185 (10) 1.94
24 Bobcats 3 3 87.241 (30) 90.962 (3) 1.75 3.715 (13) 1.745
25 Sixers 3 4 102.321 (10) 106.595 (27) 1.5 2.557 (22) -0.217
26 Warriors 2 4 101.337 (15) 104.678 (25) 1.167 1.563 (28) -0.612
27 Knicks 1 7 93.633 (25) 101.824 (19) 1.313 3.114 (19) -3.765
28 Grizzlies 1 6 102.18 (11) 112.154 (30) 2.5 3.493 (15) -3.981
29 Timberwolves 1 7 90.867 (27) 103.771 (22) 1.75 4.06 (11) -7.094
30 Nets 0 7 88.598 (29) 101.638 (18) 2 3.369 (17) -7.671

Some observations:

  1. The Nets stink.  They had a dead tired motivation-less Celtics team in, had a chance to win and still let it get away.
  2. The Magic, who were the top defensive team a year ago using these sorts of metrics, are a paltry 21st so far.  It’s an underreported story, but their defense is why they won a year ago.
  3. The Warriors only moved up to 26 on the strength of a 146-105 pasting of fellow dreck Minnesota.
  4. The Celtics still #1, but the defense slipped to #2.  The Suns diced them up good last Friday, and hopefully it’s tired legs (4 games in 5 nights) and not something larger.
  5. Suns obviously a huge surprise.  Their #10 ranking is really due to the #20 defense.  That said, an adequate defense has been good enough for their really good teams – so maybe this is not so bad.
  6. The Rockets still in the Top 5.  Incredible.