Time for an NBA Power Poll with a twist. I’m going to rank only the top-15 teams and then have random thoughts about the rest of the squads because honestly, when you get past the first 15 teams, the others merge together.
Music to listen to: Dayvan Cowboy by Boards of Canada
1- San Antonio Spurs: You know that the Spurs aren’t joking around when one thing happens in a February during the regular season. Gregg Popovich finds a way to criticize the play of the team after a throwaway game at Philadelphia in a loss. Whatever happened to pacing yourself during the regular season? When you have a seven-game lead in your conference and realize that this may be the final run with your core of older players, messing around won’t be tolerated. BTW, the Spurs are on pace for a historic season, I’m talking 65+ wins, but they would barely crack the top-five of major stories in the first half of this season and would be lucky to get one of their players in the top seven of MVP voting. That’s just the way they like it.
2- Boston Celtics: The Celtics have proved several things in their win over Miami on Sunday. When they get the O’Neal “brothers” back for the playoffs, there isn’t a team in the league that can match the Celtics’ depth. Rajon Rondo has nudged his way into the argument of being a top-10 player in the NBA despite having a bad jump shot, which as a point guard is essential. It would be interesting to see a Spurs/Celtics Finals just to conclude the Kevin Garnett/Tim Duncan debate.
3- Dallas Maverics: I can’t quit the Mavs. After losing six straight contests in January, the Mavs have won 12 of their last 14 contests. What’s helped is the improved play of Shawn Marion and the best set of bench guards in the league with J.J. Barea and Jason Terry. Caron Butler’s loss will hurt more in the playoffs but for now, Dallas may be the second-best team in the West.
4- Miami Heat: Despite losing at Boston Sunday, the Heat are still a top-five team in the league. Having two of the top ten players in the league will do that for you. However, the 1-6 record against Boston, Chicago, Dallas and the Lakers shows that the team has a long way to go before you can argue that they will even make the NBA Finals.
5- Chicago Bulls: Still sticking with Derrick Rose as my first-half NBA MVP.
6- Los Angeles Lakers: I was willing to place the Lakers as high as #2 on my rankings before consecutive losses at Orlando and at Charlotte on Sunday and Monday. They’re an older team at the end of a long road trip. Nothing to be worried about for now but what the Lakers need to be worried about is playoff position. San Antonio, Dallas and even Oklahoma City can finish ahead of them in the standings, meaning not having homecourt against either of those squads in the second round of the playoffs.
7- Orlando Magic: Desperately needed that win over the Lakers on Sunday.
8- Oklahoma City: Stat of the Poll comes courtesy of Marc Stein of ESPN.com. The Thunder are 18-4 when Kevin Durant scores 30 or more points in a contest.
9- Memphis Grizzlies: How the Grizzlies handle the return of O.J. Mayo to the lineup from his suspension will determine many aspects of the franchise on and off the court.
10- New Orleans Hornets: The Hornets are 2-7 without Okafor in the lineup in the last nine games. The good news is that their place in the playoffs should be secure with Utah and Denver free falling down the standings in the future.
11- Portland Trail Blazers: For Portland’s sake, it would be best to not rush Brandon Roy back from his knee injuries like the organization did last year for the playoff series against Phoenix. LaMarcus Aldridge has taken his All-Star game snub in stride and has even increased his numbers in the team’s five-game winning streak. Roy is needed but with Aldridge playing at this level, he’s not necessary when you consider the potential of re-injury.
12- Philadelphia 76ers: When you beat the best team in the NBA at home, you get a bump in my Poll, despite the circumstances.
12- Atlanta Hawks: Lost by 34 points at home to Philadelphia, followed that up with a loss at home to lowly Charlotte.
13- Denver Nuggets: Even as a Knicks fan, I’ve become tired of the Carmelo Anthony trade rumors. However, if the Nuggets do find a way to keep Anthony, which isn’t as improbable as you think, a run to the conference finals isn’t out of the question.
14- Phoenix Suns: I’m still making plans to print my “Free Steve Nash” T-Shirts but may wait until a week after the All-Star break…I will have to get clearance from Chris Webber though first since he went public with this sentiment first.
15- Utah Jazz: I don’t think Deron Williams is the reason Jerry Sloan retired in the middle of the season. When you’ve reached the level of Sloan, sometimes its time to move on.
Other thoughts:
-My stated goal for the Knicks at the start of the season was to make the playoffs and that’s all. Despite the inconsistent play of the squad, this is still a possibility.
-If I was Aaron Brooks of the Rockets, I wouldn’t put my house on the market yet but I would call the realtor and maybe prepare a list of adjustments that may need to be made to the house, if you catch my drift.
-The Monta Ellis-Stephen Curry backcourt isn’t too small to succeed. The lack of size in the front court is the source of struggles for the Warriors.
-I would say that the Bucks aren’t going to make the playoffs but the fact that they’re 21-33 at the time of writing this and only 3.5 games out of the 8th seed is a sad commentary of the Eastern Conference overall.
-There’s no reason why the Clippers should lose at Cleveland and proves that despite the excitement that Blake Griffin has brought to Los Angeles, the Clippers are still one of the biggest underachievers in the NBA this season when you look at the roster.
-I refuse to give up on DeMarcus Cousins but its getting harder and harder to defend him. Remember that he’s still not even 21 years old, has well-known maturity issues and can’t be dismissed from the league yet because of his talent.
-Happy that the Wizards finally won a road game and that Cleveland broke their 26-game losing streak. Unless its a rival team, you don’t want to see a squad lose that much, even if they’re professionals.
OK, those are my thoughts. What are yours?
The Sports Inquirer 
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