FanNation - The Republic of Sport

Lets get things started off right. Firstly, we have had a lot of changes with Allen Iverson getting injured and the Pistons playing better. Steve Nash went down and the Suns beat the Lakers even with Kobe's 49 points. Shaq looks younger than last year. Chris Bosh is declining after starting off the season hot. The Knicks are playing great and why is Nate Robinson a 6th man!

 Ok, here is the last power ranking:

http://www.fannation.com/blogs/post/345937-nba-power-ranking-all-star-break

High Riser this week- 25- (30) Washington

Pitiful Faller this week- 11- (7) Dallas

1-(3) Cleveland- 46-12 is the best record in the NBA right now and even with Big Ben getting injured they are still rolling strong. Pulling out a 1 point win over the Hawks, but a win is a win. They have a couple of previous Cavalier PF's that are eligible to rejoin the team after their buyouts in Joe Smith and Drew Gooden. Should be interesting?

2-(1) L.A. Lakers- Letting that game slide against the Suns was a little different to see since Kobe still had nearly 50 points but the Shaqtus had 33 points. Did the Suns show that the Lakers actually can be stopped if you pound it in the paint. The Lakers need to see Bynum return.

3-(2) Boston - Playing pretty well without KG and now they signed the soap drama himself in Stephon Marbury. Actually a very good move and i think the BIG 3 can keep him in line and dont have to worry about him becoming a Cancer because if he does they can just bench him or waive him.

4-(5) San Antonio- Sadly this is the time of year that the Spurs always seem to creep up and show they can still not only play but win championships. Its an odd year and you know what that means for the Spurs.

5- (4) Orlando- Stan Van Gundy has transformed the Magic from being led by a shoot first PG in Jameer Nelson to a pass first flashy guy in Rafer Alston which is very important for the Magic staying in the playoff contention. Rashard Lewis is showing that he was worth that large contract last year.

6-(9) Utah- Finally the team is HEALTHY and watchout. The Jazz were the best team in the NBA in Feb and had a record of 10-1 which is a franchise best, even better than those 2 all of famers in Stockton and Malone that led the team for 20 years. Yeah the Jazz are the only team that havent lost since the All Star break. The have beaten the Lakers, Celtics, and Hornets amongst those wins as well.

7- (8) New Orleans- Well Tyson Chandler gets traded and then they cancel the deal because Chandler didnt pass a physical, crazy i know because he can play, and now he is back as a Hornet and playing very well.

8- (6) Denver- Carmelo was asked by Coach Karl to sub out and he refused so now he is suspended for tonights game. Not to smart... but this team is still deadly anytime they have Billups on the floor. Remember the Nuggets only have one all star this season and its not Melo but Chauncey.

9-(10) Houston- Well the Rockets could be said to be playing with out MR. GLASS aka T-Mac. So keep on eye on this because Yao and Artest have been playing lights out.

10- (11) Portland- Another team i expected to drop off and maybe not even make the playoffs but I am starting to wonder because they play amazing defense. Really i dont know what team misses the playoffs in the west but it comes down to the Suns, Blazers and the 11th team on this ranking.

11- (7) Dallas- The Mavericks seem to be that team that will miss the playoffs. I mean they seem so inconsistent and it will really come down to whatever team is playing hot at the end of the season.

12- (13) Phoenix- si.com reported: What do Shaquille O'Neal and Marbury have in common? They are two of the three players (along Bernard King) to score 40 or more points with four different teams. Shaq reached that milestone with a 45-point outburst against Toronto last Friday. Raptors forward Chris Bosh complained afterward that O'Neal benefited from being able to camp out in the lane. "That's strong words coming from the RuPaul of big men," O'Neal told the Arizona Republic. "I'm going to do the same thing [in their next meeting] I did before -- make him quit. Make 'em quit and complain.It's what I do."

13- (12) Atlanta- Is Josh Smith for real! This team still continues to surprise me.

14- (14) Miami- Well D Wade had 24 points in the 4th quarter against the Knicks after he got elbowed in the Lip and had to get it sown up, some teammates talked about how that should happen every night.

15-(15) Detroit- Iverson gets hurt and then the Pistons beat the Magic and the Celtics on the Road. I think Iverson is going to the bench when he returns.

16- (16) Philadelphia- Things are working out quite nicely without Elton Brand. But they did have a lot of air time recently on Sportscenter with the Buzzer beating Half court shot that Devin Harris made against the Sixers which gave them the game.

17- (21) Chicago- I believe they are the first team to visit the White House and not win the Finals, but that all comes with the President being from Chicago and the Bulls being his favorite team.

18- (17) New Jersey- Still cant believe Devin Harris made that Buzzer beater half court shot after fumbling the ball to beat the Sixers. Watch it if you have not seen it!

19- (19) Milwaukee - Sessions should become a franchise PG for the Bucks.

20- (20) Indiana- At least i got to see the Pacers play in person this season and see the All Star Danny Granger before he was an all star.

21- (18) New York- Why is Nate Robinson a bench player, i mean he provides firepower but ever since the All Star break he has been an All Star type player.

22- (22) Charlotte- How was Emeka Okafor the Rookie of the Year in 2005? What happened to him since then?

23- (24) Golden State- In Sundays game against the Jazz Nellie rested Stephen Jackson, whom is the leading scorer and best player on the Warriors, in favor of playing his younger guys and giving them some playing time. Does that make sense to anyone else? 

24- (25) Toronto- So Bosh has been called Rupaul by Shaq, whats next. Shawn Marion becomes the franchise player. Never mind that, he says its to cold in Toronto.

25- (30) Washington- Finally moving up the chart, they have held down that 30th spot for a while now.

26- (23) Minnesota- So should I have much to say here. I mean i really lost interest when they traded away... then big al got ... anyways Kevin Love is leading rookies in rebounding at 8.7 RPG.

27- (27) Oklahoma City- When will Joe Smith be bought out? oh and Kevin Durant is now injured, sorry OKC, hard first season!

28- (28) Sacramento- New look Kings but they didnt Land Nate Robinson but maybe they will revisit that this summer. Dont understand why they waived Drew Gooden? 

29- (29) L.A. Clippers- Why did they not trade Baron Davis, oh guess it comes down to money.l mean the Rockets offered Scola and Battier for Baron Davis. Then the Clippers tried to trade him for a month before the deadline but no one took. Teams included the Mavs and Warriors. So why pull out when a team offers something.  

30- (26) Memphis- OJ Mayo is a good thing to look forward too but they might have to wait until next season to enjoy it. I mean how can this team ever make the playoffs in their division, they are among the triple texas threat and the Hornets.

Ok i heard that the new Halo Wars game came out for the Xbox 360 so i better get going to purchase that.