2014-15 NBA Power Rankings: Spurs start out on top

(Editor's Note: For each of the past three seasons we have brought you a weekly feature rounding up various Power Rankings from around the web. This year, we are introducing our own set of rankings to the mix.)

The NBA season is just weeks away and we are ready to unveil our own set of Power Rankings for the upcoming season. Some of the main factors that went into this ranking were depth, player personnel and coaching.  When originally writing this, I attempted to leave out injuries, but if a team has a history of injury problems then I will make mention of it.  So now that you have read my brief explanation, here are my Pre-Season 2014-2015 NBA Power Rankings.

1. San Antonio Spurs: I mean, you gotta beat the current champ and with everyone returning it's hard to think they have had a significant drop off from last year.
2. Cleveland Cavaliers: With the addition of LeBron James and Kevin Love, this team to me jumps to the top of the east. Yes, defense will be in question, but it will be really hard to outscore this roster.
3. Los Angeles Clippers: I see Blake Griffin taking another step this season and with Chris Paul on the roster the team will be tough to beat.  I still have a question at small forwards with them, but we will see how the season plays out.
4. Chicago Bulls: A front-court rotation of Taj Gibson, Joakim Noah and Pau Gasol is pretty darn good. I have worries about this team in terms of health but IF (and a big if) everyone is healthy this team will be a contender.
5. Oklahoma City Thunder: If Russell Westbrook can stay healthy, this team will stay near the top like they tend to do. I do wonder how they will do since I think Reggie Jackson is now starting at SG and also how long it takes for Steven Adams to start for this team.  I also wonder if this is the year Scott Brooks gets the hot seat.
6. Portland Trail Blazers: LaMarcus Aldridge is still good and Damian Lillard will take another step.  The starting lineup is still solid but I think this is the team in the West that might take a step back due to the lack of strength on the bench.  But as far as now in pre-season, this team will be in the upper part of the west as long as they stay healthy.
7. Dallas Mavericks: For those that don’t know, Rick Carlisle is a darn good coach.  This is a very interesting team since they have specialists all over the roster and are oddly deep. They might surprise some people.
8. Golden State Warriors: This team has a great starting lineup and some pretty alright guys on the bench. This is another team that I question the health and, with the addition of Steve Kerr, this team is an unknown for me.
9. Toronto Raptors: A team holding the legendary former Hawks players is up there in my east rankings due to having an updated roster. Valanciunas is very good along with Kyle Lowry. We will see how much DeMar DeRozan has improved.
10. Houston Rockets: This team will go as far as Dwight Howard and James Harden take them; if one of them goes down, things will look rough.  We will see how non-contract year Trevor Ariza looks and if Kevin McHale will get on the hot seat.
11. Memphis Grizzlies: I love this front court just because it's probably the most physical front court in the league. Also they seem to have added notorious Hawk killer Vince Carter to their roster.  Depth to team is also a concern for me and this is a team I see taking a drop.
12. Phoenix Suns: The surprise team of last season looks to be taking another step.  This is a fun team to watch but we will see how much they grow this season behind their young backcourt.
13. Charlotte Hornets: Now I get to the hard part of the ranking. I selected the Hornets because of what the team looks like on paper. It will be interesting to see if and how long this team takes to gel. This could be bad for them since they will be getting two new starters on the roster.  For those that are upset, I could put the Hawks here considering they seem to be a bad matchup for the Hornets. By the way, if for some reason this season goes downhill, the first thing that needs to be pointed is the making to Lance’s music video.
14. Atlanta Hawks: The Hawks will have a lot of questions coming into the season with Al Horford coming back (and to a smaller extent) with how the bench will perform.  To the Hawks credit, they have brought players in that address that weakness but I will honestly say I have never seen Kent Bazemore before and we will see if Thabo Sefolosha gets back on track from his rough season last year.  On the plus side, Coach Bud is one of the better coaches in the league and definitely one of the top coaches in the east, so hopefully they guys will adapt and perform above expectation.
15. Washington Wizards: Another team where I question the lineup. Yes, they got Paul Pierce but they guy didn’t really flourish until he was moved to PF and he was playing on a slower paced team.  John Wall and Bradley Beal will push the pace and I wonder how Pierce will mix with them. Also I do question how many games Nene will play this year.  Too many questions with this team for me and if they had a better coach (Yes, I do not consider Randy Wittman a good coach) then I could see the team adjusting.
16. Miami Heat: Well this should be fun to see how the Heats season turns out.  I wonder how many games Dwyane Wade will play and who will step up for this team. This will be a good chance to see if Mario Chalmers is better than what many think of him and if Danny Granger still got game.
17. New Orleans Pelicans: This looks like a fun team to play with in 2K... and that’s about as far as that goes.  It will be interesting to see what happens with this team and if they can make it to the playoffs.  Oh yeah and Anthony Davis is fun. I want to see how he will get better this season.
18. Brooklyn Nets: Another team filled with questions for me.  On the highly optimistic side, Deron Williams magically becomes a superstar again, no injuries, and Lionel Hollins gets to this team.  Now on the other end, Brook Lopez clashes with Hollins because he will try to get Brook to "toughen up", KG continues to deteriorate as an NBA player, Deron attempts to play like a superstar yet he is physically limited, Brook gets injured again, and finally Hollins as a player coach will try to get this team to compete yet because they are full of vets (outside of Plumlee) they will not get the desired result.
19. New York Knicks: Remember when Knickstape was a thing? It will be interesting to see who will actually stay healthy this season and what position the league's most underrated superstar, Carmelo Anthony will play.  At least with this team they improved the roster and actually has someone running the point.  Also another thing to see is how much this highly hyped triangle offense will help this team out
20. Detroit Pistons: Oh hey, Josh Smith hasn’t been traded yet and I think I saw of picture of Van Gundy smiling with both Brandon Jennings and Josh.  I anticipate for this team be better and for Dre to take a step forward, but I wonder how the chemistry will look with the knowledge of Monroe wanting out after this year.
21. Denver Nuggets: This should be a fun backcourt now that Aaron Afflalo is back in Denver.  Kenneth Faried got a huge paycheck but we will see if he still clashes with Brian Shaw. Bright side, I think Danilo Gallinari might actually return this year.
22. Indiana Pacers: Welp, how the mighty have fallen and boy was this team just hit with bad luck. Losing Lance Stephenson is one thing but losing Paul George is another. Frank Vogel seems to be getting an extension but I am sure he will have to prove something after the collapse on the later half of last season.  But hey bright side, for all those that still like Roy Hibbert you get the chance to see him show off his offensive game. Also
23. Sacramento Kings: Hey, at the last second, they manage to move up a spot because Swaggy P got hurt.  I have no idea what this team is trying to do since they got rid of Isiah Thomas and yet decided to bring in Darren Collison.  Also I wonder what they will do with Ben Mclemore now that Nik Stauskas has been drafted
24. Los Angeles Lakers: Well this team wins the award for worst team that will probably get the most attention. I really have no idea why they picked up Carlos Boozer and man I thought this team was unwatchable before and yet somehow they managed to get worse with losing Swaggy P.  But yay KOBE IS BACK! Now I get to see him either go lights out or take 20 shots to get 18 points.
25. Minnesota Timberwolves: The Timberwolves are going to be soOOOoo fun to watch. Oh yeah they will be terrible but THEY WILL BE FUN!
26. Utah Jazz: It will be fun to see this team grow through the years. Quin Snyder has been known to help young guards develop (See Jeff Teagues improvement last year) and with the combination of a Trey Burke and Dante Exum they could turn into something.
27. Orlando Magic: This is the best team that can't shoot in the league. Yeah this made sense in my head.
28. Milwaukee Bucks: So this summer has been so crazy that nearly everyone has forgotten about the Jason Kidd Fiasco.  It will be fun to see what happens to the Bucks now that Kidd is running things and with the addition of their new "stretch 4" Jabari Parker.
29. Boston Celtics: This team was bad before, but now that they lost Rondo, ohhhh boy. But now we get to see the Marcus Smart and James Young backcourt so I guess that’s something.
30. Philadelphia 76ers: C’mon does this need explanation? I wonder if this team would make it to the final four if they entered the NCAA tournament.

That's it for this week's rankings. Let me know what you guys think in the comments and let me know which teams you think need to be moved around and why.