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[h1]Power Rankings: Suns rise into top 5[/h1] [table][tr][td]
By Marc Stein
ESPN.com
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The Boston Celtics managed to hang on to the top spot in ESPN.com's weekly NBA Power Rankings, but that's not the real story on this Monday. The team that inflicted Boston's first loss of the season is the headliner in this edition of the rankings.
The Phoenix Suns are 3-1 entering the final stop of their five-game swing through the Eastern Conference, highlighted by a 110-103 victory Friday night at Boston against the Celts' normally smothering D. That emphatic win and the Suns' overall 5-1 mark adds up to the most significant rankings jump of the early season, bumping Phoenix up from No. 10 to No. 4 going into its Monday night visit to Philadelphia.
Miami is the other notable riser as a newcomer to the top 10 (moving from No. 11 to No.while Chicago (No. 14 to No. 11) and Houston (No. 17 to No. 12) have also capitalized on the November struggles endured by presumed title contenders in Cleveland (No. 7 to No. 9) and San Antonio (No. 6 to No. 13).
2009-10 Power Rankings: Week 2 [/td] [/tr][tr][td]RANK (LAST WK)[/td] [td]TEAM[/td] [td]REC.[/td] [td]COMMENT[/td] [/tr][tr][td][/td] [td]1 (1)[/td] [td]Celtics[/td] [td]7-1[/td] [td]It didn't cost them the top spot, but Friday's home loss to Phoenix was costly. It prevented the C's from being registered by Elias as the season's last remaining undefeated team for the 12th time in franchise history.[/td] [/tr][tr][td][/td] [td]2 (3)[/td] [td]Lakers[/td] [td]6-1[/td] [td]Gasol's hamstring still won't cooperate. Bynum has a fresh elbow injury. So this is a case where Artest over Ariza undeniably helps LA, since Ron-Ron is big enough to fill in for bigs -- a must given LA's bench issues.[/td] [/tr][tr][td][/td] [td]3 (2)[/td] [td]Magic[/td] [td]5-2[/td] [td]First Stan Van Gundy says he's not sure "how many people have noticed" Rashard's suspension because Orlando is so deep. Then the Magic get waxed in OKC and SVG says they're "very, very soft." Midseason form.[/td] [/tr][tr][td][/td] [td]4 (10)[/td] [td]Suns[/td] [td]6-1[/td] [td]Haven't been taking much heat lately about starting the Suns at No. 10 in late September. Might have something to do with the 110 points Phoenix hung on a Boston team that hasn't allowed more than 90 to anyone else.[/td] [/tr][tr][td][/td] [td]5 (4)[/td] [td]Nuggets[/td] [td]5-2[/td] [td]No joke: We asked for an official ruling on the matter and were advised that Denver and Boston share this season's last-to-be-defeated crown in Elias' eyes because both suffered their first defeat on the same night.[/td] [/tr][tr][td][/td] [td]6 ([/td] [td]Hawks[/td] [td]5-2[/td] [td]Honestly can't remember the last time Atlanta looked this credible. Also can't quite believe that only one out of 20 voters touted Jamal Crawford to win the NBA's Sixth Man Award in our preseason predictions package.[/td] [/tr][tr][td][/td] [td]7 (5)[/td] [td]Mavericks[/td] [td]4-2[/td] [td]Won a game they had no business winning with the Utah comeback. Blew a game they had no business losing with the New Orleans collapse. Final verdict for the Mavs? Still a decent week thanks to Josh Howard's return.[/td] [/tr][tr][td][/td] [td]8 (11)[/td] [td]Heat[/td] [td]5-1[/td] [td]The quality of Miami's start has pretty much convinced us that this season in limbo -- waiting for free agency to start on July 1, 2010 -- should at least be a playoff season as long as D-Wade can play in 70-plus games.[/td] [/tr][tr][td][/td] [td]9 (7)[/td] [td]Cavaliers[/td] [td]4-3[/td] [td]Of perhaps greater concern than the two home losses they've already suffered -- after two total last season -- or even Shaq's slow start is the fact that key newcomer Jamario Moon is giving the Cavs close to nil.[/td] [/tr][tr][td][/td] [td]10 (9)[/td] [td]Trail Blazers[/td] [td]4-3[/td] [td]We'll pass along Prof. Hollinger's recent Twitter scolding to Blazers fans: "Chill out. You played five quality teams and lost by six, three and four points. If this happened in January you wouldn't even blink."[/td] [/tr][tr][td][/td] [td]11 (14)[/td] [td]Bulls[/td] [td]4-2[/td] [td]The Bulls know Noah can't do this every night, but let 'em get a little carried away. Noah's 21 points and 16 boards Saturday added up to the first 20/15 game from a Bulls starting center since Marcus Fizer. In 2004.[/td] [/tr][tr][td][/td] [td]12 (17)[/td] [td]Rockets[/td] [td]4-2[/td] [td]Still trying to sort out what this team's ceiling is without Yao and T-Mac, but it already seems safe to say that the gutty little Rockets will spend all season at the top of the list of teams no one wants to play.[/td] [/tr][tr][td][/td] [td]13 (6)[/td] [td]Spurs[/td] [td]2-3[/td] [td]Saving themselves already? The Spurs lost their first three road games for the first time in 16 seasons, but Elias says their starters had logged only 52.3 percent of the team's minutes entering Friday's Portland game.[/td] [/tr][tr][td][/td] [td]14 (19)[/td] [td]Thunder[/td] [td]3-3[/td] [td]It's just Stan Van Gundy venting after a loss without Rashard and Vince, but I imagine OKC folks will enjoy reading it: "The Thunder are much better than us right now. They would have [won] if we had everybody."[/td] [/tr][tr][td][/td] [td]15 (16)[/td] [td]Raptors[/td] [td]3-3[/td] [td]You want to talk up the damage Chris Bosh is inflicting nightly … but the porous defense and spotty ball movement we've seen from the Raps so far tempers our usual instinct to hype up anything Toronto-related.[/td] [/tr][tr][td][/td] [td]16 (20)[/td] [td]Pistons[/td] [td]3-4[/td] [td]Rip Hamilton hasn't played since opening night, Tayshaun Prince just went down thanks to persistent back trouble and rookie Jonas Jerebko has been forced to start four games. Given all that, Detroit's hanging in there OK.[/td] [/tr][tr][td][/td] [td]17 (15)[/td] [td]76ers[/td] [td]3-3[/td] [td]Iguodala's slow start last season is a memory. The same, though, can't be said for Elton Brand, who earned only 19 minutes from Eddie Jordan on Friday night and has been held under 10 points in three straight games.[/td] [/tr][tr][td][/td] [td]18 (21)[/td] [td]Bobcats[/td] [td]3-3[/td] [td]Considering that the Bobcats scored fewer than 80 points three times in their first four games and given the teams they've lost to -- Boston, Cleveland and Chicago all on the road -- they can live with a .500 start.[/td] [/tr][tr][td][/td] [td]19 (12)[/td] [td]Wizards[/td] [td]2-5[/td] [td]The Wiz don't have the depth to shrug off the shoulder injuries that have sidelined Jamison and Mike Miller. But they shouldn't be as disjointed and disgruntled as they suddenly look and sound. Even without those two.[/td] [/tr][tr][td][/td] [td]20 (13)[/td] [td]Jazz[/td] [td]2-4[/td] [td]If Jerry Sloan weren't Jerry Sloan -- which is to say untouchable in the SLC -- his name would probably start coming up in coaches-under-pressure talk after home L's to the Rockets and Kings and the blown lead in Dallas.[/td] [/tr][tr][td][/td] [td]21 (23)[/td] [td]Bucks[/td] [td]3-2[/td] [td]Maybe the skeptics had it all wrong. Maybe the pairing of a brash, cocky young point guard (Jennings) with a very demanding coach who used to be a brash, cocky PG himself (Skiles) is actually a promising match.[/td] [/tr][tr][td][/td] [td]22 (22)[/td] [td]Clippers[/td] [td]3-4[/td] [td]The streak of note in Clipperland, given the 3-16 combined record of the three teams they swept last week, is Chris Kaman's streak: 20 points or more in six straight games. His previous best was a mere two in a row.[/td] [/tr][tr][td][/td] [td]23 (1[/td] [td]Hornets[/td] [td]2-5[/td] [td]The first 8-0 start in Saints history -- someone had to tell us because you know we wouldn't have known otherwise -- theoretically takes some pressure off these guys. Or maybe it's one more thing that steams CP3.[/td] [/tr][tr][td]
[/td] [td]24 (25)[/td] [td]Pacers[/td] [td]2-3[/td] [td]From the brink of its first 0-4 start since 1988-89, Indy's suddenly riding a modest win streak and reveling in the early success of Hibbert (11.0 ppg and 10.4 rpg) and Hansbrough (13 points in a 14-minute NBA debut).[/td] [/tr][tr][td][/td] [td]25 (30)[/td] [td]Kings[/td] [td]3-4[/td] [td]Never thought the Kings would move out of No. 30 this quickly. Also never imagined they could follow up a home win over Memphis with Nocioni's arrest and Kevin Martin's injury … and then win in Utah.[/td] [/tr][tr][td][/td] [td]26 (26)[/td] [td]Timberwolves[/td] [td]1-6[/td] [td]New coach. Familiar start. Minnesota won a two-point game on opening night last season, then dropped the next eight. Kurt Rambis needs a win Monday at Golden State or Wednesday vs. Portland to avoid the same.[/td] [/tr][tr][td][/td] [td]27 (27)[/td] [td]Warriors[/td] [td]1-4[/td] [td]The first six games on the Dubs' schedule were super-favorable. And you've seen the results. So you'd be quite brave to suggest that Golden State can find harmony on its five-game swing through the East.[/td] [/tr][tr][td][/td] [td]28 (24)[/td] [td]Grizzlies[/td] [td]1-6[/td] [td]No matter how cynical you are, surely you pegged the A.I.-Grizz marriage to make it at least past Thanksgiving. Didn't you? Throw in the 0-5 road trip and Memphis' story went from riveting to depressing in record time.[/td] [/tr][tr][td][/td] [td]29 (29)[/td] [td]Nets[/td] [td]0-7[/td] [td]Even though we're already wondering, just like you, if the Nets are really at risk to challenge the 0-17 record for Worst Start Ever, they avoid our cellar because they're putting up a decent fight with eight healthy bodies.[/td] [/tr][tr][td][/td] [td]30 (2
