The Utah Jazz sit atop the power rankings in the National Basketball Association this week. They have won 19 of 20, including a big home win over the Philadelphia 76ers, who currently lead the Eastern Conference, on Monday night. In a season in which inconsistency is more of a factor than usual, the Jazz have figured out things on both ends of the floor (and have managed to avoid losing players to COVID-19 cases and contact tracing). Of those 19 wins, 17 have come by double figures. So at least for now, it’s the Jazz and just about everyone else.
As you think about NBA betting for the rest of the week, check out the rest of the power rankings.
NBA News: Midweek Power Rankings
#1 Utah Jazz
#2 Los Angeles Lakers
The question for the Lakers is how long Anthony Davis will be out with his Achilles injury; for now, his absence is set for two to three weeks before he gets re-evaluated. In the meantime, the Lakers had a seven-game winning streak end on Sunday in Denver.
#3 Los Angeles Clippers
The Clips have some injury woes as well, with Paul George (toe) and Kawhi Leonard (leg contusion) on the shelf. Patrick Beverley has just returned from injury, though, and Lou Williams continues to pour in points off the bench. The Clippers have won 14 of 18 and may have better depth than their Staples Center co-tenants.
#4 Philadelphia 76ers
The Western swing is not going well, with the Sixers having dropped three in a row, most recently losing to Utah on Monday night. The East seems to be the easier conference, at least right now.
#5 Phoenix Suns
Phoenix is as hot as Utah right now, winners of nine out of ten. The key has been Devin Booker, putting up 32.3 points per game over his last four games and shooting 56.35 from the floor during that stretch.
#6 Milwaukee Bucks
Giannis Antetokounmpo is struggling to carry the team with Jrue Holiday still on the shelf (COVID-19 protocols). Is this the year when the Bucks get tough enough to win in the playoffs?
#7 Brooklyn Nets
The Big Three keeps struggling to get started, as Kevin Durant missed time due to COVID-19 protocols and now has a hamstring strain that will keep him out for a minimum of two games. Harden looks like the point guard for now as the team heads west.
#8 Denver Nuggets
Denver ended a three-game losing streak with a big win over the Lakers, behind a triple-double from Nikola Jokic. However, with Gary Harris and Paul Millsap on the shelf, the Nuggets still have some major health issues.
#9 Portland Trail Blazers
Portland edged Dallas as Damian Lillard won a duel with Luka Doncic. Portland has had injuries to Zach Collins, C.J. McCollum and Jusuf Nurkic, but they are still in the top half of the West.
#10 San Antonio Spurs
LaMarcus Aldridge (hip) has missed expended time, but the starting lineup of Derrick White, Keldon Johnson, Jakob Poeltl, DeMar DeRozan and Dejounte Murray has a net plus-minus of +18.4, as the Spurs inch up the West standings.
#11 Indiana Pacers
Domantas Sabonis is averaging 21.6 points, 10.0 boards and 5.6 assists over his last ten games, and the Pacers picked up some big wins over the Pistons and Hawks late last week.
#12 Boston Celtics
The Celtics need people besides Kemba Walker, Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum to step up, as we saw in spotty shooting in losses to the Pistons and Wizards last week.
#13 Golden State Warriors
Stephen Curry’s game is back to its transcendent state, but the Warriors are having a hard time climbing above .500.
#14 Dallas Mavericks
The Mavericks don’t box out, and they don’t play defense. So while they’re getting huge offensive production out of Luka Doncic and Kristaps Porzingis, they still haven’t learned that you have to play hard on both ends of the floor.
#15 New York Knicks
New York is in seventh place in the East standings right now. Can they weather the loss of Mitchell Robinson (fractured hand)? Obi Toppin will now get a chance to play more minutes off the bench.
#16 Charlotte Hornets
LaMelo Ball is having a solid rookie campaign, with 19.5 points, 8.0 boards and 6.8 assists in his last four games, and Terry Rozier put up 41 points against Minnesota. If the Hornets can get some consistency going, the East looks pretty open.
#17 Toronto Raptors
It’s got to be hard, playing an entire season using Tampa as a home base, but consistency has been difficult to come by, and at some point, the team needs to come together.
#18 Sacramento Kings
Tyrese Haliburton looks like the real deal, but the team is not clicking right now, losers of three in a row.
#19 Miami Heat
In their last six games, the Heat is only permitting 100.5 points per game, so the defense is sorting itself out, and Jimmy Butler’s offense is heating up.
#20 Memphis Grizzlies
Jonas Valanciunas missed a few weeks due to COVID-19 protocols, but in his first five games back, he has put up 21.8 points and 12.6 boards per game. Ja Morant has three consecutive double-doubles in his last three games.
#21 Atlanta Hawks
Injuries have plagued the Atlanta free agents, as Danilo Gallinari, Rajon Rondo, Bogdan Bogdanovic and Kris Dunn have all missed significant time — and Dunn has not played at all yet. So the Hawks still have a high ceiling, but they have a ways to go before they can aspire to it.
#22 New Orleans Pelicans
The Pelicans’ perimeter defense needs help, as they surrendered 67 three-balls in losses to Chicago, Dallas and Detroit, the most permitted in any three-game stretch in the history of the league. In those three games, their defensive rating is a dreadful 136.7.
#23 Houston Rockets
The Rockets lost five straight after Christian Wood’s ankle injury, averaging just 98.8 points per game. Three of those losses were by at least 20 points.
#24 Oklahoma City Thunder
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is putting up 22.6 points, 5.5 boards and 6.5 assists for the season. However, he’s not surrounded by the sort of talent that will contend in the West this year.
#25 Chicago Bulls
Zach LaVine had 46 points with nine three-balls in that win over New Orleans, and he and Coby White became the first pair of teammates ever to nail at least eight shots from downtown in the same game. Can the rest of the Bulls’ offense pick up the pace?
#26 Orlando Magic
Lots of injury woes in the Sunshine State, although Nikola Vucevic did put up 42 in a pasting of Sacramento last week. Orlando is definitely ready for the All-Star break.
#27 Cleveland Cavaliers
Dropping nine out of ten, the Cavaliers have fallen a long way since they made four straight trips to the NBA Finals.
#28 Detroit Pistons
The Pistons only have eight wins, but three of them game last week with victories over the Nets, Celtics and Pelicans. Mason Plumlee had his first career triple-double in that win over New Orleans.
#29 Washington Wizards
Washington started 3-12 but then went 4-5 in their next nine. They beat Boston on Sunday and held a team under 100 points for the first time. However, they need more consistency to get into the top ten, even in the East.
#30 Minnesota Timberwolves
Karl-Anthony Towns is back after a tough time with COVID-19, and he led the team to a big win over Toronto. D’Angelo Russell is now battling leg soreness as the two stars have only played together in four games so far.
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