ESPN has Warriors ranked Fifth in early season power rankings

As the NBA season returns, so have the delusional folks over at the “worldwide leader in sports”. Monday, ESPN released its first list of NBA power rankings.

Here are the top five ranked teams in order:

1-Milwaukee Bucks (2-1)

2-Utah Jazz (2-0)

3-Denver Nuggets (2-0)

4-Nets (1-2)

5-Warriors (3-0)

A lot to unpack here.

Let’s start with the Dubs’ victory over the Lakers. Before the NBA season started, the general narrative that ESPN and its affiliates were pushing was that the Lakers would essentially breeze through the West with their all-star roster. Well, we’ve all had the opportunity to take a good look at the Lakers, and it seems as though the analysts may have been a bit premature in their preseason championship crowning of the frauds from down south. Shocker.

Nonetheless, the Lakeshow is not listed in these rankings and for that ESPN, I am grateful. However, I do have a problem with several of these teams listed above the Warriors.

Look no further than the Utah Jazz. The Jazz, while a good team, have zero impressive wins. They beat arguably one of the worst teams in the league in the OKC Thunder and narrowly beat the Sacramento Kings in a game that was close down to the last minute or so. Albeit, similar to the Warriors bout with the Kings Sunday night.

But what I have a hard time understanding is how the Jazz’s victory over the Thunder holds more weight than a sweep of both LA teams. The Warriors proved that they are just as good if not better than both the Lakers and the Clippers. Two teams I firmly believe are better than the Jazz.

Additionally, the Nets are ranked 4th. They lost to the Bucks, a very good team that is poised for another championship run. But they lost to Charlotte. Now, this is no knock on the Hornets, but when you think of championship organizations across the league, they are not in the conversation. Yes, they have a lot of young talent and a seemingly bright future with Lamelo Ball at the helm, but for the Nets to lose with two of the NBA’s greatest all-time scorers in Kevin Durant and James Harden this is nothing short of a terrible loss. Yet, somehow, they are more “powerful” than the Warriors. Right… that makes total sense.

This Warriors team better be keeping all these receipts.

They are 3-0 with no real signs of slowing down.

Oh yeah, and Klay Thompson is not back yet.

If I would ask one thing of ESPN, it would be to keep that same energy. Rather than pandering to KD and the New York media, or Spida Mitchell and the Utah Jazz maybe it’s time the suits at ESPN put some respect on the greatest shooter of all time and the definitive best team out west.

(Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)