Using Math to Rank All US Cities by Sports (Part 2)
Four days ago, I released part 1 (teams 28-36) of my rankings. If you didn’t read part 1, I encourage you to take a look. The process by which I made my rankings is also in that article.
Here is part two of the rankings.
27. Nashville (48.31)
Titans, Predators
Record (15th): Titans (99-111), Predators (508-333-116)
Championships (27th): Titans (None), Predators (None)
Great Seasons (26th): Titans (2021: 12-5, 1 seed —reached CF—), Predators (2017: 53-18-11, 1 seed, QF —reached SC—)
Great Players (31st): Titans (Jurell Casey, Derrick Henry), Predators (P.K. Subban, Pekka Rinne, Roman Josi)
The Predators elevate Nashville out of the mud and into the third quadrant of the rankings. They have one of the top wining percentages of any team in the NHL since 2010. However, they’ve been the 76ers of the NBA, only making it past the second round once in 10 playoff appearances. The Titans have only made it to the conference championship once in 2019, only to be dismantled by Patrick Mahomes. P.K. Subban was fun, but never a top player in the league. Derrick Henry has been dominant, but only for four years. Nashville just hasn’t had enough.
26. Minneapolis (48.59)
Timberwolves, Vikings, Twins, Wild
Record (30th): Timberwolves (385-603), Vikings (109-100-1), Twins (952-1054), Wild (527-355-111)
Championships (35th): Timberwolves (None), Vikings (None), Twins (None), Wild (None)
Great Seasons (21st): Timberwolves (2021: 46-36, 7 seed), Vikings (2022: 13-4, 3 seed), Twins (2019: 101-61, ALDS), Wild (2021: 53-22-7, 2 seed)
Great Players (16th): Timberwolves (Kevin Love, Karl-Anthony Towns, Anthony Edwards), Vikings (Adrian Peterson, Justin Jefferson), Twins (Joe Mauer), Wild (Ryan Suter, Zach Parise)
Outside of Detroit, Minneapolis has been the worst four-team city. The Timberwolves and Twins are a combined 4-20 in playoff games in 26 seasons. This sums up Minneapolis’ performance since 2010, landing at second-to-last in the championships category with a singular conference championship appearance from the Vikings. The bright spots for this city are the Wild’s solid record, the Twins 101 win season in 2019, and the Vikings awe-inspiring 2022 campaign that gave fans everything they haven’t been treated to in the last 13 years.
25. Charlotte (48.67)
Hornets, Panthers, Hurricanes
Record (32nd): Bobcats/ Hornets (386-537), Panthers (95-114-1), Hurricanes (468-357-129)
Championships (26th): Hornets/Bobcats (None), Panthers (None), Hurricanes (None)
Great Seasons (20th): Hornets/Bobcats (2015: 46-36), Panthers (2015: 15-1, SB), Hurricanes (2022: 52-21-9, CF)
Best Players (29th): Hornets/Bobcats (Kemba Walker, LaMelo Ball), Panthers (Cam Newton, Greg Olsen), Hurricanes (Sebastian Aho)
Every team has a losing winning percentage, especially the Hornets who are quietly becoming the laughingstock of the NBA. Charlotte is also ringless. What puts the Queen City a step above the teams below them is what was perhaps the greatest NFL season since 2010, when the Panthers went 15-1 on the shoulders of their MVP quarterback, Cam Newton. However, Newton’s success was rather short-lived, and no Charlotte athlete has been close to his level in 2015. Without that year—a year in which the Hornets also had their best record of the last 13 seasons—Charlotte could have been a bottom-5 city.
24. Cincinnati (48.82)
Bengals, Reds
Record (25th): Bengals (103-103-1), Reds (951-1053)
Championships (28th): Bengals (None), Reds (None)
Great Seasons (27th): Bengals (2022: 12-4, AFCCG), Reds (2012: 97-65, NLDS)
Great Players (24th): Bengals (A.J. Green, Geno Atkins, Joe Burrow), Reds (Joey Votto)
As you can see from their rankings in each category, Cincinnati has been a whole lot of “bleh.” The Bengals have tortured their fans for years with early playoff exits, and the Reds could hardly tell you what the playoffs are. On the bright side, Joe Burrow looks like an all-time great in the making with a narrow Super Bowl loss already under his belt, and Bengals looks like a force for years to come. Plus, Joey Votto won an MVP award in 2010, and nearly captured a few more throughout the decade. These things are good, but not good enough to land Cincinnati higher than 24th.
23. New York City (50.14)
Knicks, Yankees, Rangers
Record (20th): Knicks (411-579), Yankees (1145-860), Rangers (520-354-91)
Championships (30th): Knicks (None), Yankees (None), Rangers (None)
Best Season (19th): Knicks (2012: 54-28, 2 seed), Yankees (2018: 100-62), Rangers (2021: 52-24-6, made conference finals)
Best Players (17th): Knicks (Carmelo Anthony), Yankees (Aaron Judge, CC Sabathia), Rangers (Henrik Lundqvist, Ryan McDonagh, Igor Shesterskin)
The Yankees have been ruder to their fans than their fans are to foreigners. They’ve disappointed time and time again, despite a great regular season record. At least the Rangers made a few Stanley Cup Finals in 2010 and 2011, but they came up short both times, once in seven games. Outside of the Knicks, who I won’t even get started on, these two teams have compiled a lot of wins on the backs of great players in MVP, Aaron Judge, Henrik Lundqvist, and Igor Shesterskin. It’s the lack of playoff triumph that puts the the Big Apple at 23.
22. Toronto (51.00)
Raptors, Blue Jays, Maple Leafs
Record (11th): Raptors (545-447), Blue Jays (1009-995), Maple Leafs (483-370-115)
Championships (22nd): Raptors (2018), Blue Jays (None), Maple Leafs (None)
Great Seasons (18th): Raptors (2018: 58-24, Chip) Blue Jays (2015: 93-69, ALCS), Maple Leafs (2021: 54-21-8)
Best Players (26th): Raptors (Kawhi Leonard, Kyle Lowry), Blue Jays (Josh Donaldson, José Bautista), Maple Leafs (Auston Matthews, Frederick Andersen)
The Blue Jays and Maple Leafs have been just above average when it comes to regular season wins, but it’s the Raptors consistent success that put Toronto 11th in win percentage. However, outside of the regular season wins and their miraculous championship run in 2019, Toronto doesn’t have much. They’ve been home to some great players, but as renters; Kawhi Leonard stayed for only one season, and Josh Donaldson for just three and a half. Canada’s team lands in the top of the bottom half.
21. Cleveland (51.23)
Cavaliers, Browns, Guardians
Record (34th): Cavaliers (441-558), Browns (68-141-1), Guardians (1063-939)
Championships (15th): Cavaliers (2016), Browns (None), Guardians (None)
Best Season (14th): Cavaliers (2017: 50-32, made finals), Browns (2021: 11-5, made divisional round), Guardians (2016: 94-67, lost in 7 to Cubs)
Best Players (18th): Cavaliers (LeBron James, Kyrie Irving), Browns (Nick Chubb), Guardians (Corey Kluber, Fransisco Lindor, José Ramirez)
“Cleveland! This is for you!” screamed LeBron James after the Cavaliers won perhaps the greatest championship in NBA history in 2016. You know what else was for them? 8 out of 9 seasons watching the playoffs from the couch when James wasn’t a Cavalier. An 0-16 season by the worst NFL team since 2010. A blown 3-1 lead in the 2016 World Series. If it weren’t for James’ greatness, and the Guardians mid-decade success, Cleveland would be a lot lower on this list than 21st.
20. Phoenix (51.37)
Suns, Cardinals, Diamondbacks, Coyotes
Record (33rd): Suns (444-552), Cardinals (98-110-2), Diamondbacks (944-1060), Coyotes (396-440-122)
Championships (24th): Suns (None), Cardinals (None), Diamondbacks (None), Coyotes (None)
Great Seasons (10th): Suns (2022: 64-18, Finals), Cardinals (2015: 13-3, 1 seed, CF), Diamondbacks (2011: 94-68, CF), Coyotes (2011: 42-27-13, CF)
Great Players (19th): Suns (Steve Nash, Devin Booker), Cardinals (Larry Fitzgerald, Chandler Jones), Diamondbacks (Paul Goldschimdt, Zack Greinke), Coyotes (Oliver Ekman-Larsson)
Another city with no championships and this time, Phoenix has a terrible regular season record—the 4th worst actually. Each of the three franchises has only three playoff appearances since 2010. However, with immense failure comes seldom success, which is why Phoenix finds themselves in the middle of the pack. The Suns and Cardinals have posted some of the best seasons since 2010, and while they haven’t had an out-of-this-world star like Cleveland or Nashville have, they’ve had their fair share of solid players. Some good and some bad for Phoenix. Just a little more bad than good.
19. Baltimore (51.44)
Ravens, Orioles
Record (10th): Ravens (127-83), Orioles (914-1089)
Championships (21st): Ravens (2012), Orioles (None)
Great Seasons (17th): Ravens (2019: 14-2), Orioles (96-66, ALCS)
Best Players (25th): Ravens (Ray Lewis, Ed Reed, Lamar Jackson), Orioles (Manny Machado, Adam Jones)
My Ravens and Orioles nearly did enough to boost Baltimore into the top half of the rankings, but fell just short. It’s been a tale of two franchises for Baltimore. The Ravens have been as steady as they come with a top-5 win percentage since 2010, a Super Bowl and an MVP award from Lamar Jackson to show for it. They also had one of the most magical campaigns of the 2010s, winning their last 12 games in 2019 en route to a 14-2 season. Unfortunately, the Orioles have had incompetent ownership, 5 playoff wins, and few notable players. All things considered, it makes perfect sense that Baltimore is ranked 19th.
Part 3 will release on the 13th. Be ready.
The Diamondbacks won a WS in 2001