Brooklyn Nets top ten, say (most) power rankers

With the exception of Marc Stein and David Aldridge, the other power ranking pundits agree the Nets are a top ten team. Of the 10 we regularly track, five rank the Nets eighth. (Two of the rankers posted their lists Friday; two Monday). Stein and Aldridge are not buying it. Stein ranks the Nets 15th, and Aldridge 13th. Both cite their long road trip and that ugly loss to the Hawks.

Here they are...

John Schuhmann, NBA.com (10)

Losses in Philly and at home to the Hawks are exactly why, despite the Knicks' and Pacers' recent struggles, we can't believe the Nets can be a 2 or 3 seed until we actually see it. Brooklyn hasn't shown any consistency on either end of the floor since mid-January and is now just a game in the loss column ahead of the 5, 6 and 7 seeds, facing an eight-game, 17-day trip that starts Monday in Detroit.

Marc Stein, ESPN (15)

The injury-fueled nosedive by the hated Knicks has given the Nets new life in terms of winning the Atlantic Division. The problem: After costly losses last week to Philly and Atlanta, D-Will & Co. won't see Brooklyn again until (whoa) April 4 with its next eight (count 'em, eight) games on the road.

Marc J. Spears, Yahoo! Sports (8)

Brooklyn Nets (39-28, previous ranking: ninth): Deron Williams returns to his home area to play the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday night. Do not be surprised if he receives some boos after turning down the Mavericks’ free-agent overtures last summer.

David Aldridge, NBA/TNT (13)

Blows a chance to go into a first-place tie with the Knicks with loss Sunday to the Hawks. Huge eight-game road trip to end the month looming that will likely determine the Nets' fate.

Adi Joseph, USA Today (8)

KRS-One might be right about the Atlantic Division: "Brooklyn keeps on taking it."

Kurt Helin, NBC Sports (10)

They are the four seed but are 1.5 games away from being the seven seed as they embark on an eight game road trip, forced out of their new home by a circus. Which means brace for the fall about to come. They are at the Mavericks and Clippers this week.

Matt Moore, CBS Sports (8)

Turns out, Deron Williams playing like Deron Williams helps things quite a bit.

Sam Amico, FOX News (9)

It’s sometimes difficult to envision the Nets getting past the second round of the playoffs. But if all those weapons start clicking at the same time, and at the right time, there’s still major promise here.

Matt Dollinger, Sports Illustrated (8) published Friday

The Nets went from being a punchline in New Jersey to one of the trendiest teams in the league in Brooklyn. They play in new Barclays Center, in front of Jay-Z and Beyonce and to the delight of one of the richest people in the world. Despite all this, they continue to play in the shadow of the Knicks, New York's marquee basketball team.

Mitch Lawrence, New York Daily News (8) published Friday

They're in the midst of a stretch of four days off, which will come in handy in the coming weeks when they go on the road for an eight-game trip from March 18-April 3.