Report-Card Grades for Every NBA Team Entering Season's Midway Point
Assigning grades to NBA teams isn't as simple as scanning up and down a multiple-choice test to see which answers were correct and then calculating a score. Everything has to be relative, as we're most interested with how each of the 30 franchises is faring compared to the expectations that accompanied it heading into the 2014-15 season.
Take the Philadelphia 76ers and San Antonio Spurs, for example.
Both teams are receiving the same grade in our breakdown as we near the midway point of the campaign. But those squads have had massively different seasons, with the Spurs remaining among the Western Conference elite and the Sixers struggling to escape from the bottom of the Association's weaker half.
As you peruse our red-penned efforts to make sense of every team's 2014-15, don't forget about the initial expectations for each of the 30.
If a team is meeting them or coming close, it will receive a "B." If it's performing better or worse, then its grade will correspond accordingly.
New York Knicks
1 of 30
The New York Knicks have been an unmitigated disaster during the 2014-15 season.
Even when Carmelo Anthony is fighting against his balky knee and suiting up in his blue-and-orange uniform, the Madison Square Garden residents haven't been even slightly competitive. Fortunately, Phil Jackson recognizes this and has acted accordingly, trading Iman Shumpert and J.R. Smith to the Cleveland Cavaliers for financial relief and draft picks, and cutting Samuel Dalembert.
What remains in New York is a hodgepodge of mediocrity (even that phrase may be too kind), a roster that has left Derek Fisher trying to teach no-name prospects like Langston Galloway and Travis Wear how to run the triangle offense. Sure, some of the Knicks are impressing here and there, but the overall product has been nearly unwatchable; they are competitive for a maximum of a few minutes and utterly devoid of the effort levels required to win NBA games on a consistent basis.
We've moved beyond experiencing the worst start in franchise history. This goes far past that, and there's no sign of an imminent turnaround, especially after the Knicks managed to score just 79 points with Anthony in the lineup during a London game against the Milwaukee Bucks.
Grade: F
Cleveland Cavaliers
2 of 30
Expecting the Cleveland Cavaliers to be world-beaters right off the bat was foolish. It overlooked what history has taught us about newly formed superteams, ignoring the fact that these squads require time for coalescing, as well as the complete lack of defensive talent on this roster.
However, the Cavs weren't supposed to be this awful.
The roster was too talented to go 1-8 while LeBron James was sitting out of the lineup to let his strained knee and back heal. Kevin Love wasn't going to be such an atrocious fit in the lineup, forcing management to make panic trades and ship off their only real assets for J.R. Smith, Iman Shumpert (who hasn't debuted yet due to his shoulder injury) and Timofey Mozgov. Surely, Cleveland wouldn't need to beat Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers just to get back to a .500 record this late in the season.
But that's where these Cavaliers sit. There's still plenty of time for a turnaround, but expecting anything other than a non-elite seed in the Eastern Conference playoff picture is now flying in the face of all the evidence, as David Blatt's offensive systems haven't stuck and the defensive effort is still atrocious.
Though it's hard to give a team a failing grade while it remains at .500 and within the playoff picture if the season ended right now, the Cavs are not contenders. That, in and of itself, is a failure.
Grade: D
Oklahoma City Thunder
3 of 30
The Oklahoma City Thunder are well out of the playoff picture right now, trailing the Phoenix Suns by a handful of games in the increasingly competitive race for the final spot in the Western Conference seeding order. But this isn't even a two-team competition, as the Thunder also trail the New Orleans Pelicans and are losing a tiebreaker to the Denver Nuggets.
Sure, missing Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook gives OKC a convenient excuse. Without the reigning MVP and his All-Star point guard in the lineup, this wasn't even close to the same team. But the Thunder were massively disappointing without their two superstars, and the scary/ugly truth is that they haven't been much better since Durant and Westbrook re-entered the picture.
According to my FATS projections (full explanation here), the Thunder, who have gone just 3-3 since Durant came back from his sprained ankle, are playing like a 20-win team over that six-game stretch. Their top historical comparison—I kid you not—is the Charlotte Bobcats squad that suited up and won 21 games in 2012-13. The Thunder have struggled with their shooting, but it's even more concerning that they've played abysmal defense.
At this point in the season, OKC is a distinct underdog in the chase for No. 8.
Grade: D
Minnesota Timberwolves
4 of 30
The Minnesota Timberwolves never made any pretenses about remaining competitive this year, instead dealing Kevin Love to the Cleveland Cavaliers for a package of prospects highlighted by Andrew Wiggins. But even still, they weren't supposed to sink all the way to the bottom of the Western Conference.
No one could have predicted the major injuries suffered by the incumbent trio of Kevin Martin, Nikola Pekovic and Ricky Rubio. That's a valid excuse, but the Wolves still have to be disappointed by how little they've gotten from their many young guns.
Shabazz Muhammad began to break out around the quarter mark of the season, and Wiggins has been coming on stronger in recent weeks. However, the prospects have been massively inconsistent and completely overmatched without many veteran presences around them.
As a result, Minnesota has posted the worst defensive rating in the league. According to Basketball-Reference.com, the team has allowed 112.2 points per 100 possessions, and that gives them an adjusted defensive efficiency of just 94.38. Throughout all of NBA history, only 14 teams have been worse in that category. In the last decade, the 2005-06 Seattle SuperSonics (92.83) and Toronto Raptors (94.23) are the only members of the inauspicious group.
There's still plenty of upside here, but it's currently taking the form of unrealized potential that leads to one loss after another.
Grade: C-
Sacramento Kings
5 of 30
Did you know that Charles Dickens was a fan of the Sacramento Kings?
Seeing as he lived in England and died in 1870, that's probably not true, unless he had some seriously impressive foresight skills. But when he wrote, "It was the best of times, it was the worst times," he may as well have been referring to the first half of this 2014-15 campaign by the Kings.
Sacramento was exceeding expectations under Mike Malone, playing vastly improved defense while picking off opponents with smart shooting from DeMarcus Cousins and Rudy Gay. But when the league's best center went down with viral meningitis, Sacramento dismissed Malone, and the team plunged into an inescapable funk. Since Tyrone Corbin took over in Sac-Town, the defense has been rather shoddy, and the offense hasn't fared much better.
Now, the Kings look more like the version of the team we've seen over the last few years—boasting a roster with significant levels of talent but showcasing no direction. They're sinking back down toward the bottom of the Western Conference standings, and all that potential that was on full display during the first few weeks of the 2014-15 season is now dormant once more.
Grade: C-
Charlotte Hornets
6 of 30
The Charlotte Hornets are finally turning their season around. And thanks to geography, which has them competing in the weaker half of the NBA, it's not just a case of too little, too late. The former Bobcats could well emerge as a significant factor in the playoff race, especially if they continue playing like they have during their last handful of outings.
Recently, the defense has been on point. It finally resembles what we saw from Charlotte during its successful campaign in 2013-14—swarming shooters, doing everything possible to avoid sending opponents to the free-throw stripe and crashing the defensive glass with fervent fury.
According to FATS, the Hornets have been playing like a 52-win squad over their last six outings, which have included victories over the New Orleans Pelicans and Toronto Raptors, as well as a close loss to the league's defending champions. It's enough for them to remain hopeful they could play more than 82 games this year, but it's not going to improve their grade all that much yet.
We're not grading based on what's going to happen, but what's already come to pass. And for the Hornets, that's offensive stagnation, a massive defensive decline and a free-agent signing (Lance Stephenson) who has underwhelmed mightily.
The Hornets should finish the season with a much more respectable letter than a "C," but they haven't earned it yet.
Grade: C
Los Angeles Lakers
7 of 30
No matter how excited fans were about the offseason arrival of players like Carlos Boozer and Jeremy Lin, the ceiling for this Los Angeles Lakers squad was always going to be low. Expecting a 36-year-old Kobe Bryant to come back from multiple major injuries and carry an offense was never realistic, and the defense never had any promise.
Well, the worst fears have come true. And then some, at times.
The Lakers have been porous all year, allowing 111.7 points per 100 possessions, which, via Basketball-Reference.com, leaves them ahead of only the Minnesota Timberwolves on the defensive rating leaderboard. But due to injuries, atrocious shooting from Bryant and lackluster production from the notable additions, the offense hasn't even been all that much better, coming in slightly below the league average.
Granted, Los Angeles has improved upon its putrid start to the year. The 1-9 beginning to the season is but a distant memory, especially now that Bryant is playing smarter basketball and involving his teammates with far more frequency. The Lakers are no longer an automatic win on the schedule, but rather, a squad that demands significant effort from the opposition, and that is quite a bit of progress.
But still, this is a disappointing campaign, especially for such a proud franchise.
Grade: C
Miami Heat
8 of 30
All of the Miami Heat's worst nightmares have become realities.
Leaving Chris Bosh as the primary center and surrounding him with lackluster defensive pieces has led to the defending Eastern Conference champions struggling to prevent points and looking particularly porous right around the basket. The lack of high-quality play from the point guards has made the offense more inconsistent. Filling up a roster with injury-prone veterans and a complete dearth of reliable depth has left, well, a shallow team that suffers through one injury after another.
Miami is still poised to earn the No. 7 seed in the Eastern Conference, but it boasted a 17-22 record heading into a Friday night contest with the Sacramento Kings. This team wasn't supposed to be this far under .500 nearing the midway point of the season, even though expecting it to compete for a top spot in the East was too optimistic all along. That's especially true since Dwyane Wade has been largely healthy and effective.
With a below-average offense and a defense that has been one of the very worst in the NBA, the Heat don't seem all that likely to improve anytime soon—not unless they add new pieces, stay healthy and implement new schemes.
And with the Charlotte Hornets and Detroit Pistons charging, Miami's hold on No. 7—or even No. 8, for that matter—could soon be under duress.
Grade: C
Boston Celtics
9 of 30
While general manager Danny Ainge stockpiled some draft picks that will help out this rebuilding team, he didn't get all that much in return for a former All-Star like Rajon Rondo. The longtime Boston Celtic is now with the Dallas Mavericks, and even the player he brought to Beantown (Brandan Wright) has now been shipped off to the Phoenix Suns.
Nonetheless, the Celtics have been surprisingly impressive at times. The defense in particular has been adequate throughout the season, as the remaining members of the roster have been committed to performing under head coach Brad Stevens.
Rebuilding teams operate on a different grading scale, as they aren't necessarily supposed to be competing for many wins.
The Celtics are no longer on the hunt for a playoff bid, though they were on the fringe of the competition before Rondo departed. But how many true building blocks have emerged on this roster?
There are plenty of solid pieces, such as Tyler Zeller, Jared Sullinger, Avery Bradley and Marcus Smart. But no star has shown up, and there have been precious few signs that any players on the roster are capable of changing that. Smart still has plenty of time, of course, but with the rookie point guard averaging 6.5 points and 2.8 assists per game on sub-40 percent shooting from the field since returning from his debut-delaying injury, he'll need to improve a lot before he achieves any sort of celestial status.
Grade: C+
Brooklyn Nets
10 of 30
Let's talk about Mason Plumlee.
The second-year big man from Duke has played superb basketball throughout his sophomore season, averaging 10.3 points and 7.0 rebounds per game while working his way into the starting lineup. He's shooting 59 percent from the field and has posted a player efficiency rating north of 20, per Basketball-Reference.com. Over his last 20 outings, he's posted 15.4 points and 9.3 boards per contest while drilling 66.8 percent of his looks.
As Bleacher Report's Fred Katz recently wrote while detailing the big man's relationship with Kevin Garnett, this hasn't gone unnoticed:
"Plumlee is accelerating at a fast and furious rate. He's gone from non-factor to the guy holding up the Deron-Williams-to-Sacramento deal. The organization, the fanbase, the team, everyone has a renewed opinion of him now. Even Grantland's Zach Lowe called him 'Tyson Chandler Lite' in a recent column, an extraordinary step up from where he was at the start of the holiday season.
"
But other than Plumlee, there haven't been many other bright spots in Brooklyn.
The big-name players—Deron Williams, Joe Johnson and Brook Lopez—don't qualify as such, and there's no telling how much longer any of them will play home games at the Barclays Center.
The only party with reason to celebrate the Nets' 2014-15 campaign? That would be the Atlanta Hawks, who can trade first-round picks with them as recompense for the Johnson trade a few years back.
Grade: C+
Utah Jazz
11 of 30
Another year, another season rebuilding for the Utah Jazz, who are still trying to get back to the level they were at when Deron Williams, Al Jefferson and Paul Millsap patrolled Salt Lake City. And while the Jazz haven't been even remotely competitive, struggling to stop nosebleeds on the defensive end of the court, there have been signs of hope.
Not only have many of the young guns—Trey Burke, Dante Exum and Enes Kanter—flashed potential, but Derrick Favors and Gordon Hayward have continued developing into high-quality players. That's true of Hayward in particular, as he's significantly more comfortable in his featured role.
While the swingman from Butler struggled with his shot in his first season as a No. 1 option last year, he's knocked down 45 percent of his shots from the field, 36.5 percent of his three-point attempts and 81.6 percent of his looks from the charity stripe this season. That's quite a bit of improvement, and it bodes well for the development of what's already become an above-average offense.
That said, the Jazz are not a threat right now. They've played up to the competition on a few occasions, but they're still closer to the bottom of the Western Conference than they are to moving out of the lottery, and that makes it tough for them to earn an above-average grade.
Grade: C+
Denver Nuggets
12 of 30
After I spent time around the Denver Nuggets organization before the start of the season, it wasn't hard to get the sense that this team felt as though it was getting a mulligan for its injury-plagued go-round in 2013-14. Everyone was healthy—or close to it—and the arrival of Arron Afflalo was only going to strengthen the team. Kenneth Faried was coming off a stellar showing in Spain, and the hope wasn't just making it to the playoffs.
It was advancing to the second round.
Now, the Nuggets are far from achieving that goal, as they're a handful of games back in the competitive race for the final spot in the Western Conference. They've unloaded Timofey Mozgov for draft picks, opening up more playing time for promising rookie center Jusuf Nurkic and may soon trade some combination of Wilson Chandler, Afflalo and Randy Foye.
However, the Nuggets are finally starting to play the type of basketball they've been capable of. They're winning games with much more consistency, and the offense is coming together now that Faried is getting more involved in the scoring column and the shooters are connecting with more frequency. Though people seem to bandy about the Phoenix Suns, Oklahoma City Thunder and New Orleans Pelicans more as playoff contenders, we can't rule Denver out quite yet.
During Brian Shaw's second year, the Nuggets haven't lived up to their own lofty expectations. But it's too soon to call this season a definitive disappointment, especially if they remain competitive while gaining assets for the future.
Grade: B-
Detroit Pistons
13 of 30
The Detroit Pistons have been on quite the torrid pace since cutting ties with Josh Smith and reintroducing Jodie Meeks to the lineup. With the revamped and rejuvenated roster, the Pistons have started to put together a more respectable season, leaving hope that they could make the playoffs alive and well.
With Andre Drummond starting to remind everyone why his potential is viewed in such a favorable light, this appears sustainable too. But what exactly is the identity of this team? Bob Wojnowski of The Detroit News wonders that as well:
"The Pistons aren't the 5-23 team they were, nor the 9-2 team they've been P.S. (Post Smith). They're 5-15 at home but can tie a franchise record with a seventh consecutive road victory if they beat the Pacers tonight. They're two games out of the final playoff spot as we near the midway point of the season, and I don't think it's a fluke.
"
According to FATS, the Pistons played like a 32-win team before waiving Smith, but they were underachieving rather significantly. During the 11 games since the forward departed, the 9-2 Pistons have performed like a 60-win squad.
Obviously, that's not going to continue, and Detroit will regress significantly. But kudos to this organization for refusing to give up after a slow start that drags its midseason grade down significantly. Instead, Stan Van Gundy has helped his team form a wall that the opposition has found rather impenetrable over the last few weeks.
Grade: B-
New Orleans Pelicans
14 of 30
The bright spot by the bayou is rather obvious.
Anthony Davis has emerged as arguably the best player in the NBA, dominating on both ends of the court, fostering MVP discussions even though his team is outside of the playoff picture and posting statistical lines that haven't been seen in decades. He's unbelievable, and you can say just about anything you want about him without it being the least bit hyperbolic.
For example: When Davis catches fire, it's the sun that has to put on UV protection.
Unfortunately, the Pelicans are making it tougher for him to do so. Not only is Monty Williams hesitant to make his star player do too much heavy lifting, but the roster composition around Davis isn't anything to write home about.
This was the year that the Pelicans were supposed to become a playoff team. They're still in the hunt by virtue of the No. 8 seed being easier to attain this season (based on records), but they're still below .500 and haven't done much to convince anyone of a burgeoning turnaround. Davis has done his part with a massive third-year leap, but everyone around him has helped ensure it's not enough.
Grade: B-
Philadelphia 76ers
15 of 30
If any team is operating on a different scale, it's the Philadelphia 76ers.
This organization hasn't so much as hinted that it wants to be competitive right now, and it most certainly hasn't been. Instead, it's operated at the bottom of the Eastern Conference and still has just eight victories as we near the midway point of the season.
The Sixers have traded away talents, given superior options more limited roles and done everything possible to acquire more draft picks. While the players and coach Brett Brown want to win, management is doing whatever it can to prevent that from happening too frequently.
Unfortunately, this strategy hasn't yielded fruitful results thus far. Though the defense is trending in the right direction, which players have emerged as bona fide keepers? Certainly not Michael Carter-Williams, who has struggled under the hype that follows a Rookie of the Year campaign.
Nerlens Noel has proved to be raw on the offensive end of the floor and isn't even guaranteed to stick around if Joel Embiid and Jahlil Okafor become the big men of the future. At least K.J. McDaniels has been a draft-day gem.
Philadelphia is working toward securing another top pick. But if development was the plan in 2014-15, that hasn't happened to the extent it should.
Grade: B-
San Antonio Spurs
16 of 30
It's hard to blame the San Antonio Spurs for failing to secure one of the better seeds in the Western Conference at this stage of the season.
After all, they've had to deal with a never-ending stream of injuries. Patty Mills and Tiago Splitter were out at the beginning of the year, and Kawhi Leonard has already missed 18 games while recovering from the torn ligament in his right hand. And while last year's Finals MVP might not be the best player on the San Antonio roster, he may well be the most important, as he's a versatile stud with no real replacement options to step into his shoes.
Nonetheless, the Spurs are eight games above .500. They've won 60 percent of their outings, and they're outscoring their opponents by 3.6 points per contest. There's really not that much to complain about, even if the team has struggled more than most defending champions that return so many pieces and only sits at No. 7 in the brutal West.
San Antonio hasn't quite met the lofty expectations that seem to follow it every year. But it's not as though this team is in position to do anything other than make the typical Gregg Popovich run during the second half of the season. Once fully healthy, these Spurs will be one of those squads that no one wants to play.
Just like always.
Grade: B-
Chicago Bulls
17 of 30
It's been a strange and unpredictable season for the Chicago Bulls.
Heading into November, it was supposed to be Joakim Noah and Derrick Rose who carried this team to a spot near or at the top of the Eastern Conference. But troublesome knees have plagued the big man and hindered his production, and the point guard has shown flashes of brilliance but has been relegated to serving as the No. 2 player in the backcourt.
No. 1 would be Jimmy Butler, whose offensive explosion has made him a leading candidate for the All-Star Game and, surprising as it is, the best player in the Windy City. Helping him out is a rejuvenated Pau Gasol, who has laughed at any claims he was washed up by playing great offense and protecting the rim with aplomb.
Making the season stranger is the identity of this squad. For the first time since 2008-09, the Bulls have actually been a better offensive squad than they are on the less glamorous end of the court. It's backward for Tom Thibodeau, who's doing a great job taking what's available to him with the current personnel.
Grade: B
Indiana Pacers
18 of 30
After losing Paul George to a fractured leg and watching Lance Stephenson leave for the supposedly friendlier pastures of Charlotte, the Indiana Pacers were never supposed to be particularly competitive.
Without their superstar and devoid of many sources of reliable offensive production, the Pacers have plodded along. Head coach Frank Vogel has drawn some quality production out of many nondescript players, and the team has survived as other key pieces go down with significant injuries. George Hill, for example, has still played in only five games.
But with a steady David West (when he's healthy), Roy Hibbert anchoring the still-suffocating defense and a litany of players doing the scoring, the Pacers haven't completely collapsed. Nine players are averaging double-digit points per game, and Luis Scola is close to joining the club with his 9.5 points per contest. While the Pacers are well below .500, they still have an outside shot of advancing to the playoffs if everything breaks right.
After all, Indiana sits at No. 11 and is only two wins behind the reeling Brooklyn Nets. Though other teams will probably pass the Pacers as they ride out their own hot streaks, they are about exactly where they were expected to fit into the Eastern puzzle.
Grade: B
Los Angeles Clippers
19 of 30
It's amazing that a team with 26 wins in its first 40 games can be sitting at No. 6 in the Western Conference, but that's the sad reality for the Los Angeles Clippers.
The Clippers have still been a high-quality basketball team—you can even make a case they remain true contenders for the Larry O'Brien Trophy—but there's been one significant issue: a defensive decline.
Last season, as shown by Basketball-Reference.com, LAC allowed 104.8 points per 100 possessions, a mark that was good for No. 9 in the Association. But in 2014-15, that number has risen to 106.2, which is barely above the league average and putting the Clippers at a lowly No. 16. In the hyper-competitive West, even a decline that's so seemingly insignificant is a big deal.
Small forward is still an issue for this squad, and none of the recent moves has addressed it. There is also a hole behind DeAndre Jordan; allowing Spencer Hawes to serve as the primary backup isn't getting the job done in the Staples Center.
But Chris Paul, Jordan and Blake Griffin are still on the roster. And as long as the Lob City triumvirate is still intact, the Clippers are capable of beating any team on any given night.
Grade: B
Orlando Magic
20 of 30
The Orlando Magic's record might not reflect the distinct feel of progress within this organization, but the pieces have trended in the right direction.
Nikola Vucevic deserves to make the All-Star squad in the Eastern Conference, while Tobias Harris is submitting a high-quality season of his own. Elfrid Payton has gone through some typical rookie struggles, but he's been much better in recent games and seems to have the makings of a franchise point guard, even if his jumper is broken. Meanwhile, Victor Oladipo is becoming a star.
As Zach Lowe explains in some detail for Grantland, we can finally catch a glimpse of what general manager Rob Hennigan is trying to build in Orlando:
"If you haven’t watched them yet this season, now might be a good time to start. Watching the Magic is like looking at a blurry painting: You can kind of make out what they are trying to be, and in the brief moments when everything comes together, it looks pretty. But sometimes the portrait just stays blurry, and sometimes — as in their embarrassing home loss to the Hornets two weeks ago — it looks like the artist barfed all over the canvas.
"
The Magic rebuild is far from over.
Having the right pieces isn't enough, as true competitiveness requires a successful system and a deep roster filled with complementary players. Orlando doesn't have either of those elements, and Jacque Vaughn may not be the coach this team ends up hiring to lead it out of the dumps.
But for the first time since trading Dwight Howard away, there's reason for a bit of excitement in this part of Florida.
Grade: B
Dallas Mavericks
21 of 30
So, how much has trading for Rajon Rondo actually helped the Dallas Mavericks?
First, let's take a look at the team's offensive and defensive ratings before and after the unique point guard left the Boston Celtics and came to town, per Basketball-Reference.com:
| Before Rondo | 116.8 | 109.0 |
| After Rondo | 107.8 | 104.8 |
Has the defense improved? Most assuredly, and the point-preventing unit is now working much more effectively than a league-average team's. But subtract one number from the other and look at the net rating. Before Rondo arrived, the Mavs were beating teams by 7.8 points per 100 possessions, and that number is down to a meager three since he came to town.
Looking at it another way, FATS shows that Dallas was playing like a 50-win team in the pre-Rondo era. Since the trade, the Mavs haven't taken steps to be a 47-win squad.
There's plenty of time for the Mavericks to put things back together and allow such a major piece of the puzzle to fit perfectly with the incumbents. Plus, they're still in the mix for home-court advantage in the Western Conference playoffs, and that doesn't give them anything to complain about.
Grade: B+
Houston Rockets
22 of 30
The first team to earn something that begins with "A," the Houston Rockets have done a remarkable job of overcoming injuries.
Though the Rockets have suited up 40 times thus far, Terrence Jones has played in only four games, sitting out the vast majority of this season with nerve inflammation in his left leg. Dwight Howard and Patrick Beverley have both already missed a dozen contests, and the backups have been in a near-constant state of flux as Houston attempts to incorporate some new pieces.
All the while, the Rockets have played fantastic defense and taken Daryl Morey's ideal brand of basketball off paper and into on-court reality.
Mid-range shots are completely off limits, as players must shoot plenty of triples and attack the basket with ferocity. It's all about figuring out how to be as efficient as possible, though turnover problems have prevented the offense from operating at too high a level.
Nonetheless, to go through all those injuries and still be only a game back in arguably the toughest division the NBA has ever seen is deserving of an impressive grade.
Grade: A-
Memphis Grizzlies
23 of 30
The Memphis Grizzlies just kept rolling along without Zach Randolph in the lineup. Even though the power forward has played in only 30 of the team's 38 games, the Grizz still sit atop the Southwest Division, ranking above the Houston Rockets, San Antonio Spurs, Dallas Mavericks and New Orleans Pelicans.
They've been great, though they haven't quite been one of the true elites thus far.
According to Basketball-Reference.com's simple rating system (SRS), which takes margin of victory and strength of schedule into account, Memphis is overachieving. With a 3.99 SRS, Memphis trails the Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Clippers, Portland Trail Blazers, Mavericks and Rockets in just the Western Conference.
But fortunately for the Beale Street squad, Jeff Green's inclusion in a midseason trade with the Boston Celtics offers hope for even more success in the future.
"I do believe that [we can advance out of the West]," Mike Conley recently told Tim Bontemps of the New York Post. "I think with us adding a guy like [Jeff]...but even before him, I thought we had a chance. But now with him, I feel it gives us that much more of a boost, that extra confidence that we belong, we can really do it now for sure."
Grade: A-
Phoenix Suns
24 of 30
The Phoenix Suns haven't been content to be afterthoughts in the Western Conference playoff race. Instead, they're taking the proverbial bull by the horns and seizing the opportunity to get out of the lottery and past the 82nd game of the 2014-15 campaign.
Heading into a Friday night outing against the Minnesota Timberwolves, the desert dwellers were 23-18, which put them a few games ahead of the New Orleans Pelicans, Oklahoma City Thunder, Denver Nuggets and the rest of the non-playoff teams in the NBA's tougher half. And lately, with Goran Dragic hitting his stride and the guards starting to work better together, the Suns have been even more competitive.
Starting with a Dec. 17 victory over the Charlotte Hornets, the Suns have gone 12-3. Their rare losses have come in regulation against the San Antonio Spurs, in overtime against the Thunder and in double overtime against the Memphis Grizzlies. All three were on the road.
Per FATS, Phoenix has been playing like a 53-win team over that 15-game stretch. Keep that up throughout the rest of the season, and it'll finish with an impressive 49-33 record, one that leaves no doubt about the team's ability to work beyond the regular season.
The Thunder have bigger names on the roster. But right now, pegging any squad other than the Suns as favorites for the No. 8 spot in the West is objectively wrong.
Grade: A-
Toronto Raptors
25 of 30
Kyle Lowry needs to be on MVP ballots.
ESPN.com's Marc Stein called the Toronto Raptors floor general the East MVP of the first trimester back in December:
"With All-Star backcourt mate DeMar DeRozan missing the entire month through injury, Lowry is shooting .407 on 3-pointers in December while hiking his PER into the NBA's top 10 at a heady 24.0. Lowry is basically a 20-8-and-5 guy now and has nudged Toronto all the way up to No. 2 in the league in offensive efficiency (111.7 points per 100 possessions) as well as No. 2 in average nightly point margin at a healthy plus-8.1.
"
Need a clutch bucket? Lowry has been the guy north of the border. Need a big stop? Same deal.
He has been everything to the Raptors, keeping the offense as elite as possible and the defense at least respectable while DeMar DeRozan heals. And now that the 2-guard is set to return, Lowry gets to take a step back and let his usage rate decline to a more reasonable level. But even if he does that, he's already carried this team for a huge chunk of the season, and that should allow him to stay in the MVP conversation for a while longer.
Now, with DeRozan back in the lineup, the Raptors have a chance to move back up to No. 1 in the East. And that's more important, after all.
Grade: A-
Washington Wizards
26 of 30
Have the Washington Wizards been a truly dominant squad?
Not really. In fact, their SRS, per Basketball-Reference.com, is a mediocre 1.65, which puts them at No. 13 in the league and No. 4 in the Eastern Conference. But despite the lackluster indicators, the Wizards have consistently won close games and overachieved. It's been enough for them to sit pretty at the No. 2 spot in the East, trailing the division-rival Atlanta Hawks by four games.
And there's reason to think they're only going to get stronger.
Bradley Beal is gaining chemistry alongside John Wall, who has emerged as one of the two best point guards in his half of the NBA. Nene and Marcin Gortat are at full strength, and the backups can say the same thing now. From top to bottom, this Washington squad is as healthy as it's been in quite some time.
"That's part of it, being a championship team," head coach Randy Wittman said about his team's toughness after a victory over the Chicago Bulls, via Jorge Castillo of The Washington Post. "Putting your nose in there when it's time to get a stop and take a charge. We have a team that's willing to get dirty like that. That's part of becoming a championship team. In trying to become that team, you have to be willing to sacrifice."
Washington isn't yet at championship-team status, but it's strong enough that achieving it is a legitimate goal.
Grade: A-
Milwaukee Bucks
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Where did this come from?
Under the tutelage of second-year head coach Jason Kidd, the Milwaukee Bucks have burst onto the scene.
They don't feature that many new pieces from last year's roster, especially with Jabari Parker lost for the season as he rehabs a torn ACL. But it's been one breakout and redemption story after another, from Brandon Knight drawing deserved All-Star consideration to Jared Dudley becoming a productive player once more.
But above all else, the Bucks have developed an identity.
They're a fantastic defensive team, one capable of shutting down the opposition with their remarkable length and swarming energy. On the season as a whole, they're giving up just 102.3 points per 100 possessions, via Basketball-Reference.com. Only the Golden State Warriors, Portland Trail Blazers and Houston Rockets have been stingier.
Last year, the Bucks won 15 games all season long, underwhelming as they finished with the second-worst record in the Eastern Conference. But now, they're playing such strong basketball—and it appears to be sustainable—that they seem like playoff locks as we near the midway point of the campaign.
Grade: A
Portland Trail Blazers
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The Portland Trail Blazers didn't make too many moves of significance this offseason, adding Chris Kaman and Steve Blake to the bench. The former has been productive in his limited role, while the latter...has not.
But even with Robin Lopez missing a significant amount of time to let his fractured hand heal, Rip City has proved that depth isn't an issue. The starters—particularly LaMarcus Aldridge and Damian Lillard—have just been that good whenever they're on the floor. Even with the major injury to Lopez and declining production from Nicolas Batum, the Blazers have produced the No. 3 record in the NBA.
And they're not going anywhere.
Last season, Terry Stotts began implementing a defensive system that asked his bigs to play one-on-one ball while everyone else shut down the perimeter. This year, everyone is fully comfortable operating in that fashion, and the result has been one of the most suffocating units in the Association.
Thanks to the point-preventing improvement, the Blazers are one of the only four teams in the NBA, per Basketball-Reference.com, that rank in the top 10 in both offensive and defensive rating.
Grade: A
Atlanta Hawks
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It isn't easy to win 24 games in only 26 outings.
The Atlanta Hawks team that started the season in 5-5 fashion is but a distant memory. Since then, the squad has worked nearly perfectly, storming out to a 32-8 record that puts it in the No. 1 spot in the Eastern Conference with four games of cushion.
Figuring out how is a tough proposition. Not because there aren't any legitimate reasons, but because everyone is responsible.
Jeff Teague has become a borderline elite floor general, stepping up as the star whenever his team needs it and asserting himself as an offensive force at all times. Paul Millsap is the team's Mr. Everything, except the same can be said about the perennially underrated Al Horford. Kyle Korver has emerged as the best shooter in the league, using his gravity to completely shift how a defense approaches the challenge that is the Hawks offense.
Beyond that, the bench—led by improving players like Dennis Schroder and Mike Scott—has been exemplary, and Mike Budenholzer deserves to be the favorite for Coach of the Year. After all, he's built an unstoppable offensive system and gotten the defense to play a swarming style that has left it among the league's best.
Everything has worked for a team that has quickly gained far more respect than it has enjoyed in decades—arguably since the days of Bob Pettit in the 1950s and early '60s, even.
Grade: A+
Golden State Warriors
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Of course the Golden State Warriors are going to earn the "A-plus" mark.
They've been the best team in the NBA thus far. And frankly, it hasn't even been close.
This squad boasts an unstoppable offense, led by two of the best shooters/scorers in the NBA—Klay Thompson and Stephen Curry. Everyone understands what role he's supposed to fill, and the result is beautifully executed basketball that plays to each member's strengths and routinely leaves the defense feeling dazed and confused. Oh, and the Warriors are even better at preventing points than they are at piling them up.
According to Basketball-Reference.com, the Dubs rank No. 1 in defensive rating with plenty of room to spare. Given their 97.3 points allowed per 100 possessions and the league-average mark of 105.9, Golden State has an adjusted defensive efficiency of 106.11, which would be the No. 23 finish of all time if it lasted throughout the season. Comparatively, it is "only" the fourth-best team in offensive rating.
But let's make things simpler.
Thirty-six games into the season, Golden State is on pace to win 71 games, falling just one victory shy of the all-time record set by Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls.
Enough said.
Grade: A+
