The Golden State Warriors own the best record in the NBA while the Toronto Raptors and Atlanta Hawks are leading the charge in the Eastern Conference. What’s noticeable after this past week?
Here’s a look at the updated power rankings as we hit the Christmas break.
1. Cleveland Cavaliers
Championship Odds: +370
Cleveland is the top choice, not just because of LeBron James, but because the Spurs and Thunder have not been able to establish themselves as the top teams in the West. If San Antonio or Oklahoma City had been a top-three team in the West by this point in time, you’d have seen much better odds for those two ballclubs. As it is, though, San Antonio is seventh in the West, while Oklahoma City – sure to move into eighth place before too long – is still stuck in tenth place, 2.5 games behind eighth-place Phoenix.
In the absence of something profound from the Spurs or Thunder, Cleveland holds down the top spot. The place is not arrived at without some merit. Cleveland looked strong in popping the Memphis Grizzlies by double figures on Sunday evening. That kind of result should boost the Cavs into Christmas and beyond.
2. San Antonio Spurs
Championship Odds: +400
Even the Spurs had to admit that on Monday night, they really needed to win a regular season game. They had to put a stop to the bleeding and beat the Los Angeles Clippers, having lost four in a row heading into the game. The Spurs have had all sorts of bad luck this season, between injuries and losing consecutive triple-overtime games to Memphis and Portland. They’ve played very well with the lineups they’ve used and with the distribution of minutes that’s been given out by Gregg Popovich. You have the sense that while this team has lost 11 games and is eight back of Golden State in the loss column, it will eventually put things together and rise to the top four in the West by season’s end. Yet, the West is so deep that that’s not a guarantee. San Antonio will have to work for whatever it gets.
3. Golden State Warriors
Championship Odds: +625
The Warriors have a three-game lead in the loss column on the second-place teams in the West (three of them have seven losses, while the Warriors have only three). It’s reasonable to not have the Warriors in first place on this odds list, if only because this is still an unproven team in the postseason. And coming off a loss to the Kobe Bryant-less Los Angeles Lakers doesn’t help their case either.
Every NBA team goes through a bad patch at some point but the Warriors have not gone through theirs yet. When they do, everyone will know, and that’s when the public will get a much better idea of how ready Golden State is to contend and compete for an NBA championship this season.
4. Chicago Bulls
Championship Odds: +725
Even if there are doubts about Derrick Rose’s health going forward, it has to be conceded that Rose has looked more and more like his old self of late. The Bulls glided past the East’s best team, the Toronto Raptors, on Monday night. Rose was sharp, hitting 12 of 19 shots en route to 29 points with only two turnovers. That’s the kind of performance an All-Star puts forth and it helped the Bulls win on a night when their normally reliable defense gave up 120 points. Chicago was able to score 129. Things look good right now for this team, but the reason the Bulls’ odds are not higher is because everyone’s waiting to see if Rose can make it healthy through a full season and then the long, grinding playoff gauntlet.
5. Oklahoma City Thunder
Championship Odds: +900
On the plus side, the Thunder are closing in on the eighth playoff spot in the West. On the negative side, Oklahoma City watched Kevin Durant get injured last Thursday in a loss to Golden State, then lost to New Orleans at home on Sunday and Portland at home on Tuesday. The Thunder continue to absorb losses, which will keep them from getting home-court advantage in a first-round playoff series. Having to win three playoff series on the road just to get to the NBA Finals is a tough job for any team, even one with OKC’s level of talent. The odds aren’t going to rise too much for this team just yet.
6. Los Angeles Clippers
Championship Odds: +1100
The Clippers are kind of a forgotten team in the West, as weird as it sounds. Oklahoma City and San Antonio have had spectacularly bad luck with missed games from their stars, Houston has been wildly impressive without Dwight Howard for a number of games, Memphis and Golden State have stolen the show, but the Clippers have not done anything special or awful. They’re biding their time for the playoffs, which is when they’ll need to prove themselves.
7. Dallas Mavericks
Championship Odds: +1150
Dallas has gone all-in in the attempt to win a title. Getting Rajon Rondo is a big-boy move by owner Mark Cuban, one that he hopes will put this team over the top. It could. Rondo brings so much to the table in non-scoring aspects of basketball. He is a great rebounder, defender and passer, the perfect fit on a team with Dirk Nowitzki and Monta Ellis. Dallas’ odds should rise as Rondo feels more comfortable with the rest of the roster.
8. Memphis Grizzlies
Championship Odds: +1450
The Grizzlies were going great, and then they lost three games in a row, including one at home to the Utah Jazz on Monday. Watch this team’s odds continue to fall in the coming days and weeks.
9. Houston Rockets
Championship Odds: +1700
It’s startling that the Rockets aren’t much higher on this list. They’ve done so much of their work with Dwight Howard being out. With Howard being active, this team should be able to move upward on the leaderboard.
10. Toronto Raptors
Championship Odds: +2300
A loss to the Chicago Bulls on the road is nothing to be ashamed of but it also pokes holes in their legitimacy as the top team in the Eastern Conference. That’s why their odds are at 23/1, even though they’re the best team in the East according to wins and losses.
11. Portland Trailblazers +2700
12. Washington Wizards +3300
13. Atlanta Hawks +5500
14. Miami Heat +9000
15. Phoenix Suns +15000
