TDL Winter 2017 Week 7 Power Rankings (All Weeknight Divisions)

PREMIER DIVISION

Rank Team Record Comments
(+2)
MWW
5-1 The more things change, the more they stay the same. METTA WORLD WAR is back in top billing. (G) Shamel Arasmo is starting to pick it up now, but it’s the glue-guy effort of capt (F) Kareem Merrick, (F) Nick Pelletier and (F) Gus David that keep this thing running.
(+2) DYN 4-1 This has been kind of a surprise season for NY DYNASTY. They have won some pretty unlikely games, but the new adds have fit in well, and (G/F) Will Haile is playing some vintage ball right now..
(+2) FKA
3-2 This shouldn’t be this much of a surprise, but after a rocky start, newbies F.K.A.L.J.s are finally looking like a dark horse contender. Much of that is due to the break out play of (F) Tom Killiam, who has lit it up in their last two wins. Sleep at your own risk.
(-2) WHG 3-3 Life comes at you fast. Just three weeks ago, WE HAD GAME was one more solid win away from a #1 ranking. Instead they’ve lost two straight. Not time to panic yet, though, both were winnable games. In fact, they probably should have won in each instance.
(-4) SIX 3-3 TEAM SIX has lost 3 straight, which has never happened in franchise’s history. At full strength, this team is still a contender, but it’s hard to say what’s full strength at this point. They need a shot in the arm. 
(=) COL 1-3 Last week, TEAM COLISEUM got their first win of the season and that’s all it took to secure a playoff spot. Whether or not they make any noise in the playoffs, however, will depend on how much momentum they can build off this win.
(=) GMM 0-6 With their loss last week, GUARD ME MAYBE is officially out of playoff contention having lost to every team in Premier this season. (G) Donnell Mitchell was one of the most exciting players to watch this season but the team just couldn’t get together enough to squeeze into the playoffs. .

1ST DIVISION (WEEKNIGHTS)

Rank Team Record Comments
(=) SPA 4-0 What NYK SPARTANS (F) Young Song is doing this season is just ridiculous. 30.5 ppg on 72% shooting. Go ahead and engrave that MVP award. Chalk it up to not knowing any better if you want, but if you’re not game-planning for Song at this point, what are you doing?
(=) ASN 4-0 ASPHALT NINJAS (C) Rigo Sargeant may or may not make the playoff roster, but this team is better due to (G/F) Kev Chang. A bona fide scorer in D1 for years, he gives ASN the heady slasher/finisher they needed. Also, don’t sleep on (G) Derrick Shich‘s much improved play.
(=)
HON
4-1 HONEY BADGERS had a chance to move back up to #1 but they lost a close one to SPA, their first of the season. And that was without (G) Alex Tsay and (C) Kanem Johnson in the lineup.  This is still top tier.
(=) JLA 3-2 If there were any doubts JUSTICE LEAGUE could compete in D1, put ’em away. This undersized team just out-works you. The only team in D1 with two players in Top 5 rebounding, and one is basically an SG playing SF. They’re streaky, but if they got hot from 3, they can beat anyone.
(=) OPA 2-4 OPTION A has secured a playoff spot so they can rest easy on that end. But they still have yet to prove they can beat a top tier team, which they haven’t done, despite having the size and talent to do it. This team could be a sleeper if they start getting hot right now.
(-2) TOP 0-5 For TOP STARS, making the post-season all depends on their match-up with ALL next week Mar 9. Essentially, it’s a play-in game. The defending champs need this win to even have a chance at defending their title.
(=) ALL 0-5 As mentioned above, this is the game ALL NET needs to circle on their calendars. March 9. Win and they’re in. In a single-elimination playoffs, anything is possible after that.

2ND DIVISION (WEEKNIGHTS)

Rank Team Record Comments
(=) NYR 5-0 For the first time, the NY ROCKITS looked vulnerable against a DYN team playing short-handed. But they won, and they’re undefeated, and (G) Kyle Lew and (G) Dennis Liew are playing very efficient ball. So until proven otherwise, this is the team to beat. 
(+1) DYN 4-2 They are old, and they’re shooting is wildly inconsistent, but if they’re at the top of their game, the NY DYNASTY can be the best team in D2. But that’s a big IF. One thing is for sure, they’re getting consistent great play from (G) Drew Chen. He just isn’t the scorer.
(-1)
NGC
2-2 NYC GRITTY COMMITTEE lost a close one to DYN, but they looked good for most of that game. NYR is in a tier of its own right now, but the second tier is a toss-up between DYN and Gritty.
(+2) DPY 3-2 You gotta give it up to DON’T EVER PLAY YOURSELF. DPY was not a winning team coming into this season. They made some roster changes and despite a slow start, it looks like they may be hitting their stride. 
(-1) JUN 2-2 They have some very solid pieces, but THE JUNKIES need some more consistency on their roster. At their best, they can beat any team in this division, they showed that with a win over DYN. But that loss to DPY was underwhelming, unless we have both teams pegged all wrong.
(=) GMM 2-4 GUARD ME MAYBE needed a win to stay in, and they got it. GMM still needs to figure who’s gonna score for them–they average a paltry 44.2 ppg as a team–but for now, at least they know they’re playoff bound.
(=) JAM 0-6 SPACE JAM needed to beat GMM last week to stay in the playoff hunt. It went down to the wire, but the Jammers fell just short. It was a season that really could have gone either way for JAM, a lot of close games they will be thinking about for next season.

3RD DIVISION (WEEKNIGHTS)

Rank Team Record Comments
(=)
SPR
5-1 This team is unbreakable with (G) Leuis Ng on the floor. SPAGHETTI RAMEN is an unquestionable dynasty, and the key to their maintained dominance this season has been the rising play of (F) Matt Auerbach, who should get some MVP consideration. 
(=) SKL 4-2 SKILLSHARE is still the most stacked team in D3, and now that (G) Michael Hamane has been available, they have a considerable amount of firepower. But, then they took a baffling loss to GOZ last week. We’ll say that’s the outlier, everyone has an off night.
(+1) NYE 4-1 If SKL is the most stacked team in D3, NYCE is a close second. This team is pretty over-sized for D3, but they’re relatively new and don’t quite have the consistency yet. Nevertheless, they’ve won four straight.
(-1) DYN
2-2 The NY DYNASTY got a rude awakening from SPR in a blowout loss. After solid efforts to start 2-1, they simply looked out-classed by Ramen. They do have the division’s top scorer in (G) David Chu, but their age shows up most glaringly on the defensive end.
(=) GOZ 2-4 When you look back to figure out where the turning point was for GAME OF ZONES, look at (G) Tommy Zheng finally joining the roster. Able to score from deep, go off the bounce, and convert at the FT line, Zheng gives GOZ the consistent scorer they’ve needed all season.
(=) 30F 1-3 They’ve lost three straight, but every one of these games was a close one, so don’t go counting 30-FOR-30 out yet. If they beat LG3 next week, they’ll clinch a playoff spot, where they just may make some noise.
(=) LG3 0-5 LG FOR 3 hasn’t had much consistency on their roster, but they still have a chance to clinch a playoff berth if they can beat 30F next week. Basically, the playoffs have already started for LG3.