FanNation - The Republic of Sport

Jan 5th 2008

After taking last week off and working 2 days out of the last 16 days I am back to work doing the 8-5 shift. So I have time to work on the Power Ranking again, we should have a few changes since it was before Christmas that the last one was wrote.

I got to enjoy Christmas as a father for the First time. It made it quite exciting to give presents to my son, he liked the wrapping paper and bows more than the toys and presents though. I would have had a better Christmas if the Jazz would have won more games but such is life.

Moving on...

Here is a link to the last power ranking

http://www.fannation.com/blogs/post/310875-nba-power-ranking-week-8

High Riser this week- 9-(15) Detroit, the Raptors tied them but the tiebreaker is the higher team.

Pitiful Faller this week- 28- (23) L.A. Clippers, injuries or Baron Davis drama earns them the pitiful faller of the week.

The Ranking

1-(3) L.A. Lakers- Well dont know if this is because the Celtics are losing too much or that the Lakers are that much better. I dont feel like the Lakers are all that better but that the Celtics have lost that Amazing fire that carried them to the 19 game winning streak. They have lost 4 games out of the last 6 and they include a loss to the Lakers. The Lakers did beat out the Jazz and Blazers in the last week. This team is byfar the best team in the West. Too deep of a bench.

 2-(1) Boston - Still was a little shocked to see the 4 losses that the Celtics have acquired in the last couple weeks. Rajon Rondo is trying to become that 4th All Star on the Celtics and then of course comes the drama of Stephon Marbury being rumored of trying to join the Celtics, even after the divorce of the KG Marbury saga in Minny.

3-(2) Cleveland-This is the biggest surprise team of the seaon for me. I thought they would be a 5th or 6th seed out in the east but they are debated as being the 2nd best team in the League.  Mo Williams has really filled a void that Lebron has never had, and thats another scorer to bring pressure and open up the lane for King James. This team has a pretty decent bench as well.

4- (4) Orlando- Now did anyone think that the Magic would be the 4th best team in the NBA before the season began. I dont think so but between Dwight Howard, Hedo, Rashard Lewis, and even Jameer Nelson has joined in the bonanza. I really wanted to reference that.

5-(6) San Antonio- The Silent Assasins. You dont hear much about Pop's squad these days but they continue to do their thing. They stay in the playoff hunt, they beat teams, they rip out their hears like a silent assasin and do so at the end of the game... Parker just did it again against the Sixers. It happened a few weeks ago on Christmas against the Suns, Roger Powell...

6- (5) New Orleans- They are not as good as i thought they would become with the arrival of James Posey but they have had some inconsistent play from Tyson Chandler. I am just not a big believer in what the Hornets are doing. Everything goes through Chris Paul and if Chris Paul isnt playing MVP ball the Hornets are not winning games.

7- (7) Denver- Well the Nuggets are becoming one of the best teams and with Billups running the squad he is making Melo a much better and complete player. No more rumors about the Nuggets trying to deal away Carmelo or eveyone else on the team, they seem content. My question is, Does Billups or Coach Karl run the team?

8- (13) Atlanta- The Hawks could be the high risers of the week. The Hawks are becoming pretty consistent and play the Champion Celtics as good as anyone, if not better. ATL finally has reasons to go to Phillips Arena or whatever its called. I mean people are still talking about Mike Bibby and how old has he become now.

9-(15) Detroit- Right after i mention the Hawks climbing the rankings the Pistons swoop in and climb even higher. The Pistons are WINNERS of 7 Straight, its about time they get some payoff after the Billups-AI swap. I was starting to feel bad for the fans in Detroit Rock City but its coming around. Its not like AI is a bad player but its a better team than he is used too. The Pistons are going on a western road trip and visiting UTAH. The Jazz upon visiting the Pistons took them to a Double Overtime Thriller where the Jazz prevailed, the Pistons will want BLOOD.

10- (12) Phoenix- Well Steve Nash has to play a bigger role in the Team and being a little Cautious the Suns have sat him a game or two and tried to protect him. Dee Brown was signed to give a solid back up at the point. Dee Brown was impressive in Utah but was a little small for the type of Defensive Guard Jerry Sloan likes, plus he was behind Williams, Price, and Hart when they cut him. Well then the Wizards picked up Dee Brown and rejuvanted his career but once the Trade for Mike James came he was cut. He fits the Suns style. Now Barbosa can shift over to the 2 spot.

11- (10) Dallas- Well Dirk Nowitzki was complaing about his Suspension for his hit on Matt Harpring of the Utah Jazz. It happened on Jan 2nd. It wasnt the foul itself but the time it took for the NBA to tell Dirk that he was suspended. He said something in his interview with the Dallas paper that its the same thing the Jazz have done since they got Sloan, they have always played like that. Dirk would know since he was 8 years old and living in Germany when Jerry Sloan took over coaching the Jazz. But Dirk was MR December going 28 PPG and 8 RPG during the month.

12- (9) Portland- They beat the Celtics... typo... they beat the Celtics without Brandon Roy. They also put up a pretty good effort against the Lakers. Aldridge is an animal. The Blazers could be a deadly team but i dont think they have what they need to do it for 82 games and stay Healthy which they have not been able to do. Its not Oden's fault either, other key players have sat games as well. Roy is injured now and they really need him to play all games to stay competitive. They also play in the tough Northwest Division where the Jazz are kings but their crown is being threatned to be taken away by the Nuggets.

13-(8) Houston- I wish I could win money for predicting this team imploding. I mean T Mac has basically given up on the team. I am sick of hearing about how great this team is everyday but they never get anything done. Injuries, first round exits and now they have Drama case Artest. This team should be in Dallas so all the drama teams could be in the same city (Cowboys of the NFL). This team could win the biggets drop of the week.

14-(11) Utah- Well the Jazz meet with the Warriors tonight and have Paul Millsap back. The Jazz are going to have a few games at home in the next few weeks so we should see them start climbing. But i think there is a lot more going on in the lockerroom than is being locked out. Like Carlos Boozer opting out, Jerry Sloan dealing with different lineups every nights.

15- (17) Miami- Well with Super Mario the Heat are looking better daily. But the downside to the Heat has to be the distraction of Marions expiring contract and a possible trade coming from that. I mean the Heat have to have MVP nights from Wade to win consistently.

 16- (14) Milwaukee -This team could make the playoffs but they are not consistent at all. Yeah they beat the Spurs recently but they also lost to the bobcats. They have a solid bench with Mbur (he has a long name, you know who i am talking about) and Raymond Sessions.

17- (18) New Jersey-Well they won a close one with Vince Carters buzzer beating 30 footer. Devin Harris should return this week but is this one of the teams that will start to fizzle as the season goes along. I dont think they are deep enough to keep in the playoff hunt but i know a team close enough that could.

18- (21) New York- Well if the biggest news out of the Big Apple stops being Stephon Marburys status and becomes D'Antoni's intense offensive machine then it should change. David Lee is becoming a double double machine. Nate Robinson is streaky but has been lighting it up. Al Harrington is renewing his career.

19- (25) Toronto- Ok i am sure the Raptors are the biggest climbers on this weeks ranking but when the Raptors beat the Magic and you have production from the bench, mainly being Anthony Parker guys are going to take notice. I actually have the Raptors and Pacers very close together and that makes it interesting since they made that big trade over the summer.

20- (19) Indiana- I am going to be attending the Pacers @ Jazz game on the 12th of January in Salt Lake City. I am pretty excited to see Danny Granger in person doing his thing, the guy has completly raised his game this season. This team should improve and they get pretty good production at the PG spot with TJ Ford and Jarret Jack. If Jack could get his turnovers under control he could take the starting spot.

21- (20) Philadelphia- Since Elton Brand went down they have seen a faster uptempo game like they ran last year. With that in mind there has been a lift in stats from Igudola, Spoestra, Young, and Willie Green. This team needs to get Brand back in the rotation and play at the same level when he is back and healthy.

22- (16) Chicago- Falling quite a bit from the last ranking. Gooden went down with injury, if this team could stay healthy they might actually make the playoffs but when they keep changing the lineups what can you expect. Noah needs to grow up.

23- (22) Charlotte- Raja Bell and Boris Diaw seem to make the Cats better and the trade worked out well for them. Gave them an identity for defense. Boris Diaw is playing better and thats a good thing but i still see another deal looming at the PG position.

24- (24) Memphis- Interesting fact of the week. Darius Miles played in his first game since 2006 and if he plays 9 more games he ends up on the Trailblazers books. Darius Miles also recently said that the Celtics were the best team he had ever seen and the players respect Coach Doc Rivers but the Big 3 also demand respect.

25- (29) Minnesota- Should i Continue my "Bring back Flip Saunder's" rantings. Al Jefferson is a beast. Mike Miller is going to return and that should help turn things a little around at the Target Center.

26- (26) Sacramento- Well Kevin Martin recently dropped 40+ and with him back in the lineup this team could actually climb a little bit, passing the Clippers and the Warriors, maybe even the Thunder and Wolves in the West. Basically i see them having that possibility.

27- (27) Washington- Gilbert Arenas played a game of 2 on 2 this weekend but the Wiz front office is hush hush on when Hibachi is going to practice with the team again. Now we have Deshawn Stevenson coming off the bench and the Wizards pulled a home win over the arch rival Lebron Led Cavaliers. Mike James is starting to become another option in DC.

28- (23) L.A. Clippers- So Stephen Jackson told an Oakland Newspaper that Baron Davis wants to return to the Warriors and rejoin his team and wish he would have never left but then Baron Davis says with the LA Times that he is committed to being a Clipper and it takes time to adjust to a new and new system. SO there has to be some truth here but what is it.

29- (26) Golden State- When is Monta Ellis supposed to return? Dont really have anything to say about them right now, leave a comment for me because i said it all in the Clipper section, stephen jackson talking about Baron Davis pretty much is the only news in oakland right now.

30- (30) Oklahoma City- Well the ended up landing Kristic former F-C from New Jersey who has been playing overseas. Maybe thats something to count on. Joe Smith is the new rumored guy of the year to get released to sign with a contender. Last year it was PJ Brown.

Alright that took me seriously 4 hours, leave a comment, I want to hear what you think.