The Oklahoma City Thunder took over the top spot last week after the Spurs and Grizzlies failed to play up to their regular level of performance, and this week they increased their lead over the challengers by stretching their winning streak to a league-high 6 games. They also lead the league in average margin of victory and are closing in on having the best record overall. Here are how they and each of the other teams stack up this week, with teams grouped by similar level of performance.
TW. (LW) Team (Week) Overall
1. (1) Oklahoma City (3-0) 15-4
2. (4) San Antonio (2-0) 15-4
3. (2) New York (4-0) 14-4
4. (3) Memphis (2-1) 13-3
5. (7) LA Clippers (3-0) 12-6
6. (6) Brooklyn (1-2) 11-6
7. (8) LA Lakers (2-2) 9-10
8. (5) Miami (1-2) 12-5
9. (10) Houston (2-0) 9-8
10. (12) Chicago (2-1) 9-8
11. (14) Utah (1-3) 10-10
12. (11) Atlanta (1-1) 10-5
13. (9) Denver (1-2) 9-10
14. (13) Golden State (2-1) 11-7
15. (19) Minnesota (2-1) 8-9
16. (17) Boston (2-1) 10-8
17. (16) Indiana (3-1) 10-9
18. (15) Detroit (1-3) 6-14
19. (27) Orlando (2-2) 7-11
20. (24) Dallas (2-1) 9-10
21. (18) Milwaukee (1-3) 8-9
22. (21) Portland (2-2) 8-11
23. (20) Philadelphia (1-2) 10-8
24. (25) Toronto (1-2) 4-15
25. (23) New Orleans (1-2) 5-12
26. (26) Cleveland (1-3) 4-15
27. (28) Phoenix (0-4) 7-13
28. (22) Sacramento (1-2) 5-12
29. (29) Charlotte (0-3) 7-10
30. (30) Washington (1-1) 2-13
The Los Angeles Clippers bounced back from a 4-game losing streak with a 4-game winning streak, including wins over Utah and Minnesota, who are both in position for a possible playoff berth. The other two victories came against teams in the bottom tier, but both were also by at least 20 points, so they didn't play down to the level of their competition.
Orlando was the fastest mover of the week while winning only half of their games, but since they weren't expected to win this week, road wins against the Lakers and Warriors gave them a nice boost. They weren't able to keep up the winning streak in Utah, but they could finish their West Coast swing 4-1 after visits to Phoenix and Sacramento.
Denver dropped out of the top 10 after losing at the Lakers and Hawks while beating the Raptors by only 3 points. They have now lost 4 of their last 5, and their upset at Memphis a few weeks ago is now just a distant memory. They've just started a 5-game road trip to the East, and they may be hard-pressed to find a victory before they return home.
Just like the Nuggets, the Sacramento Kings took a big drop this week after only managing to beat Toronto. A game against the Clippers that should have at least been respectable turned into a huge blowout, and they now haven't put together two straight wins in a month.
Predictions
Upset picks are in italics.
Boston at Philadelphia - Celtics by 1
Denver at Indiana - Pacers by 2
Golden State at Brooklyn - Nets by 7
Washington at Atlanta - Hawks by 11
Chicago at Detroit - Pistons by 1
Memphis at New Orleans - Grizzlies by 10
Cleveland at Minnesota - Timberwolves by 8
Charlotte at Milwaukee - Bucks by 7
Houston at San Antonio - Spurs by 10
Toronto at Utah - Jazz by 9
LA Lakers at Oklahoma City - Thunder by 10
Orlando at Sacramento - Magic by 2
College Basketball
Iowa State at Iowa - Hawkeyes by 1
Virginia Commonwealth at Old Dominion - Rams by 24
Prediction Results
NBA: 0-2 (.000) 182-87 overall (.677)
Upsets: 0-2 (.000) 39-26 overall (.600)
College Basketball: 4-0 (1.000) 225-51 overall (.815)
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