NBA Fun Factor Power Rankings

Not only are the 76ers going to be really bad, they also have virtually no talent to put on display. Nerlens Noel will clearly be their best player immediately, and MCW can be good too, but once you start looking at their 3rd and 4th best players, things get ugly very quickly. Tony Wroten? Hollis Thompson? Ouch.

The Pacers weren’t very fun to watch last year when they had Lance Stephenson and Paul George in their lineup. Their games were the equivalent of watching a meat grinder go to work on a bucket of rotting hot dogs. Think that was bad? Try inserting Rodney Stuckey and C.J. Miles in the starting lineup as replacements.

Have no fear, Lakers fans, your squad will be on national television 20 times this year, so even if you don’t have to endure their games on a nightly basis, the rest of the world does probably 19 times too many. Outside of Kobe Bryant, there really isn’t one player worth watching on this roster.

In much the same vein as the Indiana Pacers, this team loves to play a slow-it-down, half court brand of basketball, which appeals to virtually nobody. They may end up winning a lot of games and competing for a playoff spot, but I can think of a lot of unpleasant things I’d rather do than watch this team consistently.

Lionel Hollins is an old school guy, with a blue collar mentality, which makes for hard to beat teams, but doesn’t make for exciting basketball. This team will regress this season, and I don’t find their roster particularly exciting. Deron Williams and Joe Johnson are arguably the two most overpaid players in the league. Garnett isn’t the player he once was. And Brook Lopez is most likely recovering from a foot injury somewhere (he really is).

I think the Celtics are heading in a good direction, but that doesn’t mean they will be much fun to watch this season. They will play some good, grimey defense with Marcus Smart and Avery Bradley. Marcus Thornton adds some pop off the bench. Evan Turner provides some excitement. Sullinger is good. Olynyk is not. They will be improved, but they will probably only average around 95 points per game.

If you like watching a team full of ball stoppers that play virtually no defense, then the Knicks are for you. I really like the addition of Derek Fisher to coach this team, and you can’t go wrong with Phil Jackson running the show, but this team has a long ways to go. I think this roster will have trouble executing in the triangle offense, and it won’t be a fun thing to watch.

Beyond DeMarcus Cousins and Rudy Gay, there aren’t many reasons to watch this team. Ben McLemore is OK. Stauskas is one to keep an eye on, but this team becomes much less fun to watch with Collison running point than it was with Isaiah Thomas. Cousins and Gay may provide some entertaining individual performances, but that’s really all you have to look forward to.

I really like the Hawks, and I also think they have a great shot at earning a high seed in the Eastern Conference. Their core group of players can be really fun to watch at times as well. I will be interested to see Schroder’s growth. Carroll is a ball of energy. Millsap and Horford make up one of the best frontcourts in the league. But, they aren’t very deep, and they’re only an average scoring team.

The Pistons couldn’t shoot the ball to save their lives last year. They added some players to bolster their perimeter shooting, and they have an exciting core group of players. The most intriguing things to watch will be Drummond’s development, Josh Smith’s transition back to power forward and how Monroe adapts to a reduced role. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope also seems like he is ready to explode. This team can be exciting to watch at times.

I will probably get killed for this, but I just don’t like watching the Rockets play basketball very much. They are completely dependent on two players, neither of which I enjoy watching. They are among the league’s worst shooting teams. Ariza looks really good during preseason, and I like the fit. Terry might help as well. But, I really don’t like the brand of basketball they play. 17 times on national TV is more than enough.

Much like the Rockets, there are plenty of teams I would rather watch than the Thunder. They honestly have a very dysfunctional offensive scheme, consisting of getting the ball into two players' hands and everyone else watching. Brooks is terrible at installing an offensive system. If I didn’t like Durant so much, the Thunder would be towards the bottom in terms of watchability for me. Plus, they are on national TV 25 times. That’s plenty enough.

The Magic are assembling a bunch of talent. The only problem is that the parts of this team don’t really fit together. That said, there are plenty of reasons to watch between Oladipo, Vucevic, Elfrid Payton, Aaron Gordon and Tobias Harris. This is an exciting group of young players that will play in a lot of close and competitive games.

The Heat have 13 new players on their roster right now, and that will probably get trimmed to around eight after final cuts, but regardless, that is a lot of new players to assimilate into a team. I am interested in following this team to see how they progress with those new players, and to see how they adapt to the absence of LeBron. I think Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh will be enticing enough on a nightly basis to make it worth it.

I really like the mixture of young and veteran talent on this team. They aren’t a very good fast-break team, but their execution in the half court is excellent. Watching Lowry and DeRozan operate in one of the league’s best backcourts is reason enough to watch. I also think Valanciunas has a breakout season and becomes one of the better bigs in the league.

The Wizards won’t run the opposing team out of the gym. They aren’t even that efficient offensively. In fact, they were one of the least effective scoring teams out of the 16 playoff squads from a year ago. But, this team can play good defense, they are well-coached and they have one of the most exciting backcourts in the league. Also of interest will be how Pierce integrates with this team and how Gortat responds to his new contract.

Like the Wizards, the Bulls won’t set the world on fire offensively, but they do have star power, and they do play really, really good basketball. Gasol, Mirotic and McDermott will help spread the floor out, and of course, the return of Rose is must-watch TV all season.

The cast of young talent the Jazz are assembling is impressive. The addition of Exum is a bit perplexing considering the current backcourt of Burke and Burks, but watching Exum play in the preseason, one thing is clear, he has excellent court vision and is very fun to watch. Add an improving Favors and Hayward to the mix, and this team will be really fun to watch. They will probably lose a lot of really close games.

I am one of the biggest proponents of how the Mavs improved their team this offseason, and I think they elevated themselves into true contender territory. The three-headed monster of Nowitzki, Ellis and Parsons will be among the most exciting trios in the league. Adding Chandler improves their defense immensely, if you’re into that sort of thing.

The style of basketball the Spurs play is incredibly exciting to watch in my opinion; the ultimate team basketball. That said, they are already on national TV 19 times, and we also know how Popovich loves to rest his starters during the regular season. So on any given night, you may not get to watch the players you actually tune in to see.

I, for one, am excited to watch “the kiddos” play basketball together. They won’t be very good, but I am almost certain that they will be fun to watch. The Timberwolves do have an odd mixture of veteran players sprinkled throughout their roster, and I am actually pulling for them to get less playing time in favor the youngins, which I’m sure will happen once hope is lost on the season.

I really hate putting the Cavs this high since they are on national TV virtually every night anyway (25 times), but as much as I try to resist it, this team is just really great to watch. I love Blatt’s offensive system so far, and watching three of the best players in the league come together and learn how to play cohesive basketball will be worth watching.

People are sleeping on this Nuggets team. Only on national TV five times, an insanely low amount for a potential playoff team that plays an exciting brand of basketball, especially at home. Lawson is one of the most exciting point guards to watch in the league, Faried is energy personified and McGee can do something mind-boggling at any given moment. Oh, and don’t forget about the rookie Nurkic, he will be really good.

The Hornets were not a great scoring team a year ago, but they were very good defensively. Their offseason additions will help them significantly on the offensive side of the ball. I love the fit with Lance Stephenson. MKG is sporting a “fixed” jump shot. And I think Marvin Williams is an underrated signing. This team will be incredibly exciting to watch this season, and they will also be really good.

I am admittedly one of the biggest fans of what this team is doing to build up their core. I personally think Anthony Davis is the most exciting player to watch in the game. I love his combination of raw talent and incredible determination. I am still a bit confused as to what they are doing at the SF position, but I think Holiday is a good PG and Eric Gordon is really good, if healthy.

The Bucks are probably the quintessential “League Pass Team”. They were the worst team in the league a year ago. They will certainly be better this season, but nobody really knows by how much. The thing is, they have some really, really exciting, young players. I am giddy about watching Parker and Antetokounmpo develop. Middleton may be the most underpaid player in the league and Henson is also someone to keep an eye on.

“Lob City”. Not much else needs to be said. Blake Griffin is frighteningly coming into his own and developing other parts of his game. Paul remains a top-tier PG, and Jordan is one of the most exciting big men in the game. Oh, and don’t forget about the ageless wonder Jamal Crawford, who continues to make some of the most amazing shots I have ever seen.

The Trail Blazers were one of the biggest surprise teams last season, and they really turned into an offensive juggernaut. They added some nice complimentary bench pieces, but other than that, this exciting core remains in tact. They may regress a bit in the win department, but that doesn’t mean they will be any less exciting to watch.

Guard heaven. For someone, like me, who absolutely loves watching good guard play, it really doesn’t get better than the Phoenix Suns. Watching Dragic and Bledsoe is an absolute joy. Add Isaiah Thomas and Zoran Dragic into the mix, as well as Gerald Green, this team is absolutely loaded. I think they will regress a bit in the win column, but they will be hard to take your eyes off of.

Another guard paradise for me. The Splash Brothers are as good as it gets in my opinion. I would watch every game they play simply to see those two. I’m not a huge David Lee guy. I think Iguodala is getting old and is a bit overrated. Harrison Barnes and Draymond Green are the wildcards. But again, tuning in to watch Curry and Thompson is enough for me.