{"id":9951,"date":"2009-04-02T14:55:38","date_gmt":"2009-04-02T19:55:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.capperspicks.com\/blog\/?p=9951"},"modified":"2009-04-02T14:57:39","modified_gmt":"2009-04-02T19:57:39","slug":"nba-power-rankings-20409","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/capperspicks.com\/blog\/cappers\/nba-power-rankings-20409\/","title":{"rendered":"April 2nd NBA Power Rankings"},"content":{"rendered":"

Lawrence’s Season Finale – NBA Power Rankings<\/h2>\n

Some playoff teams are still jockeying for position (a.k.a. how can we avoid the Cavaliers or Lakers in the first round?), but for the most part during the final week or so the members of the Association will partake in a macro version of garbagetime.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Baseball fans in Kansas City and Pittsburgh know what we’re talking about here.The only real decisions remaining for players on Lottery-bound teams are whether or not to increase their entourages for the summer and which of their children to visit first.\u00a0<\/p>\n

To the NBA power rankings<\/a>:\u00a0<\/h3>\n
    \n
  1. Cleveland<\/strong> Cavaliers<\/strong>. Here’s the conundrum for the city: If the Cavs win it all, LeBron can fly the coop in the summer of 2010, saying that he accomplished his goal. If they don’t, King James can leave anyway, saying his best chance to win a title is elsewhere. Damned in you do … Record:\u00a061-13<\/strong><\/li>\n

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  2. Los Angeles<\/strong> Lakers<\/strong>. Do you trust all those big white Europeans when the real bullets start flying come June? They hope to get Andrew Bynum back, but he was last seen partying at the Playboy Mansion. Good luck with that.\u00a0Record:\u00a059-16<\/strong><\/li>\n

    \u00a0<\/p>\n

  3. Boston<\/strong> Celtics<\/strong>. Tough call here. With Garnett at 90 percent they have a puncher’s chance at repeating, even if the other injured players – Leon Powe, Tony Allen – don’t return. Without Garnett drawing double-teams, Kendrick Perkins may be forced to shoot while being guarded. That’s not a pleasant thought.\u00a0Record:\u00a057-19<\/strong><\/li>\n

    \u00a0<\/p>\n

  4. Houston<\/strong> Rockets<\/strong>. Nice little end-of-the-season run gives Houston some momentum heading into the playoffs. The Rockets make it hard for opponents to get to triple figures, so they’re in every game.\u00a0Record:\u00a061-13<\/strong><\/li>\n

    \u00a0<\/p>\n

  5. Orlando<\/strong> Magic<\/strong>. Ok, beating Miami was nice, and they’ve put the wood to just about everyone as they try to grab home court from the Celtics if they meet in the Eastern semis. Just can’t see these guys beating Boston, Cleveland and the Lakers in consecutive 7-game series. And what’s up with losing at home to Toronto?\u00a0Record:\u00a055-19<\/strong><\/li>\n

    \u00a0<\/p>\n

  6. San Antonio<\/strong> Spurs. <\/strong>No one in the league has been better at transition defense over the last few years, but lately the Atlantas and Oklahoma Citys of the world are getting fast-break opportunities. After 82 regular season games, can Duncan, Ginobili and Parker suck it up for 25 or so more in the playoffs?\u00a0Record:\u00a048-26<\/strong><\/li>\n

    \u00a0<\/p>\n

  7. Portland Trail Blazers. <\/strong>The Blazers are <\/strong>winning, and more importantly, covering down the stretch. Oden and Aldridge are figuring things out, and Brandon Roy will be an All-Star for 10 years if he stays healthy. Next season they will cause major headaches in the West.\u00a0Record:\u00a047-27<\/strong><\/li>\n

    \u00a0<\/p>\n

  8. Utah<\/strong> Jazz<\/strong>. Carlos Boozer’s return has taken some life out of hard-working Paul Millsap. These guys will max out in the conference semis every year until they jettison Mehmet Okur and get a quality center.\u00a0Record:\u00a046-28<\/strong><\/li>\n

    \u00a0<\/p>\n

  9. New Orleans<\/strong> Hornets<\/strong>. Name their starters. Give up? Me too. David West is better than most realize and Chris Paul is the real deal. They seem to beat bad teams and lose to good ones.\u00a0Record:\u00a047-27<\/strong><\/li>\n

    \u00a0<\/p>\n

  10. Denver<\/strong> Nuggets<\/strong>. The Nuggets are good candidates for first-round flameout. BTW, that Renaldo Balkman at the end of the Denver bench is not a dyslexic clone of former Maverick Rolando Blackman.\u00a0Record: 49-26<\/strong><\/li>\n

    \u00a0<\/p>\n

  11. Miami<\/strong> Heat<\/strong>. They thought back-to-back wins over Boston and Utah in mid-March would propel them to a 4 seed in the East. They thought wrong. Dwyane Wade will draw tremendous defensive pressure in the playoffs. These guys are two big men short of being real good.\u00a0Record:\u00a039-36<\/strong><\/li>\n

    \u00a0<\/p>\n

  12. Atlanta<\/strong> Hawks<\/strong>. The sons of Dominique Wilkins seem content to be SportsCenter<\/em> Top 10 regulars. Joe Johnson made a name for himself last year against the Celtics, but has been inconsistent this season.\u00a0Record:\u00a043-32<\/strong><\/li>\n

    \u00a0<\/p>\n

  13. Dallas<\/strong> Mavericks<\/strong>. Battle fatigue is setting in in Big D. They have 8 seed written all over them, and will probably draw lots to see who tries to guard Kobe in the first round.\u00a0Record:\u00a045-30<\/strong><\/li>\n

    \u00a0<\/p>\n

  14. Philadelphia<\/strong> 76ers<\/strong>. The Sixers were having a tough time figuring out how to integrate Elton Brand’s power game early on, then improved when Brand went down. Go figure. Thaddeus Young has a nice future in the league but is likely done for the year with a sprained ankle.\u00a0Record:\u00a038-35<\/strong><\/li>\n

    \u00a0<\/p>\n

  15. Charlotte<\/strong> Bobcats<\/strong>. I know, I know. They probably won’t make the playoffs. But they’re better than the Bulls and Pistons, who will. They shot better than 51 percent in beating the Lakers, then the next night took the Celtics to double-OT, in Boston no less.\u00a0Record:\u00a034-41<\/strong><\/li>\n

    \u00a0<\/p>\n

  16. Chicago<\/strong> Bulls<\/strong>. Just when you think they’re coming together, things fall apart in back-to-back head-scratching losses to Indiana and Toronto. Will someone explain why Joakim Noah starts ahead of Brad Miller?\u00a0Record:\u00a036-40<\/strong><\/li>\n

    \u00a0<\/p>\n

  17. Detroit<\/strong> Pistons<\/strong>. Pity Joe Dumas. He knows the team needs a complete makeover, but if he dumps the vets and starts over, empty seats will start outnumbering the filled ones. Oh, and now Allen Iverson is acting up.\u00a0Record:\u00a036-39<\/strong><\/li>\n

    \u00a0<\/p>\n

  18. Phoenix<\/strong> Suns. <\/strong>Shaquille O’Neil may be turning into a rich man’s Darryl Dawkins, but who wouldn’t want to hang with him in Vegas for a night or two?\u00a0Record:\u00a041-34<\/strong><\/li>\n

    \u00a0<\/p>\n

  19. New York<\/strong> Knicks.<\/strong> Props to Mike D’Antoni, who appears to at least have this group headed in the right direction.\u00a0Record:\u00a029-46<\/strong><\/li>\n

    \u00a0<\/p>\n

  20. Indiana<\/strong> Pacers.<\/strong> It’ll be interesting to see what these guys can do if they’re all healthy. Either the players aren’t listening, or assistant coach\/defensive guru Dick Harter has lost his fastball. They can score tons but can’t stop anyone.\u00a0Record:\u00a032-43<\/strong><\/li>\n

    \u00a0<\/p>\n

  21. 21. Milwaukee<\/strong> Bucks<\/strong>. It was the Bucks’ misfortune to have the No. 1 overall pick in the gawd-awful 2005 NBA Draft.\"\"<\/a> Andrew Bogut has been a bust, setting back this team for years.\u00a0Record:\u00a032-44<\/strong><\/li>\n

    \u00a0<\/p>\n

  22. 22. Oklahoma City<\/strong> Thunder<\/strong>. A little prejudiced here. I’ve made a few bucks backing these guys. But there are a lot of teams who would trade any three players on their roster if OKC was offering Jeff Durant, Russell Westbrook and Jeff Green.\u00a0Record:\u00a021-53<\/strong><\/li>\n

    \u00a0<\/p>\n

  23. 23. Minnesota<\/strong> Timberwolves<\/strong>. The record for most games played in the regular season without appearing in a playoff game is 929, owned by Tom Van Arsdale. Al Jefferson figures to break that record in early December 2016.\u00a0Record:\u00a021-54<\/strong><\/li>\n

    \u00a0<\/p>\n

  24. Toronto<\/strong> Raptors<\/strong>. Just when you thought they had cashed in their chips, they go and win 5 in a row, including that head-scratcher at Orlando. There’s talent there, but the whole seems less than the sum of its parts.\u00a0Record:\u00a029-45<\/strong><\/li>\n

    \u00a0<\/p>\n

  25. New Jersey<\/strong> Nets<\/strong>. Seems like this franchise always has issues – ownership, Vince Carter trade talks, moving to Brooklyn. Yi Jianlian is starting to rack up DNP-CDs.\u00a0Record:\u00a031-44<\/li>\n

    \u00a0<\/p>\n

  26. Golden<\/strong> State<\/strong> Warriors<\/strong>. Nothing turns around here until Don Nelson figures out a way to get these guys to compete on the road.\u00a0Record: 26-49<\/strong><\/li>\n

    \u00a0<\/p>\n

  27. Memphis<\/strong> Grizzlies<\/strong>. Decent talent. You have to wonder what the upside would be if they hadn’t given away Pau Gasol last season.\u00a0Record:\u00a020-54<\/strong><\/li>\n

    \u00a0<\/p>\n

  28. Los Angeles<\/strong> Clippers<\/strong>. If ever a player and team were a perfect match, it’s Zach Randolph and the Clippers.\u00a0Record:\u00a018-57<\/strong><\/li>\n

    \u00a0<\/p>\n

  29. Washington<\/strong> Wizards<\/strong>. Plan A was to build around Gilbert Arenas, Antawn Jamison and Caron Butler. After Butler and Arenas went down early, it was quite evident that there was no Plan B.\u00a0Record:\u00a017-59 <\/strong><\/li>\n

    \u00a0<\/p>\n

  30. Sacramento<\/strong> Kings<\/strong>. If you know the last NBA team to score 141 points in a game and lose, email me at newenglandhoops@comcast.net<\/a>.\u00a0Record:\u00a016-58<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Think You Know Who Is Going To Win The 2009 NBA Championship? Bet On It @ JustBet.com Online Sportsbook Today!!!<\/a><\/h3>\n

    \u00a0<\/p>\n

    Lawrence Paul is a regular contributor to the Cappers Picks Blog, and is a free-lance gambling and travel writer from Massachusetts. He is personally responsible for the election of Barack Obama and has also taught himself how to juggle? \u00a0He can be reached at newenglandhoops.net.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    For the most part during the final week or so the members of the Association will partake in a macro version of garbagetime, onto this week’s version of our NBA Power Rankings…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":80,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[258],"tags":[41,12562,66499,742,1976,4046,1015,1060],"class_list":["post-9951","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-cappers","tag-41","tag-2009-playoffs","tag-nba","tag-nba-basketball","tag-nba-hoops","tag-nba-power-rankings","tag-power-ratings","tag-rankings"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/capperspicks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9951","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/capperspicks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/capperspicks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/capperspicks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/80"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/capperspicks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9951"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/capperspicks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9951\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9954,"href":"https:\/\/capperspicks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9951\/revisions\/9954"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/capperspicks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9951"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/capperspicks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9951"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/capperspicks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9951"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}