NBA Power Rankings: Week 22
Week 22 of the NBA Power Rankings, as each week goes by more and more teams clinch at least a play-in spot. This may be the first time all season that the 15 teams on this list have not changed in three weeks. They have switched spots for sure, but these are the best 15 teams in the NBA right now.
1 - Cleveland Cavaliers
Cleveland is rolling, yes they lost their 17 game win streak, but do they really care? They have the best offense in the league and are 7.5 games up on the Celtics for the number 1 seed.
2 - Oklahoma City Thunder
The OKC Thunder are 12.5 games up on the 2nd seed Houston Rockets. I am not really sure what else needs to be said about them, they are incredible. Some NBA media members still think they need to prove themselves in the playoffs.
3 - Boston Celtics
If you had to guess which team in the NBA had the longest playoff streak, would it be the Celtics? Well it is, 11 straight years. Are we just waiting for the Eastern Conference Finals matchup with Cleveland?
4 - Denver Nuggets
Losing to the Wizards is never a good look. But they have beat the Thunder twice, and honestly are playing their best basketball of the season. Denver just beat the Warriors without Jokic and Murray.
5 - Los Angeles Lakers
The Lakers had a small slide without Lebron and didn’t have Luka for a game. They are going to be in a fight with a couple of other teams to get 2nd seed in the West. Health will be a major factor down the stretch.
6 - Golden State Warriors
The Warriors lost to the Nuggets without their best guys, but they have made an incredible turn around once they traded for Jimmy Butler. They are still in danger of falling into the play-in tournament, but have an easier schedule down the road.
7 - New York Knicks
The Knicks have been average without Jalen Brunson. They are pretty comfortable in the 3 seed in the East. But if they want to get out of the 1st round they will need a healthy Jalen Brunson.
8 - Houston Rockets
The Rockets have had a soft schedule lately, but they have won 6 in a row to climb back into 2nd in the West. They sure feel like the least experienced team in this fight in the West, I still think they can fight for a top 4 seed.
9 - Memphis Grizzlies
The Grizzlies are the last team to be fighting for the 2nd seed. They have one more loss than the Lakers, Nuggets and Rockets. They have a 5 game road trip coming up and will need to play well to keep in the fight for the 2 seed.
10 - Minnesota Timberwolves
The Timberwolves are further down the order just based on where they are in the standings. They are fighting with the Warriors and Clippers for that 6 seed. They have been playing much better of late, but a soft schedule doesn’t impress as much.
11 - Milwaukee Bucks
Now we get to the three other teams in the East with a winning record, the first of those is Milwaukee who with the tie breaker sit 4th in the East. You have to give Milwaukee the edge over the other two teams based on star power.
12 - Indiana Pacers
With the recent loss to the Bucks, the Pacers have lost the tie breaker for the season. Haliburton came back and helped them after a 3 game slide. They need him healthy or it could be a 1st round exit.
13 - Los Angeles Clippers
This next week or two is going to make or break the Clippers play off hopes. Cleveland, Memphis, OKC, Knicks, Nets, and Cleveland again. They are just a game back of the Warriors right now, but I think they need to go at least 4-2 in these 6 games to remain in the 6th seed conversation.
14 - Detroit Pistons
Yes the Pistons have lost 4 out of their last 6 games. But they are playing with house money right now and really don’t have any worry about falling into the play-in. The East only has 6 teams above .500 and they are still 5 games up on the Hawks for the 7 seed.
15 - Sacramento Kings
Domas is back after missing 6 games. But, the Kings have fallen back to .500. They are locked into a play-in game, but feel like a team that no one wants to match up with in the playoffs. Sabonis, Lavine, Derozan and Monk is a good core, but they need to prove it.
P.S. I am only doing the top 15 teams, if you want me to talk about you; be better, it’s that simple.