Kobe Bryant on the Washington Wizards? Why It’s A Fun Idea To Think About by Oscar Adams

The Washington Wizards are 7-2, which is their best start in forty years. An Eastern Conference that was supposed to be dominated by the Chicago Bulls and the LeBron James led Cleveland Cavaliers is as wide open as ever. The Toronto Raptors sit atop the conference with the Washington Wizards sneaking right behind in the second spot.

As of right now, one thing is clear. There is no leader in the Eastern Conference.

But, where do the Wizards sit in the complete NBA power rankings? According to Yahoo’s Marc J. Spears, they’re the fifth best team in the NBA:

via Yahoo! Sports

The Washington Wizards have yet to beat a formidable opponent, but without Bradley Beal in the lineup, they’ve shown that they’re capable of beating teams they’re supposed to beat on paper. In the past, Randy Wittman‘s team would have played down to the level of their competition, ultimately dropping multiple games at home that they shouldn’t have. Now, the Wizards appear to be focused and ready to climb the rankings.

Even though they’ve missed Beal, the Wizards have looked like an Eastern Conference contender. They couldn’t have done it without John Wall, who’s currently sixth in the KIA Race to the MVP Ladder:

Wall is the one player on this list who seems to be flying under the radar, relatively speaking, this season. The Wizards are right near the top of the Eastern Conference standings with Wall serving as the point guard and best backcourt scoring option while Bradley Beal continues to heal.

The East is loaded with great point guards, but John Wall has arguably been the best in the conference. Averaging over 19 points and 9 assists per game, Wall is one his way to another NBA All-Star game appearance.

It’s been a while since the Wizards have had a legitimate MVP contender while being considered one of the best team’s in the league. They’ll be faced with their toughest challenges of the season thus far this week, as they’ll meet the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday and Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday.