The cream of the crop continues to rise to the top with the Golden State Warriors and San Antonio spurs continuing to win games while teams like the Houston Rockets, Cleveland Cavaliers and Toronto Raptors continue to struggle. The Rockets and Cavaliers managed to hang on to their spots in the NBA power rankings for this week while the Raptors fell out for the first time in order to make room for the Los Angeles Clippers. Here is a look at the NBA top five power rankings for this week.
1. Golden State Warriors (39-7)
Last Week: 1
NBA Championship Odds: -120
The Miami Heat shocked the Warriors with a 105-102 upset on Monday night that came on the second half of back-to-back nights after Golden State took down the Orlando Magic by double digits in a 118-98 win the night before. However, the Warriors bounced back with a 113-103 win over the Charlotte Hornets two nights later and they have now won eight of their last nine to maintain their position alone atop the NBA standings. Golden State was absolutely dominant in a stretch of wins that saw them take down Cleveland, Oklahoma City and Houston in a row as they outscored those three opponents by an average of just under 25 points and there is no reason to expect them to slow down as their momentum continues to build as they figure out how to maximize their potential with so much star power on the same roster.
2. San Antonio Spurs (36-9)
Last Week: 3
NBA Championship Odds: +900
A serious injury suffered by Pau Gasol hasn’t slowed down the Spurs as they have won five in a row and nine of their last 11 overall to maintain the second-best record in the NBA. San Antonio’s most recent win streak including a victory in Cleveland and they are now 4-0 on the road this season against the Cavaliers, Rockets and Warriors. San Antonio will have a tough time keeping up with Golden State near the top of the NBA standings but they are clearly on the right track right now at No. 2 in our power rankings.
3. Houston Rockets (34-15)
Last Week: 4
NBA Championship Odds: +2500
A 20-2 record that spanned from December 1st to January 10th helped the Rockets climb to third in the NBA standings. However, Houston is just 3-6 over its last nine games and is now 6.5 games back of Golden State in the Western Conference. Consistency has been a major issue for the Rockets’ high-scoring offense including James Harden, who was just 6-for-18 in Wednesday’s 120-109 loss to the Boston Celtics. Houston might not catch Golden State and San Antonio in the standings but they need to start winning to avoid falling any lower than third in the West.
4. Cleveland Cavaliers (30-14)
Last Week: 2
NBA Championship Odds: +300
Cleveland is still the favorite to challenge the Warriors for NBA supremacy but like the Rockets they have really struggled over the past couple of weeks. The Cavaliers have dropped seven of their last 11 overall including losses to Golden State and San Antonio. It’s even led to LeBron James going to the media to call on the front office to make some moves. Fortunately for Cleveland, the Toronto Raptors have been just as bad of late and that has allowed the Cavaliers to maintain a three-game lead at the top of the Eastern Conference. LeBron James and company will eventually figure things out but right now Cleveland is stuck at No. 4 on this list.
5. Los Angeles Clippers (30-17)
Last Week: –
NBA Championship Odds: +2500
While the Rockets, Cavaliers and Raptors continue to struggle, the Clippers are in a weird spot as they have suddenly dropped three of four following a seven-game win streak. LA’s losses included defeats at the hands of Minnesota, Denver and Philadelphia so Chris Paul and company are clearly trending in the wrong direction heading in to Saturday’s showdown with the Warriors. Part of the problem is that they don’t have a healthy Blake Griffin but the reality is that LA has relied far too heavily on Chris Paul. The Clippers need to figure things out in a hurry or they will risk falling off this list once again with the Raptors and Utah Jazz right behind them in the power rankings.
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