My unofficial look at the NBA. All records are through Saturday night's games.
1. Miami Heat (8-1, Last week, 1) - The Heat can win without Wade ... and LeBron.
2. Chicago Bulls (7-2, LW 3) - Derrick Rose and Co. aren't conceding the East to the South Beach N.W.O.
3. Oklahoma City Thunder (7-2, LW, 2)- Back-to-back wins over Houston after losing to Dallas and Portland
4. San Antonio Spurs (6-2, LW 4) - How long can Spurs survive without Manu Ginobili?
5. Portland Trail Blazers (5-2, LW 6) - One of the deepest teams in the league.
6. Los Angeles Clippers (4-2, LW 10) - Reggie Evans provides much-needed depth in the frontcourt.
7. Los Angeles Lakers (5-4, LW 5) - Kobe's bad wrist was good for 39 points against the Warriors.
8. Denver Nuggets (6-3, LW 17) - A team with no superstar that is playing at a high level.
9. Indiana Pacers (5-2, LW 15) - The addition of David West has been key.
10. Dallas Mavericks (4-5, LW 7) - Dirk isn't looking like Dirk from last season's playoffs yet
11. Boston Celtics (4-4, LW 9) - Paul Pierce is back. The wins should follow.
12. Atlanta Hawks (6-3, LW 14) - How did they lose to the Heat without Wade and LeBron?
13. Orlando Magic (5-3, LW 12) - No one dominates a game on both ends like Dwight Howard.
14. New York Knicks (4-4, LW 11) - Return of Iman Shumpert helps the thin backcourt.
15. Philadelphia 76ers (5-2, LW 18) - Spencer Hawes is a rebounding machine to start the season.
16. Memphis Grizzles (3-4, LW 8) - Losing Zach Randolph means Rudy Gay needs to play at an All-Star level.
17. Utah Jazz (5-3, LW 23) - Young team is on a four-game winning streak.
18. Cleveland Cavaliers (4-3, LW 27) - How much more can Byron Scott get out of this team?
19. Phoenix Suns (3-4, LW 21) - Still wondering which contender will try to trade for Steve Nash.
20. Sacramento Kings (3-5, LW 27) - Two poor showings helped usher in the Keith Smart regime.
21. Minnesota Timberwolves (3-5, LW 29) - Rick Adelman figures to keep this team competitive.
22. Toronto Raptors (3-5, L 24) - Can the Raptors' defense improve drastically under Dwane Casey?
23. Milwaukee Bucks (2-6, LW 17) - No Andrew Bogut hurts the Bucks' chances.
24. Charlotte Bobcats (2-6, LW 24) - Gerald Henderson nearly dealt the Heat their first loss of the season.
25. Golden State Warriors (2-6, LW 19) - Stephen Curry's injury can't be ignored in recent slide.
26. Detroit Pistons (2-6, LW 25) - Greg Monroe (15.6 points, 8.5 rebounds) I still something to be excited about.
27. Houston Rockets (2-6, LW 13) - Maybe this is why the Rockets were trying to land Pau Gasol - Rockets have lost four in a row.
28. New Jersey Nets (2-7, LW 28) -Another team that couldn't afford injuries has been slowed by injuries.
29. New Orleans Hornets (2-6, LW 20) - Losers of six in a row and Eric Gordon is still out.
30. Washington Wizards (0-8, LW 30) - League's only winless team in spite of some talented young players.








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