The Real NBA Power Rankings

LA Times ranked the Rockets #7th, ahead of the Lakers which is at 8th

Since you have to be a member to read it, I'm paste the ranks here,

No. Team (Rec.) Comment (last week)
1 SACRAMENTO (37-13) Bibby, one of the Kings' two point guards who could be All-Stars, averages 24 this month. (1)

2 INDIANA (39-14) ESPN magazine says Shaq may not even be best O'Neal (Feb. 16 issue, p. 6.) (2)

3 MINNESOTA (37-15) With their luck, Timberwolves will be seeded No. 2 and the Lakers will fall to seventh. (3)

4 SAN ANTONIO (35-18) Spurs still need firepower, but they're second half-of-season team, on a 5-0 roll. (4)

5 NEW JERSEY (31-20) Doogie Howser, er, Lawrence Frank 9-0 as actual New York rivalry looms. (8)

6 DALLAS (33-19) Nelson took Mavericks from bad to good, but that's not enough in West under Cuban.(7)

7 HOUSTON (30-22) Too bad the Rocket kids can't grow up as fast as Jeff Van Gundy's aging. (9)

8 LAKERS (31-19) Could Buss let Jackson go? Put it this way, he once signed Dennis Rodman. (6)

9 DETROIT (33-21) More back-and-forth between Brown and Billups as Pistons go 0-5 into break. (5)

10 MEMPHIS (30-22) West could be third (after Bass, Petrie) to be executive of year with two teams. (11)

11 DENVER (31-23) Who asked him? Anthony keeps insisting he won't be All-Star injury sub. (10)


--daoshi

 

WOW...LA Times ranked the Lakers lower than the Rockets?! Sweet....even though that means nothing (the rankings)...

Oh and by the way, that is the ESPN power rankings....not the nba.com power rankings.

 

Anyone else tired of the more aggressive crap? For a while now, Yao has been playing more aggressively, making stronger moves, hesitating less, and dunking more. None of these people are watching for improvement, they just keep spouting the same crap over and over again.

 

I think that the title was a response to the other thread titled "NBA Power Rankings" or something that turned out to be rankings done by some fans on Sac Queens message board.

 

The Rocks are moving up! We've moved ahead of the Fakers and Detroit. But those pesky Grizzlies are in front of us. (absurd!)

Here are the Power Rankings from NBA.com:


Includes games played through Feb. 16, 2004
The NBA.com Power Rankings

Not much movement this week as the NBA All-Star events necessitated just one or two games on the schedule, but a three-team trade between New York, Milwaukee and Atlanta caused a minor stir while all eyes were focused on Los Angeles.
High jump of the week: New Orleans (+3)
Free fall of the week: Detroit, New York, Portland, L.A. Clippers (-2)

TEAM (LAST WK) REC. BREAKDOWN
1 Sacramento (1)
37-13 Though the Kings went into the break with the NBA's top record, All-Star Weekend turned out to be rough, with Peja losing his shootout crown and Brad Miller spraining his foot.

2 San Antonio (2)
35-18 They haven't played in eight days, but Spurs have won four straight road games and look to keep the streak alive as they set off for three more, including a big one Sunday at Minnesota.

3 Indiana (3)
39-14 Ron Artest predicted a Fred Jones win in the dunk competition, and so it was, as the 6-2 guard unseated defending-champ Jason Richardson. Does Artest foresee a conference title?

4 Minnesota (4)
37-15 Bounced back from losses to Hawks and Grizz with two wins last week, but a tough stretch looms beginning on Thursday against Kings, Pistons and Spurs.

5 New Jersey (5)
31-20 "We hit the break right," understated Kenyon Martin in the midst of his first All-Star appearance. No kidding. Nets look to make it 11 in a row tomorrow versus Atlanta.

6 Dallas (6)
33-19 Entire team should be rested up now -- Dirk Nowitzki, the Mavs' one representative during All-Star festivities, played just 13 minutes and scored two points.

7 Memphis (7)
30-22 Victory over Clippers on Wednesday secured the Grizzlies' first-ever 30-win season -- with 30 games still to play. They've also broken team records for road and conference wins.

8 Houston (10)
30-22 The NBA's lone team with two All-Star starters put together nice little stretch before the break, winning four of five, including a 15-point dismantling of the Lakers.

9 L.A. Lakers (9)
31-19 Despite the unending drama in L.A., Shaq and Kobe played like old pals in the All-Star Game, combining for 44 points. Said the MVP, "Kobe was definitely looking for me today."

10 Detroit (8)
33-21 Formerly a mainstay in the top five, Pistons continue their slide after running their losing streak to five games -- and at New York tonight is a tough place to get back on track.

11 Denver (11)
31-23 Nuggets were everywhere at All-Star, including Voshon Lenard's upset of Peja in the shootout, and Melo teaming with LeBron to put on a memorable show in the rookie game.

12 Milwaukee (12)
27-24 Lost an all-offense matchup with the Kings last Tuesday, but what better team to face coming out of the break -- with a new lineup -- than Orlando? Bucks host the NBA's last-place team tonight.

13 New Orleans (16)
28-24 Jamaal Magloire may have silenced some of his doubters with a 19-point All-Star Game, and he'll help his cause if he can silence Jermaine O'Neal tonight at Indiana.

14 Utah (15)
26-27 Difficult stretch for the Jazz to close out February as they hit the road for six of seven -- and they'll need offense in better shape than 66-point performance against Wolves last week.

15 New York (13)
25-29 Overhaul continues in NYC as Zeke swapped Van Horn and Doleac for Tim Thomas and Nazr Mohammed, hoping for athleticism and rebounding. First look will be tonight vs. Detroit.

16 Portland (14)
24-27 Shareef didn't miss a beat in his first game as a Blazer, posting 20 points and 10 boards off the bench in loss to Nuggets. Too bad Randolph disappeared, shooting just 2-of-7.

17 Seattle (17)
25-27 Sonics are just 2-4 in February, but with a relatively light schedule to close out the month, should be able to climb back to the .500 mark.

18 Toronto (19)
22-27 After tonight's game against Chicago, it gets very difficult indeed for the Raptors, with Spurs, Kings and two games against the Nets through next Tuesday.

19 Golden State (20)
23-28 J-Rich has one more day to recover from his dunk loss, as the Warriors don't play the Lakers until tomorrow. Said the two-time champ, "I got three good years in and now I’m going to retire."

20 L.A. Clippers (18)
22-29 Losing both Corey Maggette (hip bruise) and Quentin Richardson (thigh bruise), Clips have lost four straight, though both players are expected back tomorrow vs. Portland.

21 Miami (21)
22-32 Heat halted their five-game losing streak with a 13-point win over Orlando, and if the got milk? Rookie Challenge was any indication, Dwyane Wade is completely back at full strength.

22 Cleveland (22)
20-33 Fell to the streaking Nets last week by 20 and now LeBron will have to unveil some more of that rookie game magic as the Cavaliers go back-to-back against Mavs and Spurs.

23 Boston (23)
23-31 Insult to injury? Celts have lost 12 of 15 heading into a four-game road trip against the Pacific Division, and Paul Pierce got little love in the All-Star Game, playing a team-low 18 minutes.

24 Philadelphia (25)
22-31 Blowout of Wizards sent Sixers into break on a positive note, but now they too embark on a trip out West, wrapping up Friday against the Lakers.

25 Atlanta (24)
18-35 Continued the dismantling of their lineup by sending Mohammed to New York and importing Michael Doleac and Joel Przybilla. Will building around Rasheed work this time?

26 Phoenix (26)
18-37 Amare Stoudemire dominated the rookies on Friday after two huge games for the Suns last week (56 total points), but Phoenix has lost five straight and continues to struggle.

27 Washington (27)
16-34 After Arenas put together two 20-plus-point games, he came out against Philly on Wednesday and shot 1-of-10 as the Wiz lost by 25. He'll go head-to-head with Steve Francis tonight.

28 Chicago (28)
15-38 Bulls' victory over Celtics on Thursday was the first time since Jan. 10 that they've won twice in four games. If they can beat Raptors tonight, it will be first back-to-back wins since Dec.
27.

29 Orlando (29)
13-41 League-worst seven-game losing streak is on the line tonight as T-Mac leads the Magic into Milwaukee to face Keith Van Horn and the new-look Bucks.

http://www.nba.com/features/rankings_index.html