Earlier this month, Yahoo Sports’ Ben Rohrbach wrote a thought provoking article on Phoenix Suns forward Kevin Durant and his roller coaster career. The respected writer listed many of Durant’s accomplishments on all four franchises he’s played with, but also the drama and negative storylines that have followed.
Before continuing, let’s all admit not every obstacle Durant’s faced is because of him. The Seattle SuperSonics moved to Oklahoma City because owner Clay Bennett decided on a different, friendlier venue. Kevin Durant left Golden State because of an incompetent medical staff that made certain leg injuries worse and lied about them. Any player in any sport would’ve made the same move.
Anyways, how would you feel if Los Angeles Lakers and league star LeBron James did even half of what Kevin Durant has done? James has faced constant criticism no matter the media outlet. Most of it borders on or is absolute hatred stemming from his 2011 decision to leave Cleveland and play in Miami. Durant’s goal mirrored LeBron’s where he teamed up with certain superstars to create a championship dynasty.
While both James and Durant won two championships with the second team they played for, one went back to his home state and played for the team that drafted him, while the other wanted to create a new legacy on the opposite coast. Hilariously, the player that did the first option is still the most criticized and hated player in the league despite him winning his hometown team’s first ever NBA championship. The latter blew a 3-1 series lead against the 73-9 Golden State Warriors and then signed with them in free agency. Can you imagine if LeBron James was embarrassed by the Boston Celtics or San Antonio Spurs in a seven game series when he was in Cleveland, and then signed with them in free agency? Basketball fans would do more than scorn NBA leadership.
This isn’t even half of what Kevin Durant’s done. We can understand the decision to start fresh with a far away east coast team but only if there’s a well, thought-out plan. Reuniting with close friends and doing whatever you want is a bad look, especially if that friend causes the most drama and doesn’t play at least 41 games each year they’re on the roster. Don’t forget that close friend took an anti-vaccine stance during the first worldwide pandemic of the 21st century. Again, how would LeBron James be viewed if this happened to him?
Predictably, Durant’s time in Brooklyn didn’t live up to the expectations. So he forced his way back to the western conference via trade to Phoenix. At the time, the Suns’ coach was Monty Williams. Phoenix had a dual guard threat in Devin Booker and Chris Paul. Since Durant’s arrival, the highlights include a first round playoff series win against the Clippers without Kawhi Leonard and Paul George (they both sprained their right knees), a lopsided 4-2 second round playoff series loss to the eventual champion Denver Nuggets, Williams being fired, Paul signing with the Warriors in free agency and a trade for Washington Wizards star Bradley Beal. The latter move hasn’t worked so far because Beal’s injuries have limited team chemistry with the other two stars. Phoenix has lost a lot more games than expected, posting a 21-17 record as of this publishing. Now there’s a report saying Durant is, “disgruntled and losing patience.”
To those reading this: when do we hold Kevin Durant to the same threshold many have branded on LeBron James? James has been bashed in the media for numerous reasons, but not for bailing on a team midseason. Everyone would remember an epic 3-1 postseason series collapse against a historically great team had James been on that end. If LeBron cost his team a trip to the championship because half of his foot was behind the three-point line to tie or take the lead in a game seven, it would be branded as a stain on his legacy of being a top 4 player (minimum) of all-time. All of this has happened with Kevin Durant. Yet many aren’t as quick to criticize him as they are the league’s all-time scorer. Let’s be objective and understand the athlete most of us have watched since being drafted second overall may be more of a problem than a solution.
Here’s the first ever NBA power rankings on jdsportscorner.com. These will show where all 30 teams objectively stand. Some teams will have tiebreakers based off of how they’d perform on a neutral site.
30. Detroit Pistons
There are so many things to say about Detroit but here’s the most objective one: while nobody expected them to make the playoffs, almost everyone had them improving and having a better record before the All-Star break. The 2023-2024 Pistons might be historically awful, which is saying a lot.
#29 Washington Wizards
I’ll add that if there was a prediction on which team would have four wins by mid-January, Washington would be the easy choice due to their awful roster and free agency spending. The Wizards are lucky Detroit’s mind-bendingly bad.
#28 Charlotte Hornets
The good news is LaMelo Ball’s back, so there should be improvement. The bad news is there’s nothing Charlotte’s good at without him.
#27 San Antonio Spurs
San Antonio leads the fantastic four of awful basketball teams. Victor Wembanyama is wonderful to watch and Gregg Popovich has a passion to coach again. The Spurs must build around their league changing center once the season ends.
#26 Portland Trailblazers
Once their regular season ends, we’ll probably look back at Portland’s hiring of Chauncey Billups as the franchise’s lowest point since the Jail Blazers era. There’s no way the Trailblazers should be last in points per game.
#25 Memphis Grizzlies
Much of Memphis’ awful 2023 season will be centered on Ja Morant, but a former second overall pick are and should not be the main reasons. The injuries to Desmond Bane, Steven Adams and Marcus Smart have taken a toll on the offense, making it one of the worst units in the league.
#24 Toronto Raptors
After trading Pascal Siakam, it’s official Toronto’s rebuilding and has given up on the season. Take a look at the roster outside Siakam and make an argument this team can compete for the playoffs.
#23 Atlanta Hawks
Atlanta has to be relieved there are other bad teams dominating news headlines. Quin Snyder was hired and given more freedom to improve the Hawks both on and off the court. They’ve had one winning streak of more than two games since the season began and that was at the end of October.
#22 Golden State Warriors
I don’t know if the championship window has closed but there are two moves that have to be made before the All-Star break. The first is management trading players and improving the roster. The Warriors can’t ignore the issues at center anymore. They’re in need of better scorers and team defense. The second move is firing coach Steve Kerr. When you have multiple players saying they aren’t being developed right, it’s a coaching issue. Kerr got Golden State to six finals appearances and won four of them. He deserves the praises for making the team a dynasty. Unfortunately, the stars of those teams are older and the younger players aren’t seeing improvement. The changes would bring more confidence to a team struggling to hold fourth quarter leads.
#21 Brooklyn Nets
If the playoffs were held today, the Nets would be in the play-in due to their tiebreaker over Atlanta. This is another reason Snyder should be scrutinized more. He has Trae Young and Dejounte Murray, a good guard duo while coach Jacque Vaughn has led three, three game winning streaks with Mikal Bridges as the team’s leading scorer.
#20 Chicago Bulls
As a Chicago native, it brought me a certain amount of personal satisfaction hearing the Bulls faithful boo Jerry Krause’s Ring of Honor induction. Krause was very good at the job for which he was hired and paid handsomely for. He was also a petulant, childish, jealous and egotistical little man who knew he would never have the regard or respect of the great players he bullied and punished time and again. Despite the elite statuses of both Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen, neither were paid what they were worth because the Jerrys (Krause and the team owner Reinsdorf) were notorious in being cheap businessmen. Phil Jackson (who received a standing ovation and cheers right after Krause’s booing) was told he was being relieved from his job no matter how the 1997-1998 season ended. NBA legends such as Kevin Garnett were adamant they’d never play for Chicago due to how those in Illinois witnessed management’s treatment towards the best sports dynasty of the 1990s. So unless it’s former players or Illinois residents saying otherwise, anyone standing up for Jerry Krause has no idea who they’re talking about. In the 29 years I’ve lived in Chicago, there have only been three people in sports business where sports analysts (especially radio) cheered when news broke of their deaths. Krause was one of them.
That being said, it’s hilarious Jerry Reinsdorf’s hiring of current executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas has done almost nothing. As soon as Karnisovas left Denver, the Nuggets became a complete team and then won their first championship in franchise history. Well done Jerry.
#19 Houston Rockets
Ime Udoka was a great hire for the Rockets, who are a top ten rebounding team. There isn’t enough star talent to push this team into the play-in but they’re much better and it shows each night.
#18 Los Angeles Lakers
The Lakers are fortunate Golden State is imploding because if not, there would be a lot more heat on both coach Darvin Ham and general manager Rob Pelinka. Los Angeles is inconsistent and part of that is due to the roster Pelinka’s built. If anyone should get fired from the organization, it has to be him.
#17 Utah Jazz
Funny what winning six games out of seven will do in a conference packed together with teams one or two wins apart from each other. Coach Will Hardy is getting the most out of a roster many expected would be lower in the standings by mid-February.
#16 Phoenix Suns
While above was centered around Kevin Durant, Phoenix is just as inconsistent as the Lakers, but with more stars. They’re 5-3 this month and one of those wins was a 22 point fourth quarter comeback against Sacramento. They shouldn’t have been in that position against a division rival. How the Suns perform on their seven game road-trip starting next Wednesday will tell us where this team is mentally.
#15 Orlando Magic
The Magic are where I thought they’d be when I made my 2023-2024 season picks. They’ve learned from the past few years of blowout losses how to play better offense and defense, but they’re still young and inexperienced compared to most playoff-bound teams. They’re losing closer games but teams see the maturity.
#14 Dallas Mavericks
Another streaky team that fits where they’re ranked. Dallas is playing well without Luka but it’s debatable on how long that lasts.
#13 Cleveland Cavaliers
It’s wild to see how this team has a lot of talented players and keeps maturing but could wind up being the third best team coming out of the central once the playoffs begin. Cleveland’s won six straight and is one game ahead of Indiana.
#12 Indiana Pacers
Wow. They really got Pascal Siakam. Starting with the hiring of Rick Carlisle, Indiana’s upside is fantastic. They’ve already swept the season series against Milwaukee and have the best scoring offense and field goal percentage in the league. Siakam playing with Tyrese Haliburton and Myles Turner will make this a more dangerous team and a hard out once the playoffs start.
#11 New York Knicks
New York has only two losses this month for a combined eight points (four point losses to the Mavericks and Magic). Outside of back-to-back games against last season’s finals teams, the Knicks should win out the rest of the month.
#10 New Orleans Pelicans
This team really needs the best out of Zion Williamson because the next month and a half (minus the All-Star break) will test how ready the Pelicans are to take the next step and show they’re at least a playoff contender who can make it to the second round.
#9 Sacramento Kings
Mike Brown’s a great coach but the blown leads against Milwaukee, Phoenix and Indiana could damage the team’s confidence especially when there’s no consistency in the pacific division. They can’t have any more fourth quarter collapses the rest of January.
#8 Miami Heat
Bam Adebayo is the second leading scorer, top rebounder and averages the third most assists for Miami’s offense mid-January. That might be why the Heat are starting to pull away from the southeast division race.
#7 Los Angeles Clippers
The big question with the Clippers always is, “are they ever going to reach their max potential?” when the playoffs start. We’re months away from that being answered but viewers have to appreciate how better team chemistry between Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, Russell Westbrook and James Harden has led to a 23-7 record since November 7th (the best stretch in the NBA in that span).
#6 Oklahoma City Thunder
I really wanted Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to win last year’s MVP because you never know if a player can replicate a season quite like he could for Oklahoma City. Thankfully, he’s gaining a lot more attention and more people want him to win an MVP this season. The Thunder are dangerous when he takes charge. Gilgeous-Alexander has led OKC to the second best record in the western conference. That’s a phenomenal accomplishment.
#5 Milwaukee Bucks
Milwaukee should be higher on this list but their defense is atrocious. Of course when you trade for Damian Lillard, someone of Jrue Holiday’s caliber has to go. It’s still mind-boggling to watch how easily opponents score on the Bucks.
#4 Minnesota Timberwolves
I know, they’re the best team in the west but there’s a lot with this team to question. My critique is how Minnesota will perform the closer we get to the postseason. Will Rudy Gobert and Karl-Anthony Towns play more aggressive when it matters most or will they shrink away?
#3 Philadelphia 76ers
Anyone keeping up with the NBA knew Nick Nurse was going to be a great hire for Philadelphia to take the next steps towards a finals appearance. It’s shown with point guard Tyrese Maxey. Reigning MVP Joel Embiid finally has a reliable second option when he has off-nights. If Nurse is able to find a third option before the postseason, the 76ers could become the east’s top team.
#2 Denver Nuggets
The reigning champions picked up where they left off and are one of the hardest units to beat. Michael Porter Jr. being the third main scoring option is a nightmare for the other 29 teams to work through.
#1 Boston Celtics
Everything is going right for coach Joe Mazzulla in his second season. Free agent signing Kristaps Porzingis leads in averaged block shots and is third in total scoring, rebounding and field goal percentage. That takes pressure off stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown.
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