NBA Power Rankings: LA Lakers fall, Chicago Bulls reach top-10
NBA Power Rankings Tier 1: The Contenders
1. Milwaukee Bucks
The reigning champions are still the first overall team in these power rankings. You can’t put anyone else here yet. YET. Giannis Antetokounmpo is an amazing player, and the supporting cast has not gotten any worse since last year. There’s a chance the Bucks repeat, and I think the odds of it happening are a bit underrated.
2. Golden State Warriors
Steph Curry is going to Steph Curry. The Golden State Warriors are going to rely on him heavily – but Klay Thompson should start practicing next month. If he comes back and is even close to the level of player he was before – the Warriors will look like a top-3 seed in the Western Conference – a threat that shouldn’t be ignored.
3. Utah Jazz
The Utah Jazz are really good, but I will say that they have not beaten the best competition so far this season, having wins over the Thunder and Kings. Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert is good, and the shooting should at least be similar to what it was last year.
4. Los Angeles Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers need shooting. They need so much shooting. Having your three major players being Russell Westbrook, LeBron James, and Anthony Davis simply is not advantageous to the overall shooting. With that said, Malik Monk has been good for this squad, as has Carmelo Anthony. Depth is a real concern in LA, though – and it’s not going to be good if one of their two major stars goes down.
5. Brooklyn Nets
The Brooklyn Nets still have Kevin Durant and James Harden at the end of the day. Still, they’ve been disappointing to open the year. They’ve lost to the Bucks and Hornets, while besting the 76ers. Their depth is much improved since last season, but I’d be lying if I said they didn’t miss their All-Star caliber point guard so far this season.
6. Denver Nuggets
Nikola Jokic is an incredible basketball player for this Denver Nuggets team, but Michael Porter Jr. is only averaging 11 points per game (through two games) so far. It’s not concerning, but it is something to watch.
7. Phoenix Suns
The DeAndre Ayton contract situation is truly baffling, but the Suns should still be a top-5 seed in the Western Conference this season so long as Chris Paul doesn’t fall off of a cliff. There is way too much talent and depth in Phoenix for them to be any lower on this list.
That’s it for this week’s power rankings. I’m sure you agree with everything 🙂