Sixers Week 18 Power Rankings + Rookie Rankings

by Jordan Sams on Mar 1, 2011 11:06 AM PST in Philadelphia 76ers Links

John Hollinger, ESPN - 8th (5th in East)

Collins is a factor in the main COY race now and has East Coach of the Month for February wrapped up. The Sixers went 9-3, passing .500 for the first time all season with their best month since February 2003 (8-2).

Hollinger Playoff Odds - 99.1% (projected 44-38)

Tom Ziller, SB Nation - 12th (5th in East)

It looks like we may just have one East playoff team with a losing record, as the Sixers are actually making a run at the Knicks for No. 6. The Philly frontcourt is a question mark: can they get more out of Spencer Hawes? Will Elton Brand hold up all season?

Kurt Helin, PBT - 13th (6th in East)

We said this in the game recap but it bears repeating - the Sixers are over .500 for the first time since they were 2-1 under Eddie Jordan. Doug Collins should get some coach of the year consideration.

HoopsWorld - 14th (6th in East)

The Sixers thought about blowing it up earlier in the season but the team came together. Now they're on a four-game win-streak and one over .500.

Composite: 12.6 (5.8 in East)

Bonus: According to Basketball Reference's Wins Pythagorean the Sixers should be 34-25 instead of 30-29.

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Rookie Rankings: Evan Turner moves down to 13th in David Thorpe Rookie Rankings (ESPN).

I see improved confidence in Turner, especially in his midrange shooting. But he's also back to his old college days in terms of sniffing out rebounds. He had 8 last night in the Sixers' blowout win over the Wizards, marking the third time in the last four games that he grabbed at least 6 rebounds. He's becoming an interesting energy guy off the bench for one of the most interesting teams in the league right now. Come playoff time, Turner could be a difference maker.

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Comments

This is the 2nd or 3rd week we’ve been at 16 in Stein’s rankings I wonder what we have to do to move up in his with the way we’ve been playing. Maybe if we beat the Mavs tonight we will.

by The Legend on Mar 1, 2011 11:20 AM PST reply actions

It has to do with their methodology. Most seem to just look at the record to determine the rankings. Hollingers way, gives more weight to recent games. My way is to look at the past 10 games and compare each team’s performance. Based on that the Sixers are currently the 2nd best team in basketball.

In Hollinger’s system, the Mavericks are slightly ahead of us, in 7th. Based on scoring differential over the past 10, Dallas is one spot behind, with only a 1/10 of a point separating them.

According to this the Sixers have a 50-50 chance tonight, but since they are at home they should be favored.

by RickoT on Mar 1, 2011 12:45 PM PST up reply actions

Do you really believe that the Sixers are the Second best team in the league?

by Ben16 on Mar 1, 2011 1:33 PM PST up reply actions

As far as hotness goes I’d say thats correct. Overall they are no where near the top 5, but as of right now they have a shot to beat anyone on any given night.

by mopey on Mar 1, 2011 1:36 PM PST up reply actions

No. First off, the sample size is too small. I’d say that Hollinger’s is the closest to a legitimate power ranking. In the case of a growing developing team that is clearly different now than at the beginning of the year, it may be more appropriate to give a greater weighting to the more recent record.

Also, because of the recent trades and the short amount of time since them, all rankings are suspect for those teams.

The Sixers have won 7 of their last 10 for over 20 games. .700 ball is about as good as it gets, there are only 5 teams in the NBA with a record at or above and LA doesn’t make the cut! Essentially they are playing elite level ball for the most recent 1/3 of their schedule.

Watching tonight will tell a lot, if they beat the Mavericks, who by wins are the hottest team in the NBA right now, it implies that they are at least the 8th best team and probably higher.

Power rankings doesn’t mean the best team, it just means the best team right now. It’s better than just comparing records from the beginning of the year.

by RickoT on Mar 1, 2011 2:11 PM PST up reply actions

I agree it would be a good measure of which teams are hot, but comparing overall records can be useful as well. The best teams will still have the better overall records. Sure, teams can improve, the sixers as an example, but I believe they would still not be able to win a 7 game series against the top five teams in the East.

by Ben16 on Mar 1, 2011 2:47 PM PST up reply actions