These Power Rankings are a bit different than others you will find online. They are different from the other you find on our site in fact. Daniel does a great job compiling his list of all 30 teams. Our list is dedicated to only the Western Conference (WC). Another distinction is that our list is based on how good the opponent is. It’s a strength of schedule (SOS) type list that relies on analysis of team and outcome over arbitrary ranking. I don’t know the other people who come up with Power Rankings, so I don’t really trust them. I know Daniel and trust his, but I have been doing this SOS WC ranking for three seasons now. You can’t stop a moving train!
The explanation was needed because the All-Star break is the time to re-evaluate the teams. That evaluation and categorization is at the heart of the SOS WC Power Ranking. For example, when the season started the Houston Rockets were categorized as a Good Team. The Phoenix Suns were as well. Now, after the Harden trade and the Suns appearing to be the real deal, both teams have moved. The Phoenix Suns are now categorized as a Quality Team. The Houston Rockets drop to being a Bad Team. That matters because points are awarded based on the outcome of games against them! There were a few additional changes all of which work to see more movement in the Power Rankings this week than normal.
QW’s Vs BL’s
One thing to note. The two top Western Conference teams are the only two teams with double-digit Quality Wins (QW). Quality Wins are wins against teams categorized as a Quality Team. Simple, right? Conversely, a Bad Loss (BL) is loss to a team categorized as a bad team. QW’s get you more points, BL’s get you less. Math! Since we are on the subject, the Western Conference team with the most BL’s are the New Orleans Pelicans.
Week 12 – Biggest Movers
The Golden State Warriors and Oklahoma City Thunder both moved up 2 spots this week. We need another full week for the movements to make a bit more sense. In addition to the re-categorizations explained above this was another short week in the NBA. Most teams in the Western Conference only played 3 games, some played as few as 1.
 | Golden State Warriors | +2 |
 | Oklahoma City Thunder | +2 |
Week 12 – Biggest Droppers
The Memphis Grizzlies dropped a couple of spots. But again, lets wait until next week to make better sense of the movements up and down the rankings.
 | Portland Trailblazers | -2 |
Week 12 Western Conference Power Rankings
The Strength of Schedule Western Conference Power Rankings are a points based ranking method developed by thePeachBasket. In short, points are awarded for wins and losses. The better the team you beat, the more points you earn. It’s simple and takes the opinion out of Power Rankings. It’s math and its brought to you by thePeachBasket, Voice of the Fan!(tm)
