NBA Power Rankings (#10–1) — 9/22/22
The best of the best!
10. Denver Nuggets
As long as the Denver Nuggets provide a healthy army for Nikola Jokic to lead, I don’t see the Serbian 2x MVP carrying as much weight as he did last season for the rest of his career. Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr.’s resurgences have been long-awaited, even with the latter’s horrendous start to his prior campaign. The fact that Jokic ranked 10th in usage percentage last season, in addition to the Nuggets’ underdog playoff appearance, is an indicator of their strength even with a depleted roster. The aforementioned returns, plus the offseason additions of Bruce Brown and DeAndre Jordan, should see the Denver squad return to regular season, and hopefully postseason, success.
9. Dallas Mavericks
JaVale McGee was one of the most efficient players coming off of the bench for the Phoenix Suns last season, but objectively does not have the motor to play 25+, or maybe even 20+, minutes per game throughout an 82-game season. Christian Wood provides a little more reliability in the frontcourt, but it is left to be seen whether he starts at the 4 or holds down the 5 off the bench. Luka Doncic could have his MVP-season this year, which is hopeful in itself, but the Mavericks’ lack of backcourt depth is what holds them back in being a serious championship contender.
8. Miami Heat
Heat fans went into this past offseason with the notion that their devious executive, Pat Riley, would pull off his signature grimey magic to acquire another superstar like Donovan Mitchell or Kevin Durant. Neither of these deals came to fruition, and not only this, but the Heat basically have an identical roster, except with the critical loss of small-ball aficionado, P.J. Tucker. Re-signing Victor Oladipo was smart business, but signing younger talent like Mo Bamba or Bol Bol would have been much more suitable for Bam Adebayo’s aspirations of playing the 4, rather than just re-signing Dewayne Dedmon. The Heat should see comparable regular season prosperity to the ‘21-’22 campaign, but it’s hard to see them going deep in the playoffs without an extra push.
7. Los Angeles Clippers
If not for the play-in structure, the Los Angeles Clippers would have clinched the 8th seed without Kawhi Leonard and with an injury-riddled Paul George. Both will hopefully be healthy going into next season, alongside the addition of a fallen star in John Wall. The Clippers have a fully occupied depth chart, aside from the center position, for which they don’t have any real size besides Ivica Zubac. Expect a lot of small-ball if no other signings are made.
6. Philadelphia 76ers
The Philadelphia 76ers swiped P.J. Tucker from the Heat, and added role-playing reinforcements with the acquisitions of De’Anthony Melton and Danuel House Jr. Philly also managed to capitalize on Montrezl Harrell’s offseason controversy by signing him to a cheap deal that provides excellent offensive interior support to Joel Embiid off the bench. Banking on a James Harden revitalization, the 76ers could pull it together this year.
5. Memphis Grizzlies
The Memphis Grizzlies shifted a few pieces around to secure Ja Morant and Tyus Jones for the future, but lost key contributors like Kyle Anderson and De’Anthony Melton as a result. The Grizzlies should prosper similarly to last year, but I still believe they lack some sort of veteran presence and leadership to hone the individual talents that comprise their roster. I could certainly be proven wrong though.
4. Phoenix Suns
The Phoenix Suns had the best record in the league last season by a considerable margin, but also had one of the most shocking collapses by an even more considerable margin. Phoenix fans won’t forget their 27-point loss in Game 6 of the semi-finals versus the Mavericks; as well as their 33-point loss that featured a 27-point first half from the Suns. For lack of better words, the Suns are running it back with a vengeance.
3. Boston Celtics
I originally had the Boston Celtics ranked first before their head coach, Ime Udoka, cheated on his wife. While this would normally be a personal concern that just serves as casual media gossip, its validity has been confirmed many times because of his mistress being an employee for the franchise. This violated the Celtics’ team code of conduct, effectively making a long-term suspension inevitable, with the possibility that Udoka resigns. This news follows his debut campaign as a head coach, where he led the Boston Celtics to their first NBA Finals appearance since 2010. To add insult to injury, Robert Williams III is undergoing knee surgery that will find him missing a portion of the early 2022–2023 NBA season. There is uncertainty of who will be Udoka’s successor, but the squad’s chemistry will definitely be shaken and uneasy, regardless of retaining the same talent that got them so close to ultimate glory last season.
2. Milwaukee Bucks
Khris Middleton’s postseason injury woes surely contributed to their defeat to the future Eastern Conference champions, Boston Celtics, but just like the Suns, the Milwaukee Bucks are reprising their championship conquest with a pretty identical roster to last year.
1. Golden State Warriors
It’s common courtesy to give the incumbent champions their props prior to the new season’s commencement, but the Golden State Warriors have proven that they deserve this acclaim as long as they retain their core. The emergence of Jordan Poole as a genuine threat to Klay Thompson’s role on the team should be a story to watch, but having a roster with too much skill is not the worst problem to have. Golden State’s depth has thinned out this offseason with the losses of Otto Porter Jr., Gary Payton Jr. and Andre Iguodala, but this could also have the positive effect of creating more opportunities for prospects like Jonathan Kuminga and Moses Moody. The Warriors will also finally see their former 2020-second-pick, James Wiseman, grace the court again, which should provide some needed support for Kevon Looney off the bench, with the hope that Wiseman develops into a solid starter at the very least. As long as they stay healthy, the Warriors will remain a threat for the forseeable future.
