Raptors NBA Power Rankings Update – USA Today, ESPN, NBA.com

The power rankings are coming out today, we'll update this post as soon as they come out.

The power rankings are coming out today, we’ll update this post as soon as they come out. So far, we have just one outlet:

USA Today

Raptors #2 overall (Memphis), #1 in East, 2 spot jump – made by @adijoseph

Louis Williams is bent on forcing his way into the starting lineup … or winning sixth man the year.

It’s a silly comment because nobody calls him Louis, and he has no intentions of taking over DeRozan’s job. Sometimes I wonder if the people who make these have any idea of what they’re talking about.

These guys even made a video:

NBA.com

Raptors #4 overall (GSW, MEM, POR), #1 in East – 4-spot jump – made by @johnschuhmann

And right now, the East is mostly made of bad teams. The Toronto Raptors are basically the only team in the conference that has played really well, but even Wednesday’s win over the Grizzlies comes with the context that Memphis was without three of the top six guys in their rotation.

After Lou Williams Weekend (58 points and three buzzer-beaters in wins over Milwaukee and Cleveland), the Raptors have contender numbers on both ends of the floor. But they’ve played the league’s easiest schedule, which doesn’t really get tough until late December. And they might be fortunate to play the “fragile” Cavs two more times in the next 15 days.

NBA.com takes the most negative view of the situation, surprised they didn’t also blame the inclement weather in Buffalo as the reason for the Raptors 11-2 start.

ESPN

Raptors #3 overall (GSW, MEM), #1 in East, 5-spot jump – made by @ESPNSteinLine

Since the Rudy Gay trade, Toronto sports the East’s best record at 52-24, which is 4½ games better than Chicago’s 48-29. The committee (of one) is starting to get its hopes up, in other words, that our long-awaited return to T-Dot for the first time since 2007 won’t have to wait until All-Star Weekend in 2016.

The Raptors need to beat some Western Conference teams to further legitimize themselves. The stomach flu thing with the Grizzlies is hurting them in the rankings a little, but tonight against Phoenix provides a good opportunity to mend that.

SB Nation

Raptors #2 overall (GSW), #1 in East – 2-spot jump – made by @DrewGarrisonSBN

Another week of great play from the Raptors. who are now on a four-game winning streak that includes wins over the Grizzlies, Cavaliers and Bucks. The Raptors are behind Memphis for the best winning percentage in the league, but Wednesday’s win over the Grizzlies put them over the top.

Unlike most other power rankings, they’re putting some stock in the Toronto-Memphis clash.

Sports Illustrated

Raptors 2nd overall (GSW), #1 in East, 3-spot jump – made by @matt_dollinger

There’s more to fear in the north than just the cold. Unlike the Bulls (injuries) or Cavaliers (chemistry issues), the Raptors are a finished product and off to a roaring start. Toronto ranks in the top 10 in offensive and defensive efficiency and trails only Dallas in net rating (11.6). The Raptors are also 3-0 against the West and became the latest team to kick the Cavaliers while they’re down.

Hey, turns out we have beaten Western conference teams (Memphis, Utah, OKC).