NBA Rankings - 4 Mar

Miami's 9-game winning streak finally came to an end, leaving open the possibility that another team could swoop in a claim the top spot in the rankings, but it wasn't to be this week. The Heat, despite losing two in a row for the first time since mid-January, have still done enough so far this season to warrant remaining in the #1 spot for now, but their clutch on it is far from safe, especially with hot teams like the Chicago Bulls and Oklahoma City Thunder closing in. Here are the latest rankings, including the first two games from today, with gaps between groups of teams representing different levels of performance.

TW. Team (Week) (Overall) Rating (LW)
1. Miami (1-2) (28-9) -8.80 (1)

2. Chicago (3-0) (30-8) -7.16 (3)
3. Oklahoma City (2-1) (29-8) -6.74 (2)

4. Philadelphia (2-1) (22-15) -5.09 (7)
5. San Antonio (1-1) (25-11) -4.85 (5)

6. LA Lakers (3-0) (23-14) -3.83 (9)
7. Portland (0-3) (18-19) -3.35 (4)
8. Dallas (1-3) (22-16) -3.11 (6)
9. Indiana (2-0) (23-12) -3.09 (14)
10. Memphis (3-0) (22-15) -3.03 (12)
11. Denver (2-0) (20-17) -2.89 (11)
12. Orlando (2-1) (24-14) -2.55 (10)
13. LA Clippers (1-2) (21-13) -2.42 (8)
14. Minnesota (2-2) (19-19) -1.70 (16)
15. Atlanta (2-1) (22-15) -1.16 (15)

16. Houston (1-2) (21-16) -0.31 (13)
17. New York (1-1) (18-19) 0.30 (18)
18. Utah (2-2) (17-19) 0.50 (19)
19. Boston (4-0) (19-17) 1.14 (21)
20. Phoenix (2-0) (16-20) 1.72 (20)
21. Golden State (1-2) (14-19) 2.05 (17)
22. Milwaukee (1-3) (14-23) 2.61 (22)

23. New Orleans (1-3) (9-28) 3.48 (23)

24. Toronto (1-2) (11-25) 4.48 (27)
25. Sacramento (1-2) (12-24) 5.02 (25)
26. New Jersey (1-2) (12-26) 5.28 (28)
27. Cleveland (0-4) (13-22) 5.77 (24)
28. Detroit (1-2) (12-26) 6.39 (26)

29. Washington (1-2) (8-28) 7.63 (29)

30. Charlotte (0-2) (4-30) 13.91 (30)

Well-Rested

The Indiana Pacers have followed up their longest losing streak of the season with their longest winning streak, which is now sitting at 6 games. None of those wins came against a team that will make the playoffs, which could be a problem, since 8 of their next 9 games come against teams currently in position to make the playoffs. At least four of those wins came by double digits, which allowed them to give everybody a chance to get out on the court.

The Lakers have won three straight coming off the break, including a blowout of the Minnesota Timberwolves and a very solid win over the Miami Heat, both of which were much more impressive than anything else they did in February. Their next two games are both against pretty bad teams, so they should be able to stretch out their streak before facing a few decent teams next week.

Rusty

Portland has come out very weak after closing the first half of the season on a high note against San Antonio, losing three straight, the last two in blowouts to Miami and Minnesota, in which they allowed LeBron to score 38 and Kevin Love to score 42. They face a hot Hornets team next before heading out on a 7-game road trip, which could severely damage their hopes for this season.

The Cleveland Cavaliers have lost all four times they have taken the court this week, including an improbable loss at Washington which has knocked them four full games out of the #8 spot in the East. They are still looking much better than last season thanks to probable Rookie of the Year Kyrie Irving, but they still need a little work to get back into the playoffs.

Predictions

Upset picks are in italics.

Sunday

Golden State at Toronto - Raptors by 1
New Jersey at Charlotte - Nets by 6
LA Clippers at Houston - Rockets by 1
Chicago at Philadelphia - 76ers by 1
Sacramento at Phoenix - Suns by 4
Denver at San Antonio - Spurs by 5

Monday

Utah at Cleveland - Jazz by 2
Golden State at Washington - Warriors by 4
Orlando at Toronto - Magic by 4
Indiana at Chicago - Bulls by 7
Philadelphia at Milwaukee - 76ers by 5
LA Clippers at Minnesota - Timberwolves by 2
Dallas at Oklahoma City - Thunder by 7
Sacramento at Denver - Nuggets by 11
New Orleans at Portland - Trail Blazers by 10

Tuesday

Atlanta at Indiana - Pacers by 5
Orlando at Charlotte - Magic by 13
Houston at Boston - Celtics by 2
LA Lakers at Detroit - Lakers by 7
New Jersey at Miami - Heat by 17
New York at Dallas - Mavericks by 7

Wednesday

Boston at Philadelphia - 76ers by 9
LA Lakers at Washington - Lakers by 8
Houston at Toronto - Rockets by 2
Utah at Charlotte - Jazz by 10
Atlanta at Miami - Heat by 11
Phoenix at Oklahoma City - Thunder by 12
Chicago at Milwaukee - Bulls by 7
Portland at Minnesota - Timberwolves by 2
LA Clippers at New Jersey - Clippers by 5
New York at San Antonio - Spurs by 8
Cleveland at Denver - Nuggets by 12
New Orleans at Sacramento - Kings by 2
Memphis at Golden State - Grizzlies by 2

Thursday

Orlando at Chicago - Bulls by 8
Dallas at Phoenix - Mavericks by 2

Friday

Utah at Philadelphia - 76ers by 9
New Jersey at Charlotte - Nets by 6
Portland at Boston - Trail Blazers by 1
Atlanta at Detroit - Hawks by 5
LA Lakers at Minnesota - Timberwolves by 1
Cleveland at Oklahoma City - Thunder by 16
New York at Milwaukee - Bucks by 1
LA Clippers at San Antonio - Spurs by 6
New Orleans at Denver - Nuggets by 10
Dallas at Sacramento - Mavericks by 5

Saturday

Portland at Washington - Trail Blazers by 8
Toronto at Detroit - Pistons by 1
Indiana at Miami - Heat by 9
Utah at Chicago - Bulls by 11
New Orleans at Minnesota - Timberwolves by 8
Houston at New Jersey - Rockets by 3
Charlotte at Oklahoma City - Thunder by 24
Memphis at Phoenix - Grizzlies by 2
Dallas at Golden State - Mavericks by 2

Sunday

Philadelphia at New York - 76ers by 2
Boston at LA Lakers - Lakers by 8

Prediction Results

NBA: 29-16 (.644) 230-125 overall (.648)
Upsets: 4-3 (.571) 41-30 overall (.577)