Remember one month ago when the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers seemed like locks to finish at the top of their respective conferences? Well, Kevin Durant is out indefinitely for the Warriors, Kevin Love is out indefinitely for the Cavaliers and suddenly the NBA regular season is worth watching to see how things will play out. The San Antonio Spurs and Boston Celtics have closed the gap in their respective conferences while the Houston Rockets are surging at the right time. Here is a look at the NBA top five power rankings for this week.
1. Golden State Warriors (53-14)
Last Week: 1
NBA Championship Odds: -110
The Warriors roster is stacked even without Durant but they are clearly struggling since the former MVP went down and a lot of that might have to do with the flow of their game and the absence of the chemistry they had developed this season. Surprisingly, Stephen Curry has struggled the most as he had a 40.7 three-point percentage with Durant in the lineup compared to a 27.7-percent rate without him. Golden State has gone 3-5 without Durant in the lineup and they have failed to hit the 90-point mark in three of those games. The Warriors still have time to figure things out and could eventually get Durant back but right now their lead at the top of the NBA standings is slipping with San Antonio right behind them.
2. San Antonio Spurs (52-15)
Last Week: 2
NBA Championship Odds: +650
The Spurs entered Thursday night’s action just one game back of Golden State for top spot in the NBA and they still have plenty of time to close the gap. However, San Antonio is also dealing with its own issues as LaMarcus Aldridge is dealing with a heart arrhythmia while Kawhi Leonard is dealing with a concussion. The Spurs rallied from 28 points down to beat the Sacramento Kings last Wednesday but it’s hard to ignore that they fell behind by 28 against the Kings at home in the first place. San Antonio is right there fighting for home court advantage throughout the playoffs but they still have some key issues to overcome if they want to close the gap on the Warriors.
3. Houston Rockets (47-21)
Last Week: 4
NBA Championship Odds: +1700
Houston has won three straight and five of its last seven to create some separation ahead of the Utah Jazz and Los Angeles Clippers in the Western Conference but they still have some work to do to close the gap on Golden State and San Antonio at the top. The key to their success has been the second-highest scoring offense in the NBA and they put on a clinic in their 117-112 win over the Cavaliers on Sunday night before beating the Los Angeles Lakes by 39 on Wednesday. James Harden has played at an MVP level and with Lou Williams, Trevor Ariza and Eric Gordon all pitching in off the bench the Houston offense is one of the hottest in the NBA right now.
4. Cleveland Cavaliers (44-22)
Last Week: 3
NBA Championship Odds: +250
The Cavaliers have hit a wall without Love as they have dropped six of their last 10 games to allow the Celtics to close the gap at the top of the Eastern Conference. Cleveland ranks near the bottom of the NBA in defensive efficiency this month and they are just 2-4 when LeBron James records a triple-double. The Cavaliers undoubtedly still have enough talent even without Love but something isn’t right with the way they are playing right now and they are falling precariously close to conceding the top spot in the Eastern Conference.
5. Boston Celtics (43-25)
Last Week: 5
NBA Championship Odds: +1800
While Cleveland is sliding, the Celtics are searching for the level of consistency that will put them over the top in the Eastern Conference. Boston is the only team in the NBA that is undefeated at Oracle Arena over the last two seasons but while they beat the Warriors in Golden State they also dropped games to the Phoenix Suns and Denver Nuggets. Consistency will be the key the rest of the way as the Celtics try to close the gap on Cleveland but they need to play with a greater sense of urgency in order to capitalize on an excellent opportunity at home court advantage for the playoffs and not let it slide from their grasp.
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