Upset picks are in italics.
Atlanta at Philadelphia - 76ers by 4
San Antonio at Boston - Celtics by 3.5
Washington at Cleveland - Wizards by 2.5
Portland at Brooklyn - Nets by 5
Orlando at Memphis - Grizzlies by 9
Milwaukee at Chicago - Bucks by 5.5
Utah at Phoenix - Jazz by 2.5
Sacramento at LA Lakers - Lakers by 7.5
Results
NBA: 4-2 (.667) 561-373 overall (.601)
Upsets: 73-106 overall (.408)
Upset picks are in italics.
Dallas at Detroit - Mavericks by 4
Brooklyn at Indiana - Nets by 3
Milwaukee at Houston - Bucks by 11.5
Golden State at Minnesota - Warriors by 5.5
New Orleans at Oklahoma City - Pelicans by 6.5
Toronto at Denver - Nuggets by 5.5
Results
NBA: 7-3 (.700) 557-371 overall (.600)
Upsets: 73-106 overall (.408)
Upset picks are in italics.
Orlando at Cleveland - Cavaliers by 2
Atlanta at Philadelphia - 76ers by 3
LA Lakers at Washington - Lakers by 5
Charlotte at Boston - Celtics by 3.5
Chicago at New York - Knicks by 4
San Antonio at Miami - Heat by 1
Portland at Memphis - Grizzlies by 2.5
New Orleans at Denver - Nuggets by 5.5
LA Clippers at Phoenix - Suns by 0.5
Utah at Sacramento - Jazz by 11
Results
NBA: 2-4 (.333) 550-368 overall (.599)
Upsets: 0-2 (.000) 73-106 overall (.408)
Upset picks are in italics.
Oklahoma City at Boston - Celtics by 10.5
Milwaukee at Charlotte - Bucks by 5.5
Portland at Indiana - Pacers by 1.5
Brooklyn at Toronto - Nets by 2.5
Minnesota at Houston - Rockets by 0.5
Dallas at Golden State - Warriors by 0.5
Results
NBA: 6-5 (.545) 548-364 overall (.601)
Upsets: 73-104 overall (.412)
Upset picks are in italics.
Atlanta at Detroit - Hawks by 5
LA Lakers at Orlando - Lakers by 9
Oklahoma City at Philadelphia - 76ers by 12.5
San Antonio at Washington - Spurs by 1
Phoenix at New York - Suns by 2.5
Cleveland at Toronto - Raptors by 5.5
Chicago at Miami - Heat by 2
Utah at Minnesota - Jazz by 14
LA Clippers at New Orleans - Clippers by 6
Memphis at Denver - Nuggets by 3.5
Dallas at Sacramento - Mavericks by 4.5
Results
NBA: 4-3 (.571) 542-359 overall (.602)
Upsets: 1-1 (.500) 73-104 overall (.412)
Upset picks are in italics.
Boston at Charlotte - Celtics by 3
Phoenix at Brooklyn - Suns by 1
Memphis at Portland - Grizzlies by 1
Cleveland at Washington - Wizards by 3.5
Milwaukee at Atlanta - Bucks by 2
Indiana at Orlando - Pacers by 5.5
Sacramento at Golden State - Warriors by 5.5
Results
NBA: 5-3 (.625) 538-356 overall (.602)
Upsets: 0-1 (.000) 72-103 overall (.411)
Very few teams can qualify as being hot right now, but among the few who can are Washington, who has won 7 straight and is close to playoff contention, New York, who has taken 8 in a row and is up to #4 in the East, and Golden State, who has won 6 of 8 and saw MVP-level Steph Curry repeatedly over the past 2 weeks. Here are my full current rankings and playoff picks:
|
|
|
|
|
Record |
Proj |
|
||
|
Rank |
LW |
Team |
Rating |
W |
L |
W |
L |
Seed |
|
1 |
1 |
Utah |
-8.709 |
44 |
15 |
55 |
17 |
W1 |
|
2 |
2 |
LA Clippers |
-6.262 |
43 |
19 |
50 |
22 |
W2 |
|
3 |
3 |
Phoenix |
-5.067 |
42 |
17 |
50 |
22 |
W3 |
|
4 |
5 |
Milwaukee |
-4.887 |
36 |
22 |
46 |
26 |
E3 |
|
5 |
6 |
Philadelphia |
-4.443 |
39 |
20 |
48 |
24 |
E1 |
|
6 |
4 |
Denver |
-3.977 |
38 |
21 |
46 |
26 |
W4 |
|
7 |
7 |
Brooklyn |
-3.244 |
40 |
20 |
47 |
25 |
E2 |
|
8 |
8 |
LA Lakers |
-3.058 |
35 |
24 |
43 |
29 |
W5 |
|
9 |
10 |
Atlanta |
-2.31 |
33 |
27 |
40 |
32 |
E4 |
|
10 |
11 |
Boston |
-2.095 |
32 |
28 |
40 |
32 |
E5 |
|
11 |
12 |
Memphis |
-1.437 |
30 |
28 |
39 |
33 |
W7 |
|
12 |
9 |
Dallas |
-1.322 |
32 |
26 |
41 |
31 |
W6 |
|
13 |
13 |
New York |
-1.266 |
33 |
27 |
39 |
33 |
E6 |
|
14 |
21 |
Golden State |
-0.513 |
30 |
30 |
37 |
35 |
W9 |
|
15 |
17 |
Toronto |
0.1864 |
25 |
34 |
31 |
41 |
E10 |
|
16 |
14 |
Indiana |
0.4696 |
27 |
31 |
35 |
37 |
E9 |
|
17 |
16 |
Miami |
0.5463 |
31 |
29 |
37 |
35 |
E7 |
|
18 |
15 |
New Orleans |
0.6023 |
26 |
33 |
32 |
40 |
OUT |
|
19 |
19 |
Portland |
0.7191 |
32 |
27 |
37 |
35 |
W8 |
|
20 |
22 |
San Antonio |
0.9502 |
29 |
29 |
34 |
38 |
W10 |
|
21 |
20 |
Chicago |
1.528 |
25 |
34 |
30 |
42 |
OUT |
|
22 |
18 |
Charlotte |
1.6233 |
29 |
30 |
35 |
37 |
E8 |
|
23 |
25 |
Washington |
3.1242 |
26 |
33 |
31 |
41 |
|
|
24 |
23 |
Detroit |
3.6092 |
18 |
42 |
23 |
49 |
|
|
25 |
24 |
Sacramento |
3.9826 |
24 |
35 |
29 |
43 |
|
|
26 |
26 |
Cleveland |
5.7871 |
21 |
38 |
25 |
47 |
|
|
27 |
30 |
Minnesota |
6.7941 |
16 |
44 |
19 |
53 |
|
|
28 |
27 |
Orlando |
6.9058 |
18 |
41 |
21 |
51 |
|
|
29 |
28 |
Houston |
7.1705 |
15 |
45 |
17 |
55 |
|
|
30 |
29 |
Oklahoma City |
7.7086 |
20 |
40 |
23 |
49 |
|
Playoff Picks
Play In
(7) Grizzlies over (8) Trail Blazers
(9) Warriors over (10) Spurs
(8) Trail Blazers over (9) Warriors
(7) Heat over (8) Hornets
(10) Raptors over (9) Pacers
(10) Raptors over (8) Hornets
First Round
(1) Jazz over (8) Trail Blazers in 4
(2) Clippers over (7) Grizzlies in 6
(3) Suns over (6) Mavericks in 5
(4) Nuggets over (5) Lakers in 7
(1) 76ers over (10) Raptors in 5
(2) Nets over (7) Heat in 6
(3) Bucks over (6) Knicks in 6
(4) Hawks over (5) Celtics in 7
Second Round
(1) Jazz over (4) Nuggets in 5
(2) Clippers over (3) Suns in 6
(1) 76ers over (4) Hawks in 6
(3) Bucks over (2) Nets in 7
Conference Finals
(1) Jazz over (2) Clippers in 6
(3) Bucks over (1) 76ers in 7
NBA Finals
(1) Jazz over (3) Bucks in 5
Upset picks are in italics.
Toronto at New York - Knicks by 2.5
Philadelphia at Milwaukee - Bucks by 1.5
Detroit at Indiana - Pacers by 4
Chicago at Miami - Heat by 2
San Antonio at New Orleans - Pelicans by 1
LA Lakers at Dallas - Lakers by 1
Minnesota at Utah - Jazz by 16.5
Houston at Denver - Nuggets by 12
Results
NBA: 6-1 (.857) 533-353 overall (.602)
Upsets: 2-0 (1.000) 72-102 overall (.414)
Upset picks are in italics.
Miami at Atlanta - Hawks by 3.5
Boston at Brooklyn - Nets by 2
Cleveland at Charlotte - Hornets by 5
LA Clippers at Houston - Clippers by 13
Washington at Oklahoma City - Wizards by 3
Denver at Golden State - Nuggets by 3.5
Memphis at Portland - Grizzlies by 1.5
Results
NBA: 4-2 (.667) 527-352 overall (.600)
Upsets: 0-1 (.000) 70-102 overall (.407)
Upset picks are in italics.
Phoenix at Boston - Suns by 2.5
New Orleans at Orlando - Pelicans by 5
Philadelphia at Milwaukee - Bucks by 1
Detroit at San Antonio - Spurs by 3
Charlotte at Chicago - Bulls by 0.5
LA Lakers at Dallas - Lakers by 1
Results
NBA: 6-6 (.500) 523-350 overall (.599)
Upsets: 0-2 (.000) 70-101 overall (.409)
Upset picks are in italics.
Phoenix at Philadelphia - 76ers by 0.5
Chicago at Cleveland - Bulls by 4
Oklahoma City at Indiana - Pacers by 8
Golden State at Washington - Warriors by 3
Brooklyn at Toronto - Nets by 3
Atlanta at New York - Hawks by 0.5
Utah at Houston - Jazz by 15
Detroit at Dallas - Mavericks by 5.5
Miami at San Antonio - Spurs by 0.5
Memphis at LA Clippers - Clippers by 5.5
Denver at Portland - Nuggets by 4.5
Minnesota at Sacramento - Kings by 3.5
Results
NBA: 4-1 (.800) 517-344 overall (.600)
Upsets: 1-0 (1.000) 70-99 overall (.414)
Upset picks are in italics.
Orlando at Atlanta - Hawks by 9.5
Charlotte at New York - Knicks by 3
Brooklyn at New Orleans - Nets by 3.5
LA Clippers at Portland - Clippers by 6.5
Minnesota at Sacramento - Kings by 4
Results
NBA: 5-4 (.556) 513-343 overall (.599)
Upsets: 1-1 (.500) 69-99 overall (.411)
Upset picks are in italics.
Cleveland at Detroit - Pistons by 3.5
Chicago at Boston - Celtics by 4.5
Golden State at Philadelphia - 76ers by 5.5
Phoenix at Milwaukee - Bucks by 0.5
San Antonio at Indiana - Pacers by 1.5
Houston at Miami - Heat by 7
Oklahoma City at Washington - Wizards by 4.5
Memphis at Denver - Nuggets by 4
Utah at LA Lakers - Jazz by 4.5
Results
NBA: 5-3 (.625) 508-339 overall (.600)
Upsets: 2-0 (1.000) 68-98 overall (.410)
Upset picks are in italics.
Indiana at Atlanta - Hawks by 3
New Orleans at New York - Knicks by 2
Brooklyn at Miami - Nets by 4
Portland at Charlotte - Hornets by 0.5
Houston at Orlando - Magic by 1.5
Oklahoma City at Toronto - Raptors by 7.5
Sacramento at Dallas - Mavericks by 6.5
Minnesota at LA Clippers - Clippers by 14
Results
NBA: 2-4 (.333) 503-336 overall (.600)
Upsets: 0-1 (.000) 66-98 overall (.402)
With this week's serious injury to Jamal Murray, Nikola Jokic will have to take on even more of the load on a team that was already heavily dependent on him. If he is able to keep the Nuggets in the top 4 in the West, I don't see a way that he doesn't win the MVP, because right now the race for best player isn't even close, so if he is able to translate that into enough wins, it would be wrong to give the award to anyone else. Here are my current MVP rankings, with previous ranking in parentheses:
1 (1) Nikola Jokic - C - DEN
26.1 Pts (#10), 11.0 Reb (#8), 8.8 Ast (#4), 1.5 Stl (#15), 0.6 Blk
.567 FG% (#13), .422 3P% (#19), .855 FT%
2 (2) Giannis Antetokounmpo - PF - MIL
28.5 Pts (#4), 11.2 Reb (#7), 6.1 Ast (#20), 1.2 Stl, 1.3 Blk (#11)
.565 FG% (#15), .304 3P%, .684 FT%
3 (3) Joel Embiid - C - PHI*
30.0 Pts, 11.1 Reb, 3.0 Ast, 1.0 Stl, 1.4 Blk
.516 FG%, .379 3P%, .855 FT%
*Not qualified for leaderboards due to too many missed games currently
4 (6) Luka Doncic - PG - DAL
28.4 Pts (#5), 7.9 Reb, 8.8 Ast (#5), 1.0 Stl, 0.6 Blk
.485 FG%, .361 3P%, .733 FT%
5 (4) James Harden - PG - BKN
25.2 Pts (#15), 8.0 Reb, 10.9 Ast (#1), 1.2 Stl, 0.7 Blk
.463 FG%, .358 3P%, .870 FT%
6 (7) Stephen Curry - PG - GSW
30.7 Pts (#2), 5.5 Reb, 5.9 Ast, 1.3 Stl, 0.1 Blk
.489 FG%, .422 3P% (#20), .927 FT% (#5)
7 (9) Nikola Vucevic - C - CHI
24.1 Pts, 11.4 Reb (#6), 3.7 Ast, 1.0 Stl, 0.7 Blk
.484 FG%, .415 3P%, .833 FT%
8 (8) Damian Lillard - PG - POR
28.7 Pts (#3), 4.2 Reb, 7.7 Ast (#9), 0.9 Stl, 0.3 Blk
.440 FG%, .379 3P%, .925 FT% (#6)
9 (10) Kawhi Leonard - SF - LAC
26.0 Pts (#11), 6.6 Reb, 5.0 Ast, 1.7 Stl (#4), 0.4 Blk
.515 FG%, .395 3P%, .878 FT% (#19)
10 (5) LeBron James - PG - LAL
25.4 Pts (#14), 7.9 Reb, 7.9 Ast (#8), 1.0 Stl, 0.6 Blk
.513 FG%, .368 3P%, .703 FT%
Honorable Mention
Trae Young - PG - ATL
Rudy Gobert - C - UTA
Donovan Mitchell - PG - UTA
Kyrie Irving - PG - BKN
Russell Westbrook - PG - WAS
Zion Williamson - PF - NOP
Upset picks are in italics.
Utah at LA Lakers - Jazz by 5
Detroit at Washington - Pistons by 0.5
Cleveland at Chicago - Bulls by 5
Golden State at Boston - Celtics by 3
Memphis at Milwaukee - Bucks by 4.5
San Antonio at Phoenix - Suns by 8
Results
NBA: 7-4 (.636) 501-332 overall (.601)
Upsets: 0-1 (.000) 66-97 overall (.405)
Upset picks are in italics.
Indiana at Utah - Jazz by 9.5
Oklahoma City at Detroit - Pistons by 5
LA Clippers at Philadelphia - Clippers by 1
New Orleans at Washington - Pelicans by 3
Charlotte at Brooklyn - Nets by 5.5
Orlando at Toronto - Raptors by 6.5
Memphis at Chicago - Grizzlies by 2
Denver at Houston - Nuggets by 10.5
Miami at Minnesota - Heat by 5.5
Portland at San Antonio - Trail Blazers by 0.5
New York at Dallas - Mavericks by 2
Results
NBA: 3-1 (.750) 494-328 overall (.601)
Upsets: 0-1 (.000) 66-96 overall (.407)
Upset picks are in italics.
Milwaukee at Atlanta - Bucks by 2
Golden State at Cleveland - Warriors by 4.5
Sacramento at Phoenix - Suns by 10.5
Boston at LA Lakers - Lakers by 2
Results
NBA: 7-5 (.583) 491-327 overall (.600)
Upsets: 1-2 (.333) 66-95 overall (.410)
Upset picks are in italics.
Milwaukee at Minnesota - Bucks by 11
Cleveland at Charlotte - Hornets by 6
Brooklyn at Philadelphia - 76ers by 2
San Antonio at Toronto - Raptors by 2
LA Clippers at Detroit - Clippers by 8.5
Orlando at Chicago - Bulls by 6
New York at New Orleans - Pelicans by 0.5
Indiana at Houston - Pacers by 6
Golden State at Oklahoma City - Warriors by 5.5
Dallas at Memphis - Grizzlies by 0.5
Miami at Denver - Nuggets by 5.5
Washington at Sacramento - Kings by 1.5
Results
NBA: 7-0 (1.000) 484-322 overall (.600)
Upsets: 3-0 (1.000) 65-93 overall (.411)
Upset picks are in italics.
LA Clippers at Indiana - Clippers by 5.5
Atlanta at Toronto - Hawks by 1.5
LA Lakers at Charlotte - Lakers by 3
Oklahoma City at Utah - Jazz by 17
Miami at Phoenix - Suns by 6.5
Boston at Portland - Celtics by 1.5
Results
NBA: 5-3 (.625) 477-322 overall (.597)
Upsets: 0-1 (.000) 62-93 overall (.400)
Upset picks are in italics.
Atlanta at Charlotte - Hawks by 2
Boston at Denver - Nuggets by 4.5
New Orleans at Cleveland - Pelicans by 5
Milwaukee at Orlando - Bucks by 9.5
Toronto at New York - Knicks by 1.5
San Antonio at Dallas - Mavericks by 5
Indiana at Memphis - Grizzlies by 2
Chicago at Minnesota - Bulls by 5
Detroit at LA Clippers - Clippers by 10.5
Miami at Portland - Trail Blazers by 1
Results
NBA: 6-1 (.857) 467-314 overall (.598)
Upsets: 62-91 overall (.405)
The Dallas Mavericks were the hottest team over the last 2 weeks, despite losing a game to Houston, because they beat both Utah and Milwaukee, along with 4 other road wins, in that time. Oklahoma City, meanwhile, has completely fallen apart, beating only Toronto in the last 2 weeks, and the Raptors are also in a freefall at this point. The West is once again asserting its dominance over the East, boasting the top 4 teams in the league right now, and that's with the defending champs struggling. Here are my full current rankings and playoff picks:
|
|
|
|
|
Record |
Proj |
|
||
|
Rank |
LW |
Team |
Rating |
W |
L |
W |
L |
Seed |
|
1 |
1 |
Utah |
-9.3 |
39 |
13 |
56 |
16 |
W1 |
|
2 |
2 |
LA Clippers |
-6.511 |
36 |
18 |
49 |
23 |
W3 |
|
3 |
4 |
Phoenix |
-5.44 |
36 |
15 |
50 |
22 |
W2 |
|
4 |
6 |
Denver |
-4.75 |
34 |
18 |
47 |
25 |
W4 |
|
5 |
3 |
Milwaukee |
-4.493 |
32 |
20 |
46 |
26 |
E3 |
|
6 |
5 |
Philadelphia |
-4.284 |
35 |
17 |
48 |
24 |
E1 |
|
7 |
8 |
Brooklyn |
-3.628 |
36 |
16 |
48 |
24 |
E2 |
|
8 |
7 |
LA Lakers |
-3.053 |
32 |
20 |
43 |
29 |
W5 |
|
9 |
11 |
Dallas |
-2.237 |
29 |
22 |
42 |
30 |
W6 |
|
10 |
9 |
Atlanta |
-2.214 |
28 |
25 |
39 |
33 |
E4 |
|
11 |
10 |
Boston |
-1.53 |
27 |
26 |
38 |
34 |
E5 |
|
12 |
14 |
Memphis |
-1.144 |
26 |
24 |
38 |
34 |
W8 |
|
13 |
16 |
New York |
-0.177 |
26 |
27 |
35 |
37 |
E8 |
|
14 |
12 |
Indiana |
0.0382 |
24 |
27 |
35 |
37 |
E9 |
|
15 |
13 |
New Orleans |
0.1349 |
23 |
29 |
33 |
39 |
W10 |
|
16 |
20 |
Miami |
0.4685 |
27 |
25 |
37 |
35 |
E7 |
|
17 |
15 |
Toronto |
0.5867 |
20 |
32 |
29 |
43 |
OUT |
|
18 |
19 |
Portland |
0.6646 |
30 |
21 |
39 |
33 |
W7 |
|
19 |
21 |
Chicago |
0.9166 |
22 |
29 |
32 |
40 |
E10 |
|
20 |
17 |
Golden State |
0.9309 |
24 |
28 |
34 |
38 |
W9 |
|
21 |
18 |
Charlotte |
0.6218 |
27 |
24 |
37 |
35 |
E6 |
|
22 |
22 |
San Antonio |
1.8932 |
24 |
26 |
32 |
40 |
|
|
23 |
23 |
Detroit |
2.9852 |
16 |
36 |
24 |
48 |
|
|
24 |
24 |
Sacramento |
3.6691 |
22 |
30 |
29 |
43 |
|
|
25 |
25 |
Washington |
4.3162 |
19 |
32 |
27 |
45 |
|
|
26 |
27 |
Cleveland |
5.7097 |
19 |
32 |
26 |
46 |
|
|
27 |
28 |
Orlando |
5.8529 |
17 |
35 |
23 |
49 |
|
|
28 |
30 |
Houston |
6.5887 |
14 |
38 |
18 |
54 |
|
|
29 |
26 |
Oklahoma City |
6.7355 |
20 |
32 |
25 |
47 |
|
|
30 |
29 |
Minnesota |
6.8635 |
13 |
40 |
18 |
54 |
|
Playoff Picks
Play In
(7) Heat over (8) Knicks
(9) Pacers over (10) Bulls
(8) Knicks over (9) Pacers
(8) Grizzlies over (7) Trail Blazers
(10) Pelicans over (9) Warriors
(7) Trail Blazers over (10) Pelicans
First Round
(1) 76ers over (8) Knicks in 4
(2) Nets over (7) Heat in 4
(3) Bucks over (6) Hornets in 5
(4) Hawks over (5) Celtics in 6
(1) Jazz over (7) Trail Blazers in 4
(2) Suns over (8) Grizzlies in 5
(3) Clippers over (6) Mavericks in 6
(4) Nuggets over (5) Lakers in 6
Second Round
(1) 76ers over (4) Hawks in 5
(3) Bucks over (2) Nets in 7
(1) Jazz over (4) Nuggets in 5
(3) Clippers over (2) Suns in 6
Conference Finals
(3) Bucks over (1) 76ers in 7
(1) Jazz over (3) Clippers in 5
NBA Finals
(1) Jazz over (3) Bucks in 4
