Post by bowtothebill23 on May 19, 2014 13:23:27 GMT -6
UPDATE #3
(so far---> Original, updates 1/2)
I'm off for the summer and have more free time so I'll see if I can keep up with this and update as often as possible. No numbers/formulas here. Straight subjective so you can be sure there is no bias . ENJOY!
RANK | TEAM | WRITEUP |
1 (+1) | Boston Celtics (40-8) | The Celtics have won 14 of their last 15 and are now tied for the best record in the league. Zo leagues the league in blocks, averaging 4.1 a game. |
2 (+7) | Dallas Mavericks (33-12) | The Mavs have won 17 of their last 20. Their 3 losses have been by a combined 6 points and 2 of the losses came vs the Celticsss and Warriors. They own the second largest point differential in the NBA. |
3 (+3) | New York Knicks (36-13) | The Knicks have won 15 of their last 18. Up until their road trip, they had won 11 in a row. David Robinson is the current frontrunner for MVP, averaging 30-10-3. |
4 (-3) | Golden State Warriors (39-7) | Up until this last sim, the Warriors had hit a road block. After being 28-2, they lost 5 of their next 8. Since then, they are on an 8 game win streak, but which Warriors team will show up for the rest of the season? |
5 (-2) | Detroit Pistons (30-14) | The Pistons were on fire until recently when they ran into a combination of a lot of road games and a murderous schedule. They're still the best team in the Central and a top 5 team in the league IMO. |
6 (+2) | Miami Heat (31-18) | The Heat are a model of inconsistency, having near undefeated sims one week, then going 2-5 the next. Right now, they are on the upswing, winning 9 of their last 11. |
7 (+4) | Indiana Pacers (29-18) | Ever since Dell Curry returned from injury, the Pacers have been arguably the best team in the NBA. They've won 11 of their last 13. The only blemish in recent memory was Augmon's performance vs the Pistons in the "best 3 in the East battle." |
9 (-2) | Charlotte Hornets (24-22) | The Hornets had an awful stretch when Tom Gugliotta was injured, but that was to be expected. Since his return, they've gotten back to their winning ways. Their 2 losses last sim came by a combined 5 points. |
10 (+2) | Toronto Raptors (27-17) | The Raptors are just trying to get healthy now. And even with their injuries, they've still been solid. They went 6-1 in their first sim without Barkley, but ran into a road stretch next time and got hit hard. |
11 (+2) | Los Angeles Lakers (23-21) | The Lakers managed to stay afloat without KJ and now have him back and are a force to be reckoned with. They beat the Clippers, Grizzlies, and Kings on the road and only losses came vs Rockets and Grizz. |
12 (-7) | Los Angeles Clippers (29-17) | The Clippers have been in a little bit of a freefall the past couple sims. They're 9-10 in their last 19, being inconsistent as ever. In that stretch, they've beaten the Rockets and Grizzlies, but lost to the Sonics, Magic, and 76ers. |
13 (-3) | VanMemphis Grizzlies (28-19) | The Grizzlies, like the Clippers, have been in a freefall as well. They're 9-13 in their last 22. They, like the Clippers, have too much talent to have to endure these stretches, and their issues has been that they've hit a bad road stretch. |
14 (+9) | Minnesota Timberwolves (22-22) | The Wolves are finally starting to get home games after the beginning of their schedule was almost all road. They're 9-2 in their last 11 and have taken advantage of their easy home schedule. |
15 (-1) | Washington Wizards (23-22) | Still looking average, the Wizards are right where they belong, in the middle of the pack. They have improved to a winning record, but they need to find some way to win on the road if they want to have any prayer of making noise in the playoffs. |
16 (+6) | Sacramento Kings (22-23) | In what will continue to be known as the work tanking ever, the Kings are almost .500 and have had a stetch of winning sims. They have production from everywhere and are 12-4 in their last 16. |
17 (-2) | Orlando Magic (22-24) | The Magic continue to be right with the Wizards, playing .500 ball. They had a tough past sim and still managed to do pretty well. They're highlight came in their home victory over the Heat. |
18 (-2) | Seattle Sonics (22-26) | The Sonics have also mellowed out to an approximately .500 team. They're highlight win came in a 2 point thriller victory over the Clippers. |
19 (+1) | Philadelphia 76ers (21-26) | The 6ers have been another team that's had a roller coaster ride for a season. They've had home and away stretches and have ridden them out. Their highlight victory of late was a road win over the Wizards. |
20 (-3) | New Jersey Nets (20-25) | The Nets have been almost identical to the 6ers as of late. They've had a string of 3 game winning streaks followed by losing streaks. The inconsistency may be attributed to their road trip, but they are below the 6ers because of the 6ers' victory over the Nets. |
21 (-3) | Atlanta Hawks (20-28) | The league keeps waiting for the Hawks to make a run, but the Hawks keep stumbling. They were dangerously close to a 6-1 sim, but 2 close losses kept them at 4-3. |
22 (-4) | San Antonio Spurs (20-27) | The Spurs have been awful as of late, partly due to their road trip. But losses to the Suns and Nuggets can't happen, on the home or on the road. |
23 (-2) | Portland Blazers (18-28) | The Blazers are also on a bad skid, losing 7 of their last 8. Granted, it was a tough stretch, but if they still want to make a playoff push, they need to put together some wins. They did get an impressive win over the Rockets though. |
24 (+1) | Utah Jazz (13-33) | The Jazz need to press the rebuild button. They'll be in the bottom 6 of the league this season most likely. They still get an impressive win every once in a while like their 1 point win over the Mavs. |
25 (0) | Denver Nuggets (13-31) | The Nuggets will likely be handing a top 6 pick over to the Lakers. They get a win every once in a while, but this team should be better than they are. |
26 (+1) | Chicago Bulls (11-35) | The Bulls are on a losing streak as of now, but they have a highlight win over the Raptors, which alone gets them above these last 3 teams. |
27 (+2) | Milwaukee Bucks (8-40) | The Bucks have lost 16 of their last 17, beating the Bulls to prevent a 17 game losing streak. Antonio Davis is now at the mercy of TC with his broken leg. |
28 (0) | Phoenix Suns (8-35) | The Suns are losing by 12 ppg, but at least they're not losing by 17. |
29 (-2) | Cleveland Cavs (7-38) | The Cavs are trying to break the record for biggest point differential in the negative margin, and they're doing a damn good job at it. |
8 (-4) | Houston Rockets | The Rockets had a very tough 6 game stretch, but that still doesn't excuse a 6 game losing streak. Whatever they did for a gameplan last sim, they need to not do it again. |
Biggest Riser: Minnesota Timberwolves (+9)
Biggest Faller: Los Angeles Clippers (-7)
NOTE: I FORGOT THE ROCKETS SO THEY ARE AT THE BOTTOM!
Thanks for reading. Feedback/comments are always appreciated.