NBA Power Rankings: Week 20
Week 20 of the NBA Power Rankings, we are 75% done with the NBA regular season. It has been a season of huge trades, and low viewership. This last quarter of the season should be really exciting especially with the Western Conference play-in spots.
1 - Cleveland Cavaliers
Cleveland is on another hot streak, the first team to 50 wins and are on their third double digit win streak. A comeback win against Boston this past week will give the Cavs all the confidence they need going into the playoffs.
2 - Oklahoma City Thunder
Yes, the Thunder had a bad loss against the Timberwolves earlier this week. But they are still double digits above the 2nd seed in the Western Conference. Houston, Memphis and Denver this week are tough.
3 - Boston Celtics
Well the Celtics suck, they have now lost as many games this year as they did last year, 18. The Celtics aren’t going to catch the Cavs for 1st in the East, but they will need to fend off the Knicks for 2nd.
4 - Los Angeles Lakers
The Lakers have somehow gotten better defensively without Anthony Davis. The Clippers announcers said it best, they were a mid team before the trade and now they are a true contender. They are 18-4 in their last 22 games.
5 - New York Knicks
The Knicks are a team that is better on paper then they are in real life. If the Knicks were in the West they wouldn’t be sniffing the top spots in the conference. They are just so inconsistent on the offensive end.
6 - Denver Nuggets
Denver has just been hanging around in the West. Unless you are the Lakers or Thunder it has been a lot of that in the West. But the Nuggets just need to get into the dance, they will be a threat with Jokic on your team.
7 - Indiana Pacers
The Pacers have slipped a bit after their hot start to 2025. They will need to keep playing well if they want to be a 4th seed. Milwaukee and Detroit are right behind them in the standings. They will just need to outscore everyone, their defense sucks.
8 - Memphis Grizzlies
How much does a team take clutch points and clutch defense into how they build their roster? The reason I ask is Memphis is not great at both and that is how playoff games are won. Lock it up and score some clutch buckets, Grizzlies.
9 - Houston Rockets
The Rockets had their boosters on low power for a while when they were getting healthy. Now that they are getting the whole team back, Houston would love to jump back into the top 4 in the West.
10 - Minnesota Timberwolves
Something crazy happened in the Timberwolves, Thunder game. The Wolves came back from a 24 point deficit in the 4th quarter, just the 6th time that has happened in the last 30 years. Will that help them get going?
11 - Golden State Warriors
Okay, I was skeptical of the Warriors even after the Jimmy trade. But they have climbed from 10th to 6th in the West and are starting to look like a real contender. They do lack size which may become an issue down the road, but they are for real.
12 - Milwaukee Bucks
The Bucks after their awful start have turned their season around and sit as the 4th seed in the East. I can definitely see them winning a series, but they might need Herculean performances from Giannis and Dame to go deep into the playoffs.
13 - Detroit Pistons
Again, what a story! The Detroit Pistons have a legit shot at hosting a 1st round playoff matchup. They are 9-1 in their last 10 games and sit just a half game back of Milwaukee. Incredible from a team that was awful last year.
14 - Los Angeles Clippers
Kawhi looked like Kawhi in the loss to the Lakers on Sunday night. The problem was, they could not score the basketball at all. They had some good runs, but the Lakers felt in control the entire time. If the Clippers want to remain out of the play-in the offense needs to get better.
15 - Dallas Mavericks
To be honest, I left this team here out of pity. They could still make the play-in, but now Kyrie is out for the season. Dallas has been cursed since their trade of Luka, is this team the new curse of the Bambino?
P.S. I am only doing the top 15 teams, if you want me to talk about you; be better, it’s that simple.