Golden State Warriors Power Rankings: Up from Last Week
The Golden State Warriors are the best. They’re the best in the Pacific Division. They’re the best in the Western Conference. And they’re the best in the NBA. Isn’t that nice to hear, Dub Nation?
Not only is the Warriors’ 26-5 record the best in the NBA, but the Warriors can also boast the number one spot in two of the four major power rankings.
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The Warriors have been atop the power rankings almost the entire season, but last week, the Warriors dropped down the list in three of the four major power rankings. Last week, ESPN dropped the Warriors down to the number two spot in the power rankings, NBA.com dropped them to number three, and CBS Sports dropped them to number four overall.
In summary, the Warriors ranked number one (Yahoo! Sports), number two (ESPN), number three (NBA.com), and number four (CBS Sports) in the power rankings last week.
This week, the Warriors had better results. Let’s start off with Yahoo! Sports.
Marc Spears of Yahoo! Sports sees the talent and the greatness that the Warriors have displayed so far in the 2014-15 season, and he decided to rank the Warriors number one in this week’s power rankings, just like last week. Here’s what he had to say about the number one team:
"1. Golden State Warriors (Record: 26-5; last week’s rank: 1): Warriors coach Steve Kerr says there is “a light at the end of the tunnel” for the return of injured center Andrew Bogut (knee), but didn’t specify how far the light was."
After ranking the Warriors number four last week, Matt Moore of CBS Sports moved the Warriors back to the top spot in this week’s power rankings. After discussing the Atlanta Hawks and their ascent to the top in his introduction, Moore still put the Warriors as the number one team. Here’s what he said about the Warriors:
"They figured out how to respond after the loss of Bogut and capped a strong week by simply outclassing the Raptors at Oracle 126-105 on Friday. The Raptors weren’t even playing badly (without DeRozan), Golden State was just a step beyond."
Marc Stein of ESPN ranked the Warriors number two last week, and this week, he decided to keep them at the number two spot, with the Hawks taking over the number one spot. Here’s what Stein said about the Warriors:
"Splash Brothers Update: Steph Curry ranks second among PGs in PER at 26.9, trailing only Russell Westbrook’s gaudy 31.7 (in 12 fewer games thanks to Russ’ hand injury). Among SGs, meanwhile, Klay Thompson is fourth at 19.8, behind James Harden (27.2), Dwyane Wade (24.5) and Jimmy Butler (22.5)."
The Warriors were number three on NBA.com’s power rankings last week, and this week, John Schuhmann of NBA.com also decided to keep them at the same spot, behind the Hawks and the Portland Trail Blazers. Here’s what Schuhmann said about the number three team:
"Golden State (26-5)Pace: 100.7 (1), OffRtg: 108.6 (4), DefRtg: 96.5 (1), NetRtg: +12.1 (1)The Warriors still rank as a top-five defense since losing Andrew Bogut, and that mark isn’t schedule aided, because five of their 12 opponents have been top-10 offenses. They’ve assisted on 71 percent of their buckets in their last seven games and are 13-1 at Oracle Arena, with a home-heavy schedule continuing through the end of January.This week: vs. OKC, vs. IND, vs. CLE"
In summary, the Warriors were ranked number one by Yahoo! Sports and CBS Sports this week, they were the number two team on ESPN, and they were the number three team on NBA.com.
The Warriors have three games this upcoming week, all at Oracle Arena, starting off with the Oklahoma City Thunder tonight. The Warriors then take on the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday and then the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday. These three games are all winnable for the Warriors, but each game poses various challenges.
We’ll see how the Warriors fare this week and if they’re able to maintain the top spot in the power rankings next week.