Golden State Warriors Power Rankings: Can They Retain Top Spot?

By Maggie Pilloton | Mar 16, 2015

The Golden State Warriors once again own the best record in the NBA at 52-13, and once again, the Warriors finished last week with a 3-1 record.

Their three wins last week came against the Phoenix Suns, Detroit Pistons, and the New York Knicks. Their one loss came against the Denver Nuggets, which was a game in which Steve Kerr rested Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Andrew Bogut, and Andre Iguodala. Marreese Speights was also suspended that game.

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In last week’s power rankings, the Warriors continued their streak atop the power rankings, as they earned the number one spot in all of the major rankings for the fourth straight week. Will the Warriors keep the number one spot this week?

Let’s take a look. We’ll start with ESPN.

Marc Stein of ESPN ranked the Warriors in the first spot in his power rankings, after doing the same last week. Stein spoke about some of the Warriors’ most impressive traits, while also reminding fans that the Warriors didn’t advance past the first round in last year’s NBA playoffs. Here’s what Stein said:

"What should we give more credence to? Golden State’s double-digit point differential? Or its bid to become the first team to lead the league in FG percentage and FG percentage D since the 1980-81 Sixers? Or the fact that the Dubs, like the Hawks, didn’t win a playoff series last season?"

John Schuhmann of NBA.com, like Stein, placed the Warriors in the top spot in the power rankings. Unlike Stein though, Schuhmann focused more on one Warriors player in his description of the team, instead of focusing on statistics of the team as a whole. Here’s what Schuhmann said:

"Golden State (52-13)Pace: 100.9 (1) OffRtg: 109.2 (1) DefRtg: 97.6 (1) NetRtg: +11.6 (1)David Lee has had three DNPs in the last six games. His defense can be an issue, but Lee is a great playmaker at the power forward position. A team with cap space could benefit from the Warriors’ need to pay Draymond Green this summer by taking the last year of Lee’s contract off their hands. The Dubs get their rematch against Atlanta on Wednesday."

Marc Spears of Yahoo! Sports continued to rank the Warriors as the top team this week as well, and he questioned how much the Warriors truly value the top record in the NBA. Here’s what Spears said:

"1. Golden State Warriors (Record: 52-13; last week: 1): The Warriors and Hawks have been resting key players lately, which means they care more about rest than the top record."

Matt Moore of CBS Sports focused on the Warriors’ championship aspirations in his description of the team this week, as he too ranked the Warriors as the number one team. Here’s what Moore had to say about the Warriors this week:

"Nothing left to prove and little left to play for (magic number 11 for the West’s No. 1 seed, doable in 2.5 weeks). The Warriors should understand it’s not just about how good they’ve been, but the enormous opportunity before them. They can win the NBA title in three months."

The Warriors again have four games this week, but all four of them are at home. First, the Warriors face the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday night in what should be an easy win for the Dubs.

The must-see game of the week is when the Warriors face the Atlanta Hawks, who are very close to the Warriors in the race for the best record in the NBA, on Wednesday night. Warriors fans must tune in for this matchup, which will feature the best team in the Western Conference (and the NBA) against the best team in the Eastern Conference. The Hawks beat the Warriors earlier in the season in Atlanta.

On Friday, the Warriors face the New Orleans Pelicans, who are currently the ninth seed in the Western Conference and fighting for a playoff spot. Led by one of the top players in the NBA, Anthony Davis, the Pelicans are certainly a team that could put up a good fight against the Warriors.

The Warriors’ last game of this week will be against the Utah Jazz on Saturday night. The Jazz are mostly out of the hunt for a playoff spot, but they’ve been playing well recently, as they’ve gone 8-2 in their last 10 games.

Will the Warriors go 4-0 this week? Will the Warriors retain the number one spot in the power rankings again next week? We’ll keep you updated.

Next: Warriors Mailbag: Playoffs, DLee, Championship Aspirations

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