Stein's power rankings

[JT123]

http://espn.go.com/nba/powerrankings/_/week/0
The Warriors are number one, as they should be. They are completely healthy and have no excuses not to repeat.
Another interesting note is the Miami Heat, who have climbed into the top 10. Wade, Bosh, Deng, and Stoudemire have a combined 29 all star appearances! Most of any team in the association. :eek: Anything less than an ECF appearance will be a massive failure.

[Legends66NBA7]

30. Philadelphia 76ers
29. Brooklyn Nets
28. Portland Trail Blazers
27. Los Angeles Lakers
26. Denver Nuggets
25. Minnesota Timberwolves
24. New York Knicks
23. Orlando Magic
22. Charlotte Hornets
21. Dallas Mavericks

20. Phoenix Suns
19. Sacramento Kings
18. Utah Jazz
17. Detroit Pistons
16. Indiana Pacers
15. Washington Wizards
14. Milwaukee Bucks
13. Boston Celtics
12. Toronto Raptors
11. New Orleans Pelicans

10. Chicago Bulls
9. Miami Heat
8. Atlanta Hawks
7. Memphis Grizzlies
6. Los Angeles Clippers
5. Houston Rockets
4. Oklahoma City Thunder
3. San Antonio Spurs
2. Cleveland Cavaliers
1. Golden State Warriors


East Standings

1. Cleveland Cavaliers
2. Atlanta Hawks
3. Miami Heat
4. Chicago Bulls
5. Toronto Raptors
6. Boston Celtics
7. Milwaukee Bucks
8. Washington Wizards

9. Indiana Pacers
10. Detroit Pistons
11. Charlotte Hornets
12. Orlando Magic
13. New York Knicks
14. Brooklyn Nets
15. Philadelphia 76ers


West Standings

1. Golden State Warriors
2. San Antonio Spurs
3. Oklahoma City Thunder
4. Houston Rockets
5. Los Angeles Clippers
6. Memphis Grizzlies
7. New Orleans Pelicans
8. Utah Jazz

9. Sacramento Kings
10. Phoenix Suns
11. Dallas Mavericks
12. Minnesota Timberwolves
13. Denver Nuggets
14. Los Angeles Lakers
15. Portland Trail Blazers


Don't agree with Washington that low, but outside of a few others, that seem about right.

[Showtime2001]

Cavs have no excuses.

[ShawkFactory]

Cavs have no excuses.
So long as 2 of their 3 best players don't get hurt in the playoffs, I'll agree

[feyki]

East ranking is poor but West ranking clearly good.

[TrueBlue89]

No excuses for the Warriors. Frauds if they don't repeat.

[WayOfWade]

Kings out of the playoffs? Seems about right

[GIF REACTION]

The east has 9 of the top 17 teams. Stacked confirmed.

[AnaheimLakers24]

So long as 2 of their 3 best players don't get hurt in the playoffs, I'll agree
Nope. No excuses. Get over it

[JT123]

Cavs have no excuses.
What you talkin bout? Cavs are the only team that DOES have excuses. :biggums:
Their starting backcourt remains out indefinitely, and Bron and Love are no where close to 100%. The Cavs are literally the least healthy team in the NBA, and they still have a very weak bench. It's probably gonna be a chore just to make the ECF, but Lebron can do it. He's been overcoming the odds his whole career. :bowdown:

[T_L_P]

The east has 9 of the top 17 teams. Stacked confirmed.

The West has 4 of the top 5, 6 of the top 10.

Stacked confirmed.

---

Also, the Pistons will make the Playoffs.

[Shade8780]

Brooklyn at #29.

Give me that top 3 pick, boi :banana:

[DMAVS41]

The West has 4 of the top 5, 6 of the top 10.

Stacked confirmed.

---

Also, the Pistons will make the Playoffs.

The West has 6 of the top 7 teams to be more accurate. Anyone claiming that the two conferences are equal going into the season (things can change of course) is a liar or an idiot...simple as that.

The disparity of conferences for over 15 years now has been distinct.

[FreezingTsmoove]

Brooklyns making the playoffs, Heat are not

Pacers are making the playoffs, Celtics are not

[Bay Area Baller]

Brooklyns making the playoffs, Heat are not

Pacers are making the playoffs, Celtics are not

Dats some bold perdictions, would you like sum coffee to add to your boldness, mine Orlando makes playoffs, Raptors out first round.

:biggums:

[WayOfWade]

Brooklyns making the playoffs, Heat are not

Pacers are making the playoffs, Celtics are not
Wow, I had to take a double take when I first saw this; both the Brooklyn and Miami predictions are bold. The Pacers/Celtics I can see happening though

[Magic 32]

Lebron can do it. He's been overcoming the odds his whole career. :bowdown:

True.

Nobody would belive that he could find a way to lose 4 out of 6 NBA finals.

[bigkingsfan]

Kings out of the playoffs? Seems about right
One spot away, we're coming for you.

[sd3035]

6 of the top 7 in the west, no surprise there

Cavs have no excuses to make the finals. 2/7 looms

[FKAri]

True.

Nobody would belive that he could find a way to lose 4 out of 6 NBA finals.

5 finals in a row. Not even baldie could do that. GOAT

[Pushxx]

I don't agree with everything of course, but it's funny to read how mad people get at Marc Stein's predictions.

It's called a prediction for a reason lol. There's no formula to it...let people predict what they want.

[Lebron23]

I hope we are healthy in the 2016 NBA Playoffs. Last season was so disappointing once Irving, and Love went down with an injury.

[R.I.P.]

Western Conference has an added bonus for top record. You get a first round bye according to Bill Simmons, who thinks Portland, Dallas, Utah, Denver, Minnesota, Sacramento, Phoenix and Lakers miss the play-offs. :applause:

[KNOW1EDGE]

I don't think the Blazers are going to be dead last in the West but I don't mind if they are because I want dat #1 pick

[bluechox2]

The east has 9 of the top 17 teams. Stacked confirmed.
*10

[Gileraracer]

Cavs without excuses (again) in the weak East.

[blablabla]

I doubt that the Blazers will be the worst team in the west. They have an all star PG a couple of very solid roleplayers and some serious size DL. Also a lot of depth so they can go small or big and create some serious match up problems and they can score in a variety of ways, if lillard stays healthy i see them as the 9th or 10th seed in the west.

[All Net]

Think Blazers will do better than people think.

[kwajo]

Think Blazers will do better than people think.
It's in their best interest to be the worst in the West though, that is the only way they will be able to bounce back in their conference is to get a top pick to pair with DL.

[ralph_i_el]

How the **** can the Wizards be behind the Raptors....who they SWEPT in embarrassing fashion the last time they were on the court?

Stein in a bitch

Wiz should be ahead of Milwaukee, Miami, Toronto, and Boston. Probably the Bulls too.

There should be no drop off for the Wiz this year, only improvement (obviously baring major injuries). Wall has improved every season of his career, in noticeable and substantial ways. Beal (AGE 22) showed how aggressive he can be in last years playoffs, and he'll be excising some of those long-2's this year. Otto played FANTASTIC team ball in last years playoffs. He's got great defensive potential, he's a great team offensive player, and a surprisingly good rebounder. Gortat is probably on the best contract of any 5 in the league. He was a borderline all-star last season. He's a bit weaker than Tyson Chandler on D, but has more offensive spark. He had one of his best seasons last year, and he's only getting paid $11m.

[BlackWhiteGreen]

Brooklyns making the playoffs, Heat are not

Pacers are making the playoffs, Celtics are not

Smoking hot takes. I'd love to hear the rationale behind BKN being better than any of the playoff teams. They're a team of below-average role players plus an aging scorer and a fragile centre. I'm not even convinced they'll be better than Philly.