Atlanta Hawks: Eastern Conference Power Rankings, Dec. 10

The Philadelphia 76ers are so bad that they had to hire former Phoenix Suns owner Jerry Colangelo to help with their front office. Apparently the other 29 NBA owners wanted to see some shrapnel of respect be put into that front office. Yet the Sixers still have only one win on the season.

When your concessions are worth more than the tickets you are selling, your D-League team is the worst team in the league in most categories, and the hyper tanking methods of GM Sam Hinkie are getting scarier by the day, it’s nearly impossible to root for this pathetic excuse of a basketball team. I hope they win.

Like last week, the Brooklyn Nets are the fourth worst team in the NBA record-wise, ahead of the New Orleans Pelicans, the Los Angeles Lakers, and the Philadelphia 76ers. With promising youngster Rondae Hollis-Jefferson out for a few months with his injury, the Nets’ future looks bleaker than ever.

At 6-15, the Nets are five games back of any sort of competitive position in the East (10th place). The front office has to tear down the current model and try to get back into the first round in 2016. Division rival Boston has their first round pick, an unprotected one at that.

The Milwaukee Bucks are one of the two biggest disappointments in the East so far this season. Many thought that the Bucks were a sneaky choice to possibly orchestrate a deep playoff run. Perhaps everybody put way too much stock in last year’s first half before the club traded away point guard Brandon Knight to Phoenix.

They are not the worst defensive team in the NBA anymore (27th), but the Bucks are clearly the worst team in the best division in the NBA in 2015-16. At this moment, the Milwaukee Bucks are the only team in the Central I can’t see making the 2016 Eastern Conference Playoffs.

Next: Tier IV: Not Making the Playoffs