Posted by : Artur quarta-feira, 10 de abril de 2013

2012-13 Power Rankings: Week 23
RANKTEAM / RECORDTRENDINGCOMMENTS
1
Miami
60-16
--

Last Week: 1
The Heat are 16-1 on the road since an 11-11 start, getting handy late-season rest for their stars and happily watching New York and Indy strain to convince us they're worthy of Biggest Threat To Miami status while various West contenders are awash in injury misery. It's good to be a Heatle.
2
2
Last Week: 4
The Spurs and Nuggets are in injury hell. The Griz have their own health concerns with Marc Gasol playing hurt ... and the Clips are still trying to dig out of a plain old funk. So why isn't OKC giddy as nicely as things are lining up? Are they sufficiently clicking to capitalize on the chaos all around them?
3
New York
50-26
5
Last Week: 8
When we see this Melo, they look like those Knicks again, especially now that Tyson Chandler's back. Mike Woodson, meanwhile, sports a record of 68-32 in his first 100 games as Knicks coach. In that time, only San Antonio (80-23), Miami (75-26) and OKC (71-30) have better records.
4
Denver
53-24
1
Last Week: 3
Total bummer. I don't know how much damage this starless but ultra-deep team could really do in the playoffs, but I sure wanted to find out. Now? Can't fathom, even if they hang on to the No. 3 seed, how the Nuggets win even one series sans Danilo Gallinari ... and with Ty Lawson hobbling.
5
3
Last Week: 2
The Spurs are the last team that'll ever whine about luck after winning the lottery twice in the space of a decade and coming away with David Robinson and Tim Duncan. But they can't be feeling super blessed right now with Tony and Manu ailing after all of Pop's efforts to protect them and Timmy.
6
Memphis
52-25
--

Last Week: 6
Getting Marc Gasol to the playoffs in one piece is Priority No. 1 for the Griz. But getting back up to No. 3 in the West is a firm No. 2, which is why Sunday night's escape at Sacramento -- Memphis' seventh win this season when trailing in the last minute of regulation or OT -- could prove huge.
7
Indiana
48-29
2
Last Week: 5
Not unlike the Clippers, Indy might find it a little tough to celebrate its big weekend achievement. The Pacers backed into their first division title since 2003-04 after losing both ends of a back-to-back ... along with some of the precious momentum they built up on that huge trip out West.
8
1
Last Week: 7
You know the rules here: Any chance to mention the Buffalo Braves must be seized upon. So here goes: Sunday's deliciously damaging defeat of the Lakers gave the Clips their first season sweep of their mighty Staples Center co-tenants since Dr. Jack's Braves went 4-0 against 'em in '74-75.
9
Houston
43-34
--

Last Week: 9
Something tells me it's not what James Harden is rooting for, but how tasty/awkward would a Rockets/OKC series in the first round be? Entering Friday's trip to Portland, meanwhile, Houston was leading the league with 72 percent of its minutes logged to that point by players under 25.
10
Utah
41-37
4
Last Week: 14
According to numberFire.com's complex projections, Utah has a 57.6-percent shot of snagging the West's final playoff spot compared to the Lakers' 42.3 percent. No word from 'em yet, though, explaining how the Jazz mustered the sort of decisive D in Oakland we rarely ever seem from them.
11
Brooklyn
44-32
1
Last Week: 10
Is the fourth seed in the East, if you're the Nets, really where you want to be? Their reward is a likely first-round series with the Bulls, who'll surely make it a grind win or lose, followed by an unavoidable second-round date with Miami even if Brooklyn advances. No. 6 is truly more appealing.
12
1
Last Week: 11
Guest comment from Tim Kawakami of the San Jose Mercury News after the Dubs, on a 9-3 surge, abruptly lost at home Sunday night to a Utah team sporting an 11-27 road record: "The Warriors have had a strong regular season, but the playoffs just sorta started and they weren't ready."
13
Chicago
42-34
1
Last Week: 12
Leaning strongly toward proclaiming that halting Miami's 27-game win streak was Da Bulls' championship in 2012-13. Their road mojo is gone, presumably because someone else key besides D-Rose always seems to be sitting, so how can you pick this Chicago against Brooklyn or Indy in Round 1?
14
Boston
40-37
3
Last Week: 17
No matter how mortal Boston has looked lately, no matter how hot Melo is, I can't shake the suspicion that the Knicks secretly hold out hope that Kevin Garnett plays enough of the last five games for the Celts to finish sixth in the East. New York can't be wanting to see these guys in Round 1.
15
1
Last Week: 16
A week featuring wins over the Mavs and Griz, with Metta World Peace and Steve Nash missing, doesn't sound so bad. Except that Utahâ¬"s wholly unexpected win at Golden State means that the Lakers, folks, really will miss the playoffs unless they win two more games than the Jazz from here.
16
Dallas
38-39
1
Last Week: 15
You heard it here first: Dallas absolutely, positively beats Phoenix and finally gets the chance to hack away those nasty beards. The reality, though, is that even an 18-11 record since the Mavs made the Beard Oath public gives them a 0.7 percent shot at making the playoffs, according to numberFire.com.
17
Atlanta
42-36
4
Last Week: 13
Remember up higher where we mentioned Memphis' seven wins this season when trailing in the final minute of regulation or overtime? The Hawks have a handy seven as well, tying them with the Grizzlies and Portland for second place in that category behind Miami's league-leading 11.
18
--

Last Week: 18
John Wallâ¬"s resurgence? Bradley Bealâ¬"s injury? That big W over Indiana? All that Wiz news will have to be dissected another day when weâ¬"re still reveling in the weekend ceremony to honor Washingtonâ¬"s 1978 title team. From the very first Finals we remember being old enough to watch!
19
Milwaukee
37-39
--

Last Week: 19
In this 5-10 funk that has essentially locked Milwaukee into the No. 8 slot in the East, its only wins were recorded against bottom-feeding Orlando and Charlotte, slumping Toronto and Portland ... and those officially desperate Lakers. But it is Milwaukee's first playoff berth in three seasons.
20
1
Last Week: 21
Andre Iguodala, Thaddeus Young, Nikola Vucevic and Moe Harkless. That's the frontcourt foursome Philly could have had if it never did the Andrew Bynum deal. But you know what? Even knowing what we know now about Vooch's breakout season, I'd have still rolled the dice on Drew.
21
Minnesota
29-47
2
Last Week: 23
Big week. Wins over Boston and Milwaukee added up to their first winning streak since mid-December, followed by Rick Adelman becoming just the eighth coach of all time with 1,000 wins. I do wonder, though, whether that milestone makes it a touch easier for Adelman to step aside.
22
Portland
33-44
2
Last Week: 20
Blazermaniacs who loathe the committee (of one) will be pleased to hear that their team ruined our Sunday night. The fourth-quarter rally that merely put an almighty scare into Dallas also prevented Dallas' 10-day signee Josh Akognon out of Cal State Fullerton from making his NBA debut.
23
1
Last Week: 22
The Lakers might have one small reason to breathe easily: New Orleans had been winless on the road since a Feb. 11 win at Detroit before finally breaking through Sunday night at Phoenix. The Hornets thus won't be due when they go to Staples Center to see the Lakers on Tuesday night.
24
Toronto
29-48
1
Last Week: 25
Andrew Wiggins update: Weâ¬"re only a week-plus away from Wigginsâ¬" arrival in Portland for the Nike Hoop Summit. Raptors update: Thanks to the Clips finally getting to 50 wins for the first time, Toronto now holds the unwanted distinction of the league's longest wait at 18 seasons and counting.
25
Cleveland
24-52
1
Last Week: 26
The Cavs just won back-to-back games for the first time since the end of February ... but who in Cleveland will even notice after Kyrie Irving told local reporters that he prefers not to field questions about Byron Scott and whether he'd be disappointed if his only NBA coach to date is dismissed?
26
Detroit
26-52
2
Last Week: 28
Good to see Detroit win a home game after eight straight L's. Even better to see the Pistons finally find a way to beat Chicago after 18 L's in a row. Best of all: Poor Brandon Knight, either injured or slumping since DeAndre Jordan nearly beheaded him, had two 20-point games over the weekend.
27
3
Last Week: 24
How much comfort do the Kingsâ¬" famously loyal subjects take from the recent olive branch extended by an old enemy: Kobe Bryantâ¬"s proclamation that heâ¬"s expecting Sacramento to find a way to hang on to its NBA team? Only two games left at Sleep Train, sadly, if the prediction proves empty.
28
Phoenix
23-54
1
Last Week: 27
There's actually been a worse season in the desert ... but you have to rewind all the way to the 16-66 expansion team in 1968-69. So this group goes down as the second-worst in team history and, barring a 4-0 finish, can't even match the 27 wins Phoenix notched in 1999's 50-game season.
29
Charlotte
18-59
--

Last Week: 29
You know we've always loved flying through Charlotte airport because of the cream of crab soup at Phillips Seafood, but the committee (of one) was staggered by the dining options on our first trip to downtown Charlotte in forever over the weekend. If the Bobcats were just half as good ...
30
Orlando
19-59
--

Last Week: 30
The Magic are in the rankings basement for the fifth time in 23 weeks and might be stuck there with all four games left on the schedule against playoff teams. So I'm not sure I can co-sign the claim from Jacque Vaughn about Orlando "going in the right direction ... which is great to see."

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