NBA: 2013-2014 Preseason Power Rankings
Please note: these NBA power rankings project where each team is heading into training camp and do not necessarily reflect where each team will be at the end of the season.
1. Miami Heat
The two-time defending champs kept last season’s team intact, plus they went out and added size in Greg Oden and another scorer off the bench in Michael Beasley. Oden’s health is the big question mark, but if healthy, he gives Miami a true center to match up against the Roy Hibbert’s of the league, also allowing Chris Bosh to play his natural position at forward. If there is one player that can help Beasley steer clear of his trouble off the court, it would be LeBron James.
2. Los Angeles Clippers
There are championship expectations in Los Angeles, and not for the Lakers. The Clippers now have proven leadership in Doc Rivers as coach, who believes the team is a championship contender this season. They added sharpshooters J.J. Redick and Jared Dudley for Chris Paul to distribute the ball to, with Jamal Crawford, Darren Collison, Matt Barnes, Byron Mullens, and Ryan Hollins forming one of the best second units in all of basketball. The biggest beneficiary to the Doc Rivers hire is Blake Griffin, who Rivers will help shed the soft label and make the jump to superstardom.
3. Indiana Pacers
Is there a more physically imposing frontcourt than Roy Hibbert and David West?. The Pacers bench got better with the additions Luis Scola and C.J. Watson. Former All-Star Danny Granger returns to the lineup and pairs with rising star Paul George to give the Pacers a lot of offensive firepower from the wing.
4. San Antonio Spurs
They have an emerging star in Kawhi Leonard, an elite shooter in Danny Green and, as long as the trio of Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili remains together, they’ll be a contender in the Western conference. Can’t forget about Gregg Popovich either.
5. Houston Rockets
D12 comes to H-Town and is finally healthy and happy, two things we haven’t seen out of Dwight Howard for the past few seasons. James Harden is the sidekick he wanted (sorry, Kobe Bryant) and the franchise is fully committed to building around Howard (sorry, Lakers). Quite simply, if he is the best big man in the game, the Rockets should be a contender with the surrounding talent on the roster.
6. Brooklyn Nets
There is close to a $190 million payroll that says the Nets have to be ranked this high, at least in owner Mikhail Prokhorov’s mind. Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Jason Terry will fill the leadership role missing from last year’s team. It’s up to Deron Williams as the franchise player to prove he is an elite point guard and bring Brooklyn to the promised land.
7. Oklahoma City Thunder
Russell Westbrook’s health is the reason they drop this far, as he’ll miss at least the first four weeks of the season. In his absence, the team still has enough firepower to maintain a top four record in the conference, led by Kevin Durant.
8. Chicago Bulls
Derrick Rose has the city of Chicago buzzing with his return, stating his knee is 100 percent healthy. Players like Jimmy Butler, Luol Deng and Taj Gibson matured last season in Rose’s absence and were forced to make plays on their own instead of waiting on Rose to do it for them. Now, coach Tom Thibodeau seeks to regain the top seed in the conference.
9. New York Knicks
The Knicks enter the season hoping to build off last year’s 54-28 record, good for second in the conference. Carmelo Anthony is going to get his points as one of the league’s premier scorers, but does Metta World Peace improve the defense as a whole? Question marks surround Amar’e Stoudemire’s health, but that’s why they traded for Andrea Bargnani.
10. Memphis Grizzlies
It’s going to be a challenge for the Grizzlies to make it back to the conference finals, with little improvement made this offseason and a tougher conference in general. Remember the frontcourt of Hibbert and West? Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph are the only other duo capable of matching their size and physicality.
11. Golden State Warriors
Stephen Curry guaranteed the Warriors would win the championship this season and now has the lofty expectations of backing that statement up. Andre Iguodala will tighten up their perimeter defense, but will his presence hinder the development of Harrison Barnes, who now comes off the bench? Either way, the Warriors have elite perimeter shooting, athletic wings, and a very formidable rotation of big men in David Lee, Andrew Bogut, Jermaine O’Neal and Marreese Speights.
12. Portland Trail Blazers
LaMarcus Aldridge and Damian Lillard are the building blocks for the franchise, as Aldridge was an All-Star last season and Lillard is already a top point guard in the league, averaging 19.0 points and 6.5 assists a game as a rookie. Gone are the days of Aldridge playing center now that Robin Lopez is manning the position. Fans have to like the direction where this franchise is headed.
13. Minnesota Timberwolves
Kevin Love returns and is presumably healthy, and with the additions of Kevin Martin and Corey Brewer, the expectation is that the Timberwolves make the playoffs. Nikola Pekovic just signed his new deal this summer and at 6’11” and 290 pounds, he can be a disruptive force on the interior as one of the league’s biggest (heaviest) centers.
14. Detroit Pistons
The improvements the Pistons made were flashy and interesting to say the least, trading for a scoring point guard in Brandon Jennings and signing Josh Smith to play small forward. Jennings needs the ball in his hands to be effective and Smith takes many bad shots that affect the rhythm of the offense. The acquisitions also take shots away from Greg Monroe, who has been the team’s best player. Between Jennings, Smith and Monroe, there’s too much talent on this team to not be ranked in the top half of the league.
15. Washington Wizards
John Wall got paid and now its time for him to prove he can lead the Wizards back into the playoffs. Competition makes everybody better, as the small forward position is up for grabs between Trevor Ariza, Martell Webster and rookie Otto Porter. The Wizards may be able to control the backboards with Nene and Emeka Okafor, provided that they stay healthy.
16. Dallas Mavericks
Mark Cuban gave Dirk Nowitzki another scorer to play with in Monta Ellis, but is he the right fit in Dallas? Jose Calderon will take over a crowded backcourt joined by Devin Harris, Wayne Ellington, Ricky Ledo and Shane Larkin. Samuel Dalembert and DeJuan Blair will also help Nowitzki in the toughness department.
17. New Orleans Pelicans
Jrue Holiday, Eric Gordon and Tyreke Evans play their first season together in New Orleans, as Evans makes the switch from shooting guard to small forward. The team held onto Ryan Anderson, who was the subject of trade talk this summer. Former No. 1 pick Anthony Davis finished in the top 11 in blocks as a rookie and now listed at 220 pounds aims to showcase an improved offensive game.
18. Cleveland Cavaliers
If Andrew Bynum is healthy, the Cavaliers are getting one of the top centers in the game. Anderson Varejao could come off the bench, a role that he best suited for. Kyrie Irving has brought a level of excitement that franchise has lacked since the departure of LeBron James. Irving could be the one to recruit LeBron next summer.
19. Los Angeles Lakers
With the uncertainty surrounding Kobe Bryant’s Achilles injury, Pau Gasol, Steve Nash and newcomers Nick Young and Chris Kaman will have to hold down the fort until he returns. A full training camp under the Mike D’Antoni system will be very beneficial for the team. Once Kobe does return, they’ll have a shot a competing for the playoffs.
20. Denver Nuggets
Iguodala, Brewer and George Karl are all gone. The Brian Shaw era is under way, but the triangle offense is not expected to be the focus with players such as Ty Lawson, Wilson Chandler and Danilo Gallinari running the show. It’s tough to envision the Nuggets making the playoffs without a star or a go-to playmaker.
21. Atlanta Hawks
Al Horford is the now the man in Atlanta with Josh Smith’s departure and he’ll get some help with the addition of Paul Millsap and Elton Brand, who signed as free agents, in the frontcourt. There’s not much optimism for the season, as they are one of the teams prepared to tank for a lottery pick in the draft next summer.
22. Sacramento Kings
Franchise player DeMarcus Cousins has a new mentor in Shaquille O’Neal and a new $62 million contract extension to go with it. Cousins has the talent to be the best big man in the game and Shaq can help Cousins reach his potential. Outside of Cousins, the team is lacking a consistent second scoring option. If they had that, they would be bumped up a bit in the rankings.
23. Toronto Raptors
The Raptors have their eyes set on Andrew Wiggins, the local high school phenom who took his talents to Kansas this season. By the trade deadline, it would be best if they traded one of the veterans, like Rudy Gay or Kyle Lowry, which would ultimately land them a higher draft pick and increase their chances of selecting Wiggins. DeMar DeRozan and Jonas Valanciunas are developing players are on the rise.
24. Boston Celtics
Wait until the losing really, really starts … Rajon Rondo is not a pleasant individual to be around when that happens. Rookie coach Brad Stevens will be faced with the tough task of keeping an unhappy star in Rondo in check, all while trying to learn on the fly. Guys like Jeff Green, Gerald Wallace and Kris Humphries round out a roster that lacks much size outside of Kelly Olynyk. Rondo may not last the season in Boston.
25. Milwaukee Bucks
O.J. Mayo is one of the few bright spots for the team. With a frontcourt rotation of Ersan Ilyasova, Larry Sanders and John Henson, the Bucks lack girth on the interior but were able to finish fifth in rebounding last season. The point guard battle will be between Luke Ridnour and Brandon Knight, who was a bad fit in Detroit for two seasons.
26. Orlando Magic
Victor Oladipo has already provided the team with an infusion of energy and defense this early into training camp and will be playing shooting guard as well as point guard. Veteran point guard Jameer Nelson admitted that he may be traded because general manager Rob Hennigan’s goal is to develop the young players and be right in the thick of things in the Wiggins sweepstakes. The Magic are a long way from being a playoff team again, but Hennigan’s blueprint and rebuilding model so far gets an A grade.
27. Phoenix Suns
Eric Bledsoe is finally out from under the shadows of Chris Paul and will serve as one of the cornerstones for the franchise for years to come. This is another one of the teams in the Wiggins sweepstakes, led by Goran Dragic, Marcin Gortat and the Morris twins, Markieff and Marcus. Don’t judge the Suns by wins and losses this season.
28. Charlotte Bobcats
Michael Jordan signing Al Jefferson was a move to put more fans in the stands. It shows the fan base that the franchise is actually willing to pay for good players and not just finish with a top 5 draft pick every year. Jefferson will team with the rookie Cody Zeller, one of the more athletic forwards in the league. The Bobcats have a solid young core of Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Gerald Henderson and Kemba Walker, who is vastly underrated.
29. Philadelphia 76ers
Rookie Michael Carter-Williams takes over as the point guard in Brett Brown’s first year as coach. The franchise has been widely accused of tanking, trading away All-Star Jrue Holiday and letting Andrew Bynum walk as a free agent. It’s tough to see this team winning more than 18 games.
30. Utah Jazz
Al Jefferson and Paul Millsap were allowed to walk out the door as free agents and now may have the worst starting five in all of basketball. Trey Burke will most likely start as a rookie and Derrick Favors is facing a contract year as he is a free agent next summer.