Post by Alex English on Jun 2, 2012 23:48:30 GMT
Dynasty Five Power Rankings (June 2nd)
1. Miami Heat
[/color]Record: 12-1 | Last Five: 5-0 | Last Week: 2
C-Brendan Haywood | PF-Chris Bosh | SF-LeBron James | SG-Dwyane Wade | PG-Jason Kidd
The Heat takeover the top spot this week as they are the only remaining one loss team. They seem to have put the Bobcat incident behind them as they have won six in a row. Baring any injuries it wouldn't be surprising if the Heat started to pull away from the rest of the league.
2. San Antonio Spurs
[/color]Record: 11-2 | Last Five: 4-1 | Last Week: 1
C-Al Harrington | PF-Tim Duncan | SF-Michael Beasley | SG-Manu Ginobli | PG-Tony Parker
In a marquee match up the Spurs finally had their nine game win streak snapped at the hands of the Bulls. That is all it took though for them to lose their number one spot but it wasn't a far drop as they sit at number two this week.
3. Boston Celtics
[/color]Record: 10-3 | Last Five: 4-1 | Last Week: 5
C-Enes Kanter | PF-Kevin Garnett | SF-Paul Pierce | SG Ray Allen | PG-Rajon Rondo
The Celtics have won seven of their last eight games and they are currently riding their four game win streak into the top three. They are looking good early as they are still an elite team with decent shot at winning the championship.
4. Oklahoma City Thunder[/color]
Record: 10-3 | Last Five: 5-0 | Last Week: 6
C-Kendrick Perkins | PF-Serge Ibaka | SF-Kevin Durant | SG-DeMar DeRozan | PG-Deron Williams
Oklahoma City has won eight of their last nine games and they are essentially tied with the Celtics. If it weren't a head to head loss against Boston they could have been placed ahead of them but they will sit at fourth this week.
5. Chicago Bulls
[/color]Record: 8-4 | Last Five: 3-2 | Last Week: 8
C-Joakim Noah | PF-Zach Randolph | SF-Luol Deng | SG-Richard Hamilton | PG-Derrick Rose
The Bulls move up three spots following a big win over the Spurs. Unfortunately they lost their very next game to the Rockets but they are clearly one of the best teams in the league and one of the few that will be able to challenge the Heat when we get to the playoffs.
6. Los Angeles Lakers[/color]
Record: 8-3 | Last Five: 2-3 | Last Week: 3
C-Andrew Bynum | PF-Andrea Bargnani | SF-Martell Webster | SG-Kobe Bryant | PG-Kyle Lowry
Since winning their first eight the Lakers still haven't won. At three games they now have their first real losing streak of the season. Kobe needs to rally the Lakers quickly before their losing streak becomes a problem.
7. Dallas Mavericks
[/color]Record: 8-4 | Last Five: 2-3 | Last Week: 7
C-Spencer Hawes | PF-Dirk Nowitzki | SF-Marshon Brooks | SG-Jason Terry | PG-Mario Chalmers
The Mavericks stay at seven this week despite going through a but of a rough patch. They have lost their last two games and three of their last five. Dirk and the boys are still sitting in fourth place in the west and if they finished the season there I think Danny Longley would be pleased.
8. Houston Rockets
[/color]Record: 8-6 | Last Five: 3-2 | Last Week: 11
C-Marc Gasol | PF-Pau Gasol | SF-Chase Budinger | SG-Tony Allen | PG-Goran Dagic
The Rockets move into the top ten after what might be their biggest win of the season as they topped the Bulls in impressive fashion with a 99-79 win. The Gasol brothers will need to be at the top of their game all season long to keep the Rockets within shouting distance of the top teams in the league.
9. Indiana Pacers
[/color]Record: 6-5 | Last Five: 4-1 | Last Week: 15
C-Roy Hibbert | PF-David West | SF-Danny Granger | SG-Paul George | PG-Darren Collison
Indiana has jumped up six spots following a solid last five games. With Granger and Hibbert leading the way they should be able to challenge Orlando and Toronto for the fourth spot in the east and grab home court advantage for the playoffs.
10. Orlando Magic
[/color]Record: 7-5 | Last Five: 2-3 | Last Week: 9
C-Tyson Chandler | PF-Amare Stoudemire | SF-Hedo Turkoglu | SG-JR Smith | PG-Jameer Nelson
The Magic have lost three of their last four but they manage to keep their spot in the top ten. After mediocre results in New York, Magic fans will be hoping Stoudemire can show he is a true franchise player.
11. Milwaukee Bucks
[/color]Record: 7-6 | Last Five: 3-2 | Last Week: 12
C-Drew Gooden | PF-Tyrus Thomas | SF-Carlos Delfino | SG-Monta Ellis | PG-Brandon Jennings
Milwaukee has earned all their seven wins within their last nine games and they actually moved up one spot from last week. Their back court tandem has overcome their lack of post prescence to keep the Bucks rolling along.
12. Toronto Raptors
[/color]Record: 8-6 | Last Five: 1-4 | Last Week: 4
C-Anderson Varejao | PF-Lamar Odom | SF-Metta World Peace | SG-Eric Gordon | PG-Steve Nash
The Raptors drop eight spots all the way outside the top ten. As the Raps are facing their first bit of difficulty of the season Steve Nash is going to have to show his experience and maturity and get this team back on track.
13. Los Angeles Clippers[/color]
Record: 6-6 | Last Five: 2-3 | Last Week: 13
C-DeAndre Jordan | PF-Blake Griffin | SF-Carmelo Anthony | SG-Jason Richardson | PG-Chauncey Billups
The Clippers have been alternating wins and losses pretty much since the season began. Despite their elite lineup they haven't been able to get on a roll and so this week they stay number 13 in the rankings. Eventually though this team has to find it's way into the top ten.
14. New York Knicks
[/color]Record: 6-6 | Last Five: 2-3 | Last Week: 14
C-Dwight Howard | PF-Markief Morris | SF-Caron Butler | SG-Iman Shumpert | PG-Chris Paul
Across the country Knicks fans are waiting for their team to catch fire just like Clippers fans in LA. Even with their lack of depth Chris Paul and Dwight Howard are too good for this to be an average team. Luckily it is still very early in the season so if they get on a roll they could even challenge for home court advantage in the east.
15. Minnesota Timberwolves
[/color]Record: 6-6 | Last Five: 3-2 | Last Week: 25
C-Kevin Love | PF-JJ Hickson | SF-Nicolas Batum | SG-Tyreke Evans | PG-Ricky Rubio
The Timberwolves have won three games in a row and have apparently gotten past their bad start. They jump up ten spots in this weeks ranking and are now in the top half of the league. With their roster they could keep moving up the rankings too and they should fairly easily make it into the playoffs.
16. Sacramento Kings
[/color]Record: 6-7 | Last Five: 3-2 | Last Week: 17
C-DeMarcus Cousins | PF-Channing Frye | SF-Derrick Williams | SG-Marcus Thornton | PG-Aaron Brooks
If the playoffs started right now then the Sacramento Kings would be in the 8th seed and Kings fans could celebrate for a few days before getting completely dismantled by the Spurs. If they can maintain this pace all season long then they would be one of the biggest over-achievers in the league.
17. Memphis Grizzlies
[/color]Record: 6-8 | Last Five: 3-2 | Last Week: 20
C-Samuel Dalembert | PF-Carlos Boozer | SF-Rudy Gay | SG-Kevin Martin | PG-Jose Calderon
The Grizzlies are one step behind the Timberwolves but they still seem to be overcoming their poor start. They have a long way to go but they have won three of their last five move up three spots in the rankings.
18. Brooklyn Nets
[/color]Record: 5-7 | Last Five: 3-2 | Last Week: 24
C-Brook Lopez | PF-Shawn Marion | SF-Gerald Wallace | SG-Vince Carter | PG-Russell Westbrook
Russell Westbrook's Nets have won three of their last four and are also overcoming a poor start. They are sitting at ninth in the east so baring another losing streak they should make their way into the top eight.
19. Utah Jazz
[/color]Record: 6-8 | Last Five: 2-3 | Last Week: 16
C-Al Jefferson | PF-Paul Millsap | SF-Gordon Hayward | SG-Ben Gordon | PG-Rodney Stuckey
The Utah Jazz have been pretty average all season long and so they drop three spots this week. With talent on this team they should be able to move up the rankings in the next few weeks though as they should be a playoff team by the end of the season.
20. Phoenix Suns
[/color]Record: 5-7 | Last Five: 1-4 | Last Week: 10
C-Marcin Gortat | PF-Josh Smith | SF-Antawn Jamison | SG-Michael Redd | PG-Jeremy Lin
The Suns have gone up in flames this week as they have lost four games in a row and dropped ten spots in this weeks rankings. They seem to be in the exact opposite position they were in one week ago and now they have to try and sort everything out once again.
21. Portland Trailblazers
[/color]Record: 5-6 | Last Five: 1-4 | Last Week: 18
C-Nikola Pekovic | PF-LaMarcus Aldridge | SF-Kawhi Leonard | SG-Jamal Crawford | PG-Raymond Felton
With one win their last six games the Blazers are holding on desperately to their good start. At just one game under .500 they haven't done any damage yet but they do drop into the bottom ten in this weeks rankings.
22. New Orleans Hornets
[/color]Record: 3-9 | Last Five: 3-2 | Last Week: 27
C-Emeka Okafor | PF-Carl Landry | SF-Trevor Ariza | SG-James Harden | PG-Mike Conley
The Hornets have won all three of their games this season within their last five outings. They will be near the bottom the league all season long but hopefully Jackie Moon can build on the recent success and surround Harden with some better players.
23. Denver Nuggets
[/color]Record: 5-9 | Last Five: 2-3 | Last Week: 22
C-JaVale McGee | PF-Kenneth Faried | SF-Ersan Ilyasova | SG-Andre Iguodala | PG-Ty Lawson
It seems like whenever the Nuggets lose, they lose big. With just two of their nine losses being within ten points the Nuggets need to learn to stay in games because this team has the talent to be much better than 5-9.
24. Golden State Warriors[/color]
Record: 5-10 | Last Five: 2-3 | Last Week: 21
C-Andrew Bogut | PF-David Lee | SF-Richard Jefferson | SG-Klay Thompson | PG-Stephen Curry
Of the under-achievers that are still wallowing at the bottom of the league the Warriors are actually in the best place. Since it is so early in the season it is hard to say to what lengths they will have to go to catch up but a team with Curry, Bogut and Lee should be a plus .500 team. Warriors fans can be thankful they aren't the Hawks or the Sixers though.
25. Charlotte Bobcats
[/color]Record: 4-10 | Last Five: 2-3 | Last Week: 26
C-Byron Mullens | PF-Bismack Biyombo | SF-Travis Outlaw | SG-Kirk Hinrich | PG-Kemba Walker
So Dennis Rodman has been in a little bit of controversy of late. Who would have thought? As of today though he is back coaching the Bobcats. It is unclear what that means for the team but they did manage to pick up another win this week and have moved up one spot in this weeks rankings.
26. Washington Wizards
[/color]Record: 4-9 | Last Five: 2-3 | Last Week: 29
C-Nene | PF-Andray Blatche | SF-Rashard Lewis | SG-Jordan Crawford | PG-John Wall
With two wins in their last three games the Wizards have jumped up three spots in the rankings. John Wall is going to need a lot of help from the rest of the team and a time machine for Rashard Lewis if they want to move out of the league's basement though.
27. Detroit Pistons
[/color]Record: 4-7 | Last Five: 1-4 | Last Week: 28
C-Greg Monroe | PF-Derrick Favors | SF-Luc Mbah a Moute | SG-OJ Mayo | PG-Devin Harris
The Pistons have lost six of their last seven games and are among the worst performing teams over the last few weeks. The good news is that they are still at 10th in the east and they are only three games under .500 so this young team can still challenge for the playoffs.
28. Cleveland Cavaliers
[/color]Record: 4-9 | Last Five: 1-4 | Last Week: 19
C-Robin Lopez | PF-Hakim Warrick | SF-Wilson Chandler | SG-Grant Hill | PG-Kyrie Irving
The Cavs seem more at home this week following a three game losing streak and a nine place drop in the rankings. If Dan Gilbert can get a couple young pieces and a good young draft pick then the Cavs can hope to rebuild what they had with Lebron in a season or two.
29. Atlanta Hawks
Record: 3-8 | Last Five: 1-4 | Last Week: 23
C-Al Horford | PF-Luis Scola | SF-Marvin Williams | SG-Joe Johnson | PG-Ramon Sessions
The Hawks have lost five of their last six games and might be having the worst start of any team in the league considering their talented roster. This week they sit at second last and they have some work to do in order to turn things around and become the playoff team they should be.
30. Philadelphia 76ers
[/color]Record: 4-10 | Last Five: 1-4 | Last Week: 30
C-Elton Brand | PF-Tristan Thompson | SF-Danilo Gallinari | SG-Mike Miller | PG-Louis Williams
For the second week in a row the Sixers are dead last. The good news is that they won a game and ended their losing streak. The bad news is that the streak got up to nine games long before that happened. With just 14 games played they are by no means out of it but they have put themselves at a severe disadvantage considering they have the talent to make the playoffs.