2017/18 Raptors Power Rankings thread

[Jclaw]

I noticed that this was starting to pop up in other threads so I thought I would get the main one started. I'll start with a list of power Eastern Conference rankings/predictions from various sources to start the season and we'll see where it goes from there. It will likely evolve to league wide as the season goes on. Keep in mind I started searching some predictions pre broken Hayward and some post so I'm not sure if that may have affected anything. Anyways, here they are...

ESPN 4th (behind cavs/celts/wiz)
SI 5th (cavs/wiz/celts/bucks)
NBA 4th (cavs/celts/wiz)
CBS 2nd! (cavs)
WashPost 6th! (cavs/wiz/celts/heat/bucks)
Bleacher Rep 5th (celts/cavs/wiz/bucks)

Seen any others? I was kind of scraping the bottom by the end

[S.R.]

I noticed that this was starting to pop up in other threads so I thought I would get the main one started. I'll start with a list of power Eastern Conference rankings/predictions from various sources to start the season and we'll see where it goes from there. It will likely evolve to league wide as the season goes on. Keep in mind I started searching some predictions pre broken Hayward and some post so I'm not sure if that may have affected anything. Anyways, here they are...

ESPN 4th (behind cavs/celts/wiz)
SI 5th (cavs/wiz/celts/bucks)
NBA 4th (cavs/celts/wiz)
CBS 2nd! (cavs)
WashPost 6th! (cavs/wiz/celts/heat/bucks)
Bleacher Rep 5th (celts/cavs/wiz/bucks)

Seen any others? I was kind of scraping the bottom by the end

Pretty harsh for a team that spent most of last season in the top 5 of the overall Power Rankings to be demoted to 4th-6th in just the East. Damn, Patrick Patterson and PJ Tucker must have been really good.

Hey, remember when the Raps punted the Bucks in 6 games in the first round last spring? Apparently nobody else does.

[Demographic Shift]

Lots of Alphabet love out there... The NBA needs stars to make it go..So the Bucks are going to get the young team on the rise treatment....

Tim Bontemps at WAPO having them at 6 is almost funny. Tim..a lifelong Wizards fan has the Wiz in the ECF and giving Lebron a test like he has never faced....


Read that a couple of the Raps beat guys, puusnboots1 Koreen and pussnboots2 lewenberg have them at 5...
Lots of this hangs off losing Carroll, Tucker and PPat. That pat lost his shot and his confidence and carroll just lost his skills to injury and either didn’t help much kinda shows that not to many watch the raps play.they don’t get much exposure so it’s easy to understand...

They’ll be backpedaling soon enough.... the pussnboots twins will bootlick and parrot the us media till the tune changes south of the 49th when the raps start rolling....no real original ideas out of these dudes....

[DogeLover1234]

Pretty harsh for a team that spent most of last season in the top 5 of the overall Power Rankings to be demoted to 4th-6th in just the East. Damn, Patrick Patterson and PJ Tucker must have been really good.

Hey, remember when the Raps punted the Bucks in 6 games in the first round last spring? Apparently nobody else does.

Eh there is something to young cores getting a lot better whereas you probably know what the Raptors are. The thing is you know the Raptors are a 50+ win team so I don't really understand what these guys are saying. You can criticize this team all you want in the playoffs, but they have the regular season down to a science.

[KeonClark]

The sad part is I see this year as really an unwinnable situation in regards to getting media respect. Worst case scenario, we do end up a lower seed, and everyone goes "haha raptors told ya so, they're done." Best case scenario is what? We take first seed, conference finals and get stomped by the cavs, and everyone goes "haha stupid raptors, just Lebron's bitches like always"

[Scraptor]

Pretty harsh for a team that spent most of last season in the top 5 of the overall Power Rankings to be demoted to 4th-6th in just the East. Damn, Patrick Patterson and PJ Tucker must have been really good.

Hey, remember when the Raps punted the Bucks in 6 games in the first round last spring? Apparently nobody else does.

How anyone has the Bucks over us is beyond me. Unless Thon Maker turns into KG 2.0 we are heads above them imo.

[S.R.]

The sad part is I see this year as really an unwinnable situation in regards to getting media respect. Worst case scenario, we do end up a lower seed, and everyone goes "haha raptors told ya so, they're done." Best case scenario is what? We take first seed, conference finals and get stomped by the cavs, and everyone goes "haha stupid raptors, just Lebron's bitches like always"

And I don't even disagree with that, the Raptors are still a country mile behind the Cavs, personally I think they could beat the Celtics but acknowledge that's debatable, but even that is moot as now any victory over Boston will be received with "Yeah, but Hayward..." National media has been waiting for Wall and Beal to become a superstar tandem for something like 4 years now, and I'm a Giannis fan but his roster has no flexibility and he still has no jump shot. I think Lowry/DeRozan/Ibaka is a stronger core than any team other than the Cavs and that the Raptors have more depth than most teams in the East. I don't think it's just a fan perspective to say that. I can understand people putting them #3, but putting them #4-6 is idiotic. This team has been a second or third round team for three straight years, that alone is top 4 in the conference.

[Scraptor]

Also probably makes sense to track us leaguewide, OP.

Our rank in the eastern conference is illusory and shouldn't really be how we gauge our success.

[DanH]

Up to 6th at ESPN:

http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/2...ankings-week-2

[Nilanka]

Up to 6th at ESPN:

http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/2...ankings-week-2

So refreshing to hear that the Raptors have the 3rd longest West Coast road trip of any team. Thanks Silver.

[DanH]

So refreshing to hear that the Raptors have the 3rd longest West Coast road trip of any team. Thanks Silver.

Technically it's the longest, tied with one other East team (and one West team who goes East for a 6-gamer).

I don't mind it at all - get that swing out of the way early in the season, find a way to tread water, bond as a group on the road, and it's all downhill from there.

[Puffer]

Technically it's the longest, tied with one other East team (and one West team who goes East for a 6-gamer)...

I like how they play each of three teams twice, although it does mean back tp backs. On the plus side, air travel is only a couple of hours for each trip, and for those three stops they get to stay in the same hotel for a couple of days, minimizing packing up and relocating. In addition the game plan for the first night against each team should be similar the second night, with a chance to tweak. One can hope they take care of business with Portland and the Lakers and come away with 4 W's there.

[planetmars]

I miss Stein.. he was the best NBA reporter out of ESPN and I enjoyed his power rankings more than others.

[S.R.]

I miss Stein.. he was the best NBA reporter out of ESPN and I enjoyed his power rankings more than others.

Same.

#6 on ESPN today - http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/2...ankings-week-4

Important to remember Toronto is not the only team with a few underwhelming performances to start the year. Only GSW/HOU/BOS have really gotten off to a strong start in the W/L column. Minny and Detroit looking pretty good too, but they won't be challenging for the top of their conferences all year.

[KeonClark]

Despite the doom and gloom today, ESPN was kind to us, and kept us in 6th in the power rankings, 2nd in the East.

http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/2...ankings-week-5

CBS was not so kind, in fact they're pretty mean, they've sat us down at 13th (but up from 18th, gee thanks) and 6th in the East behind Boston, Detroit, Orlando, Philly and New York, and roasted our ISO at the end of yesterday

https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/n...-jazz-plummet/

USA Today has us in 7th(improving from 10th), 3rd in the East behind Boston and Detroit and correctly points out that Lowry has been playing good lately

https://www.usatoday.com/story/sport...hot/855824001/

Sports Illustrated has moved us from 12th to 9th, 4th in the East behind Washington Detroit and of course Boston

https://www.si.com/nba/2017/11/13/nb...ggets-warriors

Overall: the flux in teams shows just how early it still is, but on average we moved up in every ranking are seated at 9th in the NBA, 4th in the east, behind Boston, Detroit and "miscellaneous"