Off-Season Power Rankings Explanations Part 1
On The Bubble Teams
16. New Orleans Hornets
Having a healthy Chris Paul back in the lineup should be huge for the Hornets. And Marcus Thornton showed some real promise last season. Losing Darren Collison will hurt and I am not convinced that Trevor Ariza is the solution for New Orleans. But if there is any guard in this league who can propel Ariza to a new level, it's Chris Paul.
17. Charlotte Bobcats
The addition of Tyrus Thomas and increased playing time to develop Gerald Henderson should keep Charlotte afloat next season. I'm going to bank on Shaun Livingston staying healthy for them to replace Raymond Felton. And the additions of Kwame Brown and Erik Dampier (should he stay with the team) should help man the middle for a team that desperately needs defense but should have enough scoring to stay afloat.
18. Sacramento Kings
A core of Tyreke Evans, DeMarcus Cousins, Carl Landry and Omri Casspi is going to be very difficult to beat in the coming years. Also, kudos to Sac-town for picking up Samuel Dalembert. This is a young team definitely headed in the right direction.
19. Memphis Grizzlies
The Rudy Gay max contract that was doled out this offseason is one of the worst contracts in the league. But it will take a year or two before the Grizzlies really start saying the effects of that mistake. For now, though, as long as the Grizzlies are able to finally sign Xavier Henry, this is another young team on the rise. They're still missing a capable point guard, though. And that will keep them from really moving up the ranks until they solve that problem.
20. LA Clippers
Vinny Del Negro will get a second chance to revitalize a franchise with a nice core of young talent and veterans. The jury is still out there on whether or not Blake Griffin can remain healthy. But if he does and lives up to his potential, a starting lineup of Baron Davis, Eric Gordon, Al Farouq-Aminu, Blake Griffin and Chris Kaman should rival most starting rotations in the league. That Aminu kid looks like he can possibly be something really special, too. So let's see where he goes from here.
Rebuilding Teams
21. New York Knicks
Raymond Felton over Chris Duhon? Yes, please. Amar'e Stoudemire over David Lee? Absolutely! And the addition of Anthony Randolph. Nice. But for all the offensive firepower added to the Knicks this off-season, their defense will most likely be atrocious. Still, I like what I'm seeing with that core of Felton, Chandler, Gallinari, Randolph and Stoudemire.
22. New Jersey Nets
Devin Harris, Anthony Morrow, Travis Outlaw, Troy Murphy and Brook Lopez. Add Derrick Favors to that equation along with Terrence Williams, Jordan Farmar, etc., and suddenly on paper the Nets don't look all too shabby. They could potentially be a darkhorse this season. but they still lack the star power to really propel themselves into the thick of things in the Eastern Conference. Let's see what Avery Johnson can do with these guys.
23. Washington Wizards
A three-guard rotation of John Wall, Gilbert Arenas and Kirk Hinrich is arguably the best three-guard rotation in the league. Add Al Thornton, Yi Jianlian, Andray Blatche, Josh Howard and JaVale McGee to that core and you're in pretty good hands. However, their frontcourt lacks the bangers to really do well in this league. So the jury is still out on how good the Wizards can be. But at the very least, they're headed in the right direction.
24. Philadelphia 76ers
Evan Turner paired with Andre Iguodala? That is possibly a recipe for disaster. Two ball-dominant guys demanding the ball to be effective is not a good thing. And their frontcourt is lacking in terms of fit. Elton Brand is still a talented player but he is not meant for an up-tempo game. But at least Jrue Holiday is looking like he may be a player in this league. We'll have to see how Turner and Iggy mesh before really judging how good Philly will be, but I have a feeling it will not turn out all that well.
25. Indiana Pacers
Darren Collison, Mike Dunleavy, Danny Granger, ? and Roy Hibbert. Collison was a very nice pickup, but their frontcourt has issues. Unless Hansbrough proves otherwise, the Pacers need to trade for a big man to stay afloat.
Teams in Trouble
26. Detroit Pistons
The pieces on this team's roster just don't fit together at all. Joe Dumars struggled all off-season to trade Rip Hamilton and Tayshaun Prince. Hopefully, they stay healthy this year. Because if they do, they could surprise a number of teams, but right now the team is a bit of a mess.
27. Golden State Warriors
David Lee is not going to solve Golden State's defensive woes and Monta Ellis is not a good fit with Stephen Curry. Losing Anthony Randolph and replacing him with an injured Udoh isn't going help either. Udoh does have potential, but his playing time should be very limited with his injury and playing backup to Lee. I'm not exactly sure what their gameplan is and I'm willing to bet that losing Corey Maggette is going to hurt them more than they realize.
28. Minnesota Timberwolves
A consolidation trade could really propel the Timberwolves with all of the small contracts they have on their roster. But picking up Michael Beasley while replacing Al Jefferson with pieces that may actually fit has Minny headed in the right direction. But they currently lack a scorer that will propel them over the edge. Beasley may turn out to be that guy, but the jury is still out on them for now.
29. Cleveland Cavaliers
They lost LeBron and their big offseason acquisitions may turn out to be Ramon Sessions and Samardo Samuels. This is a team that is going nowhere fast.
30. Toronto Raptors
With Bosh gone and Turkoglu still not meshing with Calderon, it's going to take major improvements from their young players in order to really do anything next year. Otherwise, they'll be right on their way to vying for that number one pick come next summer.
