NYKC Power Rankings: 12/29/08

This is the first edition of our weekly power rankings here at NY Knicks Central.  These rankings are based on a mathematical formula that takes into account certain numbers and stats such as offensive efficiency, defensive efficiency, W-L record, and strength of schedule.  To see an explanation of how the ratings are calculated go here.

Here are some things to note in this week’s edition:

• Yes that is the Cleveland Cavaliers at the top ahead of Boston and LA.  Cleveland deserves the credit for simply blowing the competition out of the water.  They have blown out the bad teams they were supposed to and their efficiency ratings are so good that they project an expected winning percentage of .909.  That’s a 74-8 projected record.  No they won’t do it but that’s how good they have been.  A 25-2 stretch will do that for you.
• One team that needs to be in the discussion of the elite is the Orlando Magic as the numbers indicate.  This team is quietly 24-6 and everyone knows they can score with the shooting of Hedo Turkoglu and Rashard Lewis.  Having Dwight Howard to clean up and mistakes in the lane sure helps a lot also.
• After the slow start the Spurs have climbed back to being a legit title contender as they slide in at #5.  Age and depth is still a concern but at least the defense is back to where it should be.  Roger Mason is a good fit there.
• My one sleeper team going forward is Milwaukee.  Scott Skiles has gotten this team to play really good defense as their defensive efficency is alost identical to that of the Spurs.  They can’t win a title without a legit go to scorer but they’ll be in the mix come playoff time.
• One team that should get hot soon is Portland.  Based on their efficiency ratings they are a low-50 win team and they have played a rather tough schedule.  This young club will be on the rise again soon.
• Enough already.  Here are the rankings in their entirety.

 

Rank	Team	Off Eff	Def Eff	Exp Win %	Win %	Win % L10	SOS	NYKC Power Rating
1		110.5	96.1	.909	.867	.900	.472	85.1797
2		107.6	95.3	.881	.875	.800	.485	83.1553
3		109.7	99.9	.824	.833	.800	.489	79.0927
4		106.4	97.0	.821	.800	.900	.439	78.4622
5		105.4	101.2	.662	.667	.800	.466	65.7458
6		106.8	102.7	.656	.655	.700	.496	64.4195
7		105.7	101.4	.665	.645	.600	.518	63.7806
8		105.7	102.3	.632	.667	.700	.515	63.7345
9		111.0	105.9	.685	.613	.500	.518	62.8088
10		104.6	101.3	.629	.645	.700	.496	62.7767
11		104.9	101.7	.625	.600	.700	.491	61.1641
12		104.8	101.6	.625	.563	.500	.476	57.8949
13		108.4	106.6	.569	.571	.500	.540	55.9746
14		104.1	103.4	.528	.607	.600	.459	55.1944
15		103.4	102.4	.540	.552	.600	.451	54.0618
16		100.5	101.5	.459	.452	.500	.522	46.7308
17		106.6	108.9	.413	.500	.400	.453	44.1722
18		102.2	105.3	.379	.433	.400	.550	41.4588
19		98.9	101.9	.379	.414	.400	.492	40.2924
20		102.7	105.9	.376	.400	.400	.542	40.2234
21		102.7	104.9	.413	.333	.300	.557	39.2425
22		100.1	103.1	.381	.355	.400	.508	38.7524
23		101.7	106.3	.325	.333	.500	.481	36.0705
24		103.3	107.8	.331	.379	.300	.508	36.0104
25		96.7	103.2	.255	.276	.500	.499	31.0036
26		103.0	109.8	.258	.281	.200	.517	28.5221
27		101.4	109.1	.230	.179	.200	.532	24.1829
28		99.4	110.3	.152	.226	.200	.533	21.7180
29		98.9	108.4	.180	.172	.100	.510	20.2945
30		96.1	106.9	.147	.097	.100	.499	16.2495

Coast to Coast: 12/26/08

Let’s go coast to coast with the stories and views from around the league:

• Steve Dilbeck of the LA Daily News: “The Lakers came into their showdown with the Celtics an impressive 23-5, and very much needing to beat Boston down. Needing reason to truly believe they are as good they like to think they are, that they are that much better than the team Boston drummed in the NBAFinals last June.  The Celtics came into Staples Center on a roll, having won a franchise- record 19straight games. Still looking focused and determined, and playing with a mature consistency that has eluded the Lakers.  But the Lakers needed this one more, needed to brush aside the perception they were soft, too weak mentally, just too inferior to the mighty Celtics.  Despite the great run the Celtics were on, despite the glare of a nationally-televised Christmas Day game, this game was more important to the Lakers, and ultimately they played like it.  They may not have been dramatically better, but it was the Lakers who answered the challenge, who made plays down the stretch and came away with the 92-83 victory that reeked of playoff intensity.”
• Terry Pluto of the Cleveland Plain Dealer: “Which brings us to the Cavs, the surprise team of the NBA after Thursday’s 93-89 victory over Washington. The 25-4 Cavs are right behind the 27-3 Celtics in the race to be the best in the Eastern Conference.  Was it reasonable to expect the Cavs to win 50 games this season? Of course, assuming LeBron James stays healthy. But a 25-4 start with only five players remaining from this time a year ago?  It’s a product of chemistry…make that trust…much like Boston a year ago.”
• Mark Heisler of the LA Times: “Yet to be determined is whether the Lakers have undergone an actual attitude adjustment and will play hard all the time.  On the other hand, when you think of their fans booing them off the court at halftime in their last game here, when they trailed the New York Knicks by 15, followed by losses in Miami and Orlando and a rally from five points behind in the last 3:30 to win in Memphis, Christmas marked some turnaround.  The Lakers defended energetically, if not always well.  They showed that their physical advantages over the Celtics in size and depth matter.”
• From the Detroit News: ”Chris Paul of the Hornets saw his league-record string of 108 games with at least one steal end in the Hornets’ 88-68 loss to the Magic on Thursday. Paul, the NBA steals leader (3.7 average), and most of the starters came out early in the fourth quarter with the Magic up by at least 20. “Half the time when I got a steal I didn’t even know it,” said Paul, who was unaware his streak ended until after the game. “It was going to end at some point so why not Christmas?”“
• Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News: “The NBA went all out to make the late-night portion of its Christmas Day extravaganza a real yuletide experience. The uniforms were green for the Mavericks, red for Portland.  Given the festive atmosphere, you half expected the teams to come out wearing Santa hats.  But by the third quarter, good tidings were officially over.  A flurry of technical fouls and some elbows-first kind of play turned the game into a nasty, rugged affair devoid of any Christmas cheer.  That was just fine with the Mavericks, since they ended up grinding out a 102-94 victory over the Trail Blazers in probably their most commendable victory of the season.”
• Mike Monroe of the San Antonio Express-News: “Irate, Duncan grabbed Stoudemire so that referee Jason Phillips was forced to call a foul, and that gave Duncan time to give the whistle blower his opinion.  Fifty-nine seconds later, Duncan rued the momentary loss of his stoic demeanor. Whistled for bumping O’Neal as the Suns center looked for a cutting teammate, Duncan knew he was one foul shy of disqualification.  Somehow, he managed to avoid a sixth personal while stopping three drives to the basket by Stoudemire in the final 1:53, each time rebounding the miss.  It was a clutch performance Popovich called “absolutely spectacular.”  Duncan’s defense kept things just close enough for the dramatic ending. Spurs guard Roger Mason Jr. launched a 3-point shot from the left corner that beat the buzzer as it left his hand and beat the Suns when it went in the basket.”
• Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic: “Being plucked from a bad franchise and put into a successful one two weeks ago was like a Christmas present for Jason Richardson.  The new Sun wants so badly to help. Too badly.  His decision to help on defense Thursday against San Antonio’s Tony Parker made the NBA’s third-ranked 3-point shooter, Roger Mason, look as alone in the corner as a Christmas tree once the presents are gone. Mason, subbed in for that play, made good on the 3-point shot to beat the buzzer and the Suns, 91-90, at US Airways Center.”

Coast to Coast: 9/25/08

Let’s push the ball up the court as we go from coast to coast with the stories from around the league.

• KTAR.com is reporting Goran Dragic of the Suns had his first practice with the Suns and he is comparing his game to Tony Parker’s.  ”I like to penetrate, play pass basketball,” he said. “I’m a good defender, I like to play defense and make some [opportunities] for other teammates.”  Remember the backup to Steve Nash is a very important position.  You don’t want to have to go into a funk offensively when Nash is on the bench.
• The Seattle Post Intelligencer is reporting that the Spurs have signed George Hill, the team’s first round draft pick.  Hill and free agent addition Salim Stoudamire need to help rejuvenate the Spurs bench.  Their bench was old and ineffective last year and was their ultimate undoing.]
• The Rocky Mountain News is reporting that the Nuggets are bringing Nick Fazekas to training camp on a nonguaranteed contract.  I can see him as a good fit in Denver because of his scoring ability and his indifference towards playing defense.
• Frank Isola of the Daily News is wondering the same thing as all of us: how is what Jay Z doing not tampering with LeBron James of the Cleveland Cavaliers.  Says Isola, “Did you happen to see the photo of Jay-Z and LeBron James in last Friday’s Daily News? The Nets minority owner and the NBA’s second best player were together attending a fundraiser in Manhattan (and no, it wasn’t to help finance the Barclays Center in downtown Brooklyn.)  These two guys are spotted together so often that Beyonce is starting to ask questions. At what point will the Cleveland Cavaliers start accusing the Nets of tampering?”  Yes Frank, it is enough to make you sick.  Maybe the Nets should consider getting some NBA level talent before expecting LeBron to come to a terrible team.
• The Orlando Sentinel is reporting that Hedo Turkoglu will likely opt out of his contract at the end of the season.  This is somewhat of a problem for Orlando.  Sure he is old but he is still arguably the best scorer on their roster and someone they look to in the clutch.
• The Orange County Register had an interesting Q & A with Andrew Bynum.  The most interesting quote was this: “Yet perhaps the most revealing and key bit of information Bynum shared with a near-capacity room of Lakers fans during the Register-sponsored Q&A was that his surgically repaired knee is in “super” condition.”  Look out Western Conference.

Coast to Coast: 9/2/08

Hope everyone had a great Labor Day weekend.  Let’s go coast to coast.

• The Philadelphia Daily News is reporting that the 76ers are to sign free agent Donyell Marshall.  The contract is likely to be for the veterans’ minimum.  The team was in need of bolstering their outside shooting so Marshall seems to be a good fit for coming off the bench.
• The Ben Gordon saga appears to be far from over.  The Arlington Daily News is reporting that the Bulls are offering a 6-year, $59 million deal.  Gordon reportedly wants around $12 million a year.  Gordon has also stated that he expects a sign and trade soon.  However, league sources claim that there is not one credible rumor of a team that is seriously interested.  He also claims he’d rather play in Greece for one year at $10 million than stay for one awkward season with the Bulls.
• The Palm Beach Post is reporting that the Miami Heat will sign free agent Jamaal Magloire.  The Heat are in desperate need of some help at center and don’t have much cap room to spend.  But Jamaal Magloire won’t exactly help much.
• ESPN has come out with some of their preseason predictions.  You can see them here.  For the awards they are predicting LeBron James to win MVP, Michael Beasley to win Rookie of the Year, Elton Brand to be the best newcomer, and Baron Davis and Jermaine O’Neal to be the worst newcomers.
• ESPN has also released predictions for how they think the Eastern Conference will shake out.  According to them the playoff teams from the East will be Boston, Detroit, Cleveland, Orlando, Philadelphia, Toronto, Washington, and Miami.
• They have also come out with their predictions for the Western Conference.  The predicted playoff teams are Los Angeles, New Orleans, Houston, Utah, San Antonio, Phoenix, Dallas, and Portland.
• There are pictures flying around the internet of what the logos and uniforms of the Oklahoma City franchise will be.  It is expected that they will be named the Thunder but nothing has been official.  Everything is supposed to be announced this week.  But it can’t hurt to look at what the uniforms and logos are rumored to be.
• The USA Today is reporting that the Phoenix Suns and head coach Terry Porter are planning on limiting Steve Nash’s minutes in the regular season to make sure that he is fresh for the playoffs.  I’m not sure if this matters much.  Their championship window appears to have closed especially with how much the Western Conference has improved over the last couple years.
• Slow news day around the league.  Over the next couple months I’ll be posting my breakdown of each of the divisions in the NBA as well as my preseason power rankings.  So stay tuned.

A Look Back and a Look Ahead: Is Mike D’Antoni a Good Fit for the Knicks?

Last year certainly brought the Knicks to rock bottom.  There were all of the “Fire Isiah” chants and all of the off the court issues, including the embarassing sexual harassment lawsuit.  The Knicks managed to win just 23 games and Donnie Walsh replaced Isiah Thomas as team president.  The burning question at that time was, “Who is the coach that can help fix the Knicks?”  Then Mike D’Antoni had his falling out with Steve Kerr and the Phoenix Suns.  The Bulls and Knicks both pursued him but D’Antoni chose the Knicks and their 4-year, $24 million deal.  Right away there was a lot of criticism accusing D’Antoni of running to wherever the most money was.  The Bulls seemed to have a brighter future and an upcoming lottery pick.  It was also perceived that the Knicks had a roster with a mess of underachievers with bad character issues who many believe do not fit in with D’Antoni’s uptempo style of basketball.  So you heard all of the people who said that this relationship was an awful fit, like the couple that is destined to be found fighting and breaking up every other weekend.  Is he really a bad fit with the Knicks?  Let’s look a little deeper first.

One thing that you cannot debate about Mike D’Antoni is the fact that he has been a very good coach in this league.  All you have to do is look at the numbers and accolades that he has achieved so far.  His head coaching career began slowly in Denver in 1998 as his team went 14-36 in the lockout-shortened season.  He then spent a year as a scout for the Spurs and a year as an assistant coach in Portland.  He joined the Suns in 2002 as an assistant and took over as head coach in December of 2003. 

In four full seasons as head coach of the Suns here is what they accomplished:

• 50 wins in all four years, including two seasons with more than 60 wins.
• Three division titles and two Western Confernce Finals appearances.
• Led the NBA in team scoring for three straight years.
• In 2004-05 they averaged over 110 ppg, the first time that has happened since 1994-95.
• In his first year with the Suns, they won 62 games which was 33 more wins than they had the previous season.

And here are the coaching accolades he has achieved:

• Won NBA Coach of the Year in 2004-05
• Four time winner of the NBA Western Conference Coach of the Month
• Was the head coach for the Western Conference at the 2007 All-Star game
• He is the third winningest coach in Suns franchise history
• His .650 winning percentage with the Suns is second in franchise history

The one thing I remember about the Suns during the “Seven Seconds of Less” days was that I never felt like they were really a great team or legit title contender.  Yet year after year they won around 60 games and continued to have their high octane offense in gear.  Heck you can make the argument that in 2007 they would’ve won the title if not for the key suspensions of Stoudemire and Diaw in their series with the Spurs. 

Mike D’Antoni had a big role in this great success for the Suns.  The best attribute about him is that he finds out what the strengths of his players are.  He then develops a style that fits them best and puts them in the best possible situation for them to succeed.  He did that with the Suns as they went to small and fast lineups that would play at relentless pace and shoot a high percentage.  Also he is a coach that players seem to love playing for which probably helped him get the maximum effort from those good Suns teams he had.

The criticisms about the situation with the Knicks are valid.  Eddy Curry has got to want it more, Danilo Gallinari has to get his feet wet, Stephon Marbury is not a leader, Zach Randolph has to play harder (if he isn’t in Memphis soon), Quentin Richardson needs to be in better shape, and Chris Duhon needs to be the guy to help set up his teammates to succeed.  It is true that not many players on this roster would succeed at the phrenetic pace of the “Seven Seconds or Less” Suns.  However, I truly believe that Mike D’Antoni will learn what his players do well and develop a style that will help him get the most out of his players.  The truth is he is just a very smart basketball person who knows this game as well as anyone.

I truly believe that the Knicks made the right hire for this rebuilding process.  D’Antoni will get the most out of his roster and will see what he has.  Then it is up to Donnie Walsh to bring in more players that fit into what kind of style D’Antoni wants to play.  Danilo Gallinari and Chris Duhon are a start but there is a long way to go.  Let’s see what they can do.

—

Photo via AP

Coast to Coast

It’s time to push the ball up the court as we go coast to coast with the stories from around the league.

• The LA Times is reporting that the Lakers have officially signed Chinese guard Sun Yue to a multi-year deal.  Some good things were said about Yue’s game at the Olympics but I don’t expect him to be a big contributor right away.  Derek Fisher and Jordan Farmar are major roadblocks.
• More Lakers info: the team expects to find out soon when Kobe Bryant will undergo surgery on his injured right pinkie.  Sure didn’t seem to bother him when he carried the US down the stretch against Spain.
• The Arizona Republic is reporting that the Suns have traded D.J. Strawberry to the Rockets for rookie point guard Sean Singletary.  Not only does this save the Suns some money but it also gives them a backup guard that is not a bad defender.
• Howard Beck of the New York Times points out the rule changes that will be instituted by FIBA prior to the World Championships in 2010.  The lane will be changed from the trapezoid to the rectangle and the 3-point line will be moved back closer to NBA distance.  Kudos to the NBA and FIBA working together on this.  If you’re going to have a game that is global, the game should remain similar despite the location of the court.
• SLAM Online reminds us that the NBA will be back in Beijing soon.
• The Oklahoman reports that the Oklahoma City TBD franchise has made several front office hires.
• Perhaps no NBA player put on a greater show at the Olympics than Dwayne Wade.  And I love the line he gave to the Miami Herald: ”I’ve seen a bronze medal before, and it looks nothing like a gold.”
• The Detroit Free Press explains the situation of Lindsey Hunter and how he may not be back with the Pistons for this year.  An FBI investigation into a real estate scam will do that to you.
• The Bleacher Report analyzes Jason Kidd’s past and future and explains how he can still be an impact player for the Mavs.  I have to point out how he is well past his prime and that the championship window for Dallas has been closed shut.
• The Houston Chronicle reports that the city of Houston has been receptive to the arrival of Ron Artest.  Why not?  Despite his questionable character, the Rockets are now legit title contenders.  Especially if Tracy McGrady plays at the level he did last year.  Yes Ron Artest is that good and can have that type of impact.  Of course he is still Ron Artest and is always capable of self destructing.