Power rankings system devised and compiled weekly by Stemshul. “Expert” analysis by paradroid.
Better late than never, right? Right! Christmas interfered with our regular Friday rankings, but here is your (belated) weekly look at the NBA. Regular service will resume next Friday. The biggest riser this week are the Washington Wizards, up 8 spots, all the way to #10. It has been a very streaky year for the Wiz, who, after starting out 10-3, slowed down to 4-5 in their next 9 before dropping 7 of their next 8. Washington bounced back with two wins last week, against the #3 Jazz and the #22 Knicks. Can they compete for the playoffs this year? Right now they are safely ensconced in the play-in bracket. Somewhat ominously, the 6 teams below them all have better point differentials (the Wizards are at -2.9), so there may be a little correction coming. What I really wonder is whether they have a plan. They have exactly one great player right now in Bradley Beal. He’s 28, right in the middle of his prime. But the team built around him is really just a bunch of role players. Montrezl Harrell is great coming off the bench, and Spencer Dinwiddie has played well in the past ( particularly in 2019-20, when he averaged 20.8 PPG and 6.8 APG for the Nets), but hasn’t looked very sharp since coming back from his knee injury this year (12.8 PPG, 5.4 APG). Kyle Kuzma still hasn’t put it together, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope is a known (and limited) quantity (solid perimeter defender and streaky shooter), and while Daniel Gafford is having a nice, if rather unassuming year, there’s really not much help for Beal to be found on this team. Do they think competing for the play-in is good enough?
Because that’s where I see the ceiling for this team. Beal’s value is near its peak right now; you either need to take a big swing and get him another all-star type player (Ben Simmons? Jerami Grant?) or commit to a rebuild and try to get a couple of first round picks or young players with potential for him before the February 10 trade deadline. The Pistons did this stupid dance for years, trying to get to the playoffs but never being competitive once the got there. I’m glad they finally committed to a full rebuild. And guess what? Now they have a potential top ten player in Cade Cunningham. More on the Pistons in a minute. If management believes this group can challenge for home court in the first round, they’ve got two months to see if they’re right. If they’re not looking considerably better by early February, I think they really need to pull the ripcord on this thing. Let’s see what happens.
Let’s get back to the Pistons. With the deadline approaching, the question of whether to trade Jerami Grant is a tough one. He has been their best player for the last year plus and has proved that, given the opportunity, he can be a solid number one or number two option. His three year/$60 million deal, much ridiculed at the time, looks like a bargain now. With the rest of this year and the next still remaining on his contract, he has to look tempting to a contender looking for a wing/small-ball power forward to bolster both their scoring and defense. He can create his own shot and can be a stopper against the league’s top wing scorers, which will make him attractive come playoff time. A team like, say the Lakers (who are down Anthony Davis for the time being) could really use a player like Grant, and they’re not the only ones. How about the Nets? Denver could use another player to help out Nikola Jokic with Jamal Murray still out. Plenty of options, and I think (despite the fact that I really like Grant) the Pistons should see if they can get a pick or two/young prospect who fits better in the timeline of their young core (Stewart, Bey, Hayes, Cunningham, and Diallo are all under 24, while Grant will be 28 this March. Heck, see if anybody is looking for a stretch 5 who can be a playmaker (see Kelly Olynyk). Everybody likes those come playoff time. Let’s get some more young players, because they probably won’t all pan out. Pistons went 1-3 last week, by the way. Nothing to write home about, but the losing streak is over, at least. And they’re back in last, so everything makes sense again.
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