FanShot

Stein: Blazers Are Biggest Risers, Land At No. 6 In NBA Power Rankings

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Marc Stein of ESPN.com places the Portland Trail Blazers at No. 6 in his NBA Power Rankings, jumping them up from the No. 14 preseason spot. Nobody jumped more than the Blazers. --------------------------- It's cold to say it out loud but undeniably true: Portland plays faster in the post-Roy era. It's early, obviously, but the Blazers have been a lot more watchable. Especially with Matthews, Felton and Crawford all scoring 20-plus against Denver. --------------------------- The top-5: Miami Heat, Chicago Bulls, Oklahoma City Thunder, Denver Nuggets and Orlando Magic. David Aldridge of NBA.com puts the Blazers at No. 5 (up from No. 14). Kurt Helin of ProBasketballTalk.com has the Blazers at No. 5, up from No. 11. More Power Rankings coming later this week. -- Ben Golliver | benjamin.golliver@gmail.com | Twitter