End of week 1
[2] 1: San Antonio Spurs: - Convincing wins against two teams I consider pretty good. I haven't gotten a chance too watch enough of San Antonio as I want, but from what I've seen, they look pretty sharp. Tim Duncan has been playing well.
[1] 2: Minnesota Timberwolves - They lost to Denver in OT, but it was in Denver as well, and with Kenyon Martin as an addition to the Nuggets, they are a formiddable team for anyone. It's too early to really move them down, regardless of this loss. I'll be able to better judge by next week, but they had all the talent of next year, and you can't ask for anymore out of Kevin Garnett. 26.5 PPG and 17.5 RPG? I don't even know when the last time that happend. If this team's big 3 play well then they could go all the way.
[3] 3: Detroit Pistons - Albeit losing to Toronto, which seems like a much stronger team than I had originally predicted, I still believe this is the strongest team in the east, and if I had to bet my money now, this is the team I'd be with. Why? Well, even though they're ranked 3rd, San Antonio and Minnesota is almost a toss-up in the west. Detroit will get a run for it's money from Miami, Orlando, Indiana and perhaps Tornoto, but it's nowhere near as close as it is in the west.
[5] 4: Orlando Magic - STEVIE FRANCIS! 2-game winning shots at the Buzzer. One was against Milwaukee, which I consider a so-so team, but the other was against Charlotte . . . err - New Orleans. New Orleans has a pretty good team, and Baron Davis was
on last night. The Magic still won, and it was an away game. What's scary is, I don't believe that this team has gotten anywhere near its potential yet. Once that happens, even Detroit better watch out. The keys to success are keeping Hill healthy, getting Mobley and Hill involved in the offense, and developing Dwight Howard. To all of you non-believers in Grant Hill, you better watch out man. I have a feeling that this is his year. His unlucky streak of injuries has to end somewhere.
[7] 5: Dallas Mavericks - Looking
sharp! Stackhouse is actually not hurting the team.
[4] 6: Sacramento Kings - They've dropped two, but they've played great teams. Honestly, though, even when this team gets everything together, the west is still too strong.
[6] 7: Indiana Pacers - They've haven't played any great teams yet, but they've won both of their games. First game they won without Jermaine O'neal. It's hard to judge this team right now. I'll have a better guess for Indiana next week.
[9] 8: Miami Heat - Looking good, but no real formiddable opponents. Wait for Shaq to be 100%. Dwayne Wade has been playing really well.
[14] 9: Toronto Raptors - Vinsanity! Unbelievable. Beat Detroit and Houston. Defied many people's expectations by beating Detroit. Vince Carter wants a trade? Keep this team. They're looking
good now. Don't forget what Vince can do. It was only a few years ago that this team was playing in the Eastern-conference finals. I certainly underestimated them. Now lets see if they can keep this up.
[20] 10: Utah Jazz - Whipped the Lakers and Golden State, and this is all without Arroyo. Another one of those teams I might have underestimated.
[8] 11: Denver Nuggets - They got beat by the Lakers, but that Lakers team that played in the first game looked better than they did last year in the finals. Denver certainly redeemed itself by beating Minnesota.
[18] 12: Phoenix Suns - They've played well. Amare Stoudemire has stepped up, and it looks like Steve Nash might have been exactly what this team needed last year.
[12] 13: New York Knicks - I don't have much to judge this team by, byt they did look pretty good against the Timberwolves. More on The Knicks next week.
[11] 14: L.A. Lakers - Played the first game flawlessly. After just watching that game, I would've ranked them right up there with San Antonio and Minnesota. After that, they came down to earth. The last couple of games is what I've expected, although I didn't expect that they'd be manhandled by the Jazz. Now the loss against San Antonio probably couldn't have been prevented. That team is just too strong. The key to winning for the Lakers is Kobe. Everything needs to go through him, whether it be his own shots, or him setting up his team-mates. He can create.
[19] 15: Philladelphia 76ers - Playing allright. Better than I expected. AI has some redeeming to do, especialy after the debacle with the "Dream Team."
[10] 16: Houston Rockets - Ugly start, but at least they won yesterday. Against Detroit, only the Lord Almighty might have been able to save Houston, but they could've got a win in Toronto. Of course, Toronto might have The Lord Almighty on their side in the form of Vince Carter.
[15] 17: Boston Celtics - 0-2, but not playing bad.
[13] 18: New Orleans Hornets - Lost to Orlando and Dallas. I could've told you that before the game, though. Still, a valiant effort against Orlando.
[17] 19: Clevland Cavaliers - They've lost two, but again, against good teams. The team's not bad, and if they can stick together then they probably have a shot at the playoffs.
[21] 20 Portland Trailblazers - This team was a powerhouse a few years back, but unfortunately for them, they couldn't get the championship. They've been doing a little better than I expected, but I don't expect them to do any better than the first round, most probably not even that far.
[26] 21: Washington Wizards - Jamison has been doing great so far, but the team as a whole isn't looking too great. They have an outside shot at the playoffs, but that's it. They have won their first two, but the teams they've played aren't too great. Of course, if Washington remains at the top of the east a week from now, their ranking might drastically improve.
[16] 22: Memphis Grizzlies - They lost to Washington, which makes me thing maybe I had overestimated them. Quite honestly, I didn't think they were that great of a team to begin with, but they had done well last year. This is how I'd expect this team to do judging strictly by the players.
[24] 23: Milwaukee Bucks - Nothing to judge by except that loss against Orlando. Very close game, though.
[23] 24: Seattle Sonics - Streaky team? You bet. They got killed by one of the worst teams in the league, and then killed one of the worst teams in the league. You can't win on streakiness. You have to be good consistently.
[28] 25: L.A. Clippers - What can I say. They are 1-1, and they won their first game with some oomph. Little better than expected, but they should look to the lottery to save them.
[25] 26: Golden State Warriors
[30] 27: Charlotte Bobcats - Haven't had a chance to see them in action, yet.
[22] 28: Atlanta Hawks - They can only go up, unless there is something deeper than the darkest depths of hell.
[29] 29: New Jersey Nets - UGLY! UGLY! UGLY! UGLY! UGLY!
[27] 30: Chicago Bulls - Even uglier. Dennis Rodman might be able to help this team out.
Hybrid Mode
