NBA Power Rankings Week 24: Knicks Shoot To Top, Lakers In Danger

30. Phoenix Suns (23-54, Last Week: 29): The Suns have lost nine games in a row.

29. Orlando Magic (19-59, Last Week: 27): The Magic have lost five games in a row, and 13 of their last 14.

28. Cleveland Cavaliers (24-52, Last Week: 30): The Cavs won their last two games, but had previously lost ten in a row leading up to that.

27. Portland Trailblazers (33-44, Last Week: 20): Portland is absolutely reeling right now, having lost eight games in a row.

26. Detroit Pistons (26-52, Last Week: 28): The Pistons went 2-2 last week.

25. Charlotte Bobcats (18-59, Last Week: 26): The Bobcats still maintain the worst record in the league.

24. Sacramento Kings (27-50, Last Week: 24): The Kings have lost four games in a row; all of them being at home and coming at the hands of a Western Conference opponent.

23. Toronto Raptors (29-48, Last Week: 25): The Raps went 2-2 last week.

22. New Orleans Hornets (27-50, Last Week: 22): The Hornets went 1-2 last week. Anthony Davis had a pair of 20-plus games over the weekend.

21. Minnesota Timberwolves (29-47, Last Week: 23): The Wolves went 3-1 last week, and Brandon Knight came alive (pun intended) for 25 points on Saturday.

Next Page: Middle Of The Pack

20. Washington Wizards (29-48, Last Week: 19): The Wizards went 2-2 last week. John Wall has been playing exceptionally well as of late.

19. Philadelphia 76ers (31-45, Last Week: 18): The Sixers went 1-2 last week during a four-game road trip which ends on Tuesday in Brooklyn.

18. Dallas Mavericks (38-39, Last Week: 15): The Mavs went 2-2 last week. Despite their relatively decent play as of late, the Mavs are virtually out of the playoff race; which is the reason for the drop in rank this week.

17. Los Angeles Lakers (40-37, Last Week: 17): The Lakers had a great win against Memphis on Friday, but then fell to the Clippers on Sunday. For a team chasing the playoffs, the Lakers can’t afford to miss any more games and are currently out of the eighth spot.

16. Milwaukee Bucks (37-39, Last Week: 21): Despite the fact that the Bucks haven’t quite played well as of late, they have clinched a playoff berth; hence the forced upswing to the Top 16 portion of these rankings.

15. Atlanta Hawks (42-36, Last Week: 14): The Hawks have lost three games in a row.

14. Boston Celtics (40-37, Last Week: 16): The Celtics went 2-2 last week in a four-game stretch containing lowly teams: the Timberwolves, Pistons, Cavaliers, and Wizards.

13. Chicago Bulls (42-34, Last Week: 13): The Bulls went 2-2 last week and stand pat here.

12. Utah Jazz (41-37, Last Week: 12): The Jazz held off the Golden State Warriors and made things even more difficult for the Lakers, who are trying to catch the Jazz for the eighth and final playoff spot. The Jazz have won seven of their last eight games.

11. Houston Rockets (43-24, Last Week: 11): The Rockets had won four games in a row before losing in Denver on Saturday.

Next Page: Knicks Take Top Spot

10. Golden State Warriors (44-33, Last Week: 10): The Warriors went 2-1 last week.

9. Indiana Pacers (48-29, Last Week: 7): The Pacers dropped two games in a back-to-back against the Oklahoma City Thunder and Washington Wizards, respectively.

8. Brooklyn Nets (44-32, Last Week: 9): The Nets went 2-1 last week, as Deron Williams had a pair of 30-plus games most recently.

7. Los Angeles Clippers (51-26, Last Week: 8): The Clippers clinched their first Pacific Division title after defeating their cross-town rivals–the Lakers–on Sunday.

6. San Antonio Spurs (57-20, Last Week: 2): The Spurs drop here as a direct result of falling to two Western Conference powerhouses last week: The Memphis Grizzlies and Oklahoma City Thunder.

5. Memphis Grizzlies (52-25, Last Week: 6): The Grizz went 3-1 last week, with their only loss coming at the hands of the Lakers.

4. Oklahoma City Thunder (56-21, Last Week: 4): The Thunder fell to the New York Knicks on Sunday morning.

3. Denver Nuggets (53-24, Last Week: 3): Following their 15-game winning streak, the Nuggets have gone 4-2 but still hold the league-best home record at 35-3.

2. Miami Heat (60-16, Last Week: 1): Even with various Heat players sitting out games due to “injury,” the Heat are still pretty darn good.

1. New York Knicks (50-26, Last Week: 5): The Knicks are the hottest team in the league right now, having won 12 games in a row. Carmelo Anthony has averaged 41.8 points over his last four games as well.

 

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