David Aldridge reveals which teams, to him, are the Top 15 squads in the NBA at
this moment.
(last week’s record in parenthesis; previous ranking in brackets)
1) Golden State Warriors (3-0) [1]: Ian Clark and JaVale McGee, series-enders.
Who would have thought that at the beginning of the season?
2) Cleveland Cavaliers (4-0) [4]: As of Friday, Roget’s Thesaurus officially ran
out of adjectives to describe LeBron James.
3) San Antonio Spurs (2-2) [2]: There’s a reason I really thought the Spurs
should have gone after Mike Conley last summer.
4) Houston Rockets (3-1) [3]: Rockets winning grimy vs. Thunder is a good sign
for them if they advance.
5) Boston Celtics (2-2) [5]: Continued prayers to Isaiah Thomas and his family.
6) Toronto Raptors (2-2) [6]: Was wondering when Raptors would unleash the
athleticism of Norman Powell into a series dominated by athletes.
7) Utah Jazz (2-2) [7]: Don’t think the Jazz can win two out of three over the
Clips without a healthy Gordon Hayward.
8) LA Clippers (2-2) [8]: Its all on Chris Paul now.
9) Washington Wizards (2-1) [9]: Bradley Beal is as good a thermometer for
Wizards play as anyone: when active on D, and bouncy offensively, the Wiz are
tough. When he’s smooth jazz, they’re bad.
10) Oklahoma City Thunder (1-3) [10]: Big respect for Andre Roberson, despite
missing those free throws Sunday; he’s doing yeoman work in this series, making
James Harden work for just about everything on the floor.
11) Atlanta Hawks (1-1) [11]: Hawks’ immediate future as a franchise directly
tied to Dennis Schroeder’s mental/emotional development.
12) Memphis Grizzlies (2-2) [14]: A team has never been more representative of
the city in which it plays.
13) Milwaukee Bucks (2-2) [12]: Greg Monroe having a heck of a series so far for
the Bucks, on top of a strong season. He’ll get a nice payday this summer.
14) Indiana Pacers (0-4) [13]: The Paul George Watch officially begins.
15) Portland Trail Blazers (0-3) [NR]: This season will end soon for the
Blazers, but their future is extremely bright.
Dropped out: Miami [15]
TEAM OF THE WEEK
Cleveland (4-0): If they’re not all the way back, they’re getting close. And,
now, they get a week off before facing either Milwaukee or Toronto in the second
round.
TEAM OF THE WEAK
Indiana (0-4): The Pacers won five straight to get to the playoffs, and they
sure had long stretches where they played the Cavaliers even. But you can’t blow
a 26-point lead at home in the playoffs. You just can’t. And the implications of
that collapse may be long-lasting.
Longtime NBA reporter, columnist and Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer
David Aldridge is an analyst for TNT. You can e-mail him here, find his archive
here and follow him on Twitter.
The views on this page do not necessarily reflect the views of the NBA, its
clubs or Turner Broadcasting.
