Every single Monday (Tuesday this week. Sorry, school has been crazy lately) until the NBA Finals are complete, I’ll be giving you a recap of the most important things from the past NBA week. I’ll give you my power rankings for the top ten teams in the league and name a couple of players with surprising performances. Finally, I will go through some of the best and worst moments from the past week.
Week 5 Power Rankings
- Golden State Warriors (15-6) // Previously #2
- Houston Rockets (16-4) // Previously #3
- Cleveland Cavaliers (13-7) // Previously #8
- Boston Celtics (18-4) // Previously #1
- Detroit Pistons (13-6) // Previously Unranked
- New Orleans Pelicans (11-9) // Previously #7
- San Antonio Spurs (13-7) // Previously #5
- Philadelphia 76ers (11-8) // Previously Unranked
- Minnesota Timberwolves (11-9) // Previously #4
- Portland Trail Blazers (13-8) // Previously #9
Who’s Hot?
(Stats are from last weeks games only)
- Russell Westbrook (29.7 Points, 11 Rebounds, 9.7 Assists, 2.7 Steals, 0 Blocks)
- Blake Griffin (28.3 Points, 8.3 Rebounds, 7 Assists, 0.7 Steals, 0 Blocks)
- Goran Dragic (23.7 Points, 3.7 Rebounds, 4.3 Assists, 1 Steals, 0 Blocks)
- Tim Hardaway Jr. (21.8 Points, 4.3 Rebounds, 4.8 Assists, 0.8 Steals, 0.5 Blocks)
- Andre Drummond (21.5 Points, 19 Rebounds, 4.5 Assists, 2 Steals, 1 Blocks)
Best Moments
1. Trade Rumors
Even with the Eric Bledsoe deal already in the books, teams are not done making early-season trades. The rumor that stands above the rest is the willingness of the Clippers to swap bigmen with the Cavaliers- Deandre Jordan for Tristan Thompson. I don’t care how old, unhealthy, or how non-aggressive the Cavs’ core is; Lebron James, Dwyane Wade, Isaiah Thomas, Derrick Rose, and potentially Deandre Jordan could create one of the most fun-to-watch teams of all time.
2. Cleveland Cavaliers
While it may have been fun watching the former 2016 NBA champions rack up the surprising losses to open up the season, Lebron has begun to take over games singlehandedly to will his Cavaliers to a now eight-game winning streak. Even with their increased age, injuries, and other uncertanties, Lebron is definitely regaining if not adding on to his title of best player in the league. The finals should (once again) be fun to watch.
Worst Moments
In this segment, I am building off of “The Starters” from NBATV. Every Friday, they have a segment called, “Worst of the Week,” where they basically shame a certain part of the NBA, whether that be a player, a coach, an idea, or even an entire team. Go check them out here.
http://www.nba.com/thestarters#/
1. David Fizdale Fired
It’s safe to say no one saw this coming, except for Marc Gasol maybe. After becoming outraged with the entire Memphis coaching staff for benching him in the fourth quarter of a close game during a long losing streak, the superstar center stated that he feels he was treated unfairly by Fizdale specifically and that Mike Conley would’ve never gone through something like this. Nonetheless, Fizdale was a great head coach in his time with the Grizzlies. Despite finishing with a combined record of 50-51, he brought an injury-riddled team to the playoffs and even put up a good fight on the San Antonio Spurs. It’s safe to say this won’t be the last head coaching job Fizdale gets in the NBA.
2. Derrick Rose
Perhaps even sadder than Fizdale’s firing, is that we’re seeing (at one time) one of the most promising young players in NBA history questioning his NBA future. Injuries have caused problems in many other players careers, but none quite like Rose. He is taking some time away from basketball to ail a sprained ankle and to think about his future. He doesn’t know if it’s worth it to continue risking his body every night to continue to live out his dream. No matter what Rose’s decision is, I hope him the best in any future endeavors.
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