Six days separate us from the NBA Play-In Tournament – that’s it! The 2020-21 NBA season will wrap up this upcoming Sunday, making this the final Power Rankings of the regular season. And looking at the wide spectrum across the league, the entire playoff picture isn’t even close to finalizing itself, making these final six days of the season into some entertaining primetime television.

The Brooklyn Nets don’t have the first or second seeds locked down yet and as winners of five of their last 10, health is playing a major factor in determining their final position in the Eastern Conference standings. Meanwhile, the Philadelphia 76ers have won eight straight games and look to keep that momentum heading into the postseason, and could permanently lock up the top seed in the conference for the first time since the 2000-01 season with a win over either the Pacers, Heat or Magic this week.

Sixth-seeded Miami took a huge leap forward while leaving the now seventh-seeded Boston Celtics in the dust with a convincing six-point win, and should they defy a defiant Boston rally as the Celtics get healthy come playoff time, they could avoid the Play-In Tournament altogether and ensure a first-round rematch against the Milwaukee Bucks (should the Bucks fail to topple the Brooklyn Nets in the standings).

Out West, the formation of the play-in tournament is finishing up, and surprisingly, the sixth-seeded Lakers will headline the one-game elimination series while possibly setting up a first-round series against either the Utah Jazz or Phoenix Suns with a knockout win over the Portland Trail Blazers. And despite a concerning loss to the LeBron James-less Lakers, the Phoenix Suns are still in the driver’s seat now two games behind the Jazz for the conference lead.

We’ll get into more of those details in our final weekly Power Rankings, and see where all 30 teams lay heading into the final few days of the season.

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1. Utah Jazz (50-19, Last Week’s Ranking: 1)

While Donovan Mitchell and Mike Conley Jr. continue to rehabilitate from their injuries, Bojan Bogdanovic continues to be a blessing in disguise as a perennial  50/40/90 (.576/.479/.905) scorer over the course of the Jazz’s last seven games – his best run of the season, by far. And in their past ten games where Bogdanovic has averaged over 28 points, 4 rebounds, and 2 assists, Utah is 6-4 with a significant 1.5-game lead over the Phoenix Suns. They couldn’t extend the momentum against the Warriors Monday night but with the league’s best record, win percentage, third-best offensive and defensive rating, Utah looks as poised as ever to enter the playoffs for not only the fifth year in a row, but enter the postseason with the West’s highest seed for the first time in nearly 23 years.

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2. Philadelphia 76ers (47-21, Last Week’s Ranking: 3)

The magic number to clinch the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference is one, and these Sixers have a favorable schedule to earn their spot atop the Eastern food chain with a signature win over either the Pacers, Heat, or Magic in a two-game series to close out their 2020-21 campaign. Joel Embiid and Nuggets Center/Forward Nikola Jokic are the two most probable finalists for the MVP award this season, but it’s unlikely Embiid gets heavy playing time with the playoffs literally right around the corner. Rest and optimal health should be what Doc Rivers has in the minutes’ distribution, as different rotational pieces like rookie Tyrese Maxey and Dwight Howard earn more time on the floor as the season winds to a close.

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3. Phoenix Suns (48-20, Last Week’s Ranking: 2)

Philadelphia and Phoenix swap places in this week’s rankings, mainly due to Phoenix’s inability to grab momentum by the horns and drop four of their last 10 to teams like the Hawks and the Lakers. Sure, convincing wins over the New York Knicks, Western-leading Jazz, and Los Angeles Clippers stood out on the board, but losing to the Los Angeles Lakers – their likeliest opponent in the first round of the Western Conference Playoffs should the Lakers drop to the seventh seed this week – is worrisome, considering that the next time they play them, the playoff version of LeBron James (who has yet to lose in the first round of the playoffs in his career) will be healthy, active in the starting five, and on their doorstep.

Looking at the positives for a second, it’s fair to throw Chris Paul’s name in the hat for the league’s Most Valuable Player award, as the prescribed “Point Gawd” put up double-double after double-double this past week. registering 16 assists without a turnover in a win against the Cavaliers, and then not too long after dished 11 assists to beat the Knicks, the league’s most efficient defensive team.

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4. Milwaukee Bucks (43-25, Last Week’s Ranking: 5)

Their five-game winning streak may have ended Monday night, but the (opinionated) most dangerous team on the Eastern radar not named the Philadelphia 76ers or Brooklyn Nets continue to build an established sense of synergy and connectivity with such a fresh and new starting five. The Bucks are now 1.5 games away from prying the second seed out of the Brooklyn Nets’ hands, who themselves could enter the playoffs with the proverbial blown tire of injury woes with the unknown status of James Harden (hamstring) as they’ve lost five of their last 10.

The Nets are beginning to hear footsteps from Milwaukee, who started the week off poorly in a 21-point loss to the Spurs but still have only Orlando, Indiana, Miami and Chicago left on the schedule. That gives them all the more incentive to push to the finish line and accumulate as many wins as possible so they can surpass the Nets in the standings and potentially host two playoff series.

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5. Brooklyn Nets (44-24, Last Week’s Ranking: 4)

Speaking euphemistically here – the Nets need James Harden back, and without him, disorganization in how the offense is run looks like a giant red flag with Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant ironically struggling to direct traffic in the halfcourt. Harden (hamstring) hasn’t played or participated in organized basketball activity since April 5, but he’s said that he “remains confident” that he’ll return at some point in the regular season, namely sometime in the final week of the season.

Though a comeback win over a banged-up-but-highly-seeded Nuggets teams maintains an adage of comfortability and a sense of “we got this”, there are certain intangibles that the 6’5 playmaking two-guard brings to your basketball team that, when it’s not there, makes the chasm of the lack of a true separation-creating floor general all the more glaring.

And while their finish to the season looks promising, Brooklyn has to keep their head on a swivel for any trap game against either the Bulls, Spurs, or Cavaliers (who they’ve lost twice to on the season with Brooklyn’s ravenous trio on the floor at the same time). The Nets are playing with fire, and with Milwaukee on their coattails, avoiding a war of a first-round series against the Miami Heat while still reeling from injuries sounds like a good plan A.

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6. Los Angeles Clippers (45-23, Last Week’s Ranking: 7)

Los Angeles is slowly inching towards getting 100% healthy in preparation for the playoffs, in which they are looking to shake things up a bit and not just advance to the NBA Finals with arguably the most complete and balanced roster in the NBA. And the best thing about the Clips hitting their stride at the moment is that they haven’t even hit the pinnacle of their potential.

The Clippers are still an elite offensive team who possess the league’s mark of having the second-most-efficient offense, and every now and then they’ll put on a dud of a performance, like the one they had Sunday afternoon during their loss to the Knicks. They’ve lost four of their last six, but face teams this week that are either a late entry into the play-in tournament or are selected to miss the playoffs as a whole. So, they’ll likely try and continue to stay competitive down the stretch while keeping their chemistry alive.

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7. Denver Nuggets (44-24, Last Week’s Ranking: 6)

After going 11-1 following Jamal Murray’s season-ending torn ACL during a loss to the Warriors, the Nuggets have dropped three of their last four games, and all losses were close losses to playoffs contenders in the Lakers, Jazz, and Nets. Nikola Jokic is finishing up his MVP case, and it was even further supplanted in the coming weeks following April 12, which is when their second-best scorer Murray went down. In the last 14 games, Jokic has been spectacular, averaging 27.4 points, 10.6 rebounds, and 7.2 assists.

Also, he’s scored 30+ points in four of the Nuggets’ last seven games. That type of productivity usually comes with some hardware, considering that the Nugs have been largely undermanned in more ways than one this year (Monte Morris and Will Barton continue to miss time prior to the playoffs). Still, there’s no reason to panic, since the Nuggets own the tiebreaker over the Clippers at the moment and slightly trail them by a full game entering the final week of the season.

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8. New York Knicks (38-30, Last Week’s Ranking: 8)

Still in fourth place, still surviving, still thriving. That’s (probably) been Tom Thibodeau’s mantra all season in his first year as the head coach of the New York Knicks. Sunday afternoon’s gargantuan win over the Clippers locks them in fourth place with a full-game lead over the Heat and Hawks. And if all else stands, the Knicks will have clinched their first playoff berth since the 2012-13 season. A win over the Lakers – in which LeBron James could return in after healing up from his ankle sprain – would mean that they’d finish the season feeling good about where they stand, considering it’s the only difficult game on the weekly schedule. They’ll do battle with the Spurs, Hornets and Celtics to close out the year.

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9. Dallas Mavericks (40-28, Last Week’s Ranking: 10)

The Mavericks are going to take the SouthWestern division this year, and might be cleared to avoid the play-in tournament as the fifth-seeded team out West. They hold a full-game lead over the Trail Blazers and two-game lead over the Lakers, and look prepared to duel the Denver Nuggets in the first round of the Western Conference playoffs next week. One problem though: Kristaps Porzingis has missed the last six games due to right knee soreness.

Yes, that same knee that was surgically repaired a few years ago following his ACL tear as a Knick.

Since being drafted in 2016, Porzingis has yet to play a full season in the NBA, which is extremely off-putting, and even moreso since head coach Rick Carlisle doesn’t anticipate – or even have a timetable on – Porzingis’s return before the end of the regular season. The usual 20.2 points per game from Porzingis has been filled in by none other than the Mavs’ second-leading scorer in Tim Harday Jr., who’s averaged 27 points off 53 percent shooting from deep over Dallas’ last six games.

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10. Portland Trail Blazers (40-29, Last Week’s Ranking: 11)

That’s now seven of the last eight games that have funneled into the win column for Portland, and Dame Time’s clock just got a whole new battery entering the playoffs, now averaging an insane 33.8 points per game off 52 percent shooting over the course of this winning streak. Portland earned arguably their biggest win of the season over the Lakers last Thursday, which granted them an entire one-game lead over the defending champions and a potential immunity card from the play-in tournament. Should they handle business in what’s to be a turbulent week for them (starts with a game against Houston and finishes with back to back road games against the Jazz and Suns, and finishes with a home game against the Nuggets), they’ll be primed to square off with the Clippers in the first round, which means that a rematch between Paul George and Damian Lillard is to come.

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11. Los Angeles Lakers (38-30, Last Week’s Ranking: 9)

Laker nation – chin up. What we’ve seen from Anthony Davis since his return has been nothing but positive, and he’s seemingly caught that second wind fans have wanted him to have following his comeback from Achilles Tendonosis. A 2-1 week only filled Laker faithful with optimism that these defending champs can run the table and make it back to the NBA Finals should health be on their side, and if so, they could have a case.

Davis went off for 36 points during their loss to the Trail Blazers on the road, and followed that performance with another signature 42-point, 12-rebound, five-assist, three-block, three-steal statsheed-stuffer of a night against the second-seeded Suns, who could do nothing against them all Sunday night. With reports about LeBron’s explosiveness and cutability basically returning back to near-optimal levels as well as Dennis Schroder’s quarantine period ending up, this Lakers team is reassembling at the most opportune time and could be the most dangerous team in the West if teams take their injury woes for granted.

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12. Miami Heat (37-31, Last Week’s Ranking: 13)

Miami enters the last week of this season tied for fifth in the East with the Atlanta Hawks, and a whole game behind the Knicks (who the Heat own the tiebreaker over) for the fourth spot. Don’t be surprised if these Heat start playing spoiler like how they did a season ago as they advanced to the Finals as the West’s fourth-seeded team in the Bubble, because if Jimmy Butler finds a way to get it going consistently like how he did against the Celtics down the stretch on Sunday afternoon – how’s 26 points and 11 assists sound? – look out.

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13. Atlanta Hawks (38-31, Last Week’s Ranking: 12)

Injuries ravaged the first half of Atlanta’s miraculous season, and it leaves much to the imagination if key guys like Bogdan Bogdanovic, Danilo Gallinari, and De’Andre Hunter never missed all of that accumulated time. Hunter, the former National Champion, and Virginia standout has only played two games since the tail end of January but in the time that he has been on the floor, he’s averaged 16 points and a little over five rebounds while shooting an efficient 50 percent from the field. How Atlanta and Nate McMillan re-enters him into the lineup remains to be seen, but the Hawks have a favorable schedule to continue to etch him into the starting lineup, for they’ll finish off their two-game series against the Wizards, and conclude their season against the Magic and Rockets.

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14. Golden State Warriors (36-33, Last Week’s Ranking: 14)

Stephen Curry is doing all he can to ensure the Dubs a spot in the inaugural Western Conference play-in tournament, scoring 49 points in three quarters against the Oklahoma City Thunder and dropping 11 threes against one of the league’s most skilled and tenacious young defenders in Luguentz Dort. Make that 11 of the past 16 games that have resulted in wins for the Warriors, who look to be the team everyone wants to avoid come tournament time. This past Monday night, they did battle with the Utah Jazz (who were still without Donovan Mitchell and Mike Conley Jr.) and while it was a barnburner, they survived a Jordan Clarkson 41-point explosion and earned an upset win over the best team in the NBA. Now the Warriors are a full game-and-a-half ahead of the Grizzlies for the eighth seed in the play-in tournament.

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15. Washington Wizards (32-37, Last Week’s Ranking: 19)

And Voila – here’s the team no one wishing for a playoff spot in the play-in tournament wants to see. Triple-double machine Russell Westbrook is out for blood with aspirations of getting the Wizards to the playoffs for the first time in nearly four years and made NBA history as he tied “The Big O” Oscar Robertson’s in career Triple-Doubles on Saturday night in an Overtime win against the Pacers without Bradley Beal on the floor, and then earned the most-coveted Triple-Double No. 182 on Monday night, albeit in a loss to the Hawks that he nearly won himself with a heave from the J with mere seconds remaining.

The first half of their Back-to-back games against the Hawks showcased a milestone moment in sports history – like Cal Ripken’s 2,000th hit in the beginning of the 21st century – but more importantly, they hope to at least split the series against the Hawks, and get some positive results in their home games against the Hornets and Cavaliers. Don’t look now, but the “lowly” Wizards are only a game-and-a-half away from clutching the eighth seed and advancing to the play-in tournament.

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16. Boston Celtics (35-33, Last Week’s Ranking: 15)

Sunday’s near comeback against Miami was cut short due to the heroics of Jimmy Butler, and likely shoved Boston into the play-in tournament instead of in the regular playoff picture. Even worse news: Celtics star Forward Jaylen Brown is expected to miss the rest of the season due to a procedure to his left, and non-shooting, wrist, leaving Jayson Tatum and Kemba Walker to fend for themselves in what should be a first-round exit in the playoffs. A second home game against Miami followed by trips to Cleveland, Minnesota and the Madison Square Garden in New York City await to close out their regular season.

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17. Memphis Grizzlies (35-33, Last Week’s Ranking: 16)

When you’re chasing a playoff spot, losing to the Pistons is never a good thing, but Memphis is in good shape to earn a play-in spot after a 2-2 week. Jaren Jackson Jr. is getting back into form, averaging 17 points and almost 24 minutes per game over the last three weeks. With six players averaging double figures, the Grizzlies continue to spread out their offense. Ja Morant led the team with 19.3 points per game this past week.

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18. Charlotte Hornets (33-35, Last Week’s Ranking: 17)

The Hornets defeated the Pistons and Magic this week, but lost to the Bulls and the Pelicans, who were shorthanded. They’ve almost locked up a spot in the play-in tournament as they prepare for Miles Bridges and possibly Gordon Hayward’s return. Terry Rozier led the team in scoring this week with 25.3 points per game, including 43 in the Pelicans’ loss on Sunday. On 60 percent 3-point shooting, PJ Washington scored 20.3 points and nine rebounds per game, while the returning LaMelo Ball had 19 points, 6.5 assists, and 5.3 rebounds per game.

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19. San Antonio Spurs (33-35, Last Week’s Ranking: 18)

The Spurs have lost three of their last four games, allowing the Pelicans or Kings to sneak into the No. 10 slot. San Antonio still has a chance to make the playoffs, but even with an upset 21-point victory over Milwaukee Monday night, they entered Monday’s contest having lost six of their last seven games, with games against the Nets, Knicks, and Suns (twice) scheduled for the final week. DeMar DeRozan led the team in scoring with 18.3 points per game during an offensive disaster-class of a week for the Spurs.

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20. Indiana Pacers (32-36, Last Week’s Ranking: 20)

The Pacers went 1-3 this week in some wild games, reportedly due to tension between head coach Nate Bjorkgren and his team. With the exception of a 93-point performance against the Kings, Indiana scored 135 points per game in the other three games this week, with Caris LeVert leading the way with 28.3 points per game on 45 percent 3-point shooting. Since returning from injury, Domantas Sabonis has been a beast, averaging 27.3 points, 13.3 rebounds, and 9.8 assists per game while shooting 68 percent from the field.

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21. New Orleans Pelicans (31-38, Last Week’s Ranking: 22)

Now a full 2.5 games behind the Spurs for the 10th seed, hope is quickly fading for the Pels’ playoff hopes, and even more so with a 115-110 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies on Monday night while still trying to find some semblance of offense in the wake of Zion Williamson being sidelined for the rest of the year due to a broken finger.

To keep hope alive prior to the loss on Monday night, the Pels nearly stunned the 76ers on Friday, then beat the Hornets on Sunday, led by Eric Bledsoe’s 24 points and 11 assists. For the week, Lonzo Ball averaged 17.5 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 5.3 assists, while Jaxson Hayes and Willy Hernangomez filled in admirably for Steven Adams, who has been out for six of the team’s last eight games.

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22. Sacramento Kings (30-38, Last Week’s Ranking: 23)

The Kings have won three of their last four games despite the absence of De’Aaron Fox, Tyrese Haliburton, and Harrison Barnes. The Spurs’ loss was particularly painful because they are the team Sacramento is chasing for the final play-in spot. Terence Davis, who was acquired from the Raptors shortly before the trade deadline, led the team with 17.5 points per game this week, while Delon Wright, who was also acquired at the deadline, averaged 17 points, 7.8 rebounds, seven assists, and three steals. Whether they qualify for the play-in tournament or not, the Kings deserve credit for fighting until the end in an abridged season.

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23. Chicago Bulls (29-39, Last Week’s Ranking: 24)

The Bulls went 3-1 this week to keep their ever so fading playoff hopes alive, and Zach LaVine’s return from Health and Safety protocols provided a much-needed boost, as he scored 22.7 points on 41 percent 3-point shooting in the Bulls’ final three games of the week, all of which were wins for Chicago. Nikola Vucevic contributed as well, scoring 25.3 points, 14.7 rebounds, and five assists while shooting 40 percent from three-point range. Chicago is but a mere 2.5 games behind the Pacers for the final play-in tournament spot entering the final week of their season.

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24. Toronto Raptors (27-41, Last Week’s Ranking: 21)

For the first time in eight years, the Toronto Raptors will miss out on the postseason.

The Raptors lost to the Clippers, Wizards, and Grizzlies this week, potentially ending their chances of making the playoffs, which they seem to be fine with considering their history of resting key players. Pascal Siakam averaged 28.7 points and seven rebounds per game, while Fred VanVleet added 24.5 points and nine assists per game, making him one of the few Raptors regulars to play all three games this week. Now, they can look forward to returning to Scotiabank Arena, and Toronto, Canada as a whole, next season after an atypical season that forced them to play in Tampa, Florida as a result of the pandemic.

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25. Minnesota Timberwolves (21-47, Last Week’s Ranking: 25)

The Wolves started the week with losses to the Grizzlies and Heat before dominating the Magic on Sunday. The trio of Karl-Anthony Towns, D’Angelo Russell, and Anthony Edwards has looked promising…on that end, at least. Minnesota put up an impressive 121.4 offensive rating for the week. In a loss, Edwards had perhaps the best week of his young career (so far), scoring 42 points on 22 shots against Memphis.

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26. Orlando Magic (21-47, Last Week’s Ranking: 27)

Orlando won a tank-off against the Pistons on Monday but then, of course, lost their next three games convincingly. This week, Dwayne Bacon led the team in scoring with 18.8 points per game, which tells you what you need to know about the Orlando Magic’s current situation. In Orlando’s three games without Wendell Carter Jr., Mo Bamba has performed impressively as the starting center, averaging 10.3 points, 12.7 assists, and 3.3 blocks.

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27. Cleveland Cavaliers (21-48, Last Week’s Ranking: 26)

After taking the Suns to overtime, the Cavs were blown out three times in a row to finish the week with an 0-4 record. Cleveland, which has now lost ten games in a row, can’t wait for the offseason to arrive. In the absence of Darius Garland, Collin Sexton has led the offense, scoring 23.8 points per game this week, while rookie Isaac Okoro has averaged 16.5 points per game on 43 percent 3-point shooting.

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28. Detroit Pistons (20-49, Last Week’s Ranking: 28)

The Pistons only won one of their five games this week, a solid performance against the Grizzlies. In a loss to Charlotte, Hamidou Diallo set a career high with 35 points, but he only appeared in one other game this week, while Saddiq Bey continued his good rookie season. As he consumes extra playing time from the unavailable Pistons on the injury report, Sekou Doumbouya has had some eye-opening stretches.

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29. Oklahoma City Thunder (21-48, Last Week’s Ranking: 29)

So, there you have it. The Thunder have now lost four games in a row, with their last three defeats averaging nearly 30 points each. After an incredibly strong start to the season, they’ve now lost 24 of their last 26 games, a tank job of epic proportions. This is an important time for players like Darius Bazley and Theo Maledon to improve, but being in more than one close game per week will be beneficial.

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30. Houston Rockets (16-53, Last Week’s Ranking: 30)

The depleted Rockets had the anticipated results this week against the 76ers, Bucks, and Jazz, but they held it tight in the final two games. Kenyon Martin Jr. has taken advantage of his increased playing time this week, averaging 25.3 points, nine rebounds, and five assists per game while shooting 55 percent from three-point range. It’s time to look forward to the lottery, and the Rockets’ increasing chances of landing the No. 1 pick in this year’s draft.

Photo cred: Fox Sports 1430

The NBA season officially wraps up in 12 days, and a plethora of questions have yet to be answered and are still on the table: Will the Philadelphia 76ers fend off the Brooklyn Nets and head into the playoffs as the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference? Are the Phoenix Suns, fresh off of claiming their first postseason berth in 11 years, capable of getting the top seed in the West and keeping it away from the Jazz long enough in the coming days to enter the playoffs with the NBA’s best record? Are the Lakers, who just got LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and Marc Gasol back (while missing Dennis Schroder – Health and Safety protocols) good and consistent enough to keep the 5th seed and avoid the play-in tournament? Can teams like the Washington Wizards and Golden State Warriors muster enough wins to qualify for the play-in tournament?

And with the Knicks essentially locking up the fourth seed and claiming their first winning season since 2013, what will the plan be for Tom Thibodeau’s team – rest or continuous effort to try and nab a higher seed? These next two weeks will answer all questions for all 30 teams heading into the final stretch of the season.

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1. Utah Jazz (47-18, Last Week’s Ranking: 4)

While finishing the season with the league’s best record sounds enticing, actually having an all-healthy roster sounds just as sweet, if not sweeter. They got the first seed in the Western playoffs back with a 110-99 home win against the Spurs last night, and are certainly up to the task of defending the No. 1 seed if need be. But with Utah staring down a potential showdown with the winner of the Lakers or Clippers’ 4/5 matchup that’ll likely determine the course of action for Quin Snyder’s gameplan down the final stretch of the season, making sure that Donovan Mitchell (sprained ankle) and Mike Conley Jr. (hamstring) are good to go seems like the ideal way to go. They’ll have another duel with the Spurs at home before they have to defend home court against Denver and Houston and from there, they’ll finish off their 2020-21 regular season next week.

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2. Phoenix Suns (46-18, Last Week’s Ranking: 1)

With a playoff seed all to themselves, seeding is the only thing that matters to the Suns. Sure, prioritizing health and optimal performance is a necessity, but these Suns are shooting for the moon. Full speed ahead is the agenda for Monty Williams, Chris Paul and Devin Booker (who will finally make his postseason debut!) and if the No. 2 seed in the West can relegate the Jazz to the No. 2 seed, they’ll have to do so with an increasingly difficult schedule; Cleveland, Atlanta, New York, and the Lakers are up next this week.

If the Suns can claim the No. 1 seed the rest of the way and pull off the impossible, since literally, no one saw this type of season emanating from the lowly Suns who were projected to just miss out on the playoffs with an “aging” Chris Paul, the inexperienced young duo of Booker and DeAndre Ayton, and impressionable-yet-still-developing young core with guys like Mikal Bridges and Cameron Johnson, then the Phoenix Suns will have made it to the postseason with the top record out West for the first time since 2005. The other time they pulled off that feat? 1993 – the year Charles Barkley won MVP and the Western-best Suns went on to battle the Chicago Bulls in the NBA Finals.

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3. Philadelphia 76ers (44-21, Last Week’s Ranking: 9)

Thanks to saving themselves from an embarrassing loss to the Spurs on Sunday evening from an OT tip-in game-winner by Ben Simmons as well as a “handled business” type of win over Chicago on Monday night, the Sixers strengthened their grip on the East’s No. 1 seed with a near two-game lead (tiebreaker included) over the Brooklyn Nets. And with eight games left to play, they are in prime position to snag that home-court advantage all throughout the playoffs. Additionally, the 76ers’ schedule isn’t too hard to finish off: only one of their final games are against Miami, and the rest are against teams that aren’t even in their respective playoff seeding.

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4. Brooklyn Nets (43-22, Last Week’s Ranking: 3)

Sunday’s loss to the Bucks wasn’t one of worry to the Nets, since those types of losses can be taken with a grain of salt. The atmosphere of that game was palpable enough to give off a playoff feel, and since it’s likely the two teams cross paths in the playoffs, we got a small simulation of how the spacing will look, and what matchups will happen when the two teams play each other in a few weeks.

But, a loss is a loss, and with the Sixers gaining momentum with a 1.5-game lead over the Nets, Brooklyn is in a bit of a pickle. Milwaukee is gaining ground and is in striking distance of getting the second seed, and should the season end today, the second-seeded Nets wouldn’t be able to avoid either Milwaukee or Miami in the second round. So, health is wealth, but make no mistake about it: rest is out of the question.

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5. Milwaukee Bucks (40-24, Last Week’s Ranking: 6)

A massive win over Brooklyn on Sunday with your MVP candidate Giannis Antetokounmpo giving the Nets’ frontcourt all they can handle and more does a lot for your team’s confidence heading down the final stretch of the season. And they’ll have another chance to crack a jab at the East’s No. 2 team again on Tuesday, and this time, the stakes are a little bit higher. Should they win, they’ll move up an official game behind the Nets in the loss column, and in the final 12 games of the season, could play spoiler and threaten the Brooklyn Nets’ hopes of maintaining a top-two spot and perch atop the Eastern Conference.

However, Milwaukee will have the same plan B if losses start piling up down the stretch, and resting key guys like Antetokounmpo and Jrue Holiday might become a possibility if a third-place finish is in their cards.

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6. Denver Nuggets (43-22, Last Week’s Ranking: 7)

Since losing Jamal Murray to a season-ending ACL tear nearly 12 days ago, the Nuggets had yet to truly feel the side effects of his absence with their initial 9-1 record without him on the court entering Monday night’s contest against the slipping Lakers. And then the game happened, where MVP frontrunner Nikola Jokic had arguably one of his worst games of the season (if you consider 32 points on 12-28 shooting “bad”) where he couldn’t score much at all when the returning Marc Gasol was matched up with him during the game’s final two minutes, leading to a tough 93-89 loss when LeBron James wasn’t even active. Those are the type of games the Nuggets will look back and scratch their head at, and ponder what’s next for them.

Even with Jokic having an all-world season while carrying the offensive load every night for an average of 26.1 points on a nightly basis, the lack of a true No. 1 option off the dribble who can maneuver wherever and attack any matchup against space-anemic defensive schemes will be felt all the more in a playoff setting, and nary made more so than last night during their loss to the Lakers.

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7. Los Angeles Clippers (43-22, Last Week’s Ranking: 1)

Los Angeles is going through it right now, with a three-game losing streak looming over their heads like a black cloud. Their most significant loss of the skid came by way of the Nuggets, where Denver not only won the four-game season series against the team they came back down 3-1 in the bubble last year to advance to the Western Conference Finals, but they currently have the tiebreaker advantage over them and the third seed in the West, even with both teams having the same record. Seeding is important, but Tyronn Lue’s goal this season wasn’t to grab all the regular-season accolades and fight to get the West’s best record, but rather to make sure that both Kawhi Leonard and Paul George are healthy enough to share the same floor with one another. Also, should they stay in fourth place in the West, it’s likely that the battle of Los Angeles will take place in the First Round of the NBA Playoffs.

Luckily for them, getting healthy is getting easier. Serge Ibaka is returning as is Patrick Beverley soon enough, and since the NBA universe knows how indomitable of a force they can be when 100% healthy, it might make sense to dial back a few levels and rest some key starters.

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8. New York Knicks (37-28, Last Week’s Ranking: 5)

Though the Knicks have dropped three spots in the weekly rankings, it’s still inconceivable to consider that they’ve survived to maintain their spot in the postseason picture for this long. They’ve won nine of their last 10, are winners of 12 of their last 13, are clear favorites to lock up the fourth seed with only 12 days to go in the regular season with a 1.5-game lead over the Hawks, and are by far the hottest team in the Eastern Conference.

Another thing of note: when Derrick Rose suits up for them, they win. They’re 21-8 with him in the rotation, and Rose scored a season-high 25 points in their win over Memphis off an efficient 11-15 shooting performance. Still, a hard Western voyage awaits the Knicks, for they’ll have to play the Nuggets, Suns, and Clippers all on the road this week.

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9. Los Angeles Lakers (37-28, Last Week’s Ranking: 15)

And just like that, crisis mode may be over for the LakeShow.

Marc Gasol and Anthony Davis resembled their playoff-succeeding selves during a huge win over the Denver Nuggets Monday evening, and defensively, kept the Jamal Murray-less Nugs to only 89 points while LeBron James didn’t even suit up as a preventative measure to rest his healing sprained right ankle on the second night of a back-to-back.

The muscle is back for the Lakers, and while they weren’t able to muster any prior resemblance of their former selves with consecutive losses to the Kings and Raptors during LeBron James’ return, they got the fifth seed back from the Mavericks, thanks to their upset win on Monday night. A slew of eight tough-but-winnable games awaits the defending champs with only a week and 1/3 left in the season.

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10. Dallas Mavericks (36-28, Last Week’s Ranking: 11)

Sacramento handed Dallas all three of their losses in their last nine games, and with the Lakers winning on Monday night and reclaiming the fifth seed, that puts the Mavericks in the tough spot of having to work their hardest to avoid the play-in tournament. And due to the three-way tiebreaker rules, they’d have to enter the playoffs as the sixth seed if things don’t go their way in the final 12 days of the regular season. They’ll have to get past the finish line as efficiently as possible if they want to avoid that scenario altogether, and hope that Kristaps Porzingis and Luka Doncic can, at the least, man the charge and stay healthy. Porzingis missed the Mavericks’ last five games due to a sprained left ankle and sore right knee.

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11. Portland Trail Blazers (36-29, Last Week’s Ranking: 19)

Barring a loss to Atlanta that many could see forthcoming, (it was a weird day for the Hawks and Blazers, who almost had their game canceled due to tornado warnings) Portland is hitting their stride at the most convenient time. They are 4-1 in their latest stretch of games, all on the road, Damian Lillard isn’t quite struggling much anymore, and CJ McCollum is starting to look like his pre-injury self. They have a likable schedule in their future, with only Cleveland, Los Angeles, and San Antonio coming up next on the schedule, which means their optimism at a deep playoff run and the chances of potential avoidance of the play-in tournament are relatively high.

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12. Atlanta Hawks (36-30, Last Week’s Ranking: 8)

Atlanta at one point in the season was staring down another finish out of the playoff picture, and when Lloyd Pierce as their head coach, Atlanta was 11th in the Eastern Conference with what felt like forever until the end of the season. And when Nate McMillan replaced Pierce as the head coach of the Atlanta Hawks, what a quick turnaround of aspirations it was for a Hawks team that hadn’t reached the playoffs since 2016. Now six games over .500 with a chance to earn home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs, they’re in a dead heat with the Celtics and Heat for the fourth and fifth spots in the East. A win over Portland kept their momentum afloat, and games against the Suns at home and Pacers on the road can keep that momentum going even stronger heading down the chute of the final 12 days of the season.

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13. Miami Heat (35-30, Last Week’s Ranking: 13)

With four wins in five games, Miami is getting back into that mode of ferocity that earned them a trip to the NBA Finals last October. Bam Adebayo continues to rake in All-NBA Defensive First Team votes and game-by-game improves as a confident scorer at all three levels with 19.4 points, 8 rebounds, and 6 assists over his past five games. The same, ironically, can be said for Kendrick Nunn, who is additionally rounding into shape as a reliable option at the guard spot. Nunn, during that same stretch, has averaged 20.4 points. Currently, the Heat are locked in a battle with the Atlanta Hawks for the fifth seed, and want more in the waning weeks of the regular season; they’re a whole 2.5 games away from blowing past the fourth-seeded Knicks for their seed and home-court advantage.

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14. Golden State Warriors (33-32, Last Week’s Ranking: 10)

With a resounding and comfortable double-digit win over the New Orleans Pelicans on Monday Evening, a game in which Stephen Curry (41 points off 14-26 shooting, eight threes 46 Hero Points) and Draymond Green (10 points, 15 assists, 13 rebounds, 47 Hero Points) traded places as the nightly leader in Hero Points during ESPN2’s exclusive Marvel’s Avengers-style broadcast known as the “Arena of Heroes”, Draymond Green got to call himself an Honorary Avenger while being “recruited” by Dr. Strange.

The Dubs stand a whole one-game lead ahead of the Memphis Grizzlies, who lost on Monday night to the Knicks and currently, it’s quite obvious that no one team will want to play the Golden State Warriors come play-in tournament time. With 41 points against the Pels last night, Stephen Curry will likely be the league’s scoring champion this season, and the oldest player in league history to win the award since Michael Jordan in 1997-98.

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15. Boston Celtics (34-31, Last Week’s Ranking: 12)

When it seemed like things were getting back on track for Boston, off went the wheels again. Far greater concern has to lie in the health and ability to put your most integral pieces on the floor to compete on a nightly basis, and that prerequisite was severely challenged when in the final moments of the fourth quarter against the Portland Trail Blazers, Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown scrambled for a loose ball inching towards the scorer’s table and subsequently collided with one another. Tatum was fine, but Jaylen Brown’s condition has still not been addressed and publicized.

Both of Boston’s best players had to leave the game, a loss to the Blazers during a 2-2 week that saw the Celtics both historically erase a 32-point deficit to the visiting San Antonio Spurs in which Tatum became only the second Celtic ever to score 60 points in a single game and become a point shy of breaking a record that’s lasted for 36 years while simultaneously racking up the most points by a Celtic in a three-game span ever…and embarrassingly lose to a tanking Thunder team. But, no matter how Boston does over their final seven games, potentially not having Jaylen Brown for an extended period of time does more harm than good for a team that’s clawing to get out of a play-in tournament berth.

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16. Memphis Grizzlies (32-32, Last Week’s Ranking: 17)

Now a whole game and more behind the Golden State Warriors, Memphis is trying their best to get back into the postseason picture, and stay there, but must do better as losers of four of their last five. Also, they’re still fixing out the kinks of etching Jaren Jackson Jr. back into the minutes rotation, an adjustment that’s hindered their chemistry a little as the Michigan State product is still finding his way back from missing most of the season due to a torn meniscus suffered in the bubble last season.

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17. Charlotte Hornets (31-33, Last Week’s Ranking: 18)

As losers of six of their last ten with new concerns about  Health and Safety protocols that Miles Bridges must undergo as a result of the third-year forward potentially testing positive for COVID-19, Charlotte won’t have the luxury of coasting into the playoffs with a comfortable lead over anyone in the standings and will be playing in the play-in tournament as the eighth seed.

However, LaMelo Ball’s return to the court gave Charlotte a much-needed jolt in the arm as the rookie guard returned to the floor for the first time since March 20, and threw a litany of full-court passes while playing in the rhythm of the offense while averaging a little over 12 points with 6.5 rebounds and 6.5 assists in his last two games.

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18. San Antonio Spurs (31-33, Last Week’s Ranking: 16)

The Spurs would like to forget what was a pretty forgettable week as a team that’ll probably struggle down the stretch of their final eight games. They’re 1-4 in their last five contests, and likely will need all the help they can get, both by themselves and with the help of others as the West’s current 10th seed, as they’re 1.5 games out of the ninth-seeded Grizzlies’ spot and 2.5 games away from the eighth-seeded Warriors.

Their previous week included some doozies: After outlasting the Washington Wizards on the road, they suffered a five-point loss to the Heat, a loss (and blown-32-point lead) to the Celtics, and an OT loss to the Philadelphia 76ers by way of a Ben Simmons putback tip-in at the buzzer. And on Monday night, they were vociferously beaten by the Utah Jazz, and even worse: they found out prior to that game that Derrick White won’t be able to come back this season due to a sprained right ankle.

Whew.

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19. Washington Wizards (30-35, Last Week’s Ranking: 14)

Washington is 11-2 in their last 13 games, with only two losses coming by way of San Antonio and Dallas. And oddly enough, the team that had the most adversity of any other squad in the league, due to their COVID outbreaks that kept the Wizards – as a team – off of the hardwood for weeks that turned into what felt like months, is the team with the likeliest odds of beating out everyone else for the final playoffs spot as the winners of the first-ever Eastern play-in tournament.

Their first win of a two-game series against Indiana Monday night was significant; Russell Westbrook racked up his 178th Triple-Double of his career with the most Russell Westbrook stat line imaginable — 14 points, 21 rebounds, and 24 assists — during Washington’s 154-141 win over Indiana, and their 30th win of the year.

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20. Indiana Pacers (30-34, Last Week’s Ranking: 20)

There was some good history on the Pacers’ side this week. Indiana gave the Oklahoma City Thunder their worst loss in franchise history, a 152-95 road win that saw Doug McDermott lead the Pacers in scoring with 31 points off 11-14 shooting with six threes to boot. But on Monday, momentum was halted as they game up a season-worst 154 points to Russell Westbrook and Bradley Beal’s Washington Wizards, and only possess a slim lead over Washington for that ninth seed, with their only advantage being one less in the loss column than Washington.

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21. Toronto Raptors (27-38, Last Week’s Ranking: 22)

Despite their impressive road victory over the Lakers on Sunday night, the Raptors still have a long way to go to qualify for the play-in tournament, as they are 2.5 games behind the Wizards with nine games left.

What will definitely matter most to the Raptors, in the end, is where they finish in the NBA draft lottery with the Bulls and Kings for positions seven through nine.

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22. New Orleans Pelicans (29-36, Last Week’s Ranking: 21)

Zion Williamson is having one of the most offensively impactful seasons in NBA history, as the 20-year-old is having the greatest volume shooting season in NBA history. But, the Warriors are four games ahead of the Pelicans in the running for the play-in tournament, and those two teams play each other in the final contests of the regular season. With the Warriors beating the Pelicans in the first of two games this week, New Orleans can start getting ready for the offseason.

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23. Sacramento Kings (37-47, Last Week’s Ranking: 24)

Sacramento is 4.5 games behind the Spurs, who have lost three in a row, for the final play-in spot after two wins in a row, including Sunday’s victory over the Mavericks. While it’s possible the Kings could fix up a quick solution to get into the postseason, Tyrese Haliburton’s status is up in the air due to a bad knee, which he injured in the win over the Mavs. That could seriously jeopardize the team’s playoff drive.

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24. Chicago Bulls (26-39, Last Week’s Ranking: 23)

The Bulls are three games behind the Wizards for the Eastern Conference’s final play-in spot. And more importantly, the Bulls’ high expectations following the acquisition of Nikola Vucevic have vanished. Because of COVID-19 protocols, Zach LaVine hasn’t played since April 14. The Bulls are 4-11 in their last 15 games, and they have a tough final two weeks of the season ahead of them, which includes Monday’s game against the Sixers (they lost, 106-94) and two games against the Nets.

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25. Minnesota Timberwolves (20-45, Last Week’s Ranking: 27)

Despite the fact that they don’t have anything to play for, the Timberwolves are aiming to win a few more games in the coming weeks as winners of six of their last 10. They might rest starters in the hopes of securing another top-three selection, but the Wolves want to start building a winning mindset and momentum heading into next season.

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26. Cleveland Cavaliers (21-43, Last Week’s Ranking: 25)

With eight games remaining, the Cavs are still in contention for a play-in slot, trailing No. 10 Washington by eight games. But, with Cleveland’s record of 1-9 in its last ten games and the Wizards’ record of 8-2, it’s unlikely they reach the play-in tournament.

Additionally, given the Cavaliers’ odd week, that was the least of their worries. Kevin Love had to apologize to his teammates for carelessly batting a ball inbounds against the Raptors and then attempting zero shots in 22 minutes the next game.

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27. Orlando Magic (21-44, Last Week’s Ranking: 29)

Cole Anthony’s buzzer-beater to defeat the Grizzlies on Saturday night was one of the best highlights of a tough season. Anthony had a total of 26 points. The 20-year-old rookie guard’s pairing with Markelle Fultz next season will be fascinating to watch.

The Magic are well out of the playoff picture and are hoping for lottery luck; they own the Bulls’ first-round pick in 2021 should it land in the top four.

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28. Detroit Pistons (19-46, Last Week’s Ranking: 28)

The Pistons’ late-season struggles — they’ve now lost nine of their last 12 games — do have a silver lining: they’re already out of playoff contention, ensuring they’ll retain their first-round selection in 2021.  As part of the November sign-and-trade deal for Christian Wood, the Pistons owe Houston a first-round pick, but it is a top-16 pick secured this year. Pistons general manager Troy Weaver will have that selection, plus three second-rounders, to work on the rebuild this offseason.

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29. Oklahoma City Thunder (21-44, Last Week’s Ranking: 26)

The Thunder’s 57-point loss to the Pacers was likely their lowest point of the season, but it wasn’t entirely unexpected. They’ve been playing fewer and fewer NBA rotation players in recent weeks, instead opting for a more developmental and experimental approach. They’ve made significant strides toward achieving top-4 lottery chances, and are ranked fifth-worst. So, in a way, things are looking up for Sam Presti’s Thunder.

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30. Houston Rockets (16-49, Last Week’s Ranking: 30)

The Rockets are almost likely to finish in the bottom three, which means they’ll be among the teams with the best draft lottery chances. The Rockets’ young core, especially 20-year-old guard Kevin Porter Jr., will be developed for the rest of the season.

In a stunning success against the Bucks, he became the youngest player in NBA history to record a 50-point double-double. He’s been a bright spot in what’s been a dark year in the history of H-Town’s franchise.

Photo cred: Fox Sports 1430