The 41 games of the first half of NBA Season 2015-16 left fans with much to chew. The Cleveland Cavalier's spectacular loss to the Golden State Warriors is simply characteristic of what this season has been about.
According to Bleacher Report, it has certainly been a colorful few months. At midseason, Matt Dollinger and Ben Golliver rates a few of the NBA teams at Sports Illustrated.
At the top of the list is Cleveland Cavalier toppler, Golden State Warriors, with a stellar grade of A++. The Warriors have a 38-4 record with an offence rating of 1, a defense rating of 3 and a net rating of 2. Stephen Curry, Draymond Green and the Warriors' stamina at maintaining success no matter the lineup are among the best bits of the team's games.
The Cleveland Cavaliers are rated A at midseason with a 28-11 record, an offence rating of 5, a defense rating of 7 and a net rating of 4. At this point LeBron James is just trying to ride out what Usa Today says is one of the worst beating in his career from Golden State's 132-98 victory. "I'm not a kick-a-man-when-you're-down type of guy. That's not my motto," James commented. "It's not miserable. It's just not the end of the world. It's still a basketball game. I don't take it that far."
The Dallas Mavericks also get an A with a 24-19 record, an offence rating of 12, a defense rating of 15 and a net rating of 14. With their strong start Dallas can literally take things easy and still make a playoff appearance. Needless to say, Dallas is among the top achievers of the first of NBA Season 2015-16.
The Oklahoma City Thunder with its 30-12 record, offence rating of 2, defense rating of 8 and net rating of 3 deserves its A rating. With Kevin Durant and the Number Two offense and Number Three point differential in the league, Oklahoma City can hold its head high.
San Antonio Spurs with an A++ based on a 36-6 record, an offence rating of 3, a defense rating of 1 and a net rating of 1 and the Toronto Raptors with an A and a 26-15 record, an offence rating of 6, a defense rating of 11 and a net rating of 6 round up the list of top-raters.
At bottom of the class at midseason are the Brooklyn Nets with an F-, the New Orleans Pelicans with an F and the Phoenix Suns also with an F. The Nets have an 11-31 record with an offence rating of 24, a defense rating of 24 and a net rating of 28. The season has been disastrous for the Sun and the Pelicans with a 13-29 record, an offence rating of 26, a defense rating of 28 and a net rating of 27 for the Suns and a 13-7 record, an offence rating of 18, a defense rating of 29 and a net rating of 24 for the Pelicans.
Despite being in the lower rungs of the roster Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov maintains his optimism. "I'm sure for next season, we'll be, I hope, [a] championship contender," Mikhail Prokhorov declared.
