Sunday, November 10, 2013

2013-14 NBA Power Rankings, Week 3

The Indiana Pacers have continued their hot start and are now the sole remaining unbeaten team this season.

Therefore, it's shouldn't be much of a surprise that they are the No. 1 team in our Week 3 Consensus NBA Power Rankings.

Just as impressive as winning their first seven games to open the season, the Pacers had to win four of those games during a five-day stretch.

After their run in the postseason last year, the goal is obviously not to "win" the regular season.  One of the things that will certainly help prolong their playoff run in 2014, however, would be to host more home games.

The Pacers won eight of nine of their home playoff games last year and having home-court advantage in each series could potentially help them go deeper in the playoffs this season.

That said, LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and the Miami Heat are still the team to beat as two-time defending champions, but the Pacers are arguably the most complete team in the league.

Pacers small forward Paul George is one of the most complete players in the league.  George is currently averaging 25.1 points, 7.9 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 1.7 steals per game.  In addition, he's shooting 42.9 percent from behind the arc and 84.8 percent from the line.

With George, Roy Hibbert and David West plus Luis Scola off the bench, the Pacers also have one of the league's best front courts.  Hibbert currently ranks second in the NBA in blocks (4.29 per game).

Although the Pacers rank in the bottom 10 in the league in scoring offense (94.9 points per game), they will soon get back Danny Granger from his strained calf.  With a career average of 18.1 points per game and as much as 25.8 PPG (2008-09), Granger will help the team's offense when he returns.

That said, the Pacers are holding teams to just 85.3 points per game, which leads the NBA by a wide margin.  The Bulls and Spurs rank second at 93.0 PPG allowed.  In addition, their opponents are only shooting 38.9 percent from the field, which is an NBA low as well.

The Pacers will host the Grizzlies and Bucks on Nov. 11 and 15, respectively, as they look to extend their winning streak.

- View our full 2013-14 NBA Consensus Power Rankings heading into Week 3

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