SQUEEZE the ORANGE with a UTEP 2-STEP Crossover Dribble by Tim HARDAWAY of LOGO WATCH #143...the 2012 NBA POWER RANKINGS..the Top 15 TEAMS before TIP-OFF 2012-13

Its never too early to talk about the Spalding Orange in the Logo as this Season will be arguably the Most Anticipated because of once again Player Movement. But this is just not your Ordinary {layer Movement of a Top Free Agent or Two. Franchise-Type Players have New Digs like Dwight of "As DWIGHT Turns", Drew of Broad Street Philly, Point God NASH-ty goes Hollywood, Lob City with a Plethora of New Additions, and of Course the Opening of "Brooklyn is in the Logo" and all them Additions including the Barclays Center.

The September Power Rankings for the 2012-13 Season are based on 2011-12 Finish, New Additions, and of course UpSide moving towards the October Tip-Off 2012-13.

The Squeeze the Orange and Logo Watch #143 is sponsored by...who needs a Cup of Joe in the Show Report, A QB Driven League, and Fall Saturday's....we always have Squeeze the Orange and Logo Watch present.

The TOP 15 Teams in Order

1. 305 BOYZ World Champs: They have King James with his 1st Ring. They add Team SuperSonics Fusion of Sugar Ray and Shard Lewis. It has been widely discussed when the Heat when One they may reel off a few more in succession.

2. THUNDER Up: The OKC Contingent gets another Year Wiser and they have Finals Experience under their Belts. They add former Grind House 1st Round Bust by way of UConn Hassem Thabeet. But they still have the 3-Gold Medal Winning Olympians in KD, Uncle Russ, and Big Game James 2.0.

3. LAKEshow: C'Mon the Black Mamba and the Spaniard are joined by NASH-ty and "As DWIGHT Turns" and GM Kupchak already crying about "I wish they were all 25". First Thing is First put #18 Up in the Rafters and then we will worry about Age.

4. GREEN TEAM: They still have KG, the Truth, and Point God Double R. They then get "Hoya Paranoia" Jeff Green back, A New Gulfstream V in JET Terry, Athletic 2G Courtney Lee of Indy Pike HS, 1st Rounders "Sully" Sullinger and "Fab" Melo to go along with a Possible FA K-Mart at PF. Wouldn't that be something LAKEshow vs C's...Lakers trying to get #18 and C's trying to get #19...who needs Time Warner Cable in L.A. all that is On Prime Time.

5. LOB City the New CLIPjoint: CP3, the Lob City BUTLER, and the BLAKEshow for starters. Then you keep Mr. Big Shot, add Jamal of Puget Sound Crawford, Grant Hill, LAM LAM, Turiaf, and Willie Green. Andre the Giant in the Middle and the Only Problem now is Coach Vinny is running that Machine. Billy Crystal has to be taking Shots at Lakers Nation and Diane Cannon.

6. ALAMO City: Just don't know after the Thunder spotted them 2 Games and they went 0-4 the next 4 Games the Spurs did. They will field the Same Team in 2012-13 with the Addition of another French PG Nando Colo. Can they beat the Top Teams in the West...Lakers, Clippers, Thunder.

7. BROOKLYN NETS: Yes the Hoops World will stop when they host the Knicks at the Barclay for the Home Opener. The Nets will ride Point God D-Will and "Quiet Storm J.J." Joe Johnson but who will step up and join them. They need to move Deron off the Orange to the Two and JJ to the Three and hope that Rook Tyshawn Taylor and CJ Watson could handle the One if they go that Route. Still the Nets will be playing when it is Winning Time in Mid-April but what Seed is the Question.

8. GRIND HOUSE Beale Street Memphis: Can Summer League Star Combo Josh Selby play like he did in Summer League and be the Scorer without a Volume of Shots in 2012-13. The Reason the let OJ Mayo walk because of Selby. Z-Bo should be healthy and will Rudy Gay take the Next Step in his Progression. His Direct Deposit says he has but on the Hardwood...No.

9. MAVS: I like what they did after the 1st Round Knockout from Deron Williams. They get Darren Collison and OJ Mayo. They also add Elton Brand to go along with Dirk's Deutsch Land National  Teammate Chris Kaman. DIRKiliscious should even play better this Season with a Full Off-Season and a Newly-Wed. The Mavs will be the Sleeper in the West no one wants to play. Combo G Dominique Jones played Stellar in Summer Action and should step into Major Minutes.

10. GOLD SWAGGER: Can they be that Team in the East that is hovering at the 3rd or 4th Seed all season. They have the Circle City Strangler D-Granger and D-West with Hoya Paranoia's  Area 55 manning the Middle. I worry about George Hill at the Point but they must not be worried at all. Frank Vogel is definitely the Man for the Job and meet The East Sleeper.

11. SEVENTY-SIXERS: they add Big Drew Bynum who is a Sky Hook Pupil. They have all these Athletes around him with the likes of Evan Turner, Jrue Holiday, and Thaddeus Young. Doug Collins is the Perfect Fit for a Team in Transition and Young Players. They will also be in that 4-6 Range in the East.

12. WEST SIDE STORY Report: They will not get the ADIzero Hero D-Rose back until after All-Star Break. They didn't add too much and they get Captain Kirk back in the Fold for what that is worth. They seem to be waiting for the FA Class of 2013 but the Bulls saw all their Weaknesses when Derrick went down and didn't or couldn't address hardly any of them in the Off Season.

13. KNICKERBOCKERS: They have 'Melo and a New Stat from Camp DREAM. Stat still needs the Orange to show his new game. Chandler is the reigning 2011-12 Logo Defensive Player of the Year and is a Real Nice Fit in the Paint. They went AARP adding J-Kidd and Camby-Man. They run an ISO Offense with 'Melo the 1st -4th Option and the Shot Clock being the Other Option. They might get to #5 in the East...might.

14. NUGGETS: Adding IGGY of Philly was a Slam Dunk. Then the re-sign Javale McGee to an Extension and they have really good young pieces moving forward. Coach Karl is one of the Best in the Logo and Team Kroenke is showing they are not afraid to move things around and Change for the Good although it may be for later. Should be solid in the West.  

15. T'WOLVES: The Surprise of the Logo for the 2012-13 Season and what will Nike Basketball's  BRoy7 do after a Season sitting out and the Knee Issues. They also have to bring Young PG Ricky Rubio back slowly. But the Roster is filled with Major Potential and they have a Star in the "Lake Oswego Monster" K-Love. David Kahn has made us Believers on Paper.  

The Story Lines are in Abundance but "There can Only be One" in June.