14. Philadelphia 76ers
If this ranking was completely based on a team's play on the floor, the Philadelphia 76ers would be ranked way lower. However, because of the expected returns of Joel Embiid and Paul George, you have to give this team some added respect. Still, checking in at No. 14 is not ideal - especially considering that the Sixers were ranked in the top 5 of our pre-season power rankings at the beginning of the year. Even though the Sixers have been disappointing to begin the season, it's not fair to judge this team until they're completely healthy. And that's what we'll do.
We'll dock them a few points for losing games they should probably lose without their two best players on the floor. With that said, once PG and Embiid are back, the pressure will fall right back on this team's shoulders. If they're going to be the contender that most expect them to be this season, the dynamic duo will have to hit the ground running to help the Sixers climb out of this early season hole that they've made for themselves through the first two weeks of the season while playing short-handed.
13. Sacramento Kings
Even though the Sacramento Kings have gotten off to a blazing start to the year, there are some encouraging signs about this team's potential moving forward. For one, their offense does seem to be performing at a much better rate than it was last season. Heading into this year, fixing the team's offense had to be one of the bigger priorities for the franchise. While the verdict is still out on that considering we need to see a much bigger sample size, the Kings do seem to be on the right track toward emerging as a threat in the Western Conference once again.
Consistency will be the key for the Kings moving forward. In a deep Western Conference, there's no question that the Kings have the talent to emerge as a bit of a surprise team. However, this is a team that will need their supporting cast to come through one way or another down the stretch. Last season, that was part of the problem for a Kings team that took a real step back in their progression as a franchise.