11/12 House Basketball Power Rankings 8.0

Let me first off address the 400 complaints that I have gotten about that ref that was chilling hard on Sunday #DarienProblems. Yea, he was straight up awful, I mean I could have dropped the People's Elbow on someone and I think he would have called it clean. Even though the ref went rogue and allowed us to play street ball (which was actually kind of awesome, full contact basketball is fun), we still had plenty of solid action, close games and highlights to write about.

() Indicates previous ranking; [] Indicates record

1. (1) [7-1] Raptors
The Raptors were without star Jack Beatty on Sunday, which made me wonder if they could hang without him. The answer? Holy crap yes. Without Beatty, the team was able to drop 62 on a Cavs defense that was chilling with no subs. Connor Gonzalez-Falla carried the team, dropping threes left and right and dishing passes to Emmet Sheehan, who is a freak of a big man who is definitely up for Big Man of the Year now. This was the third game in a row where the Raptors put up over 60 points, proving that they are no doubt a championship contender, even without Jack Beatty. Confidence could not be higher on the team too, as after the game, Brett Durbin was heard saying, "If we had Beatty we would have won by 70." The Raptors end their season with two huge games, starting with the Hawks and ending with the Knicks.

2. (2) [6-2] Nuggets
Although the Nuggets beat the Raptors earlier in the season, the Raptors had a impressive win without their star playing, keeping them at #1. The Nuggets were still incredibly impressive with an easy win over the Spurs, putting up 60 points in an 11 point victory. The one point of concern in the defense, even though it is entirely possible that the team gets lazy with such a big lead and doesn't care about playing defense. That is acceptable, and time will only tell once playoffs start in a few weeks.

3. (3) [5-3] Knicks
The Knicks defeated the Hawks in OT by two points, but remain at #3 due to the Nuggets win over them and the Raptors impressive win streak. Still, the Knicks win over the Hawks is pretty impressive, which gives them a whole lot of momentum heading into the playoffs in a few weeks. The trio of Schmidt, Gardella and Miller have been unstoppable, and will need to step it up even more with the loss of Sam Giorgio, who is out for the rest of the season. God bless him.

4. (6) [4-4] Nets
The Nets are back to their winning ways after defeating the Warriors on Sunday. Scoring 59 points in the process, the game was still close as the Warriors were able to put up 54. Still, the win continues to build an impressive résumé for the Nets, as the team now rides a two game win streak after going the distance against the Hawks last week. The blemishes that remain on it though are a loss to the Suns and a blowout loss to the Celtics. Both those loses came however in the early part of the season, and this is clearly a different Nets team.

5. (4) [4-4] Cavaliers
The Cavs lost to the #1 Raptors on Sunday after being short-handed for probably like the fifth week in a row. The team has not played with 7 or more players in three weeks, which has its benefits but also its downfalls. The team was able to score still on Sunday, mostly from Jamie Schofield and Danny O'Boyle. The teams usual scoring strategy of driving and drawing fouls didn't work well since the ref decided fouls weren't a thing, but there isn't much to worry about here. With the hopeful return of Matt Meyjes coming soon, the team looks to head back into contention in the coming weeks.

6. (5) [4-4] Hawks
The Hawks have cooled down considerably since their four game winning streak was snapped, as the team has now lost back to back games to the Cavaliers and Knicks respectively. The game against the Knicks is easily a candidate for Game of the Year, as there were plenty of entertaining moments as the game went into an overtime finish. The Drake twins continued to play well, as Chris and his brother will definitely be a factor heading into playoff season. Another huge dark horse has been Jack Baylis, who has been a beast on the boards for the Hawks all year. Quick note about the game against the Knicks too; The team was without star Andrew Mathew, which is why the team does not fall farther in the rankings. Had he been there, we might have a different story here.

7. (8) [4-4] Celtics
The Celtics were able to narrowly defeat the Suns on Sunday, which is why they are not moving up too much in the rankings. Brian Keating was the Player of the Game for the Celtics, as many of his teammates cited his "emotional leadership on and off the court" as the reason in which the team won its game. If Keating, who is well known across many sports for his emotional ways, can continue to motivate his team like he did Sunday, the Celtics will be on an emotional high heading into the playoffs, which I would say is a good advantage.

8. (7) [3-5] Warriors
The Warriors lost by 5 to the Nets on Sunday, bringing their loss total to 5 on the season. After starting the season 2-0, the team has dropped 5 of their last 6, which is not a very good sign. Yet, the teams losses during this span haven't been embarrassing at all, as many of the games have remained close until the very end. Also, the Warriors have a big win against the Nuggets under their belts, which is why you cannot count this team out come playoff time. Cary O'Brien had this to say about the game too, telling the press, "I wasn't there."

9. (9) [2-6] Spurs
The Spurs stayed close in their battle with the Nuggets on Sunday, only losing by a total of 11, which is impressive against one of the leagues best teams. Still, it is not enough to move them up from their cozy #9 spot. Expect the Spurs to remain in the lower rungs of the rankings for the rest of the regular season, as they play the Knicks and then the Warriors, which may be their final shot to take home another W.

10. (10) [1-7] Suns
So close, yet so far... The Suns were extremely close to beating the Celtics on Sunday, but there appeared to be some ref issues along the way, again. The Suns were down 9 with about a minute left when they were attempting to intentionally foul the Celtics, and the ref was having none of it. Like, the Suns could have dropkicked the kid, and the ref wasn't going to call it. After managing to get the ref to actually call the foul after about 15 seconds wasted, Timmy Graham hit big three to get within 6, but with little time left there wasn't much of a chance for a comeback. So, ref problems caused the loss? I'd say maybe, but the Suns are starting to get closer and closer to a win. Will it happen? Probably not.


Game Predictions

#3 Knicks vs. #9 Spurs
The Knicks are way too hot right now to be stopped, so they will take this one in a close battle. Knicks win.

#5 Cavaliers vs. #7 Celtics
One of these teams will win.

#8 Warriors vs. #10 Suns
If the Warriors can get both Burke brothers in attendance, there is no way the Suns will be able to defend both of them. Warriors win in Cary O'Briens return.

#2 Nuggets vs. #4 Nets
The Nets are at their highest ranking of the season once again, so enjoy the view while it lasts, because the Nuggets want their #1 spot back. Nuggets win.

*Game of the Week*
#1 Raptors vs. #6 Hawks
If Andrew Mathew shows up, this will be an absolute battle of the bigs between him and Emmet Sheehan. Both can dunk I think, so expect some posters on Sunday. This game is incredible on paper; Mulliken vs. Beatty will be a treat, the Drakes vs. Gonzalez-Falla and Ben Bidell will be entertaining, but we are all watching Mathew vs. Sheehan.

Raptors win if the team controls the boards; Hawks win if they get their shooting mojo back.