Entering the season, the two teams that were unequivocally expected to be fighting for the title of “worst team in the NBA” were the 76ers and Suns.
So, of course, those two teams are a combined 10-7 through the first two weeks of the season and currently reside in playoff position in their respective conferences. Oh, and the Celtics, who were expected to be possible contenders for that honor? They won four games in a row, including defeating the two-time defending champion Heat in Miami thanks to a miraculous turn of events in the game’s final moments before losing Wednesday night. Meanwhile, expected contenders, such as the Bulls, Nets, Knicks and Grizzlies, are off to rough starts.
Welcome to the Bizarro NBA, where what’s down is up and what’s up is down.
Both the Sixers and Suns have a couple of things in common besides where they were projected to finish. They have young players who undoubtedly felt slighted by the low expectations. They have first-time coaches – Brett Brown in Philadelphia and Jeff Hornacek in Phoenix – who are running high-tempo systems. They have young point guards – rookie Michael Carter-Williams for the Sixers, newly acquired Eric Bledsoe for the Suns – playing extremely well.
And, most importantly, they have caught teams by surprise.
This, more than anything, is why the NBA season is structured the way it is. Like in baseball, there is no such thing as a fluke playoff team after 82 games across six months. It seems extremely unlikely the 76ers or Suns are going to remain in the playoff chase over the course of the season, or that the Knicks and Nets will remain on the outside looking in.
But that’s what has made the opening two weeks of the season so interesting and fun. Enjoy it while it lasts, and before reality sets in.
(Last week’s rankings in parentheses)
1. Pacers (1): Brooklyn native Lance Stephenson recorded his first career triple-double in Monday’s win over the Grizzlies, pushing Indiana to 8-0 and leaving the Pacers as the league’s lone undefeated team. After a home game against Milwaukee on Friday, a major test comes Saturday in Chicago.
2. Spurs (2): People make the mistake of sleeping on the Spurs every single year, and every single year they make the doubters regret it. Knicks fans got to see that for themselves Sunday, when San Antonio came to MSG and put on a basketball clinic.
3. Clippers (7): Doc Rivers still doesn’t have this team playing the kind of defense it needs to be a title contender, but the Clippers have recovered from their early wobble and picked up a big win Wednesday over the Thunder in Los Angeles.
4. Thunder (5): With Russell Westbrook back healthy and as good as ever, the Thunder have gotten off to exactly the kind of hot start everyone would have expected. Wednesday’s loss to the Clippers aside — which included Serge Ibaka being ejected after an altercation in the second quarter – OKC is rolling.
5. Heat (6): After starting 1-2, the Heat have since won four of five, with their only loss coming in bizarre late-game circumstances at home against the Celtics. Given the early struggles of the Bulls, Knicks and Nets, they could grab a big lead on the Eastern Conferences’ No. 2 spot.
6. Timberwolves (10): It’s good to have Kevin Love back. Does anything else need to be said? The grouping of Love, Ricky Rubio, Kevin Martin and Nikola Pekovic – combined with Rick Adelman coaching – has made this one of the most enjoyable teams to watch in the league.
7. Trail Blazers (15): If Portland wanted to make an impression on star power forward LaMarcus Aldridge, this was the way to do it — by getting off to a quick 6-2 start and showing the small moves Neil Olshey made this summer to improve the Blazers’ bench were wise ones.
8. Bulls (11): After a slow start, the Bulls are beginning to right themselves. Now it’s just a matter of time before Derrick Rose completely shakes the rust off, and then it won’t be very surprising to see this team go on a big run and give the Pacers a run for the Central Division title.
9. Warriors (4): Golden State recovered from back-to-back losses to San Antonio and Memphis with a blowout win at home over the Pistons. Thursday night means one of the best matchups in the league is on tap: Warriors at Thunder. I’ll be in front of a TV for that one, for sure.
10. Mavericks (9): With Dirk Nowitzki looking like his old self and Monta Ellis playing much more efficiently, the Mavericks have an offense that can give any team fits. In another fun matchup, Dallas heads to South Beach on Friday night to take on the two-time defending champion Heat.
11. Rockets (3): It’s been a rough week for the Rockets, with losses in three of their last four, including Wednesday’s overtime loss to the 76ers in Philadelphia. But that fades into the background once again when Jeremy Lin makes his latest return to Madison Square Garden on Thursday night.
12. 76ers (18): Philadelphia was expected by many, this ranker included, to compete for the worst record of all time. Instead, with wins over the Heat, Bulls and Rockets in their pockets, the Sixers might avoid that distinction by getting to 10 wins in the first month of the season.
13. Suns (19): Even more surprising than Phoenix getting off to a 5-3 start? The three losses – to the top three teams in the Western Conference, the Spurs, Thunder and Trail Blazers – were by a combined 11 points.
14. Knicks (25): Despite their dreadful performance against the Spurs, the Knicks get credit for going 2-1 in their first three games since losing Tyson Chandler, including wins on the road in Charlotte and Atlanta. Things will only get tougher from here, though, beginning with Houston at MSG on Thursday night.
15. Hawks (13): Hawks swingman Kyle Korver has one of the more remarkable streaks in the NBA, having knocked down at least one 3-pointer in 81 consecutive games. Whenever he gets open for a shot, it’s shocking when it doesn’t fall.
16. Magic (12): The Magic are going to have their growing pains, without question. But all of the young players they have – from Victor Oladipo to Nikola Vucevic to Maurice Harkless to Andrew Nicholson to Tobias Harris – give them a terrific foundation to build upon.
17. Bobcats (17): The best news about the Bobcats this week was coach Steve Clifford, who missed Friday’s game in Charlotte against the Knicks after being hospitalized, is feeling better and is back on the sidelines.
18. Raptors (23): Rudy Gay has never seen a shot he doesn’t like, and the Raptors have had a couple games end quite strangely, but they also have gotten off to a decent start. The question hanging over this team now: What does new general manager Masai Ujiri want to do with this roster?
19. Lakers (24): With Kobe Bryant and Steve Nash out and Pau Gasol hobbled, the Lakers have managed to get off to a decent start. Can they can keep it up for long enough to be in the race whenever Bryant, in particular, returns?
20. Celtics (29): After losing their first four games, the Celtics bounced back with four straight wins before losing Wednesday night to Charlotte.
21. Grizzlies (20): Memphis still looks like a mess, with the latest loss coming at the hands of the Raptors – and former Grizzly Rudy Gay – at home Wednesday night. In the ultra-competitive West, Memphis doesn’t have a lot of time to get its act together before losing significant ground in the playoff race.
22. Nuggets (28): The Nuggets have begun to right the ship after a rough start, and we’ll see if the loss of JaVale McGee winds up being a net positive. This week, though, will prove just where the Nuggets stand, with games against the Timberwolves, Rockets and Thunder.
23. Kings (27): Sacramento snapped a five-game losing streak by blowing out the Nets at home Wednesday night after inserting rookie Ben McLemore into the starting lineup for the first time. It will be a long year for the Kings, but McLemore and DeMarcus Cousins are a pair of nice building blocks.
24. Nets (8): It feels like a lifetime ago when the Nets beat the Heat in Brooklyn. Since then, the Nets have been blown out by the Magic and Kings and blew a double-digit fourth quarter lead against the Wizards. Impossible to call this anything but a disappointing start to their season.
25. Bucks (22): Milwaukee looked like it made a great investment in its future by committing a four-year $44 million extension to center Larry Sanders. Sanders is undoubtedly a great talent, but his off-court issues in recent weeks have made that move look less appealing.
26. Wizards (26): It’s been a rough start for the Wizards, but it’s also been a very rough opening schedule. Pushing the Thunder to the brink Sunday in Oklahoma City was something this team may not have done previously.
27. Pistons (14): The saving grace is they’ve gone through a pretty brutal West Coast trip over the last few games. It also doesn’t hurt that only three teams in the East are over .500, giving them plenty of time to recover.
28. Pelicans (16): If New Orleans is serious about making a playoff push, as it indicated with its moves this summer, losing in Phoenix, to the Kobe-less Lakers and in Utah can’t be acceptable. That said, Anthony Davis sure is fun to watch.
29. Cavaliers (21): The Cavaliers got blown off the court in Minneapolis on Wednesday night, losing by 29, and would have lost five straight if not for pulling out a double-overtime win over the Sixers on Saturday. With four winnable games on tap, we’ll see if Cleveland turn it back around.
30. Jazz (30): The Jazz mercifully got on the board Wednesday night in Salt Lake City when they took down the Pelicans, meaning there are no more winless NBA teams. Still, what Jazz fans have to look forward to now is getting Trey Burke healthy and watching Kansas, Kentucky and Duke play.