NBA Power Rankings: Week 19
Week 19 of the NBA Power Rankings, as I write this we officially have a team that has clinched a postseason berth. This is the time of year where the teams that are locked into a postseason berth are fighting for seeding and other teams are just fighting to get into the dance.
1 - Oklahoma City Thunder
The OKC Thunder have taken control of the West, they are a full 10 games better then 2nd place Memphis. They can play big with Holmgren and Hartenstein together or play smaller and use their athleticism to dominate.
2 - Cleveland Cavaliers
The Cavaliers are on another long winning streak after beating Orlando last night. They seem as poised and ready for the playoffs as anyone. Both Cleveland and OKC will come into the playoffs as the favorites, but with something to prove.
3 - Boston Celtics
Boston is clicking on all cylinders and a potential Eastern Conference Finals matchup with Cleveland seems to be looming. Winners of 9 of their last 10 and most of those by double digits.
4 - New York Knicks
The Knicks feel like they start a different tier here at the 4 spot, they can’t beat the Cavs, Celtics or Thunder going 0-7 so far to start the season. They just got blown out by Cleveland and will be huge under dogs if they match up with Boston or Cleveland.
5 - Los Angeles Lakers
What a last two games for the Lakers, they finally beat Denver after struggling against them for the last 3 years. Then in Luka’s first matchup against his old team, he had a triple double and the defense looked great. Don’t count out the Lakers.
6 - Denver Nuggets
A nine game win streak is always a positive, but when all of those wins come against teams with a record under .500 it is slightly less impressive. Follow that win streak with a loss at home against the Lakers. They would love to jump the Grizzlies and end as the 2 seed in the West.
7 - Indiana Pacers
Indiana has been playing so well since the calendar flipped and will need to continue playing well if they want to hold onto the 4th seed. Their offense has been the biggest reason for the turn around as they now rank in the top 10.
8 - Memphis Grizzlies
The Grizzlies are still holding onto the 2nd seed in the West, but for how much longer? With the Nuggets and Lakers surging, they will need to shore up their defense. When Jaren Jackson Jr. is on the floor they are great, but without him they are awful. Can he play 48 minutes?
9 - Houston Rockets
Houston is in a free fall right now, a big win against the Timberwolves was a good start, but a loss against Utah pushed them back down. It was always a worry with them if they were going to score enough. If and when they get Fred VanVleet back that should help.
10 - Minnesota Timberwolves
This team could legit beat anyone on any day, they could also lose to the Wizards. They are just too inconsistent to really be considered a threat. They have already surpassed their loss total from last season.
11 - Golden State Warriors
They play small, but this Jimmy experiment has been a huge success so far. Golden State was floundering in the bottom of the play-in standings and now jumped to 8th in the West. They are 5-1 with Jimmy and have a real shot at a top 6 seed.
12 - Milwaukee Bucks
The Bucks are hanging around, some of that is they have had the easiest schedule in the NBA so far. They are winning those games, but the next 11 out 13 games they play will be against the top 15 teams in the league.
13 - Los Angeles Clippers
The Clippers are in a bit of a free fall and Kawhi Leonard is dealing with another injury. They had the worst defensive performance of the year against the Pacers and they will need to stay locked in defensively if they want to compete.
14 - Detroit Pistons
The Detroit Pistons are 6 games over .500 and have won 7 in a row. While I don’t think they are a team that can compete for a championship, this is an amazing turn around for a team that was awful last year. Lions, Pistons, Tigers, and Red Wings is this the Detroit turn around year?
15 - Dallas Mavericks
Dallas lost their first matchup with the Lakers and Luka. Kyrie Irving had to carry the load offensively without Anthony Davis and others. Dallas is just looking to survive until they can get healthy. They need to win at least one series right?
P.S. I am only doing the top 15 teams, if you want me to talk about you; be better, it’s that simple.