The first week of the 2020-21 NBA season concluded tonight and these are 10 teams that have stood out to be the best so far in my opinion. However, before we get into the top 10, I’d like to mention a few teams that just missed the cut.
Kings – The Sacramento Kings are off to an impressive 3-1 start in the season. They’re not on the list because they have had a similar start for the last 2 seasons and ended up missing the playoffs. If the Kings do manage to stay hot and find a playoff spot this year, it would be their first postseason appearance since 2006. I was a first-grader at the time!
Cavs – The Cleveland Cavaliers shocked many NBA fans this week by starting off 3-0 and easily beating the 76ers. They are not on the list because while they did beat the Sixers, Embiid did not play that game. The Cavs also just lost to the Knicks. I need to see at least another week of the Cavs to find out if they deserve a spot on this list or not.
Mavs – The Mavs started off the season slow and dropped their first two games to the Suns and Lakers. However, they were able to quickly rebound and absolutely destroy the Clippers by 51 points! The Mavs are missing their 2nd best player, Kristaps Porziņģis. Once he returns in a few weeks, the Mavs will definitely find their way to this list.
Blazers – The Blazers were very impressive on Monday night as they beat the Lakers by 8 points. All of their three-pointers just seemed to find their way to the basket. The only reason the Blazers did not make the top 10 is that they have only played 3 games so far and they did lose to the Jazz by 20 points. I have to see just a little more from them before I add them on.
Now onto the top 10…
10. Hawks – Trae Young was definitely the MVP of week 1 as he is averaging 34.0 points a game and led the Hawks to a 3-0 start. I have the Hawks making the playoffs this year as a 6th-8th seed. #10 is the best spot for this team as their three wins were against the Bulls, Grizzlies, and Pistons. The Hawks will play the Nets tomorrow night. This game will let us know who the Hawks really are this year.
9. Celtics – Even though I have the Celtics as a 3rd seed in the East this year, they are not off to a good start. While they started off the season with a win against the Bucks due to a clutch Jayson Tatum three, they got blown out by the Nets on Christmas and dropped another game to the Pacers. They have been very inconsistent to start off the season. I have a feeling they will pick it up soon and go higher up in the list.
8. Suns – During the offseason, the Suns decided that they are tired of missing the playoffs. Especially after going 8-0 in the Orlando bubble last season but still falling short of even a play-in spot. They traded for Chris Paul, acquired Jae Crowder from the Heat, and Devin Booker is only getting better. The Suns hope to finally break their ten-year playoff drought this year and I believe they will succeed.
7. Pacers – Domantas Sabonis is proving to everyone that he wasn’t a fluke all-star last year. He is averaging 21.8 points, 11.0 rebounds, and 7.3 assists in the first four games of the season and the Pacers are off to a 3-1 start. The Pacers; however, are always known to do well in the regular season but fold in the playoffs. They have been swept in the first round for three consecutive years. Therefore, I am not going to put the Pacers that high on the list just yet.
6.Magic – Another team that has been surprising so is the Orlando Magic. They have won all four of their games and it seems like Markelle Fultz is not a bust after all. With an all-star caliber player in Nikola Vučević and a rookie with a ton of potential in Cole Anthony, I see no reason why the Magic won’t make the playoffs for the third year in a row.
5. Bucks – In my opinion, the team that has the most to prove this year is the Milwaukee Bucks. They have finished at the top of the East for the last two years but have not made a finals appearance yet. They blew a 2-0 lead against the Raptors in the ECF in 2019 and choked against the Heat last year in the second round as they got bounced in 5 games. Wisconsin teams are known for falling just a bit short (I’m a Packers fan so I have experience), so we will see if they can make it to the finals this year. Maybe Jrue Holiday will be the player that finally puts them over the hump.
4. Sixers – The 76ers team definitely got better over the short offseason. They were able to get rid of Al Horford’s disastrous contact and added key players in Seth Curry and Dwight Howard. They also added Danny “How many more threes am I going to miss?” Green, but he still helps them out as a lack of shooters was one of the biggest problems for the Sixers last season. I believe the Sixers will go much further in the playoffs than last season as they were swept by the Celtics in the first round.
3. Clippers – A few may disagree with me about putting the Clippers in the top 3. However, they were able to get big wins to start the season against the Lakers and the Nuggets. While they did get embarrassed against the Mavs by losing by 51, it is way too early to think the Clippers aren’t contenders. We can’t count them out one week into the season. If they keep those types of performances up; however, they will most definitely fall on the list. Let’s not forget that the Clippers blew a 3-1 lead last year!
2.Lakers – I really wanted to put the Lakers at the top spot in the list but I just couldn’t. After a disappointing loss to the Clippers on opening night and losing to the Blazers by poorly defending the 3, the Lakers couldn’t earn the #1 spot. They did pick it up by easily beating the Mavs on Christmas night and destroying the KAT-less Wolves. I expect a winning streak to begin soon for the defending champs as they have a very favorable schedule in January.
1. Nets – To conclude this week 1 power rankings list, I have the Brooklyn Nets at the top spot. Let’s be honest. Most of us expected Kevin Durant to not be the same coming back from an Achilles injury. But it looks like he hasn’t lost a step. He looks like the same old KD averaging nearly 27 points a game in his first three games as a Net. Kyrie Irving is playing like a superstar as well. The Nets took a big hit, however, by losing Spencer Dinwiddie to an ACL tear. Injuries are what may prevent this team from ultimately reaching the finals.
