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Pioneer Press, St. Paul, Minn.
NBA Western Conference power rankings: How do the Timberwolves stack up?
- Story byPioneer Press, St. Paul, Minn.
- NBA Western Conference power rankings: How do the Timberwolves stack up?
Two weeks and approximately 10% of the way through the NBA season, it's time to re-evaluate the Western Conference where things currently stand.
Here's the first edition of our power rankings, which will combine current form with championship chances, while taking injuries and the schedule into account.
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Western Conference Power Rankings (Nov. 3)
No. 1: Houston Rockets (7-1)
It might be rash to supplant San Antonio and Oklahoma City with a different No. 1 this early in the season, but look at what the Rockets are doing. They have wins over the Spurs and Thunder. They easily handled the Celtics on Monday. They sport the NBA's best net rating with the No. 2 offense and the No. 6 defense.
Fred VanVleet's insertion into the starting point guard role after missing last season due to injury is exactly what Houston needed. The pieces now all fit perfectly into the Rockets' puzzle.
No. 2: San Antonio Spurs (5-2)
After a slow start, the Spurs have won five straight, taking full advantage of a hyper-soft early season schedule.
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There are questions with the Spurs bench at this point — San Antonio is getting killed in the non-Victor Wembanyama minutes — but their starting five is lethal.
No. 3: Oklahoma City Thunder (5-2)
The Thunder feature a playoff-caliber team on their injury report at the moment. But they still have Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and he continues to remind folks that's enough. Gilgeous-Alexander poured in 43 points to go with eight assists in a win Monday in Cleveland.
The Thunder are a playoff team so long as they have No. 2. The question will be how many healthy bodies can Oklahoma City surround him with in April and May.
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No. 4: Portland Trail Blazers (5-1)
Portland touts the No. 4 offense in the NBA at the moment with wins over the Lakers and Denver, all while Damian Lillard struggles to knock down outside shots.
Former Wolves assistant Micah Nori is an early NBA Coach of the Year candidate.
No. 5: Minnesota Timberwolves (5-3)
The Anthony Edwards-less Timberwolves appear to be able to beat the bad teams and not the good ones, which is understandable for a team playing sans its best player.
The Wolves figure to slip down the West standings a bit over the next two-ish months as Edwards recovers from athroscopic surgery, but they get credit at the moment for sporting the No. 4 net rating in the NBA, including the No. 2 defense.
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The four-game start with Edwards will remain etched in the memories of followers, but everyone will have to wait until at least December to find out exactly how real it all was.
No. 6: Los Angeles Lakers (6-2)
No one is playing at a higher level than Luka Doncic out of the gates this season. The superstar is averaging 38.3 points, eight rebounds and eight assists
The Walker Kessler addition appears to have been worth the price.
No. 7: Memphis Grizzlies (6-1)
Ty Jerome has a pair of 40-point games, but the really story in Memphis is that every member of its young core — Cam Boozer, Cedric Coward, Zach Edey and Jaylen Wells — appears to be a winning basketball player.
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The Grizzlies look like a playoff team now, and a championship contender in the not-so-distant future.
No. 8: Golden State Warriors (5-3)
Maybe this is too low? Golden State has won five straight as Steph Curry continues to play at an all-world level. Yaxel Lendeborg falling to No. 11 in the NBA Draft was the gift the Warriors needed, as his high-end scoring and attitude have rounded out the Warriors' rotation beautifully.
And Golden State will get Jimmy Butler back at some point this season.
No. 9: Denver Nuggets (3-3)
Yes, this could prove to be an overreaction by year's end. But there's little to like about Denver at the moment. Aaron Gordon's physical fall off is evident. The Nuggets are getting beat up on the glass. Nikola Jokic doesn't look like the MVP. Cam Johnson just got hurt.
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Denver's season is currently being held together by Jamal Murray's lava-hot outside shooting.
No. 10: Dallas Mavericks (4-3)
This feels like a "can beat anybody, and also lose to anybody team." A prime example: In their last two games, the Mavericks handed Houston its first loss, and Sacramento its first win.
If Kyrie Irving makes it through the season with relatively good health (he missed the Kings game), he and Cooper Flagg form a one-two duo that should strike fear in the hearts of West contenders on a nightly basis.
No. 11: New Orleans Pelicans (3-4)
Credit to New Orleans, who's responded to an 0-4 start with three straight wins. Zion Williamson is shooting an absurd 64% from the field, and the Pelicans are playing league-average defense after struggling mightily on that end a year ago.
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No. 12: Phoenix Suns (1-4)
In fairness to Phoenix, its early-season schedule is brutal. There isn't a gimme win on the slate, and it doesn't lighten until the middle of this month.
But the Suns' struggles, which include the league's worst defense, provide evidence they're nowhere close to contending for anything of consequence.
No. 13: Utah Jazz (1-6)
This was supposed to be the first year of real contention for Utah after years of not-so-subtle tanking. But frontcourt injuries to Lauri Markkanen (who returned Monday in a loss to the Spurs), Jaren Jackson Jr. and Jusuf Nurkic buried the Jazz before the campaign ever got off the ground.
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No. 14: Los Angeles Clippers (1-6)
Six straight losses, no valuable draft picks, little young talent to be excited about — these are dark days for Clippers fans.
No. 15: Sacramento Kings (1-6)
Sacramento won its first game of the season Monday against Dallas. It still touts the league's second-worst net rating and a roster that makes no sense.
