Chapter 720: Power Rankings
In the new season's team power rankings, ESPN placed the Miami Heat 1st.
Although Miami lost in last year's NBA Finals, ESPN still believed the Heat were the most competitive team this season.
Their core lineup, centered around the Big 3, remained unchanged. After a full season of adjustment, their chemistry had reached a new level. The loss in last year's NBA Finals had actually motivated all 3 members of the Big 3, making the new season even more anticipated.
In the 1980s, there were 7 seasons where a team that had lost the NBA Finals the previous year made it back, and in 4 of those instances, they successfully won the championship.
Furthermore, Miami had recently made efforts to strengthen its roster, bringing in 3 point specialist Kyle Korver, which would give James and Wade more space to drive on offense.
Miami's talent was unmatched in the league.
They averaged 109.3 points per game, ranking 3rd in the league, and had a defensive rating of 100.7, ranking 5th.
With the addition of sharpshooter Korver, their actual strength would steadily improve.
They were the most reliable championship pick.
2nd in the rankings were the New York Knicks.
The Knicks made significant acquisitions this summer, including All Star big man David West and super role player DeAndre Jordan.
Of course, New York's high ranking was entirely because of 1 person.
Chen Yan.
Some fans joked that even without James, Miami's roster could still rank in the top 10, or even the top 5, of the power rankings.
If the Knicks were without Chen Yan, dropping to the bottom would not be a problem at all.
The Boston Celtics were ranked 3rd.
Originally, Boston's overall strength should have ranked them 2nd.
Durant and Derrick Rose were maturing, and Stoudemire could still dominate the paint.
However, last season's Black 8 upset had too great an impact on them, causing Boston's reputation to plummet.
If the Celtics had been ranked above the Knicks, many fans would have been unconvinced.
Last season, Boston averaged 108.6 points per game on offense, ranking 4th, and allowed 104 points per game on defense, ranking 13th.
It was believed that they would show greater improvement in all aspects this new season.
How would they demonstrate dominance?
Experts believed their goal was the NBA Finals.
Fans believed they should first pray they would not encounter the Knicks in the 1st round.
The Nets were ranked 4th.
Their roster for the new season was truly luxurious.
Anthony, Deron Williams, and Yao Ming were all highly ranked stars at their respective positions.
However, the same old saying applied.
The Nets were not strong simply because they had collected so called excellent players.
Whether they were truly strong still had to be proven in games.
If they could not develop chemistry, all the paper strength in the world would be useless.
The Los Angeles Clippers jumped into the top tier of the power rankings.
1 week was enough for the Clippers to go from a bottom feeder, originally expected to be outside the top 20, to joining the ranks of powerhouses, even surpassing the Los Angeles Lakers.
During the offseason, 2 top players, Chris Paul and Chauncey Billups, joined the team.
In addition, the Clippers also had 2 key players, Blake Griffin and Caron Butler, while the bench featured good players like Nick Young, Randy Foye, and Mo Williams.
Times change.
As the Clippers rose, the internal struggle in Los Angeles would become 1 of the biggest highlights of the new season.
The Clippers had once enjoyed such a glorious moment before.
That was the team of Larry Brown and Danny Manning.
They made the Clippers the overlords of Los Angeles when the Lakers had fallen into the lottery.
The current Clippers roster had no obvious weakness.
The dual point guard threat of Paul and Chauncey in the starting lineup was incredibly powerful.
Pairing them with the explosive Blake Griffin perfectly embodied speed, while Butler's offense provided the Clippers with a steady supply of firepower.
Ranked 6th were the Los Angeles Lakers.
Although the roster was aging, this team still had Kobe and Garnett, and ESPN had to give them a certain level of respect.
Overall, the Lakers roster was still top tier, but they had a fatal problem.
Their pursuit of Paul or Dwight Howard had already shaken the team's morale.
Would this affect their motivation to win the championship?
Everyone would only know after the new season began.
The Memphis Grizzlies were ranked 7th.
Rudy Gay had finally returned, and he looked good in the preseason.
Coupled with Zach Randolph, Marc Gasol, and Mike Conley, this lineup was very strong.
The balanced offense and defense of the Grizzlies would no longer be underestimated this new season.
The defending champion Dallas Mavericks were ranked 8th.
Last season's roster had already been broken apart, and their top 10 ranking was purely due to Dirk Nowitzki and the aura of a championship.
The San Antonio Spurs were also ranked in this range.
The lockout was good news for San Antonio.
The shadow of their Black 8 upset needed these 2 months for adjustment, and Tim Duncan's knees needed these 2 months to recover. The same was true for veterans like Manu Ginóbili.
However, the retirement of veteran Anthony McDyess and the aging of Manu and Duncan were irreversible losses.
Coupled with George Hill's departure, success or failure would depend on whether newcomers like Tiago Splitter, Gary Neal, and Kawhi Leonard could shoulder the heavy burden.
The Denver Nuggets were ranked 9th.
They retained Nenê and Arron Afflalo.
ESPN expert John Hollinger believed that based on statistical performance, Denver had almost no weaknesses and was the 2nd best team in the Western Conference.
With Wilson Chandler's return, this was indeed a team with strong explosive power.
10th place belonged to the Orlando Magic.
With Howard, Orlando could have ranked higher based on paper strength.
But Howard was simply too disruptive, constantly submitting trade requests.
Which team could withstand that?
The Knicks had considered acquiring Howard during the offseason, but Chen Yan vetoed it.
Howard was a giant baby, a ticking time bomb inside the team.
Moreover, Howard was not a free agent.
Acquiring him would definitely require trading away promising players from within the team.
If they did that, the Knicks would move further and further away from a championship.
The 2 most familiar teams, the Phoenix Suns and the Houston Rockets, did not make the top 10.
The Rockets had entered the rebuilding era after Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady.
This new season, they could only rely on Kevin Martin, Scola, and Lowry.
None of the 3 were suited to be the main leader, and no 1 would think that such a trio could stir up any waves.
The Suns were even worse off than the Rockets.
Houston could at least put together a stable starting lineup, but for Phoenix, the head coach stated that besides Steve Nash, there was not a single confirmed starter.
This meant the team could not guarantee more than 1 core position.
How much competitiveness could such a team have?
2 weeks before the season began, the Knicks finalized a contract with Yi Jianlian.
Yi Jianlian flew to New York that day, and Chen Yan treated him to a meal.
"I did not expect the Knicks interior competition to be this intense in the new season," Yi Jianlian said. "DeAndre Jordan, Kenyon Martin, Al Harrington, and David West."
Yi Jianlian could not definitively outperform any of those 4 big men.
"Pressure is also motivation," Chen Yan said. "Seize this opportunity. With the Knicks, you can play both power forward and center. Your advantage is mobility. Kenyon Martin is old, and Al Harrington's defense is not good. Try to leverage your strengths and strive to become a key rotation player this season. Do not aim to be a starter right away. You cannot become a fat man with 1 bite."
After listening, Yi Jianlian nodded.
What Chen Yan said was very realistic.
Playing here required extreme effort every day, with the constant possibility of being eliminated.
If Yi Jianlian could not make it in New York, then this would very likely be his last NBA contract.
"First, familiarize yourself with the tactics," Chen Yan continued. "Then practice your spot up shooting. You will have a place on this team."
Chen Yan had great confidence in Yi Jianlian's athleticism.
But relying solely on that would certainly not be enough to establish himself in the NBA.
After all, even the athleticism Yi Jianlian was proud of was only average among the monsters of the NBA.
"What time is practice tomorrow?" Yi Jianlian asked. "Take me with you."
"No problem. I will call you."
Over the next 2 weeks, Chen Yan spent almost every day with Yi Jianlian, explaining New York's tactics and telling him how to maximize his advantages on this team.
It was impossible to say Chen Yan had no personal motive.
He hoped his compatriot would succeed.
Yi Jianlian's attitude and talent were not the issue.
It would truly be a shame if he simply returned to the CBA like this.
In 2 preseason games, Yi Jianlian performed mediocrely.
Like most Asian players, Yi Jianlian was a slow starter.
Chen Yan constantly comforted him, encouraged him, and told him to focus on the game and forget about his poor performance.
Yi Jianlian felt Chen Yan's energy every day.
It was something he had not experienced before.
As a somewhat introverted player, encouragement from teammates was extremely important.
Time quickly advanced to December 25.
The Knicks opening game had finally arrived.
.....
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