NBA Power Rankings week 8 – OKC Thunder cling to middle, trade market opens up

Offense: (108.2) – 16th
Defense: (111.7) – 23rd
Net: (minus -3.6) – 22nd

Games Week 8: (1-1) Won vs. Suns, lost to Cavaliers
Games Week 9 (3 games): Mon. at Rockets | Thurs. vs Nets | Sat vs. Clippers

The overtime kings had a very interesting week where every single game went to extra frames continuing from week seven they played four in a row and won three of them. The last one occurred in Mexico City against the Suns.

Incredibly the one they lost of the four was to the Cavaliers — such is the unusual season of the San Antonio Spurs.

Week nine will serve up the another meeting with the Rockets who began the overtime streak with the improperly called ‘no basket’ dunk by James Harden.

It’s still not quite believable this Spurs team has almost zero semblance to any of the previous 22 years of Gregg Popovich squads other than Patty Mills still being on the squad and Timmy Duncan on the sidelines as part of Pops coaching crew.

With the bevy of players who are now available for trade, the Spurs are a club in desperate need of some upgrades in a few spots.

At issue for the Spurs is their top two scoring options rarely shoot from the perimeter and aren’t efficient when they do. DeMar DeRozan is likely to opt out this offseason from his contract whereas LaMarcus Aldridge has another full year on his contract.

It’s not a typically Spurs-like thing to make a trade mid season. Then again it’s not a typically Spurs-like thing to do to miss the playoffs either.