Welcome back to my NBA League Pass Rankings for the 2016-17 season.For Part 1 and all the rules, click here.Now, back to the rankings:15. NEW ORLEANS PELICANS (31)We got exuberant slotting these guys into the No. 3 slot last season, so it feels appropriate that theyve settled into the middle -- despite funny, smart mic work from Joel Meyers and David Wesley. (Im still lukewarm on the giant pelicans shaded inside each 3-point arc.)Anthony Davis can get you only so far, especially when he shares the floor with paint-bound centers who block his path to lob dunks on the pick-and-roll. He also needs someone to reliably deliver the ball, and the Pelicans are leaning on Tim Frazier for that with Jrue Holiday and Tyreke Evans out. Frazier finished last season strong, but March and April are garbage time; can he do this against starters in the meat of the season?Alvin Gentry has made noise about sliding Davis to center more, and the Pellies should have the wing depth to pull that off once Evans and Quincy Pondexter get healthy. And yet, there is something endearing about Omer Asik. He sweats a lot, he looks exactly like Chef Linguini from Ratatouille, and we normal lugs can relate to any NBA player who struggles just to hold onto the ball. (New Orleans needs to load Asik up with wristbands so his hands dont get sweaty.)Terrence Jones can dribble and pass, and Im excited to see if he can bounce back after a lost season in Houston. Lance Stephenson would have boosted the teams comedy score if he were a safer bet to make the team. Fingers crossed.14. DALLAS MAVERICKS (31.5)Any team with Dirk Nowitzki and Rick Carlisle is going to leverage every ounce of shooting, passing, and old-man savvy to manipulate opposing defenses -- even if no one on Dallas can, like, dribble. And its unclear if any of the Mavs starters can; Deron Williams looks uncomfortable below the foul line, Wes Matthews hung beyond the arc in his first year back from a catastrophic injury, and Harrison Barnes looks as mechanical in Dallas as he did as the fifth Beatle in Golden State.Nowitzki still draws help in the post, but, holy cow, he and Andrew Bogut might form the slowest frontcourt combo in the league.And you know what? The indefatigable Mavs will make it work: Enter it to Bogut on one elbow for a hand-off, run a cutter off a Dirk flare screen on the other side, and, boom, youve bent the defense without bouncing the rock a single time. The Mavs just magic up points.J.J. Barea and Dirk form the all-time pick-and-roll odd couple, and Justin Anderson brings some modernity off the bench -- especially amid the switchy small-ball groups Carlisle uses when Nowitzki rests. Andrew Boguts subtle brutality is always fun. Hes like a water polo player doing unholy stuff below the surface, where referees cant see.Dwight Powell has some bounce, and Salah Mejri deserves a second look as a shot-blocker who can rim-run through an uncluttered lane. And theres this: Is Nowitzkis one-legged fallaway banker the prettiest trademark shot in NBA history?13. MILWAUKEE BUCKS (31.5)POINT GIANNIS!! A shocking number of people around the league think POINT GIANNIS! was a late-season gimmick that worked against checked-out lottery bunk. Pish posh! Antetokounmpo is twitchy fast, 7 feet tall, and expert at criss-crossy gyro-steps that get him to the rim in two strides. Hes so much taller than most perimeter players, he doesnt even really need to get by them in order to create a crisis at the basket and draw help that leaves shooters open.Ah, the shooters thing. The Bucks dont have nearly enough of them with Khris Middleton potentially out all season. Antetokounmpos positional versatility can paper over a lot of things -- he can defend the wings Middleton would, for instance -- but he cant conjure shooting from thin air. Michael Beasley is never the answer to any basketball question, Jason Terry is ancient, and the youngsters are youngsters.Heres a lineup puzzle Milwaukee coaches are staring at: Try to get all three of Antetokounmpo, Jabari Parker, and Mirza Teletovic (and Teletovics pristine gelled hair) on the floor at the same time. Slot a center with that trio, and youre playing super-big, with two of Parker/Antetokounmpo/Teletovic forced to defend wings. Downsize, and one of those three has to guard the opposing center. Milwaukee is confident all three can handle that in limited doses against some center types, and those smaller groups have a chance to be really exciting. (They could also be fatally awful at rebounding.)As Jason Kidd works through that, expect Milwaukees front office to chase wings; theyve called the Kings about the ghost of Ben McLemore and are open to moving either Greg Monroe or Michael Carter-Williams in the right deal, league sources say.Can we talk about Parker for a second? The POINT GIANNIS hoopla has obscured how important it is for the Bucks to figure out exactly what they have in Parker -- whether he can shoot 3s, control the acceleration on his herky-jerky drives and cuts, and defend any position. He was a glorified mooch before taking on more ball-handling duties late last season -- including fun big-big pick-and-rolls -- and the Bucks will feed him a bit more with Middleton gone.If Parker makes a leap and Antetokounmpo is a true franchise star already -- probably a bit much at 21 -- the Bucks should be able to hang in the playoff race.12. SACRAMENTO KINGS (32)The Kings remain active in trade talks, and now that Darren Collison is officially out for the first eight games, I wouldnt be shocked if they dealt for a point guard before the season, perhaps as part of a larger trade. The team badly wants to chase a playoff spot as it enters a new arena, which, by the way, includes a wonderful new floor with the teams updated logo:When DeMarcus Cousins is rolling, there is nothing in the NBA like his rampaging drives that end in implausibly soft layups. When hes tantruming, he makes for mesmerizing reality TV -- even if you tire of the sulking, sniping at teammates who have done nothing wrong, and lazy transition defense. It will be fun watching Cousins and Rudy Gay pretend to tolerate each other before the Kings inevitably trade Gay. (You almost have to admire how openly Gay disdains his current employer.) When things get really bad, as they tend to in Sacramento, the sharp-tongued broadcast duo of Grant Napear and Jerry Reynolds arent afraid to shred the team on air.Picking Cousins frontcourt partner presents Dave Joerger with some thorny choices. He has talked up small ball, but the Kings have stocked the roster with centers who work in Cousins real estate. The Cousins-Willie Cauley-Stein duo showed more promise than expected on offense last season. During his appearance on my podcast, Joerger sounded enthralled with Skal Labissiere.Plus, the Kings are going to put Cousins and Matt Barnes on the floor together -- maybe a lot!11. DETROIT PISTONS (32)Now that theyre decent, they check every box: solid team that should grow together; fun centerpiece player (Andre Drummond); top-notch broadcasters; uniforms that pop; and a candid, foul-mouthed coach who radiates rumpled anguish at all times. They originally finished No. 8, but we docked them a few points once it became clear Wednesday that Reggie Jackson will miss significant time.Theyve even buffed up the court. Lets play some Hocus Focus, and see if you can spot the subtle improvements from Detroits old court ...... to its new one:Theyve added Boban Marjanovic, a 7-foot, 3-inch giant with a soft touch and an array of fakes that juked poor Jahlil Okafor out of his shoes last season.The legendary George Blaha is entering his 40th season as Detroits play-by-play man. He is a catchphrase factory, only his favorites -- Off the high glass! Floats it up, fills it up! -- emerge so organically, you barely notice them.Jackson and Andre Drummond ran more pick-and-rolls than any other pairing last season, and they should get more dangerous with experience. Jackson has a gorgeous floater, and Drummond is a dunk machine. It somehow looks even cooler when Drummond barely even grabs the rim, and just shoves the ball through the basket in a flash.Drummonds free throw yips depress Detroits rating a bit, since party poopers will smash him instead of letting him slam.10. HOUSTON ROCKETS (32.5)This is Houstons highest-ever finish. Free throws are boring. Well rarely get 90 seconds of uninterrupted Rockets basketball as long as Houston pairs James Harden with a center who cant shoot free throws -- first Dwight Howard, and now Clint Capela.But there is high art in Hardens game, and Mike DAntonis system might dig out the prettiest stuff more often. Harden is a brilliant passer, and he sets up diagonal bouncers with dribble moves, head fakes, and weirdo half-lunges designed to nudge defenses a hair off-balance and pry open specific passing lanes. You might think Harden is eyeing the rim as he jab-steps up top, but hes really peeking at that defender leaning away from the corner, waiting for just the right moment to whip the ball to a shooter there.Watch the trajectory on some of Hardens passes. He uses angles and spins to squeeze the ball through limbs, along shifting pathways that should be navigable only for magic loogies and ping-pong balls. If he has to, hell release the ball near the ground, almost skipping it along the floor like a rock on a lake.The game bogs down when Harden goes into an aimless east-west dribble routine at the foul line, prelude to some brutal fadeaway. DAntoni will encourage him to be more decisive going north-south, and with better shooting around him, Harden might deliver the ball earlier. He might get to the line less playing that way, but the Rockets could generate a ton of 3s and find a more watchable happy medium.Im a sucker for an angry Nene baseline spin-and-dunk, the K.J. McDaniels chase-down block, and Pablo Prigioni sneaking steals on inbounds passes. The new red court is a huge upgrade, and Craig Ackerman, now the play-by-play guy on road games, figures to tamp down the shrill anti-ref homerism that ruins most Houston broadcasts.9. PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS (32.5)All hail the long overdue return of Kevin Calabro to a permanent play-by-play spot! With that, all the frills in Portland are perfect.The Blazers are a younger, more vibrant version of Dallas on offense, which makes sense, given the imprint Terry Stotts left in Dallas before taking the head job in Portland. They work the elbows, shift the ball side-to-side, and set more off-ball screens than anyone in the league. They keep all five guys involved, and make all five defenders run. They got faster and more versatile when Al-Farouq Aminu bumped up to power forward, and they will start a version of that lineup from jump street this season.When the fancy motion doesnt work, they just give the ball to Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum. Lillard is cold-blooded shooter who lives for late-game drama. McCollum is a jitterbug with a Hermione-deep bag of finishes from all ranges.Stotts has to fit Meyers Leonard, settle the starting small forward spot, and figure out how many minutes Evan Turner should play with his two lead ball-handlers -- happy work for any lineup tinkerer. (Also, Evan Turner: Unblock me on Twitter! What did I do? You were a Luke Walton All-Star last season!)8. OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER (33)They should be higher, and they have only themselves to blame. Their court is boring, their uniforms are ugly, and their blah logo looks like it belongs on a Doritos bag. Their announcers puff their chests with an insular Thunder-against-the-world attitude, which is too bad, because they are pretty damned good when they just talk straight hoops.Otherwise, give me all of this: the Russell Westbrook Show, the Stache Brothers, Steven Adams accidentally angering bystanders, Kyle Singlers hair, Mitch McGarys over-enthusiastic running (unless and until the Thunder cut him), Andre Robersons 3-point prayers, and so much more.Hopefully, Westbrook is getting all the Rondo-level overpassing out of his system in preseason, so that he can inflict holy hell on the league when the games start to count.7. BOSTON CELTICS (33.5)I can hear the eyes rolling: more hype for a team that has won zero playoff series since busting up its championship nucleus. (Hey, did you know Boston never lost a series when Rondo, Ray Allen, Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Kendrick Perkins were all healthy? Have you heard that before from anyone? Its true!) Oh, sure, Horford dribble hand-offs and tenacious team defense are going to have people leaping from their couches.Well, sorry. Brad Stevens motion-heavy offense is fun to watch, and Horfords jack-of-all-trades game is going to make it sing. Isaiah Thomas brings the holy crap, rewind that! highlights -- the meanest hesitation dribble on Earth, circus floaters, unconscious off-the-bounce 3s, and insane passes he has to thread over and around much larger humans. Short guys are fun to watch because of all the contortions required for them to do stuff 6-7 wings pull off standing still. Remember this pass from last season?Like, what even is that?Stevens prefers an aggressive defense, and Horford gives him a big man comfortable trapping dudes 30 feet from the hoop. Avery Bradley, Jae Crowder, and Marcus Smart disregard your personal space. Only two teams forced more turnovers than Boston last season, and they might snare more this time around -- thefts that generate needed transition chances for a team that can get a little cramped in the half-court.We havent even talked about the background: parquet floor, best jersey set in the league, the sonorous tones of Mike Gorman, and the hammy combination of Tommy Heinsohn and Brian Scalabrine cutting promos.6. TORONTO RAPTORS (33.5)Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan breathe life into a pretty vanilla and sometimes sloggy offense. Lowry heaves the highest-degree-of-difficulty triples outside of Stephen Curry and Lillard, and he is always on his toes, always in motion. Exhale for a half-second after he kicks the ball up top, and, zoom, he has dusted you with a give-and-go cut along the baseline. With Curry and Kevin Durant cannibalizing MVP votes, Contract-Year Lowry could be a stealth MVP candidate if the Drakes exceed expectations. (Note: This is an extreme long shot.)DeRozan attacked the rim with a new ferocity last season. His midrange touch comes and goes, but hes good at wriggling into that weirdo floater territory inside the foul line for closer shots. Jonas Valanciunas shot a tidy 48 percent on post-ups last season and became an angrier rebounder. He also boasts the most implausibly convincing slow-mo pump fake in the league.Valanciunas room for improvement on defense looms as one of two wild cards that could inch this team within hailing distance of the Cavs. The other is DeMarre Carroll, who barely played last season and has never looked as comfortable defending bigger wings (i.e., LeBron) as you would expect. If hes healthy, Carroll brings a 3-and-D combination Toronto doesnt have anywhere else on the roster, plus a knack for random off-ball cuts that surprise defenses fixated on Torontos All-Stars.He also unlocks promising small-ball groups; the lineup of Cory Joseph, Lowry, DeRozan, Carroll and Valanciunas logged only 36 minutes last season, and it could emerge as one of Dwane Caseys crunch-time fives.The new court and logo look great, and the broadcast team is a joy outside the two weeks they spend incessantly lobbying for Lowry and DeRozan to make the All-Star team.5. NEW YORK KNICKS (34)Look, the Knicks just kind of break the League Pass Rankings system. A mediocre team shouldnt finish this high, but the Knicks are in the top 10 every year. Maybe we need to create a Mediocre Knicks Exception.They have Mike Breen and Clyde Frazier, the Madison Square Garden court with that spotlight-style lighting, and three must-watch stars (for very different reasons) in Carmelo Anthony, Kristaps Porzingis, and Derrick Rose. How many wrong pronunciations will Clyde use for Mindaugas Kuzminskas and Guillermo Hernangomez? Will he just give up after 15 games? How annoying will Sasha Vujacic be, just in general? What is the state of Kyle OQuinns beard?Watching the Knicks figure out how in the hell they want to play offense is a big enough storyline to sustain viewer interest over the first 20 games. Jeff Hornaceks comments out of training camp have been inscrutable. They want to use the triangle, but maybe not as often, or not at all sometimes, and, hey, that spread pick-and-roll thingie everyone does seems to work really well!The novelty of that dilemma will wear off, but if the Knicks stay healthy (stop laughing) and hang in the playoff race, they will be a fun watch all season. No one cooks from the triple-threat position like Anthony when hes toying with dudes, and Porzingis is one of the most exciting players in the league -- even more so when the Knicks shift him to center.4. MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES (35)Were all going to regret this, but for now, its fun to get carried away with Wolves Mania. Thibs is back, flapping his penguin wings and bellowing in that unmistakable baritone: ICE, ICE, ICE!! Thibs teaching Zach LaVine defense stands as one of the greatest educational challenges in modern world history.This team is thinner than the hype train realizes, particularly on the wing, but the nucleus of Ricky Rubio, Karl-Anthony Towns, and Andrew Wiggins inspires legit butterflies. Can we not be in such a rush for the Wolves to trade Rubio, by the way? There isnt much evidence their offense can subsist without him, the few teams that need point guards dont have a ton to trade, and his backups might not be ready for major NBA minutes.Subtle fundamental brilliance underlies Rubios passing flash. His dimes hit teammates in the hands, and he releases them at the precise moment a defender is leaning away from his target. He holds the ball a beat longer than most point guards, and that half-second matters.But the flash is high-wattage. Rubio is the leagues no-look king; he literally laughs (ask him!) at fools who throw those bogus no-lookers where they stare down their target, throw the ball, and only then jerk their head in the opposite direction. (His favorite: the fake no-look where the passer turns his head toward a side of the floor where there is no teammate to even catch a theoretical pass. Will Barton does this all the time.)Towns can do almost everything well already. The Wolves have to figure out what sort of front-court player theyd like to pair with Towns, and they are a little overloaded with center types as things stand now. Dont rule out a trade.The butterscotchy court is still hideous, but Dave Benz and Jim Petersen bring the heat -- and the numbers -- to every broadcast. If Cole Aldrich starts flinging up duck-and-cover hook shots again, maybe the Wolves can justify this ranking after all.3. LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS (35)Same old Clippers, with their scripted precision. You can recite the steps: Chris Paul and Blake Griffin run a pick-and-roll with J.J. Redick curling up the weak side; Paul hits Griffin on the short roll; DeAndre Jordans defender slides up to help; Griffin lobs to Jordan for a dunk.Its like putting together a piece of prefab furniture: Each step is pretty clear, the final product looks nice, and it doesnt survive quite as long as youd hoped. With Griffin back, hopefully Paul spices it up by relinquishing the controls so Griffin can go to work as a point forward in semi-transition; Griffin was tearing up the league before injuries hit last season.The Clips are perpetually one wing short, but a fully engaged Griffin-Jordan combo playing to exhaustion at least gives them a chance to poke at Golden States weak spots.God forbid they are starting Luc Richard Mbah a Moute again when the playoffs arrive. The logo is an embarrassment, the court looks as if it were designed by a child with access to too many colors of paint, and Michael Smith, their analyst, adores every little thing about the Clippers so much, its sickening. I do love a good Ralph Lawler Bingo! though.2. CLEVELAND CAVALIERS (37)Well spend eight months watching the next two teams circle each other, so lets be brief here: The Cavs have LeBron James, one of the five (at worst) greatest players ever, and even when they get lazy during the doldrums, they have the collective talent to find the sublime at any moment.Also, the new court might be their best ever:1. GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS (42)Duh. The Warriors have now topped this list in three of the past four seasons, and even the haterz concede there is no other option for the top spot. Now, lets get to the stinking games already. Dan Frawley Jersey . The FA rejected Wilsheres appeal that the length of his punishment was "clearly excessive" and said Thursday his suspension begins with immediate effect. He will miss league matches against Chelsea on Monday and West Ham on Dec. Mark Recchi Jersey . The 25-year-old Japanese star has officially been posted by his club team, the Rakuten Golden Eagles. https://www.cheappenguinsjersey.com/2001q-matthew-barnaby-jersey-penguins.html . The news was first reported on Gonzalezs Twitter account and confirmed by the Rockies. Gonzalez has a six-week window before position players have their first workout at spring training in Arizona. Fake Penguins Jerseys . McCarthy, a player who played some games in the second tier for Wigan at the start of this season, would go on to shine inside Evertons midfield, outplaying the man he was brought in to replace, on one of the grandest stages in English football. On Saturday, it was fitting that Manchester Uniteds most recent dagger into the chest was delivered by Frenchman Yohan Cabaye, a wonderfully gifted central midfielder who put on an outstanding effort for Newcastle at Old Trafford. Jim Paek Jersey . This should be celebrated because it will not always be this way. With the amount of money given to players by their clubs these days, it is a wonder that so many of those teams allow the sport to continue to take away many of their assets so they can play for a different team in the middle of their season. Coaches changing jobs is an annual rite in the NBA, and one-third of the leagues 30 teams have changed coaches since last season ended. Heres a look at the 10 coaches in new jobs:---KENNY ATKINSON, Brooklyn NetsAtkinsons only head-coach experience was his stint leading the Dominican Republic national team. But he played across much of Europe, and has spent almost a decade as an assistant with the New York Knicks and most recently the Atlanta Hawks. Hes one of only two coaches who will be serving as an NBA head coach for the first time, joining Memphis David Fizdale (if one doesnt count the Lakers Luke Walton, who was the acting head coach in Golden State for the first half of last season).---SCOTT BROOKS, Washington WizardsTheres eight active coaches in the NBA with more than 300 wins, and Brooks is one of them. Hes the 12th full-time Washington coach since the franchises last trip to the conference finals in 1979. He won a title as a player in Houston, was an NBA coach of the year with Oklahoma City, got the Thunder to the NBA Finals and never had a losing record in any of his six full seasons as a head coach. His hiring could seem like a steal for Washington, which has a young roster loaded with talent like John Wall and Bradley Beal.---MIKE DANTONI, Houston RocketsHe wants to run, run, run and any offense being controlled by James Harden would figure to thrive with that mandate. Houston is the fifth head-coaching stop for DAntoni, who hasnt taken a team past the first round since he got Phoenix into the Western Conference semifinals in 2007. DAntonis last two stints, with the New York Knicks and the Los Angeles Lakers, didnt go well. But Houston is looking for a return to the upper echelon of the West, and DAntoni likely feels the same urgency.---DAVID FIZDALE, Memphis GrizzliesIt was an annual question in Miami: What would it take for David Fizdale to get a job elsewhere? The answer finally came this offseason, when Memphis decided Fizdale was the right person for the job there and ended his eight-year stint as a Heat assistant. He was one of Erik Spoelstras most trusted confidantes during the Heat run of four straight trips to the NBA Finals, has long had great relationships with players and already seems to have the respect of the Grizzlies locker room. There will be some growing pains for the rookie coach, though likely none he cant handle.---JEFF HORNACEK, New York KnicksHornaceks only other gig as a head coach came in Phoenix, where he started fast -- going 48-34 in his first season. Problem was, he went 53-78 in the rest of his tenure there before getting fired and probably was a bit victimized by his early success. He was part of a Knicks makeover of sorts this summer, with the team landing Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah to pair alongside Carmelo Anthony. Its hard to imagine the pressure-cooker that is New York would bother Hornacek, who has been in the league as a coach and player for 30 years.---DAVE JOERGER, Sacramennto KingsIn his three years in Memphis, he never had a losing season, never missed the playoffs -- not even last year when injuries got to almost a comical point for the Grizzlies, won 60 percent of his regular-season games -- and got fired, though neither side was upset about the breakup.dddddddddddd Joerger was hired by Sacramento two days after the end of his Memphis tenure. Whether in the NBA or any of the minor leagues he coached in, Joerger has never had a team finish with a losing record. That 11-season streak will be tested now.---NATE MCMILLAN, Indiana PacersHes fourth among active coaches with 478 wins, behind only Gregg Popovich, Doc Rivers and Rick Carlisle. McMillan is going to be running a team for the 13th season, his first time in the first chair since he was fired by Portland 43 games into the 2011-12 season. Its a third chance for McMillan, who also coached Seattle and has been out of the first round only once. If that continues, that wont exactly appease the fan base in Indiana, which saw Frank Vogel jettisoned after winning 58 percent of his games in six seasons.---TOM THIBODEAU, Minnesota TimberwolvesThibodeau has one losing season as a head coach, and that was in 1984-85 -- at Salem State College in New Hampshire, his alma mater. That team allowed opponents to score 75.5 points per game and shoot 48 percent. Suffice to say, hes gotten a little better at the teaching of defense since. Its not disparaging to say Thibodeau is a hard coach to play for; he wears that as a badge of honor. But his five years as coach in Chicago were all winners, and he now has arguably the most talented core of young players in the league to mold.---FRANK VOGEL, Orlando MagicVogel had great teams in his six seasons at Indiana. It just so happened that in three of those years, his teams couldnt solve the Miami Heat in their Big Three era -- and then he lost Paul George for basically a full season to an awful broken leg. He gets a rebuilding project in Orlando, one that Scott Skiles couldnt solve in his one season there before walking away. Vogel will demand a defensive commitment, though doesnt do so at the expense of offense, either. And getting bounced by the Pacers may leave him feeling like hes got something to prove again.---LUKE WALTON, Los Angeles LakersDepending on whos counting, Waltons career record is either 0-0 or 39-4. Walton had great success as the fill-in for Steve Kerr in Golden State when his boss was sidelined while recovering from back surgeries last season, and even got some coach of the year votes -- an award that Kerr actually won. Hes only 36, which helps him relate to players. He has rings from being a Lakers player and a Warriors assistant, is the son of Basketball Hall of Famer Bill Walton and understands the enormity of the task that awaits in the post-Kobe Bryant era in L.A. ' ' '
