NBA Power Rankings: Perennial Powers Like the Lakers, Heat and Warriors Sink to the Bottom
It’s rare—exceedingly rare—to be this deep into a season and see this many perennial powers in the bottom half of the NBA’s power rankings.
The Los Angeles Lakers, Western Conference finalists a season ago, are sitting at .500 with an offense that can’t get out of the bottom third of the league and a defense that hasn’t been good enough to make up the difference.
The Miami Heat, NBA Finalists last season, are stuck in a seven-game losing streak thanks to an offense that can’t score enough to beat anyone and a Big Three that is presenting more and more evidence that it doesn’t work.
The Golden State Warriors, the last NBA dynasty, are spending January defenseless (more on that below) and absorbing bad losses (Toronto Raptors and Memphis Grizzlies) along the way. In mid-December, Golden State general manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. said the next 15 to 20 games would be crucial in evaluating the Warriors. I think he has his answers.
With the trade deadline approaching, there are very few difference-makers available. Dejounte Murray in Atlanta. Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan and (maybe) Alex Caruso in Chicago. Kyle Kuzma in D.C. For the NBA’s bluebloods, a roster shakeup may be the difference between succeeding in the playoffs or missing them altogether.
On to Sports Illustrated’s latest NBA power rankings.
1. Los Angeles Clippers
Incredible. In mid-November, the Clippers were 3–7 following a six-game losing streak. They are 27–8 since then, including 13–3 since Christmas. On Saturday, they rolled into Boston and turned a would-be NBA Finals preview into a laugher. Kawhi Leonard is an MVP candidate. James Harden is shooting 40.9% from three. Norman Powell and Russell Westbrook are reliable off the bench. If the Clippers stay healthy, they are a problem.
Leonard is an MVP candidate as the Clippers continue their torrid run.
Ken Blaze/USA TODAY Sports
2. Boston Celtics
The Celtics picked up a nice bounce-back win after Saturday’s debacle against the Clippers, rallying to beat the Pelicans at home. Should Boston be concerned about Kristaps Porziņģis? Porziņģis missed his second straight game with an ankle sprain and has missed 14 games this season with a variety of minor injuries. When he’s out there, he’s excellent: Porziņģis is connecting on 46.5% of his threes in January.
3. Denver Nuggets
The Nuggets caught a couple of breaks last week, beating the Tyrese Haliburton-less Pacers and the Joel Embiid-less Sixers before ruining Doc Rivers’s debut on Monday. Denver’s offense is good but it’s even better at home, where the Nuggets have the NBA’s top field goal percentage (51.5%). That’s a big reason Denver is 19–4 at Ball Arena this season.
4. Oklahoma City Thunder
No, that’s not a typo—the Thunder really lost to Detroit last week. And they barely escaped with a home win over the Blazers less than a week earlier. Big men have given OKC problems of late. Jalen Duren posted 22 points and 21 rebounds in Detroit’s win while Karl-Anthony Towns and Rudy Gobert combined for 33 points (on 12 of 21 shooting) in Minnesota’s win on Monday.
5. Minnesota Timberwolves
I genuinely don’t know what to make of Minnesota. They blow a 62-point performance from Towns in a home loss to Charlotte and choke away another gimme against San Antonio. Then they turn around to limit Oklahoma City to 101 points in a road win. Chris Finch has questioned the Wolves’ toughness, fans have criticized Finch’s lineups all while ’Sota clings to the top spot in the Western Conference. Just a weird stretch for a team that’s had a good season.
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6. New York Knicks
A caveat: Julius Randle’s shoulder injury is potentially devastating for the Knicks. But if Randle can return in weeks, not months, New York has the look of a contender. The Knicks are 11–2 since acquiring O.G. Anunoby with a throttling defense (first in the NBA by more than two points in the last 13 games, per NBA.com) and a top-10 offense led by Jalen Brunson, who is averaging a season-best 28.6 points in January. Here’s hoping Randle quickly finds his way back.
7. Milwaukee Bucks
Fun fact: If Milwaukee has the second-best record in the Eastern Conference on Feb. 5, Rivers will coach in the All-Star Game. I covered Rivers’s return earlier this week, but his first priority (and second, and third) has to be reviving Milwaukee’s defense. The Bucks held Denver to 22.2% shooting in a road trip-opening loss to the Nuggets on Monday and will need a lot more of that if they are going to reestablish themselves as top contenders.
8. Cleveland Cavaliers
Don’t look now but the Cavs have won 10 of the last 11 and Darius Garland’s return is just around the corner. Cleveland has made a living behind the three-point line of late: Since Dec. 12 the Cavs have made nearly 16 threes per game, trailing only Boston. Donovan Mitchell has campaigned to get Sam Merrill into the three-point contest, and he’s earned it. Merrill has connected on 41 threes in January and is connecting on 43% of his triples off the bench.
9. Philadelphia 76ers
Do people really think that after putting 41 points on the Nuggets earlier this month Embiid just decided to sit out the rematch? Embiid’s latest injury absence has coincided with Philly’s three-game skid, capped by an embarrassing blowout loss in Portland on Monday. The rumor mill has Kyle Lowry eyeing Philadelphia if he’s bought out by Charlotte. The Sixers, 24th in the NBA in assists per game, per NBA.com, could use another playmaker.
10. Phoenix Suns
Phoenix has won eight of its last 10 with a top-five offensive rating and a top-10 defensive rating during that stretch. Devin Booker is having a ridiculous month, averaging 31.1 points and connecting on 40.4% of his threes in January. Also, shout-out to Kevin Durant for saying he doesn’t deserve a tribute video in his return to Brooklyn this week. NBA teams do way too many of them.
11. Indiana Pacers
Nice bounce-back week for Indy, which picked up wins over the Sixers, Suns and Grizzlies. And so far, so good—very good—for Pascal Siakam, whose efficiency numbers have skyrocketed (57.6% from the floor, 38.5% from three) with the Pacers. With Haliburton nearing a return from a hamstring injury, we will finally get a look at how good this Indiana team can be.
12. Sacramento Kings
The Kings have pieced together a four-game winning streak with some decent defense (12th in the NBA over the last four) and welcome surge from Harrison Barnes. Barnes has scored 20-plus in three of the four wins after cracking 20 just twice previously. That included a huge 39 points in 40-minute outburst in the Kings’ one-point win over Golden State.
13. New Orleans Pelicans
Yeesh, that Boston game was tough. After a mostly sharp three quarters, the Pels were outscored 37–25 in the fourth en route to a third straight defeat. Second halves have been bad this season for New Orleans, which has a -3.4 net rating, per NBA.com, 23rd in the league. In the last three games, that net rating is an astonishing -28.2. Willie Green might need to shake things up.
14. Dallas Mavericks
Luka Dončić’s offensive tear continued Monday with a 45-point performance against Orlando. That, of course, followed up his 73-point performance against Atlanta a few days earlier. The Mavs, though, continue to struggle defensively. The Hawks nearly ruined Dončić’s effort by scoring 143 while the Magic scored 129. In January, Dallas is 25th in the NBA in defensive efficiency, a troubling trend for a team with deep playoff aspirations.
15. Utah Jazz
A beatdown in Brooklyn ended the Jazz’s brief two-game winning streak, but Utah continues to hover around .500. I chronicled Collin Sexton’s revival last week—how about Kris Dunn? The ex-lottery pick has found a role as a defensive stopper in the Jazz starting lineup. Among players who have defended 200 or more shots this season, Dunn leads the NBA in field goal percentage allowed as the closest defender. All while averaging 8.6 assists per-36 minutes. Not bad.
16. Orlando Magic
It’s been a tough January for Orlando, which dropped to 5–10 in the month after Monday’s loss in Dallas. The defense has slipped (12th in defensive efficiency) while the offense (23rd) continues to be bad. The Magic continue to struggle to find reliable scoring in the fourth quarter, ranking in the bottom five in the NBA in the final 12 minutes.
17. Los Angeles Lakers
Monday’s letdown in Houston was probably predictable after L.A.’s thrilling double-overtime win over Golden State two nights earlier. D’Angelo Russell is either upping his trade value or giving the Lakers reasons to keep him: Russell is averaging 23.8 points and connecting on an astonishing 47.2% of his threes this month, handing out 6.1 assists along the way. The final four games of this road trip, which include swings through Boston and New York, will reveal a lot about where the Lakers are before the Feb. 8 trade deadline.
LeBron James and the Lakers are sinking further from title contention.
Troy Taormina/USA TODAY Sports
18. Houston Rockets
Houston continues to struggle to rediscover its early-season defensive identity, though Jalen Green’s recent scoring outbursts (30-plus in two of the last three games) has helped. Is the NBA ready for the day Alperen Şengün develops a reliable three-point shot? Şengün is averaging 23.5 points in January—his best scoring month of the season—while shooting 19.2% from three. He’s way too skilled not to eventually get into the mid-30s. When he does, look out.
19. Chicago Bulls
Signs of life in Chicago in January. The Bulls have won three of the last five, which included a competitive loss in Phoenix last week. Ayo Dosunmu continues to make a strong case for a bigger role. Dosunmu is averaging 12.1 points in January, connecting on 42.9% of his threes.
20. Miami Heat
It’s getting ugly in Miami, where the Heat have dropped seven straight after Monday’s 13-point loss in Phoenix. A sputtering offense is the culprit: Miami’s offensive rating over the last seven games (106.9, per NBA.com) is last in the NBA. And the defense (28th) has not been much better. Jimmy Butler called the Heat offense “horrendous” last week while Terry Rozier is shooting sub-40% since coming over from Charlotte.
21. Golden State Warriors
The Warriors’ last two losses to the Kings and Lakers came by a combined two points. But they are still losses, which continue to pile up. Draymond Green’s return has not solved anything and Golden State’s defensive rating in January has been the NBA’s worst—more than three points worse than 29th-ranked Detroit. It’s clear that this isn’t going to get solved internally. Dunleavy needs to shake this group up.
22. Memphis Grizzlies
The Grizzlies are one injury away from holding “Invincible”-like tryouts on Beale Street—Memphis had eight healthy players for Monday’s loss against Sacramento—but the Grizz refuse to collapse. Memphis has won three of its last five and is 4–4 in its last eight games. Jaren Jackson Jr., who has upped his scoring to 24 points per game in January, is a big reason why. Don’t worry, help is en route: On Tuesday, Memphis signed Tosan Evbuomwan and Trey Jemison to 10-day contracts.
23. Atlanta Hawks
Interesting nugget, courtesy of John Schuhmann at NBA.com: Among the 28 two-man combinations that have played at least 250 minutes together, the Hawks’ best on-court numbers (plus-4.6 points per 100 possessions) belong to Trae Young and Bogdan Bogdanović. Worth remembering as Atlanta fields offers for Murray before the trade deadline
24. Brooklyn Nets
Ben Simmons is back! Simmons returned to the Nets lineup Monday for the first time since early November and he was, well, brilliant, scoring 10 points (on 5-of-5 shooting) and handing out 11 assists in just 18 minutes in a win over Utah. Brooklyn will need that balky back of Simmons to hold up if they want to stay in the play-in race.
25. Portland Trail Blazers
Portland blew out Philadelphia on Monday and is 3–4 in its last seven, with a two-point loss in Oklahoma City mixed in. The Blazers aren’t good defensively but they sure are aggressive: Portland ranks in the top five in the NBA in deflections and opponent turnovers, with Matisse Thybulle having another strong defensive season.
26. Toronto Raptors
The Raptors have won just twice since Jan. 5. Yikes.
27. Washington Wizards
The Wizards swept the Battle of the (Really) Bad, winning in Detroit and San Antonio. A bright spot in D.C.? How about Bilal Coulibaly: The Wiz’s 19-year-old rookie scored 13 points in Monday’s win over the Spurs and ranks in the top five among rookies in total steals and blocks, top 10 in points and rebounds and 11th in assists.
28. Charlotte Hornets
After shocking Minnesota last week, the Hornets have gone back to being, well, bad, losing to Detroit before getting blitzed by Houston, Utah and New York. After dealing Rozier, the Hornets are expected to continue to shop their few marketable veterans, including Lowry and Gordon Hayward as they go all in on the rebuild around LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller.
29. San Antonio Spurs
How about the Spurs, who have won two of the last three and are 3–3 in the last six. Jeremy Sochan may not be a point guard but he’s a player. Sochan scored 31 points in a win over Portland, and now freed from the point guard role, he is averaging a season-best 13 points per game in January. For a team that has been in a season-long free fall that’s something.
30. Detroit Pistons
The Pistons are still cellar-dwellers in the rankings, but they have won two out of three—including that shocking win over Oklahoma City—thanks in part to a Bojan Bogdanović scoring binge. Duren continues to give Detroit reasons to believe it has found its franchise center: Duren is averaging 15.4 points and 12.1 rebounds in January while shooting 66% from the floor.
