Western Playoff Teams Power Rankings

[LakeShowMan]

So, now that we are on the eve of what will probably go down as the greatest Western Conference playoffs ever, I was curious as to opinions on who everyone thinks is the most playoff ready. Basically your own personal Western Conference Playoff Team Power Ranking.

My considerations for this, is basically who I think I has the best team right now to come out of the West, regardless of seeding. I think with the last seed still up for grabs (at least mathematically); we should include the top 9 teams.

Here are mine:

1. Lakers - The recent losses to non-playoff teams certainly had me a little nervous. As does the strong possibility that we will not see Andrew Bynum until next year. A lot of those concerns were abated for me from what I saw this weekend. If the Lakers can win on Tuesday, they will clinch home court throughout, which might just give them the advantage in amazingly competitive and deep Western Conference.

2. Suns - I really like how they have been playing as of late. I still wonder how they will be able to stop teams in the half court because of their deficiencies on pick and roll defense. However, Amare has been a beast, and Shaq was built for advantages in playoff basketball. His ability to clog up the lane, get teams in foul trouble, and open up the game for Amare will make them a tough out. I am extremely glad that it seems the Lakers will avoid them in round 1.

3. Hornets - Their inexperience at this level will hurt them, how much I don't know. Their recent swoon is not a good omen, but Chris Paul gives them a chance to beat anyone. Plus, over the last 3 months, they have been scary good at home. If they have home court in a series, they will be tough to beat.

4. Jazz - I was VERY close to putting the Jazz @ 3. However, I just can't get over how bad they have been on the road. Plus, as of right now, they will not have home court in a series unless there are upsets. On the positive side, they will win their home games, they play hard, and most importantly to me they have great PG play and a wonderful coach. They will be an extremely tough out.

5. Spurs - I know I am making a huge mistake putting them this low. Their experience is invaluable. They have a winning formula down with great post play, a tough PG to stay in front of, a great clutch scorer (Ginobli), one of the greatest coaches ever, and a wonderful defensive mentality. With all that said, I can't get over how seemingly uncompetitive they have been with upper echelon teams down the stretch. It seems like they are declining at a time when they are usually peaking. Their supporting cast that has been championship level for a long time all seem to be getting real old at once. Their 4th best player right now might be Ime Udoka, and that seems like it would be a little scary if I was a Spurs fan. Nothing would surprise me though with them. I can see them winning it all again and I could see them lose in the 1st round.

6. Dallas - As a Laker fan, they don't scare me at all. However that is just due to matchups. However, I can see them giving teams trouble, and I think Dirk is playing at a real high level. I don't know if they will make it out of the 1st, but they have shot depending on their matchup.

7. Houston - I know I am putting them far to low. If they would have beaten Denver, they would have had the inside track to the #1 seed. I just can't get over the fact that I don't see them as a threat. I am probably severely underrating them, but I don't think they have the makeup of a great playoff team. Alston is too streaky. Mutombo will have to be counted on way to much in an intense series. McGrady has not proven to me that he can win in the playoffs.

8. Nuggets - They still play no defense, but AI, Melo and Camby give them a fighters chance with anyone. With the right matchup, I could see them make noise. If the playoffs started today they would play the Lakers who matchup very well against them. I say they will be one and done.

9. Golden State - Very long shot at making it. I know they gave the Lakers fits a few weeks ago, but up until then the Lakers dominated them with our inside presence. However we didn't have Gasol in those games. I don't think they can beat a team in a 7 game series that has great post play (Lakers, Suns, Spurs). Even if they get in, I think they would be one and done as well.

So what's yours look like?

 

[elindholm]

That's about how I'd have them too. I might switch #2 and #3, but there's a big gap after #1 (unfortunately for most of us).

 

[Kody Rumin]

1. Los Angeles
2. New Orleans
3. Utah
4. Phoenix
5. San Antonio
6. Houston
7. Dallas
8. Denver
9. Golden State

 

[WuRaider]

That's about how I'd have them too. I might switch #2 and #3, but there's a big gap after #1 (unfortunately for most of us).

Bah! Big gap after the Lakers? I'm not a blind homer yelling "Lakers suck! Lick my balls!" but they aren't THAT good.

 

[Arizona's Finest]

That's about how I'd have them too. I might switch #2 and #3, but there's a big gap after #1 (unfortunately for most of us).

With Bynum I agree.

But I am not going to hand them the title because of a couple big wins this weekend. Especially when they had a couple of bad losses only a week earlier.

I would rather group teams into tiers

1st Tier:
LA
PHX
SA

2nd Tier:
NO
Utah
DAL

3rd Tier:
Hou
Den

 

[boisesuns]

It's hard to rank them becuase once the playoffs hit, everything changes.

The ability to play defense, hit big shots, and experience are some of the big factors I look at. Those are ranked out of 10, and with 30 total points

Based on that, here's my power rankings:
1. San Antonio (Defense 9, Experience 10, Clutch Play 7) 26
2. La Lakers (Defense 7.5, Experience 8, Clutch Play 9) 24.5
3.Phoenix (Defense 6, Experience 8, Clutch Play 9) 23
4.Houston (Defense 6, Experience 7, Clutch Play 8) 21
5.Utah(Defense 8, Experience 6, Clutch Play 7) 21
6.Dallas(Defense 6, Experience 7, Clutch Play 8) 21
7.New Orleans (Defense 7.5, Experience 6, Clutch Play 7) 20.5
8.Denver(Defense 6, Experience 7, Clutch Play 7) 20
9.Golden State (Defense 6, Experience 6, Clutch Play 7) 19


4-6 could go either way.

 

[Covert Rain]

It's hard to rank them becuase once the playoffs hit, everything changes.

The ability to play defense, hit big shots, and experience are some of the big factors I look at. Those are ranked out of 10, and with 30 total points

Based on that, here's my power rankings:
1. San Antonio (Defense 9, Experience 10, Clutch Play 7) 26
2. La Lakers (Defense 7.5, Experience 8, Clutch Play 9) 24.5
3.Phoenix (Defense 6, Experience 8, Clutch Play 9) 23
4.Houston (Defense 6, Experience 7, Clutch Play 8) 21
5.Utah(Defense 8, Experience 6, Clutch Play 7) 21
6.Dallas(Defense 6, Experience 7, Clutch Play 8) 21
7.New Orleans (Defense 7.5, Experience 6, Clutch Play 7) 20.5
8.Denver(Defense 6, Experience 7, Clutch Play 7) 20
9.Golden State (Defense 6, Experience 6, Clutch Play 7) 19


4-6 could go either way.

Why would the Lakers have an experience factor of 8 in your rankings? Based on what? Based on the last 2 first round exits? Based on the fact that their one big addition has never done anything in playoffs? There is no way they should have a higher experience factor then the Suns.

Actually, I would rather tier them as well. I would have:

1st Tier:
SA
PHX
LA

2nd Tier:
NO
Utah
DAL

3rd Tier:
Hou
Den or GS

 

[elindholm]

Bah! Big gap after the Lakers? I'm not a blind homer yelling "Lakers suck! Lick my balls!" but they aren't THAT good.

The differences between the Lakers and the Suns are

1. The Lakers don't cough up games that they're supposed to win nearly so often as the Suns do, and

2. They will usually benefit from an officiating edge.

That sets them apart from the field, in my opinion. I didn't say I'm happy about it.

 

[Covert Rain]

The differences between the Lakers and the Suns are

1. The Lakers don't cough up games that they're supposed to win nearly so often as the Suns do, and

2. They will usually benefit from an officiating edge.

That sets them apart from the field, in my opinion. I didn't say I'm happy about it.

Oh come on. The Lakers had several opportunities to wrap up the division and home court earlier and then they did and it went down to the wire. Also, this "officiating edge" has not helped them out in recent memory in the playoffs to win a title the last few years.

 

[jandaman]

How is Jazz a 2nd tier and the Suns a 1st tier...

or Hornets even.

Suns have not shown they are pass 2nd tier... plain and simple... too inconsistent...

 

[Cheesewater]

How is Jazz a 2nd tier...

17-23 on the road.

 

[nowagimp]

I am concerned for the suns as their outside shooting appears to be off at the wrong time. Raja Bell has not shot well since the ankle sprain, I suspect that he is not right. LB is a deer in the headlights, and Nash looks like he's not moving well(back?).

Since its all about matchups, I dont think a power ranking makes much sense as it assumes no matchup factor, but here are mine:


1) Lakers: they are playing well are very deep and have Kobe playing his smartest ball ever. The lakers can run or play in the half court and can be quite physical even without Bynum(he wont be there, they arent that stupid). The emergence of Farmar and Vujacic makes their bench the best of the west, even without bynum.

2) Jazz: I dont care about the road record, everything changes in the playoffs. The Jazz only real weakness is defense at the '2'. Unfortunately for them, they will probably run into that buzzsaw Kobe Bryant sooner or later.

3) Hornets: CP3 is the real deal, lightning in a bottle. This team is just not deep enough after the starters, though they can certainly beat the suns due to sheer speed at the 1,2 positions, and by the suns need to double off of Peja to contain those guys.

4) Suns: if the outside shooting materializes, they can be a real problem for anybody. If the absence of outside shooting is injury related(they'll never tell), things will just get worse as the playoffs proceed. Rajas shot mechanics look like he favors the leg, that is bad news for suns fans. Raja will have to be fully healed for the suns to have a shot at beating the lakers.

5) Mavs: I think some people are fooled by the mavs, dont be. Dirk seems healthy, but this grueling WC playoff will probably keep him from being fully healed.

6) spurs: as great as the big 3 are, the reinforcements are terrible. This team has the worst bench in the west(manu plays starter mins) and starts 2 players who basically dont score. Manu also has a groin pull that will probably not recover through the grueling west conference gauntlet. His mobility is key to his effectiveness as he creates easy shots for the stiffs. Pop is a great coach, but when does his bag of tricks run out for this undermanned, aging, injured champion.

7) Nuggets: a very talented group that suffers from consistency of defensive effort, and poor team play. The nuggest can beat a few teams in the west, but black hole offense has its limitations in the playoffs multi round format.

8) Rockets: Already played their best hoops and play almost as small as the warriors. The lack of post defense will be their undoing. Im thinking that TMAC goes out in the 1st round, again.

9) warriors: cant win in the playoffs consistently with 1's 2's and 3's. They dont even have a legit 4,5 on their team. No post offense cant win in the post season consistently.

 

[Covert Rain]

How is Jazz a 2nd tier...quote]

17-23 on the road.

My thoughts exactly. Besides it's not as if anybody ran away with the West. Would that also mean that most teams in the West have had bouts of inconsistency to be only 2 games or less in difference?

 

[LakeShowMan]

Why would the Lakers have an experience factor of 8 in your rankings? Based on what? Based on the last 2 first round exits? Based on the fact that their one big addition has never done anything in playoffs? There is no way they should have a higher experience factor then the Suns.

Actually, I would rather tier them as well. I would have:

1st Tier:
SA
PHX
LA

2nd Tier:
NO
Utah
DAL

3rd Tier:
Hou
Den or GS

Other than Shaq and Duncan, Kobe and Fisher may have the most playoff experience/success of any players in the NBA. I have to include Horry to, but he may not be available for this years post season. Plus, Phil Jackson's record speaks for itself. Coaching experience has to count for a lot, especially a coach with 9 NBA championships.

Not sure I agree with deciding it on the rankings above, but the Lakers have more players/coaches with championship experience than the Suns. Unless I am mistaken, the only guy on the Suns roster that has even played in the Finals is Shaq. Plus, both teams have heralded newcomers that have never won a playoff series (Hill/Gasol). The Suns have been through the wars the last few years, so that has to count for something, but I don't know if it is the slam dunk advantage you think it is.

 

[Covert Rain]

Other than Shaq and Duncan, Kobe and Fisher may have the most playoff experience/success of any players in the NBA. I have to include Horry to, but he may not be available for this years post season. Plus, Phil Jackson's record speaks for itself. Coaching experience has to count for a lot, especially a coach with 9 NBA championships.

Not sure I agree with deciding it on the rankings above, but the Lakers have more players/coaches with championship experience than the Suns. Unless I am mistaken, the only guy on the Suns roster that has even played in the Finals is Shaq. Plus, both teams have heralded newcomers that have never won a playoff series (Hill/Gasol). The Suns have been through the wars the last few years, so that has to count for something, but I don't know if it is the slam dunk advantage you think it is.

Phil Jackson is not on the court and his coaching did nothing the past 2 seasons. I am a believer that when a coach loses he gets to much of the blame and win he wins too much of the credit. A coach can make a difference if your team is close. The Lakers that last few years have proven anything but and have not done anything "YET" this year.

I should have clarified my statement but I was really talking about the experience of the core and what they have done that past few seasons.

 

[TheHopToad]

Unless I am mistaken, the only guy on the Suns roster that has even played in the Finals is Shaq.

I believe Raja Bell has played in the Finals in Philadelphia.

 

[Cheesewater]

I believe Raja Bell has played in the Finals in Philadelphia.

Doesn't Sean Marks have a ring with San Antonio? (chuckle)

 

[LakeShowMan]

Phil Jackson is not on the court and his coaching did nothing the past 2 seasons. I am a believer that when a coach loses he gets to much of the blame and win he wins too much of the credit. A coach can make a difference if your team is close. The Lakers that last few years have proven anything but and have not done anything "YET" this year.

I should have clarified my statement but I was really talking about the experience of the core and what they have done that past few seasons.

Well of course coaching won't make a huge difference for a team that has Smush Parker, Kwame Brown, and Luke Walton as starters. At the end of the day you need to have talent to win.

This Laker team is much better from a talent perspective, the young players have improved from the last couple of years, and the team is much deeper. At this point Luke Walton is probably our 8-9 best player, and between Derek Fisher, and vastly improved Farmer and Vujacic our PG position is infinetly better than it was last year. Add Gasol into the mix, plus the impact his presence has had on Lamar Odom (much like the impact Shaq has had on Amare), and trying to compare the Laker rosters from this year to last is simply apples and oranges.

Coaching will be a huge factor in this years playoffs, because the team are all so closely matched (top 6 by 2.5 games). You don't really think that coaching won't be a factor in who comes out of the West do you?

 

[LakeShowMan]

I believe Raja Bell has played in the Finals in Philadelphia.

Good call, I forgot about that.

Even so, he wasn't much of a contributor to that team. He was vastly improved after he moved on to Utah the next season, IIRC.

It is a factor though, but at the end of the day I will take Fishers Playoff/Finals experience as a starter over Raja's short minutes of the bench in the Laker 5 game rout of the Sixers.

 

[LakeShowMan]

Doesn't Sean Marks have a ring with San Antonio? (chuckle)

 

[Covert Rain]

Well of course coaching won't make a huge difference for a team that has Smush Parker, Kwame Brown, and Luke Walton as starters. At the end of the day you need to have talent to win.

This Laker team is much better from a talent perspective, the young players have improved from the last couple of years, and the team is much deeper.

"Experience" is usually past tense when it comes to players. Again, your basing your opinion on what you think the Lakers can do this year. So, specifically based on that criteria I still wouldn't rate the Lakers very high based on the "Experience" they gained the last few season in the playoffs. If there was another category called "Potential" then OK. I think the Lakers score high in that regard.

 

[TheHopToad]

Doesn't Sean Marks have a ring with San Antonio? (chuckle)

Technically, yes he has a ring. he was on the Spurs roster for the 04-05 season, but did not play in the finals. Those games with the Pistons were way too close for him to get any PT.

I looked it up and Raja did get play in all five games for the Sixers against the Lakers in the 00-01 Finals. He averaged about 17 minutes and didn't really do much.

 

[Cheesewater]

Technically, yes he has a ring. he was on the Spurs roster for the 04-05 season, but did not play in the finals. Those games with the Pistons were way too close for him to get any PT.

So he DOES have Playoff/Finals experience...doing EXACTLY what he'll be doing for the Suns. Ridin' the pine.

 

[nowagimp]

Technically, yes he has a ring. he was on the Spurs roster for the 04-05 season, but did not play in the finals. Those games with the Pistons were way too close for him to get any PT.

I looked it up and Raja did get play in all five games for the Sixers against the Lakers in the 00-01 Finals. He averaged about 17 minutes and didn't really do much.

Actually Raja defended Kobe as well as anyone did that year. That series was where Raja ensured his future in the NBA as a defensive specialist. I remember that series well, that was before a shaq elbow to the face was called a foul. They were actually calling the foul on mutombos face for getting in the way of shaqs elbow. Frankly, finals experience over the last few years hasnt been as good as WCF experience if intensity of competition is what youre talking about. Lets see if manus finals experience can make up for that groin pull.

 

[Bufalay]

I'm not a blind homer yelling "Lakers suck! Lick my balls!"

Next time you quote me please give me credit.