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2008-2009 Power Rankings

updated August 10, 2008

1. Los Angeles Lakers

With Bynum healthy, this team should be the prohibitive favorites going into next season.

2. Utah Jazz

This team quietly made two excellent additions in Koufos and Knight, and now arguably has the best bench in the league.

3. Boston Celtics

Losing Posey hurts, but their bench is still very solid with House, Tony Allen, and Powe still in the fold.

4. New Orleans Hornets

Posey is a great addition, but this team still needs to fill a few holes on the bench to go with their superb starting lineup.

5. San Antonio Spurs

Although the Spurs are aging, look for them still to contend as long as they have Parker, Ginobili, and Duncan.

6. Houston Rockets

With Yao and McGrady healthy, this team will continue to be a force in the West. Their window of opportunity is shrinking though.

7. Phoenix Suns

Nash, O'neal, Raja Bell, and Grant Hill are all aging; their bench will have to play a much bigger role this year if the Suns want to contend.

8. Detroit Pistons

The Pistons have not made a significant move this off-season and still remain well behind the Celtics in the East.

9. Dallas Mavericks

The Mavs are still a playoff team, but don’t look for them to compete for a title unless they make a major trade.

10. Cleveland Cavaliers

They still need to resign Delonte West, but if Szczerbiak or Pavlovic can consistently hit shots, Cleveland could be better than Detroit.

11. Philadelphia Sixers

This ranking assumes that they resign Iguodala. Brand is a great addition and should get Philadelphia into the top four in the East, if not higher.

12. Orlando Magic

Pietrus will be a solid addition at shooting guard, and Anthony Johnson provides solid experience as backup to Nelson.

13. Portland Blazers

With a healthy Oden, more experience and a deep bench, look for Portland to grab the last playoff spot in the West.

14. Washington Wizards

If this team could just stay healthy, they could be a top four team in the East. Look for Nick Young to make more of an impact this year.

15. Toronto Raptors

Even with O'neal in the fold, this team needs Bargnani to play like the number one pick if they want to advance to the second round of the playoffs.

16. Golden State Warriors

Losing Baron Davis probably keeps them out of the playoffs, but give them credit for stockpiling enough talent to at least contend.

17. Los Angeles Clippers

I'm not sure this team can score enough points to make the playoffs. Thornton and Gordon will be relied upon to make big impacts.

18. Miami Heat

Despite the holes at center and point guard, Wade, Marion and Beasley should be talented enough to grab the last playoff spot in the East.

19. Sacramento Kings

The Kings are putting all their chips behind Beno Udrih to play as well as he did last year. If he produces, the playoffs are a possibility.

20. Chicago Bulls

This ranking assumes they resign Luol Deng. I like their chemistry and bench, and if they Heat falter, the Bulls could slip into the playoffs.

21. Milwaukee Bucks

From a talent perspective, they are a playoff team. But there may not be enough shots to go around for everybody.

22. Charlotte Bobcats

It is a mystery why this team, with so much young talent, fails to compete for the playoffs each year. Let's see if Larry Brown can change that.

23. Denver Nuggets

This team was already bad defensively, and traded away their best defensive player for nothing. They are going in the wrong direction.

24. Minnesota Timberwolves

I like their balance offensively, and they are deep up front. They are probably a year away from competing, but could be very good late in the season.

25. Atlanta Hawks

This franchise really let down their fans by letting Childress get away, and could lose Josh Smith as well.

26. Indiana Pacers

The Pacers have solid wing players and T.J. Ford is a fine addition at point guard, but they lack scoring and depth in the frontcourt.

27. Oklahoma City Thunder

This team has a bright future, but they need another year to put it all together. Westbrook needs to prove he was worthy of a top five pick.

28. New Jersey Nets

After Carter and Harris, this team has a lot of mediocre players. Don't confuse more talent in the frontcourt with better talent in the frontcourt.

29. New York Knicks

If the Knicks can't trade Randolph and Marbury, they should just cut them and give the minutes to younger players.

30. New York Knicks

They might score some points, but look for them to be one of the worst defensive teams of all time. Their frontcourt is extremely weak.

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