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NBA Power Rankings, February 15 2011

So -- obviously I ain't done these in a while, and I really have no expectation that I'm going to start doing them regularly, but I happened to be going over old posts and realized it's been almost exactly a year since these teams have been ranked. Even if I'm not all that interested in how the teams are doing now, I am kinda intrigued by the inevitable compare-and-contrast to last season. With that in mind, here we go, with both this week's and last years's results:

1. San Antonio Spurs (Rank Last Year – 10, change  +9) – So, last year, they were counting on the famed Rodeo Trip to jump start their season, but there were signs that it wasn’t gonna happen, and the NBA at large wasn’t too nervous. This year – they’re running away with the west and the Rodeo Trip is just business as usual. As long as Murphy’s Law doesn’t dictate that all their injuries are gonna be saved for April, I think we can safely call this a pretty good team.

2. Miami Heat (Rank Last Year – 20, change +18) – Because I’m lazy, I’m gonna quote myself (from February 10 of last year) whenever I can get away with not having to write more words -- but you’d probably have to admit, this example is fairly appropriate: “South Florida is a lovely place to work, but really, it’ll take a whole lot of free agents to fix this team. This better be one heck of a summer.” All right then. Well played, Mr. Riley, well played.

3. Boston Celtics (Rank Last Year – 8, change +5) – Last year they played possum in the second half of the year, but they don’t appear to be trying that tactic this time. At least, everybody else hopes they’re not going to get appreciably better all of a sudden in the playoffs. That just wouldn’t be fair.

4. Dallas Mavericks (Rank Last Year – 11, change +7) – Dirk is remarkably durable. Then again, he has to be.

5. Los Angeles Lakers (Rank Last Year – 2, change -3) – Everything everybody said about the Lakers last year? They’re saying it this year. Same dang team. You know, same dang team that won the championship last year. And the year before that. Sure, they could be slipping, but I’m not gonna bet against’em.

6. Chicago Bulls (Rank Last Year – 17, change +11) – Well, based on Miami’s 18-position jump in these rankings, you’d have to assume LeBron James, Chris Bosh and Mike Miller are worth 6 power rankings each. Then, based on Chicago’s 11-position rise, you’d have to assume Carlos Boozer is almost twice as valuable as any of those other free agents. That’s statistics, and everybody knows statistics don't lie.

7. Orlando Magic (Rank Last Year – 5, change -2) Seriously,  Dwight Howard just makes everybody he plays with a better defender. If he and Steve Nash (you know, the guy who makes everybody he plays with better on offense) were ever on the same team, I think it might be the basketball equivalent of dividing by zero.

8. Oklahoma City Thunder (Rank Last Year – 7, change -1) – Last year, they apparently overachieved. This year? Maybe they are this good. Neat.

9. New Orleans Hornets (Rank Last Year – 19, change +10) – Huh, a reasonably healthy Chris Paul and a 10-position rise in the rankings. I’m sure these two things are entirely coincidental.

10. Atlanta Hawks (Rank Last Year – 6, change -4) – Well, Joe Johnson is on the All-Star team again, and the team is probably exactly as good as it was last year. You know, that year when they meekly bowed out of the second round of the playoffs. Yep, that is one soundly managed franchise they’ve got down there.

11. Memphis Grizzlies (Rank Last Year – 14, change +3) – They’re a good, solid team. Right now. With a couple of the important pieces of their team locked up long term. As for the other important pieces... well, maybe the new CBA has some “let’s throw a bone to the small market teams” clauses that we don’t know about yet.

12. Denver Nuggets (Rank Last Year – 4, change -8) – Man, this is how far they drop with ‘Melo in the lineup. I dig Arron Afflalo as much as the next guy, but this could be a harrowing trade deadline coming up.

13. Portland Trail Blazers (Rank Last Year – 13, change --) – So, do you think Portland fans are happy with their “Most Consistent Franchise in These Rankings” title? Sorta seems like winning Miss Congeniality – and not from participating in a beauty contest, more like as a door prize at a Sandra Bullock movie giveaway night. So yeah, maybe not so much with the hip-hip-hoorays.

14. Philadelphia 76ers (Rank Last Year – 21, change +7) – Seriously? How did these guys get all the way up here? And who told Elton Brand it was 2006?

15. Utah Jazz (Rank Last Year – 3, change -12) – I really don’t like how much the Utah Jazz’s troubles lend credence to the whole Carlos-Boozer-is-the-most-valuable-free-agent theory. That just doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. It’s hard to get around, though, it’s not like the franchise has made any other drastic changes in the last few – oh. Never mind.

16. Phoenix Suns (Rank Last Year – 9, change -7) – Pff, who needs continuity? Miami’s roster is almost completely overhauled, and they’re doing all right.

17. New York Knicks (Rank Last Year – 24, change +7) – Is it scary that the team Amare left dropped 7 positions, and the team he joined jumped 7? I mean, that Landry Fields is a gamer, but still.

18. Houston Rockets (Rank Last Year – 15, change -3) – And what I said last year has not changed a whit: “I would really like if this team made the playoffs. That said, I would really like this team to have at least one lottery pick on the roster. Tough decisions.”

19. Indiana Pacers (Rank Last Year – 23, change +4) – Who knows? A good-not-great young core, but in the East. Meh.

20. Golden State Warriors (Rank Last Year – 29, change +9) – I don’t know if they’ve gotten that much better, or if there’s just been more carnage in the standings around them. I would like Stephen Curry’s ankles to magically grow to a larger circumference than your average pipe cleaner, though.

21. Charlotte Bobcats (Rank Last Year – 16, change -5) – Again, this team hasn’t really changed. If they give maximum effort, they can win roughly half their games, and even then it’s ugly. You know, props for the effort, but Fan Appreciation Night better be a humdinger.

22. Los Angeles Clippers (Rank Last Year – 22, change --) – So, Blake Griffin is ree-dick-ulous, Eric Gordon has clearly improved, and Baron Davis even showed a pulse for a little while there. And yet, no change in the rankings. Maybe next year, Clips fans – especially all of you who were here pre-Blake.

23. Milwaukee Bucks (Rank Last Year – 18, change -5) – How many players should be traded to Phoenix strictly for the training staff? Oden? Roy? Yao? Ya gotta put Bogut on that list.

24. Detroit Pistons (Rank Last Year – 27, change +3) – In the 2005-06 season, you could refer to the Eastern Conference playoff bracket as Detroit and the 7 Dwarfs. (pause.) Sigh. (long pause.) Deep sigh.

25. New Jersey Nets (Rank Last Year – 30, change +5) – Remember, Nets fans, complaining about Brook’s declining rebounding numbers is infinitely preferable to complaining about being the laughingstock of the league. It could be so much worse.

26. Sacramento Kings (Rank Last Year – 28, change +2) – This is a young, talented team, but ....  They remind me of giving a paintbrush to a chimpanzee. Sometimes you can take what you get and convince the art world it’s a masterpiece, but usually, you get something that looks like what happens when you give a paintbrush to a chimpanzee.

27. Minnesota Timberwolves (Rank Last Year – 26, change -1) – What is bizarre to me is that this is actually the plan in Minny. That’s kind of commendable, except, you know, Darko. And Rubio still lives in Spain. And Rambis really tried to use the triangle. I just... whatever. The world needs more Dadaism.

28. Washington Wizards (Rank Last Year – 25, change -3) – Holy crap, they traded Gil’s contract. I don’t care if they win another game all season, this is a successful year.

29. Toronto Raptors (Rank Last Year – 12, change -17) – Wow, that’s a big drop. I wonder why you don’t hear more people talking about this team, and what a bad idea it is to have to trade your max player for nothing more than a trade exception?

30. Cleveland Cavaliers (Rank Last Year – 1, change -30) – Oh, right.

#lessambitiousmovies

Well, this oughta take up some space...

• Slight Trouble in Little ChinaTown
• 5ive
• Rocky Horror Puppet Show
• Keep the Volume the Same
• The Shawshank Awkward Ceremony
• Rickshaw Driver
• Life is Quirkily Attractive, You Know, Like Joan Cusack
• Annie Doorway
• The Pauly Shore Code
• I Am Kinda Famous
• The Devil Wears JC Penney
• PG
• Mild Mild West
• The Forest Brochure
• Night of the Slightly Under The Weather
• Shrek, For Now, Anyway
• There Will Be -- Well, It'll Leave A Mark, Anyway
• Good Morning, Guam (starring Robin Bills and Trees Whitaker)

And, just 'cause I might be doing it wrong:

• Friday
• Pleasantville

Thanks, try the veal, drive safe.

This Should Explain a Little

So -- while I am a dude who likes ladies, I must admit, I'm not sure if I have a 'type' of lady that is my go-to archetype for attractiveness. I don't tend to get too worked up over blonde/brunette/redhead, and I'm relatively nonchalant about any particular height or weight numbers. I mean, granted, I definitely find certain women more attractive than others, but they might not necessarily look the same, you know?

And then, there's this, probably the best example I can come up with. If somebody asked me what I thought of Zooey Deschanel, I would likely respond with, "Mmm. Yes please." Then, if that same hypothetical somebody asked me if I found Katy Perry attractive, I would probably say something like, "Meh, I dunno, she's not really my thing."

Erm.

I mean, obviously, right?

(h/t eject)

Ladies and Gentlemen, Mr. Stephen Fry

"Who do you feel more sorry for? Who do you actually want to hug? The person you happen to know has a tumour, and is just getting through life not talking about it, smiling, trying not to embarrass anybody about it; or the kind of person who’s always going, “My leg, that went there, and then I had this pain here and the doctor didn’t know what to do about it, and I get these flashes --” Oh, Christ, I’m sure it’s terrible for you dear, but shut up! Now – of course we do our best and we feel sorry for all kinds of people and we, you know, show sympathy, but – the real heroism of people who quietly get on with their lives and think of others should be rewarded, and usually is by the fact that they are liked. And if you’re liked, people want to be with you, and if people want to be with you they share opportunities with you, and you observe the way they do things, and your life can open up, and there are opportunities everywhere."

"I suppose the thing I most would liked to have known, or been reassured about, is that in the world, what counts more than talent, what counts more than energy or concentration or commitment or anything else is kindness. The more in the world you encounter kindness -- and cheerfulness, which is its kind of amiable uncle or aunt – the more, just the better the world always is. And all the big words – virtue, justice, truth – are dwarfed by the greatness of kindness."

More meandering insight to be found here, or here.  (h/t No Sign At All)

Sadly, the beast needs more torque

Well, on a sad note, Maury Chaykin has passed away. It was his 61st birthday today -- which, strangely, makes him exactly the same age as my mother. (She, thankfully, is in the pink of health, and yes, I did call her with birthday wishes long before I contemplated this blog post.) It also means that he is the second instrumental cog of the Whale Music movie to have shuffled off this mortal coil this year, as Paul Quarrington died in January. They both seem way too young to go, and all I can say is that I hope Dave Bidini is taking his vitamins.


Rest in peace, gentlemen.

 "The music ends, that is to say, it disappears forever to journey in the cosmos."

Wave of Decrepitude

Well -- I gotta say, I have no idea what you do for a living, and neither do I have any idea what hobbies you enjoy in your spare time. Maybe you're a nurse, or a cut-man in a boxer's corner. Maybe you enjoy dumpster diving at the hospital, or perhaps you're a groupie with an odd assortment of souvenirs gleaned from your personal associations with rock stars. What I'm getting at is, I have no idea how many plaster casts you see in an average day, but as for me, I could probably go a good six months without seeing a single one -- and even then, I couldn't guarantee you that seeing that single plaster cast would make a big enough impression that I'd even vaguely remember it the next day. So, yesterday was a little odd -- I saw:

• one plaster cast on a broken wrist on a customer in a Subway at Vic Park and Danforth at about 4 in the afternoon;
• one on the arm of the driver in a car next to me on the 401;
• one on the arm of  patron outside a gas station convenience store just outside of Belleville;
• and yet one more on the arm of the clerk at the Burger King counter in Belleville at about 10:30 at night.

So, what I'm gathering from that (besides the fact that I eat juu-u-ust a little too much fast food), is that the average South Ontarian suddenly needs a whole lot more calcium in their diet. Weird.