NBA power rankings week 13: Halfway mark, OKC Thunder hold steady

Charlotte Hornets:

Offense: (106.0)  22nd
Defense: (113.0)  28th
Net: (minus -7.0) 26th

Games Week 13 (0-2): Lost vs. Blazers 112-115, Nuggets: 86-100
Games Week 14 (2 games): Mon vs. Magic | Fri vs. Bucks (in Paris, France)

Not a stellar showing by the Hornets as they lost both games this week. Charlotte made a game of it versus the injury-riddled Blazers but couldn’t hold their own against the Nuggets.

To begin week 14 they get some luck playing the road-weary Magic who should be ripe for the picking as they return from a tough Western trip that featured a back-to-back set versus the Staples Center crews.

Then they travel to Paris for a match versus the NBA best Bucks.

As the Hornets hit the halfway mark with only 15 wins incredibly they could still land a berth in the playoffs.

Entering the season virtually every analyst and pundit ranked them to finish dead last (raises hand) or near that spot. The fact James Borrego has his crew playing as competitively as they are is a win. Factor in the ascendance of Devonte’ Graham and the solid play of rookie PJ Washington and there are palpable positives to pull from.

I’m still not buying the Terry Rozier stock and the fact he performs best when playing with Graham speaks to his continuing inability to run a team on his own.