NBA Power Rankings (11/16/09)

This week’s Power Rankings were compiled by Derek Boucher. Got a problem with his picks? Let us know in the comments section below.

The C’s and the Lakers experience minor skids, the Suns are hot, and the Hawks soar in this week’s edition of the Power Rankings.

1. Atlanta Hawks (9-2) – Winners of five straight with no players really overachieving. Hawks trying to make a case for themselves as a top team in the East.

2. Phoenix Suns (9-2) – Back to running the court means back to consistent wins for the Suns. Will it work in the playoffs? Probably not. There are few teams I’d rather watch than the Suns, however.

3. Boston Celtics (8-3) – Losers of two straight kept them from topping my list. Shouldn’t be long before they’re up to #1.

4. Denver Nuggets (7-3) – While many teams can be slotted at #4 based purely on records, no one has had to endure a schedule like the Nuggets have and no one has had such success with a hectic schedule.

5. Cleveland Cavaliers (7-3) – Awful start but really hot as of late. Should be right near the top with the Celtics in a few weeks. The Shaq experiment has turned out alright so far, and will only get better as they learn how to use him.

6. Los Angeles Lakers (7-3) – A rare losing streak by the Lakers. Gasol hasn’t played yet, and when he gets back, look out Western Conference. In other news, how good has Andrew Bynum been?

7. Portland Trailblazers (8-4) – Winners of six straight before their loss on the road to our #1 on the rankings. Getting Oden to stay in the game beyond the first eight minutes has been their biggest step forward.

8. Dallas Mavericks (9-3) – Mavericks overcame a near fourth quarter collapse to beat the then 5-2 Bucks on the road. They’ve been plagued with injuries early on and have still managed nine wins.

9. Orlando Magic (8-3) – They’ve weathered an early storm and get Rashard Lewis back shortly. Oh, and in case you forgot, they can still drain threes like no tomorrow. Their best basketball is ahead of them.

10. Miami Heat (7-2) – I really only have one thing I want to say here – Dwayne Wade’s dunk on Side Show Bob was ridicadunklicious. Just added that word into the Firefox spell check dictionary because I’m sure it won’t be the last time I use it.

11. Houston Rockets (6-4) - This is really where the second-tier teams start. Rockets lead the pack here though after defeating the Lakers. Where you at, Tracy?

12. Oklahoma City Thunder (5-5) – A truly inconsistent team this season. Beat the Magic and Spurs, lose to the Kings and Clippers. Good to see Durant hasn’t missed a step since last season.

13. San Antonio Spurs (4-4) – They’ve played without their best players for a few games and didn’t really lose a step. It’ll be intriguing to see how their depth equates to wins when they get healthy.

14. Milwaukee Bucks (5-3) – Brandon. Jennings.

15. Toronto Raptors (5-5) – They came close to beating the Suns for the first time in over ten games on Sunday. Still, this is a much deeper and more talented Toronto squad than last year.

16. Chicago Bulls (5-4) – Memo to Derrick Rose – for someone as quick as you, you sure as hell suck on the defensive end.

17. Indiana Pacers (4-3) – Not sure what to think about the Pacers, even with their dismantling of the Celtics.

18. Detroit Pistons (5-5) – The glory days of the Pistons are well behind them but at least the team won’t sink to the bottom yet. Wallace has looked good on D, and Bynum has been a spark off the bench.

19. Utah Jazz (4-6) – Kirilenko has looked a lot better this season. The Jazz should shoot up these rankings in the near future, but I don’t see them being a contender this year.

20. Sacramento Kings (5-4) – How often does a team lose a guy with 30+ PPG to injury and play better?

21. Philadelphia 76ers (4-6) – Philly finally has a three-point shooter (Kapono) and Lou Williams has been awesome. Now if they can only get Brand going.

22. Los Angeles Clippers (4-7) – The comeback of Chris Kaman has been one of the few bright spots for the Clippers this season. That, of course, is until we get to see Blake Griffin.

23. Charlotte Bobcats (3-7) – Jackson and Law are the newest Bobcats. I don’t see Jackson making a huge difference, although the added offense could mean a few more wins.

24. Memphis Grizzlies (3-8) – There’s actually quite a lot of talent on the floor for the Grizzlies night in and night out but unfortunately there’s only one basketball for them to shoot.

25. Golden State Warriors (3-6) – They finally have a defensive stopper in Raja Bell and they got rid of Jackson in the process. Good trade for the Warriors, but probably not enough to improve more than a few wins.

26. New Orleans Hornets (3-8) – Really disappointing start for the Hornets and Chris Paul is out to boot.

27. Washington Wizards (2-7) – Gilbert Arenas really, really shouldn’t be your primary ball handler if you want to win.

28. New York Knicks (1-9) – I tried really hard, but I can’t find anything positive to say. Chris Duhon – you suck.

29. Minnesota Timberwolves (1-10) – Missing Big Al early on. The 1-10 still surprises me, even for the Timberwolves.

30. New Jersey Nets (0-10) – Hey, at least you have Brook Lopez.

Agree or disagree? Let us know in the comments.

Derek can be reached at derek@peteprose.com