ESPN NBA Power Rankings as of 1/12/2004
1 (1) Spurs 26-11 Yet again we say: Rasho can't be that bad defensively if Spurs are on pace to set a single-season record for PPG allowed. Hawks gave up 83.4 in lockout-shorted 1999 season; SA at 82.5 with Rasho in place of Admiral Dave.
2 (2) Kings 26-9 Great news (for us): Sacramento can get mad at someone else this week. Larry Bird, from afar, says Peja needs to broaden his offensive repertoire.
3 (3) Pacers 28-11 7-1 since Artest and Carlisle clashed, and the back-to-back in Texas -- beating Dallas and nearly beating San Antonio -- was a big credibility boost for the East's best team.
4 (4) Timberwolves 24-11 At 19-6 since their 5-5 start, it's safe to say Wolves have started to click. Safe to say, too, that they've nudged Dallas out of the West's top four for now.
5 (8) Pistons 24-13 Mavs couldn't beat these guys Sunday, but maybe they can learn from them. About two weeks ago, Pistons looked as bad as Dallas does today. Now look at Larry's squad.
6 (6) Lakers 22-11 If you don't believe us, listen to Rick Fox, who told our ESPN.com colleague Peter May: 'I think we have a bigger mountain to climb than we're willing to admit.'
7 (7) Nets 20-15 Nets are 9-3 since Kidd's tirade about the coaching. Which means he'll have to break his "no tirades" New Year's resolution if the Nets slump again.
8 (5) Mavericks 20-16 Doesn't look like a single Mav will earn an All-Star spot in Los Angeles. Doesn't look like a single Mav could argue with that sentiment, which is why another trade grows more inevitable by the minute.
9 (11) Nuggets 22-16 Denver management would be the first to tell you this isn't the ninth-best team in the league. But who else belongs up here? The elite probably stops at No. 7 and the jumble goes from No. 8 down to the mid-teens.
10 (12) SuperSonics 19-16 Much as Seattle enjoyed Flip Fever, we're guessing Sonic Nation doesn't mind so much that no one's even talking about the Flipster anymore, now that Ray has hauled the Supes back over .500.
11 (10) Hornets 22-15 Mash's recovery is taking longer than expected and Mash-less Hornets are 5-8 since 17-7 start. Hence the slip out of the top 10.
12 (9) Rockets 20-16 Van Gundy needn't worry about being sent back to TNT, as he joked the other day. But in this West, as inconsistent as his Rockets are, missing the playoffs is a serious possibility.
13 (14) Jazz 19-17 The challenges keep coming at Sloan, professionally (Harpring's forthcoming surgery) and personally (his wife's bout with cancer). Sloan being Sloan, he accepts every challenge.
14 (18) Bucks 20-17 Forget the loss at MSG. Bucks have won eight straight at home, with some quality victims on that list: New Jersey, Detroit, Indiana and Dallas.
15 (13) Grizzlies 18-18 So which is more unlikely: Memphis getting snowed out of two straight games ... or Memphis sitting at .500 nearly halfway through the schedule, but still sitting in last place in the Midwest?
16 (19) Celtics 20-19 6-1 road record against the West and Welsch's progress are nice (and needed) diversions from the suddenly sad Vin Man situation.
17 (17) Raptors 19-16 The good news: Raps have won five of seven. The bad news: "Improved" offense has cracked 90 only once in that span.
18 (15) Clippers 15-19 Let's face it: They're not deep enough to withstand a Maggette suspension or another Q injury scare. Not looking forward to that mess of forthcoming road games, either.
19 (20) Warriors 15-20 Van Exel's relationship with Muss is getting all the attention, but Troy Murphy's ongoing injury struggles are the bigger worry for Warriors.
20 (21) 76ers 17-20 AI isn't happy with the big-name local radio host, but he can't have any quarrel with the league office after suspensions enabled the Sixers to play the Clips without Maggette and the Nets without K-Mart in back-to-back games.
21 (16) Trail Blazers 16-19 Blazers didn't have 19 losses last season until Feb. 21. On the bright side, at least Blazers' problems are mostly basketball-related for once.
22 (22) Knicks 15-23 5-5 record since Isiah's arrival ain't bad. The bad part is how the Knicks can't climb higher than No. 20 in this poll with so many of the league's 20 richest contracts on their payroll now.
23 (23) Heat 15-22 Stan Van Gundy is a .500 coach since that 0-7 start. Alas, now there's little chance he'll keep winning every other game with Wade out.
24 (26) Bulls 12-25 Hiring of Skiles (8-13) can't be fairly judged for a while, but even John Paxson would tell you now that he wishes he hadn't cut Trenton Hassell in training camp to keep Linton Johnson ... who has since been cut as well.
25 (24) Cavaliers 11-25 Nineteen road games ... 14 sellouts ... two victories. Numbers that don't help LBJ's ROY campaign when Carmelo's Nuggets are 14-9 vs. the West.
26 (24) Suns 12-25 Fun while it lasted: Can't use our That's (life without) Amare comment intro anymore now that Stoudemire has been activated. We'll work on something Zarko-related now that he's back, too.
27 (29) Magic 9-28 Don't ask us to explain A) how Magic still has more road wins (five) than home wins (four) and B) how Magic moved up this week.
28 (28) Wizards 10-25 Still only team in the league that hasn't shot 50 percent in a single game this season, and still no idea when Arenas and Stack will get to play together. Not the sort of consistency Wiz was hoping for.
29 (27) Hawks 10-28 Thought about leaving this space blank to match the effort Hawks gave on this road trip. Just didn't want to confuse the hearty souls who scroll down this far.
