The Rockets enter the post-All-Star break portion of the regular season on top of our rankings, and they lead all teams so far by being first three times already this season. Houston has seen mixed results after fully committing to small ball by trading away Clint Capela and getting back Robert Covington. This will lead to an even more lethal offense, but they will have trouble against teams with size AND speed, such as the Lakers with Anthony Davis or even the Mavericks with Kristaps Porzingis. Time will tell whether James Harden and Russell Westbrook have what it takes to finally get the Rockets back to the NBA finals.
The Pistons have leaned further into their rebuild, following the trading of Andre Drummond and the buyout of Reggie Jackson. Detroit has some intriguing pieces in Luke Kennard, Christian Wood, and Sekou Doumbouya, but it still remains to be seen if any of those players can become franchise centerpieces. Regardless, the team will be in a bit of a holding pattern until it can get rid of Blake Griffin and his monster contract. Griffin is good enough to keep the team from getting a top pick, but not quite able to get the team to the playoffs by himself.
Teams that have been first: Sacramento Kings (1x), Houston Rockets (3x), Memphis Grizzlies (1x), Boston Celtics (1x), Oklahoma City Thunder (2x), Philadelphia 76ers (1x), Dallas Mavericks (1x)
Teams that have been last: Memphis Grizzlies (2x), Golden State Warriors (2x), Minnesota Timberwolves (2x), Sacramento Kings (1x), Los Angeles Clippers (1x), Charlotte Hornets (1x). Detroit Pistons (1x)
