NBA Power Rankings: No. 5 Lakers, No. 15 Rockets going different directions, Thunder back at No. 1

Thunder
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander broke Wilt Chamberlain’s record with his 127th straight 20-point game on Thursday in OKC’s 104-102 win over Boston. The Thunder have won seven straight and 11 of 12. 1 52-15
2

Spurs
The Spurs had their seventh straight win all but wrapped up before the Nuggets rallied from 20 down to beat them on Thursday. That said, this is how tough it is to beat the Spurs even without Victor Wembanyama in the lineup. They have still won 16 of their last 18 games. 1 48-18
3

Celtics
Boston took OKC to the wire on Thursday even without Jayson Tatum or Derrick White in the lineup. That followed a loss to San Antonio on Tuesday when Jaylen Brown was ejected early. These are not losses that affect Boston’s Power Rankings standing. With Tatum back and looking as good as he has, this is the Eastern Conference’s most complete, and dangerous, team. 1 43-23
4

Nuggets
Two giant wins over the Rockets and Spurs for the Nuggets. Wemby didn’t play for San Antonio, but Denver was without Aaron Gordon and Peyton Watson and managed to recover from a 20-point deficit by way of 70 combined points from Nikola Jokić and Jamal Murray. 4 41-26
5

Lakers
The Lakers are all-in on winning with offense and it’s been working with seven wins in their last eight games, the latest coming against the Bulls on Thursday when Luka Dončić, Austin Reaves and LeBron James combined for 99 points (led by Luka’s 51). They have a measuring-stick game against Denver on Saturday. 6 41-25
6

Pistons
A pair of wins over Brooklyn and Philly steadies the ship after Detroit’s first four-game losing streak of the season. Nice to see seven guys score in double figures to make the Sixers pay for sending so many defenders at Cade Cunningham, who only needed eight points to control the whole game. 3 47-18
7

Cavaliers
James Harden and Donovan Mitchell tried to rally the Cavs with some nasty late 3s on Wednesday but Desmond Bane and the charging Magic were too much. Cleveland is one loss back of the No. 3 Knicks, but New York owns the tiebreaker. 1 40-26
8

Knicks
The Knicks dug themselves an 18-point hole against the Jazz on Wednesday, but this isn’t Utah’s first tanking rodeo. They know exactly how to turns wins into losses and indeed New York flipped the scoreboard to the tune of a 17-point win to avoid a three-game losing streak. 3 42-25
9

Magic
Orlando has a top-five defense since the All-Star break. Desmond Bane has been playing superb for a long time now, and Paolo Banchero is heating up. Orlando is up to the No. 5 seed with six straight wins. 5 37-28
10

Timberwolves
It’s so hard to know what to make of the Wolves, who can give the best teams in the league fits one night and lose to the worst teams the next. They’ve lost three straight and were swept on the L.A. back to back. The Wolves are just one loss from potentially falling into the play-in. 3 40-26
11

Heat
Hey, did you see Bam Adebayo scored …. 83 points on Tuesday! Also, the Heat have quietly won seven straight and 10 of their last 12 to jump into the East’s No. 6 seed by percentage points over Toronto. 5 38-29
12

Clippers
Kawhi Leonard hung 45 on the Wolves and has scored at least 20 points in 43 straight games (watch out, SGA). Darius Garland is coming alive, and the Clippers have won six of seven. 7 33-32
13

Hawks
Make it eight wins in a row for the Hawks. Keep it in perspective, as you have to go back more than a month to find a win against an actual good team (Miami), but this still looks promising. Jalen Johnson is playing lights out. Dyson Daniels is leading the league’s No. 1 defense since the All-Star break. 4 35-31
14

Suns
Phoenix is taking advantage of a soft schedule stretch with four straight wins over New Orleans, Charlotte, Milwaukee and Indiana. You have to give it to the Suns for fighting the way they have since the Dillon Brooks injury. 1 39-27
15

Rockets
A 25-point loss to the Spurs and a 36-point loss to the Nuggets in two of their last three. I’ve pretty much given up on the Rockets as a contender. Way too much standing around offensively and not nearly enough of the All-NBA caliber Alperen Sengun we saw so much of early in the season. This is too reminiscent of all the post-Warriors Kevin Durant teams that were just too reliant on him making a million tough self-created shots. It’s not going to happen. 6 40-25
16

Hornets
The Hornets have won 18 of their last 23 games and yet can’t crawl above the East’s No. 10 seed as Atlanta and Miami have been even hotter of late. 6 34-33
17

Raptors
Toronto, which has held a top-four seed in the East for most of the season, has lost four of six and fallen below the playoff line. It doesn’t get any easier with Phoenix, Detroit and Denver in three of their next four. 5 36-29
18

Pelicans
The Pelicans have won three of four and seven of 10. They boast the league’s No. 8 offense since the start of February. They have no incentive to lose as they owe their 2026 first-round pick to the Hawks. 4 22-45
19

Warriors
By the time Stephen Curry gets back he will have missed at least 20 straight games with this knee issue. It’s fair to ask whether the Warriors, who’ve lost five of six and are going to finish somewhere between the 8-10 seeds, should bring him back at all. 1 32-33
20

Trail Blazers
It’s nice to have Deni Avdija back and Scoot Henderson has scored 45 points on better than 60% shooting over his last two, but the Blazers have lost four of six when the door has been open to at least catch No. 9 Golden State. — 31-35
21

76ers
This is getting ugly. Five losses in their last seven. Paul George suspended. Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey hurt. The Sixers are fighting for their lives just to get into the 7-8 play-in game. 6 35-31
22

Bulls
After an 11-game losing streak, the Bulls have managed to split their last six. They’ve fallen out of the play-in race, and right now they have better a 20.3% chance of landing a top-four pick. 2 27-39
23

Bucks
So much for Giannis ruining the Bucks’ tank job. They’ve lost four of five with him back in the lineup. 2 27-38
24

Mavericks
Dallas won the tank-off with Memphis, but has played the part of loser in 18 of its last 21. Right now, they would have an 32% chance of landing in the top four to pair another potential franchise player with Cooper Flagg. 1 22-44
25

Grizzlies
Make it six straight losses, and likely seven with Detroit up on Friday, for a Grizzlies team that currently owns a 6% chance of scoring the No. 1 overall pick. 2 23-42
26

Jazz
Utah wasn’t going to let a couple wins over Washington and Golden State ruin all the good tank work they’ve done. They got back to their ways by expertly turning a 20-point lead against the Knicks into a 17-point loss on Wednesday. — 20-46
27

Wizards
The Wizards, who’ve lost 10 straight, pulled Trae Young at the 5:26 mark of the third quarter on Thursday. At that point the Wizards were only down 13, but Young never went back in the game. But sure, fine the Jazz. — 16-49
28

Nets
Brooklyn somehow beat Detroit this week. That could hurt as the Nets are tied in the loss column with the Wizards for a bottom-three record, which carries with it the maximum 14% chance of landing the No. 1 overall pick. — 17-49
29

Kings
The Kings beat the Pacers on Tuesday to fall into a tie for the worst record in the league. 1 16-51
30

Pacers
The Pacers are getting healthy but still tanking just fine with 11 straight losses and the league’s worst record by percentage. 1 15-51