NBA.com - December 16, 2007:
The NRSL season began with a bang and now it is time for some POWER POLLS!

1. Atlanta Hawks
There is no doubt in my mind about this one. Suns fans will pick the Suns but there is no homering out of this one. With a starting lineup of Stat, J-Smoove, T-Mac, G-Wall, and JJ, the Hawks will beat everyone this season. They also have Jarret Jack and Shelden Williams as very capable backups. They are off to a rough start but except that to change a lot over the next thirty games. P.S. When you have a lot of players with nicknames on your team, you know your good!

Strengths: Great starting 5. Lots of nicknames. Unbelievable talent.
Weaknesses: Very weak depth. Lacks a true play maker PG.

2. Phoenix Suns
Do you hear that? It sounds like...Phoenix fans yelling at me...LOOK OUT THEY ARE THROWING TOMATOES! With the best record in the league at 15-1, the Suns are asking themselves, "why the hell are we behind 7-6 Hawks?" The answer is simple. While the Hawks are complete at all positions of the game, the Suns have a few gaps at PF, SF, and SG. Don't get me wrong, I am not saying they suck completely in those positions, its just that they aren't on the level of the Hawks.

Strengths: Very team oriented game style, which is great with Steve Nash at the helm.
Weaknesses: Very weak at PF. A little bit weak at SF and SG

3. Utah Jazz
Another Atlanta Hawks moment here. They are 7-9 but again, look for much improvement in the next twenty or thirty games. They have loads of talent in a starting five that contains Jason Terry, Jason Richardson, Dirk Nowitzki, Shawn Marion, and Carlos Boozer. With three true centers and power fowards in the lineup, their defense and inside scoring will top all others. The problem with this team is that they have no good depth.

Strengths: Loads of talent, great big men.
Weaknesses: Lots of ball hogs, no true pass first player. Bad depth.

4. Orlando Magic
Who in the world saw this coming? The Orlando Magic are in playoff discussions for the first time in a long time. It figures as they have three key players over the off-season. Ben Wallace, Rashard Lewis, and Keith Bogans have helped this team literally come from zeros to heroes (seriously now, can you remember when the Magic won a game last year). I love the Ben Wallace addition. Initially cut from the Bulls, about five teams were in contention for Big Ben's services, but Ben chose working with the Magic. This is also a phenomenal acquisition because Ben Wallace can and will mentor Dwight Howard. Think of it this way, think of Dwight Howard better (GASP).

Strengths: The greatest center, power foward duo in the country (Big Ben and DH12)
Weaknesses: The shooting guard position and no depth at the small foward position.

5. Houston Rockets
Oh man, losing T-Mac and Yao Ming in the same season sent shivers through the spines of many Houston Rocket fans. Oh ya, i forgot to mention that they got Emeka Okafor, Marcus Camby, and Allen Iverson out of it. That will ease the pain. Remember when i said that the Magic have the best big man duo in the country. Well guess who's number 2. Don't worry I will wait. That's right the Rockets. Camby and Okafor are a thing to be scared of. The Magic big man duo is more defensive than the Rockets one, but the Rockets one make it up in their tenacious offense. Camby can sink that jump shot and Okafor has been improving on his inside scoring all off-season long.

Strengths: Hmmm, let me guess. Maybe the big men?
Weakness: They would be better off if no one played for them at SF or SG.

6. Dallas Mavericks
That lineup is elite right there. They might have the fastest starting five in the league. With Harris and Deron starting at shooting guard and point guard respectively, driving to the hole will be of no challenge to this group. Josh Howard is also a big bonus to have with his great jump shot and great awareness for the game. Look for this team to improve drastically for that third playoff spot

Strengths: Speed, Shot, and Steals. The three S's
Weaknesses: Nick Fazekas is not ready to be a starting PF for that team!

7. Los Angeles Clippers
This team has he perfect balance of rookie, some experience, more experience, veterans, and mentors in the whole rosters. It seems that Sam Cassell is the team leader and mentors everyone on and off the court. Shaun Livingston has a very valuable opportunity here. Al Thorton also can get mentored from Maggette and Elton Brand. It seems like this team will be ready for years to come

Strengths: Lots of mentors, good depth
Weaknesses: Don't really have a true center

8. Memphis Grizzlies
This is a very dangerous team for the future. The average age for the starting five for their team is 21.4. They have no one above the age of 22. The scariest thing about this is that all of these young people can play the game of basketball, and can play it well!

Strengths: Youth, potential
Weaknesses: Veteran Leadership

9. Cleveland Cavaliers
Lebron, Lebron, Lebron! Those are two syllables every GM wishes they had on their team. Can you believe he has become a team leader, veteran, and already played in the finals at the age of 22? Also having Larry Hughes and Donyell Marshell is a bonus too.

Strengths: Maybe...Lebron James?
Weaknesses: Big Men are old and depth is somewhat an issue

10. Boston Celtics
Maybe the greatest Big 3 the league has ever seen. It diminished though but they got the depth they needed so badly! Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen still make for a great dynamic duo though!

Strengths: PF and SG position
Weaknesses: PG and C position.

11. Los Angeles Lakers
Well would you look at that. The Lakers are back in playoff talks! Look for this team to go far in the playoffs, even with a four or five seed. With Shaq back, and ties between him and Kobe reportedly improving, LOOK OUT!

Strengths: Shaq is sure to mentor Andrew Bynum. Depth is great
Weaknesses: Need a more passing PG that can dish to KB24.

12. New Jersey Nets
Richard Jefferson, Vince Carter, and Jason Kidd make the Nets have one of the best PG, SG, SF trios in the league. Jason Kidd does the passing, and Rich and VC do the dunking! The problem lies with their big men though but that is not a problem for the Nets now, but look for that to catch up with them

Strengths: Great dunkers on the team. Really athletic
Weaknesses: The front court.

13. Denver Nuggets
Wow, with the addition of Yao Ming, this team is almost complete. Too much holes to be ranked higher, but still a pretty decent team. This team will be ranked higher as the season continues as their young people in Yao and Melo should begin to play better.

Strengths: The center and small foward position is set.
Weaknesses: The shooting guard position needs much work on

14. Detroit Pistons
This team still has not reached its former glory and has some rebuilding ahead. Look for this team to drop if it doesn't get younger at its Point Guard and Center position

Strengths: Nice Veteran leadership
Weaknesses: TOO Much veteran leadership (too old)

15. Chicago Bulls
Now this team is interesting. On paper this team would be a top ten and fighting for a three or four seed. Now they are fighting for a bottom three seed. The only problem to my last sentence is that they are on a three game winning streak and have won five of their last six so watch out. This team could do a lot of damage and have found their "groove"

Strengths: Great depth, great SF, SG, PG which is built for the future
Weaknesses: Weak at the center and power foward position. Nocioni is a true SF not PF.

16. Indiana Pacers
This team is like the Bulls but with a twist. The Bulls are excellent at the SF, SG, PG position while this team is excellent at the PF, SF, and PG position. This is a high scoring offense that scored 134 points one time this season. It has also scored 74 in a game though. This team is very inconsistent but if they find a groove like the Bulls, watch out!

Strengths: SF, PF, and PG position is set. Pretty young
Weaknesses: C and SG needs much work on.

17. San Antonio Spurs
This team is on the verge of declining heavily and declining fast. Great PG in Tony Parker but they are way too old. They need to trade Tim Duncan and get some youth. This team is going to go down in the Power Polls!

Strengths: Good young PG
Weaknesses: Old at every position!

18. New Orleans Hornets
I guarantee you this. This team will improve and go up in the power polls really soon. Number 18 right now but do not be surprised if they win a 4th or 5th seed. Pretty young team which means they will get better as the season progresses.

Strengths: Solid PG that will be a franchise player
Weaknesses: Major help at the SF and SG position is needed!

19. Portland Trail Blazers
WATCH OUT. This team is rolling. Greg Oden and Pau Gasol will be intimidating to face and they can win any day at any time. The only problem is, is that with such a young team, comes inconsistency and thats where they falter.

Strengths: Best center in the league (in the future of course)
Weaknesses: Inconsistency and SF needs improvement

20. New York Knicks
This is another team that will go down in the ratings in a few years as well. Because they need to free up cap space quick, they will lose their top players and except them to drop out of playoff contention.

Strengths: Great big men depth
Weaknesses: Financial issue, off the field issues

21. Golden State Warriors
They might suck now, but they will be better. The problem right now with them is that they are not showing up to play. On paper this team is great it is just that if they played their hearts out which I am not seeing they would be better.

Strengths: Young team, should get better
Weaknesses: Lack of enthusiasm

22. Toronto Raptors
This team needs to do a lot of transactions to move up. Preferably they need to clear some cap and make a splash in the off-season because whatever they are doing is not working

Strengths: CB and TJ are great
Weaknesses: Not a great all-around team

23. Sacramento Kings
This team is in a rebuilding phase and the GM surely understood that. He got Rojon Rando which is a great addition. Rojon will be great in this league but needs time. Also with Kwame Brown off of waivers (who has an expiring contract) they can see if Kwame is ready for the Kings or again prove that he is just a big bust.

Strengths: Young people will improve and get most of starting jobs in next few years
Weaknesses: They need some acquisitions over the off-season.

24. Philadelphia 76ers
This team just needs time. They have good talent on this team but they don't know how to play together. Team chemistry is the issue here but it will improve in time. This is a young team so 76ers fans, don't get frustrated just yet.

Strengths: Young team that could develop
Weaknesses:Team chemistry is down the drain

25. Minnesota Timberwolves
This team is just moving people left and right. They had Dirk for twenty days and he got moved again to the Suns. The problem with this team is that they cannot develop consistency with the constant moving of players!

Strengths: Good talent on paper
Weaknesses: No consistency because of too much transactions

26. Seattle Sonics
This is a team ready for the future. Right now this team is really bad, but sonics fans are just waiting. With Kevin Durant, Luke Ridnour, Johan Petro, and other young people that have not yet developed yet, all this team can do is wait.

Strengths: Kevin Durant will be great
Weaknesses: Just a plain bad team right now

27. Milwaukee Bucks
This team had a lot going for it this season but it did not categorize. On paper this team looked good like so many others, but it seems they have not found a strategy that fit them yet. Look for this team to pull a Minnesota Vikings of the NBA this year.

Strengths: Michael Redd is beastly
Weaknesses: Team strategy is not too good

28. Washington Wizards
This was a tough choice. It was between them and the Heat but the Wizards won. This team is built on the off-season. Maybe they need to throw some games to win the Michael Beasley trophy. They need to trade the players that they know can't succeed with. Antwan Jamison is one of those players. They need to trade them for some draft picks and to free up cap space.

Strengths: The billionth time I have said this...but this is a team full of youth
Weaknesses: Look at their record. All around they stink

29. Miami Heat
Well, they aren't the championship team of a few years ago thats for sure. They have traded Dwayne Wade for youthful players. I disagree with this trade because D-Wade was a team leader and it just sucked the life out of these players. The only thing they can hope for is a good off-season.

Strengths: Can't say much but the youth they have
Weaknesses: Again, look at their record. They have no life after the trade and no one is a leader on this team.



This is monster from NBA.com. This season should shape up to be a quite interesting one and look for a more interesting league in the next two years with the influx of rookie superstars coming. Good night and good luck!

Glad to see the 11th in the West Mavs be higher up than me, the 3rd. and I got a better record than Grizz. as well as Utah.

I'm 15-1 and hes got a 7-6 ahead of me

BTW, it's Gerald Wallace at SF, T-Mac at SG, JJ at PG. Jack could start over G-Wall, though, that's a thought.

I also say that Ben Wallace really is not the true player he once was. I'd say that the combo of Amare Stoudamire and Josh Smith, IRL two of the top 20 players in the NBA, is better than DH12 and Little Ben.

Big Ben still has his defending and rebounding rating. That is what i was looking for. Thanks for the lineup change, hopefully i can get up to 29!

Josh Smith is not a top 20 player

UPDATE: Done to #9

Oh, really? Pray, do tell, he leads the NBA in blocks, is up there in steals, and is avg. around 20 ppg. Is probably one of the best all around players in the game, and is the second best SF behind LeBron.

Yes...thats why he's made the all star team...oh wait he hasn't. T-mac, melo, josh howard, shawn marion are better than smith.

They are all Westcoast. Smith will easily make the allstargame this year plus it's the East, pretty slim.

Bingo.

No sorry he won't. Bingo? I just disproved your top 20 theory and you say bingo?

Oh btw heres a list of East players better than him
Caron Butler
Paul Pierce
Andre Iguodala
J-Rich (Also considered SF)

Ha calm down chips. Your duo doesn't compare to mine at all. My duo beats you in points, rebs, blocks, steals, any statistical category.

Big whoop, I am pretty sure than fans and NBA want some new blood, plus JSmooth can play 3 positions.

Umm he's averaging 13 ppg and is not in the top 10 in blocks or steals?

Josh does lead the league in blocks, congrats, JO did it last year. Also the fans have choose the SL, and as of last night hes not in the starting lineup according to espn. Also the Coach decides the rest not the fans.

I'm confused weather we're talking about real life or this sim league lol.

J-Smooth is better than J-Rich, easily. And better than Caron. Just look at the stats.

Stats don't tell you everything. lol...its also called intangibles. Oh and yes Caron is better than Josh Smith as is J-rich, wanna count up their ASG compared to Smith?

The coach, btw, will choose Josh Smith. If he's not in, there is a serious problem.

JO led last year. But Smith is leading this year by a crapload more than the next one.

That was in the past. Smith is 23. Got plenty of ASG's ahead of him.

smith is good, but not top 20.

.6 bpg is not a lot.

That is considering that's close to 1 block a game (rounded up, which a lot of people do)

He's had a block in like 100 straight games.

how could he have a block in 100 straight games but not average at least 1 per game?

No, that's how many he's ahead of the next competitor. He averages about 3.6 a game.

Oh my bad i was going to say i thought he get 3-4 blocks a game

i liek what u say about them mavs

THIS POWER POLL IS DONE

P.S. If I do not get 10/10 with the $500 max bonus I am going to be very pissed and I would not know what I could do to get that max amount of money. I also think I deserve more than that because I spent a lot of time on this!

Well hope you enjoy the reading!

^^^Just by saying that, you don't deserve it. Don't you know anything about humility?

lol u can get more money claiming for half of a game than doing an article

thats not very fair

You deserve it for doing the first power poll, besides, it did what it was supposed to and created discussion and conflict, but it was good conflict.

9.99/10.

:)

Just kidding. 10/10 with 500 max bonus. Well written.

the right grade IMO.

Yay #7!!!

But you're right, stills earchin for a great center.

Way to bribe chips putting him at 1 lmao.

*chipperboy1 takes a bow.

Ace$ lol ahaahha

Actually i thought illest was the grader. I have written an article before and I know that the Hawks are awesome.


PS This could still be open for discussion. I can update it every sim, not for money of course, but i'll just put ppl up and move ppl down. So you guys can still discuss here!

shut up nub

Ilest was fired. I was the new grader even before he was fired.