30. Washington Wizards (6-27)
Previous Week Ranking: 28th
It took only one week for the Wizards to fall back to 30th. I thought an 11-game losing streak by the New Orleans Pelicans slated them as the worst team, but the Wizards lost two games in a row this week to none other than the Pelicans.

29. New Orleans Pelicans (7-29)
Previous Week Ranking: 30th
The big news out of New Orleans is that the Pelicans appear to be open to trading their previous number-one overall pick, Zion Williamson. Since drafting Zion, New Orleans has not seemed like a great fit for him. Although, in fairness, it has been difficult to judge with the numerous injuries that have kept him off the court. Where would you like to see Zion moved to?

28. Charlotte Hornets (7-27)
Previous Week Ranking: 27th
With New Orleans getting a win, the Hornets now hold the longest active losing streak in the league at 10 consecutive games. Charlotte is becoming a more and more interesting team to watch for the Cooper Flagg sweepstakes. Would Adam Silver let this embarrassment of a franchise secure three top-2 picks in the last five drafts?

27. Toronto Raptors (8-27)
Previous Week Ranking: 29th
The bottom of the NBA is truly pitiful. Toronto was able to secure a win this week over a Nets team that is having a fire sale. This ended an 11-game losing streak for the sole team in Canada and means that three teams had active double-digit losing streaks at the same time until this week. Are we sure expansion is a good idea right now?

26. Utah Jazz (9-25)
Previous Week Ranking: 26th
Ryam Smith is trying desperately to make Utah a sports city, but so far is failing with the Jazz. Even worse for Jazz fans is they have only won 2 of their 9 games at home in front of their “fans”. Utah can only field this losing team for a bit longer before Ryan’s hand is forced to make changes.

25. Brooklyn Nets (13-22)
Previous Week Ranking: 25th
I had the unfortunate opportunity to see the Nets play in person this last week. The pros were they played the Sixers and tickets were cheap. The cons were watching players on the court that should not be in the NBA. Brooklyn is in a race to the bottom and many of their better players are out at the moment, but there should be rules about who can see court time.

24. Portland Trailblazers (12-22)
Previous Week Ranking: 24th
Portland has had a good couple of weeks, winning 3 of their last 5 games. The peak came when they beat the Milwaukee Bucks, home of their former franchise player, Damian Lillard. This game was surprisingly competitive and shows to me that Brooklyn has some upside. Do you expect Chauncey Billups to get another year with the Trailblazers?

23. Phoenix Suns (15-18)
Previous Week Ranking: 17th
The precipitous drop for the Phoenix Suns continued this week. They have now lost 7 of their last 8 games and all roads point to the relatively new owner. The KD, Booker, and Beal experiment needs to end. Unfortunately, the decision on who to trade is tough. KD is a non-starter and Booker has been doing his best in KD’s absence. Then there is Beal, who surprisingly has a no-trade clause, something rare in the NBA. The options are almost as bad as the play has been this year in Phoenix.

22. Chicago Bulls (16-19)
Previous Week Ranking: 21st
Chicago announced this week that they would be retiring Derrick Rose’s jersey. For all the disappointment that has surrounded this franchise in recent years, it can be easy to forget the heights they fell from. Rose was the most exciting player in Chicago since MJ and the youngest MVP in league history. What they would give to have a player like that in their pipeline now?

21. Sacramento Kings (17-19)
Previous Week Ranking: 23rd
The Kings have rolled off four straight wins since they fired head coach Mike Brown. I would caution that Brown was the cause of the team’s underperformance as most teams have a boost in the immediate aftermath of coaching changes in the NBA. There were four impressive wins over the Mavericks, Sixers, Grizzlies, and Warriors, but let’s wait a couple of weeks for a bigger jump up.

20. Detroit Pistons (17-18)
Previous Week Ranking: 22nd
Has there ever been a better time to be a Detroit fan? Last night the Detroit Lions clinched the 1-seed in the NFC and secured back-to-back NFC North division titles. And the Pistons are on a 3-game heater. Ok, obviously one is not like the other, but I can remember not too long ago when there was zero hope for either team in the Motor City. Do not take it for granted.

19. Indiana Pacers (18-18)
Previous Week Ranking: 19th
Winners of 7 of their last 10 games, the Pacers may have found something to work. Tyrese Haliburton has looked more consistently like the player he was last year and Myles Turner is subtly playing some of the best basketball of his career. If the Pacers did decide to be sellers at the trade deadline, I can think of a number of teams that would line up for Turner.

18. Philadelphia 76ers (14-19)
Previous Week Ranking: 20th
Philadelphia is continuing its climb out of the basement of the Eastern Conference. Joel Embiid, Paul George, and Tyrese Maxey are all healthy and they have recently looked like the team we expected them to look like back in the preseason. The Sixers are still without their star rookie Jared McCain, but they are flirting with the final Play-In spot. If they remain healthy, how far can they climb in the East by the playoffs?

17. Minnesota Timberwolves (17-17)
Previous Week Ranking: 14th
Anthony Edwards has to be wondering what more he can do. Edwards recorded a career-high 53 points this past week against the Pistons. Minnesota lost that game. There is no world where the Timberwolves should lose this game and the deflating nature must be killing AE who has already publicly challenged his team.

16. Golden State Warriors (18-17)
Previous Week Ranking: 18th
While not being the biggest winner on the court lately, the Warriors may have gotten the news they wanted with the Miami Heat formally listening to trade offers for Jimmy Butler. Golden State has been a favorite to land Butler in the betting markets and with Butler forcing Pat Riley’s hand to make him available for a move, Golden State needs to make this deal. They still have prime Steph and must maximize that.

15. Atlanta Hawks (18-18)
Previous Week Ranking: 13th
No one wants to run a three-game road trip against the Nuggets, Lakers, and Clippers. The Hawks got absolutely routed losing by 19, 17, and 26 points respectively in those games. Thankfully for Atlanta, next up is Utah which should all but guarantee them a bounce back win. Trae Young continues to lead the NBA with 12 assists per game, 2 more than any other player this year.

14. San Antonio Spurs (18-17)
Previous Week Ranking: 16th
The Rankings is calling it now, the Spurs will be in the postseason this year. Flashback five years, and the Spurs tied the longest consecutive playoff streak at 22 years in a row. Since then, the franchise has gone through a rebirth and Wemby is at the center of it. Maybe this will be the start of a new playoff streak for San Antonio.

13. Miami Heat (17-16)
Previous Week Ranking: 15th
The drama between Jimmy Butler and Pat Riley could be a television series. Following Pat Riley plainly stating the team would not be trading Butler, he continued his trade push in the media. Riley and the Heat came down hard with a 7-game suspension that could cost the star forward millions and announced they would in fact seek a trade partner. The divorce is probably best for both sides in the end, but how we got here has been a bit unnecessary.

12. Milwaukee Bucks (17-16)
Previous Week Ranking: 12th
After appearing to have turned things around, the Bucks have lost four of their last five games to the Nets twice, the Bulls, and the Trailblazers. That is the opposite of a murderer’s row and makes you wonder if this team is playing up or down to the level of competition.

11. Dallas Mavericks (20-15)
Previous Week Ranking: 6th
The Mavericks have lost four straight games with Luka Doncic sidelined due to a calf injury and when it rains it pours. Kyrie Irving is reportedly expected to miss a number of weeks due to a bulging disc in his back. The Mavericks were impressive at full health and looked to be able to make a deep run in the Western Conference playoffs. Priority one now is getting their superstars back to 100% for when it matters most.

10. LA Clippers (20-15)
Previous Week Ranking: 10th
Kawhi Leonard not playing in the 2024-25 season seemed more likely than not, but the 2-time NBA Champion made his season debut and looked decent. Kawhi scored 12 and the Clippers easily handled the Hawks. LA with Kawhi is a much different team and with 50ish games remaining this team could lock down the much-needed chemistry for the postseason.

9. Orlando Magic (21-16)
Previous Week Ranking: 9th
Looking at the injury reports lately in Orlando should give the fans some excitement. Paolo Banchero’s absence is now due to reconditioning as opposed to his oblique injury. The Magic’s best player has been out since late October but should be making a return in the next week or two. When at full strength, Orlando should not be taken lightly in the Eastern Conference.

8. Los Angeles Lakers (20-15)
Previous Week Ranking: 11th
Who else heard LeBron say he could realistically play for 5-7 more years at a high level and thought, “Yeah, he’s probably not wrong.” Who are we to doubt the GOAT? I have debated this topic with a number of people and if he adapted his game as he aged, that seems realistic to me. For the time being, he is still playing at a top-10 player level in the league and he just turned 40 years old this past week.

7. Denver Nuggets (20-14)
Previous Week Ranking: 8th
Russell Westbrook and Nikola Jokic being on the same team is so cool. They both recorded triple-doubles in the same game against the Utah Jazz. Westbrook’s was a “perfect” triple-double as he went perfect shooting from the field and foul line. Denver feels like a good fit for Russ and it is nice to see him balling out again.

6. Memphis Grizzlies (23-13)
Previous Week Ranking: 5th
Is Memphis ready to compete with the best teams in the Western Conference? For a team that has flirted with the second-best Conference record, it is a fair question. They faced proven teams in the Thunder, Kings, and Warriors last week and lost all three games. They may still be a piece away from true contenders.

5. Houston Rockets (23-12)
Previous Week Ranking: 7th
If you are in the Houston front office, do you consider making a play for Jimmy Butler? The chemistry in Houston seems good and the youth developing alongside each other is working well. Would the concern that Jimmy might rock the boat convince you to not make a trade offer? The Rockets have attractive trade pieces, but they may be better off staying the course.

4. New York Knicks (24-12)
Previous Week Ranking: 4th
The Knicks are on the verge of overtaking the Celtics for 2nd in the Eastern Conference. Boston may not be too concerned about this, but watching any of New York’s games lately might change their mind. KAT is absolutely top-3 in MVP based solely on his play this year and even more scary is Mikal Bridges has found his shot again. Stephen A can finally brag realistically about the Orange and Blue skies.

3. Boston Celtics (26-10)
Previous Week Ranking: 3rd
If I had to bet today, the Celtics are still going to come out of the Eastern Conference and make the NBA Finals. As has been said before, they are the most complete and deepest team and all have significant playoff experience. They need to be careful though to not drop too many games and make their playoff path more difficult than it has to be.

2. Cleveland Cavaliers (31-4)
Previous Week Ranking: 2nd
Cleveland sees the disrespect daily as the only teams ESPN speaks of in the East are the Knicks and Celtics. And what do the Cavaliers keep doing? Winning. They are on a 10-game winning streak and continue to hold the league’s best record of 31-4. Is the Warriors’ 73-9 record season in jeopardy?

1. Oklahoma City Thunder (30-5)
Previous Week Ranking: 1st
The Oklahoma City Thunder may actually pose a bigger threat to the Warriors’ record than the Cavaliers at this point. The Thunder see the Cavs winning streak and raise theirs to 15 now. OKC is 20-1 in their last 21 games and the only loss came in the NBA Cup Finals to the Milwaukee Bucks. The Thunder have overtaken the Celtics as The Rankings title favorite and for good reason. How long can they go without another loss?