NBA Basketball Power Ratings

1. Cleveland Cavaliers (59-13) – The Cavaliers have clinched the Central Division, and are on the verge of clinching the top seed in the Eastern Conference. Also, with their next win, Cleveland will garner the 60-win plateau for the first time in franchise history. Cleveland remains #1 after winning 11 straight games. The Cavaliers will host the Dallas Mavericks on Sunday. When playing at home this season, Cleveland is 35-1. Cleveland received good news this week when they found out big man Ben Wallace will return by the last week of the regular season. After Cleveland takes on Dallas, the Cavaliers will host Detroit; play at Washington and Orlando, before hosting San Antonio and Washington. The final four games for Cleveland will be at Philadelphia, with Boston, at Indiana and with Philadelphia. The Cavaliers lead Los Angeles by one game for the overall #1 record.

2. Los Angeles Lakers (58-14) – At 58-14, and winners of five straight games, the Lakers can still not catch the Cleveland Cavaliers for the overall #1 position. Los Angeles with their win streak remains comfortably at the #2 position, leading Boston and Orlando. The five wins for the Lakers came over Golden State, followed by four straight road wins at Chicago, Oklahoma City, Detroit, and New Jersey. The Lakers will continue their road trip on Sunday when they play at Atlanta. Trips to Charlotte and Milwaukee will conclude their eight game road trip. The Lakers will then come back home to host Houston and the Clippers. Kobe Bryant continues to assault the rest of the National Basketball Association, scoring 27.4 points per game.

3. Boston Celtics (55-19) – The Boston Celtics picked up a win on Friday night to remain in a tie with Orlando for the second best record in the Eastern Conference. The Celtics fell on Wednesday night by two points at the hands of the Magic. Boston remains just slightly ahead of Orlando in the power rankings, due to being the defending NBA champions. Boston comes in at #3, behind Cleveland and Los Angeles. The Celtics will look to keep the winning streak alive this week with five straight home games. Oklahoma City will invade Boston on Sunday, followed by trips from Charlotte, Atlanta, New Jersey and Miami. If the playoffs started today, Boston would host the upstart Chicago Bulls in a best of seven series. Kevin Garnett continues to be questionable, as he tries to recover from a banged up right knee.

4. Orlando Magic (54-18) – The Orlando Magic remain #4 behind Boston, despite beating them by two points Wednesday evening at home. The Magic with that win tied them with Boston for the second best record in the Eastern Conference. The Magic have played in two less games than Boston. Orlando has won five straight games, following up the win over Boston with a win on Friday night against Milwaukee. The Magic are getting solid performances from Dwight Howard with 21 points and 14 rebounds per game. If the postseason started today, the Magic would garner the #3 seed and take on the Philadelphia 76ers in a best of seven series. Orlando will take on state rival Miami, on the road on Monday, followed by two home games with Toronto and Cleveland.

5. San Antonio Spurs (48-24) – The Spurs remain at #5, with their 48-24 record. After briefly falling into second place in the division, the Spurs have won three straight games and taken a game lead over the Rockets. The Spurs are also in second place in the Western Conference, which would give them home court advantage in the first two rounds of the playoffs. The Spurs bounced back from losses to Boston and Houston with wins over Golden State, Atlanta and the Clippers in the past week. Tony Parker is scoring just under 22 points per game, while Tim Duncan leads the team in rebounding and field goal percentage with 10.5 and 50.4%. The Spurs will play four of their next five games on the road, starting Sunday at New Orleans. A brief home game with Oklahoma City, will lead up to games at Indiana, Cleveland and Oklahoma City.

6. Houston Rockets (48-26) – With just eight games left to play in the 2008-2009 season the Houston Rockets are within one game of the lead in the Southwest Division of the Western Conference. Quite a feat for a team that has once again battled injuries all season. Houston remains #6 in the power rankings with their 48-26 record. The Rockets are 7-3 in their last ten games, including a 110-93 win over the Los Angeles Clippers. Their mark ties them with Denver for the third best record in the West. In the win over Los Angeles, big man Yao Ming poured in 21 points and ripped down 15 rebounds. On the season, Ming is scoring just under 20 points per game, and just below 10 rebounds per game. The Rockets are scoring 98.5 points per game, and allowing 94.5 per game. Houston will play two straight road games to start the week, beginning on Wednesday at Phoenix, followed by a trip to the Staples Center to meet the Lakers. Home games with Portland and Orlando will continue a tough stretch of games for Houston as they end into the postseason.

7. Denver Nuggets (48-26) – Moving up two spots from #9 to #7, the Denver Nuggets are knotted with the Houston Rockets for the third best record in the Western Conference. Denver has won three straight games; including wins at New Orleans and Dallas, followed by a home win over Golden State. The Nuggets lead Portland by 1.5 games and Utah by 2 games in the Northwest Division. Denver, if the postseason started today would garner the #3 seed and host the Utah Jazz in a best of seven series. Carmelo Anthony continues to assault opponents scoring 22.8 points per game, while Nene Hilario is the glass cleaner, averaging 7.7 rebounds per game. The Nuggets will continue their four game home stand on Tuesday when the New York Knicks come to town. Following New York, Utah and the Los Angeles Clippers will make stops in Denver. Games at Minnesota and Oklahoma City following should boost the Nuggets confidence riding into the postseason.

8. Portland Trailblazers (45-27) – The Portland Trailblazers picked up a 129-109 win to snap their brief one game-losing streak. With their recent play, Portland moved up two spots from #10 to #8 in the rankings. The Trailblazers are in second place in the Northwest Division, trailing Denver by a game and half, leading Utah by just ½ game. The Trailblazers would garner the #5 seed in the Western Conference if the playoffs started today and would start their postseason at Houston. Brandon Roy leads the team in scoring with 23 points per game. Portland will play two straight home games this week, starting on Sunday with Memphis coming to town, followed by a home game with the Utah Jazz on March 31st.

9. Utah Jazz (45-27) – After blowing a 21-point lead used a frenzied comeback on Friday to force overtime, and then later knock off the Phoenix Suns. The win for Utah was their 45th on the season, and allowed them to keep pace with Portland and Denver in the Northwest Division standings. Despite the win, Utah drops one position from #8 to #9. The Jazz are led in scoring by Mehmut Okur and his 17.6 points per game. In Utah’s last ten games, they will play only four of them at home, with just three against teams below .500. In the Jazz next five games, they will host the Knicks, travel to Portland and Denver, host Minnesota, and play at New Orleans. Utah leads ninth place Phoenix by 5.5 games, so Utah needs five wins in their next ten to clinch a spot in the postseason.

10. New Orleans Hornets (44-27) – The Hornets at 44-27 have lost two straight, and fallen 3.5 games back in the Southwest Division. Worse yet, the Hornets have dropped to seventh overall in the Western Conference, just two games ahead of Dallas, to avoid the eighth spot and a date with the Lakers. With the poor play this week the Hornets have dropped from #8 to #10. On Friday, the Hornets were 103-93 victims of the New York Knicks. In that game, the Hornets allowed Al Harrington to pour in 23 points, while David West and his 29 points led New Orleans. Chris Paul leads the team with 22.2 points per game, while West leads in rebounds with 8.3 per game. The Hornets will host the San Antonio Spurs, the current leader of the division on Sunday, and then travel on the road for three straight games; Sacramento, Los Angeles (Clippers) and Golden State – three winnable games. Following that road trip, the Hornets will come back home and host the Utah Jazz, the team just in front of them in the Western Conference standings.

11. Dallas Mavericks (43-29) – The Mavericks have recently clinched a .500+ season, and now are looking to seal the deal on a playoff berth. The Mavericks continue to hold onto the eighth and final position out west, leading Phoenix by 3.5 games, with just ten to go. Dallas only trails seventh place New Orleans by 1.5 games, and sixth place Utah by two games; so moving up the ladder is not out of the question for Dallas. The Mavericks took a 103-101 defeat at the hands of the Denver Nuggets on Friday night, despite Dirk Nowitzki’s 26 points. Carmelo Anthony led Denver with 43 points. Dallas will play two road games in a row this week, starting Sunday at Cleveland. The Mavericks will then head to Minnesota, before coming back home to take on the Miami Heat. On April 5th the Mavericks and Suns will meet, in what appears to be a win or go home game for the Suns.

12. Atlanta Hawks (42-31) – The Atlanta Hawks have clinched a playoff berth for the second straight season. Atlanta has also guaranteed themselves an above .500 record, which is an improvement from last season. Atlanta is trying to fend off Miami for home court advantage in the first round, in what appears to be a match-up with the Heat. Atlanta has lost two straight games; San Antonio and Boston, but overall has won seven of their last ten games. The Hawks brutal stretch will continue on Sunday, as they host the Los Angeles Lakers. Road games at Philadelphia and Boston will follow, and lead up to a home game with the Orlando Magic and another road game; this time at Toronto on April 7th.

13. Phoenix Suns (40-33) – The Suns are in a world of hurt as the season closes. The Suns, at 40-33, are 3.5 games behind the Dallas Mavericks, with just nine games to play. Phoenix has lost two straight games, including an overtime loss at the hands of the Utah Jazz, in which the Suns fought back from 21 down to take a fourth quarter lead, only to see it diminish. Phoenix will need to find a way to get hot fast in the final nine games if they want to be playing in the postseason. Phoenix will play at Sacramento on Sunday, and then host Houston and Sacramento, before heading on the road to Dallas and New Orleans. After the game with Dallas on April 5th, the league will have a good idea who will be participating in the postseason.

14. Miami Heat (39-34) – The Miami Heat fall one spot from #13 to #14, as the Phoenix Suns jump them. The Heat are closing in on clinching a playoff berth, leading ninth place Charlotte by six games, with just nine to play. If the postseason started today, the Heat would start on the road at Atlanta in the four/five match-up. The Heat are 5-5 in their last ten games, most recently picking up a 17 point win over Milwaukee. The Heat will face state rival Orlando on Monday, before heading on the road at Dallas, Charlotte and Washington, before coming back home to host the Washington Wizards. Four wins for Miami will clinch a playoff berth.

15. Philadelphia 76ers (37-34) – The 76ers sit in sixth place in the Eastern Conference, just a game behind fifth place Miami. Philadelphia, winning seven of their last ten games have moved to three games over .500. If the postseason started today, Philadelphia would start on the road at defending champion Boston. The 76ers three game winning streak was recently snapped by Charlotte, as they knocked them off 100-95. The 76ers look to get back to winning ways with a Sunday road game at Detroit, followed by three straight home games; with Atlanta, Milwaukee and Detroit.

16. Chicago Bulls (36-38) – The red-hot Chicago Bulls have won four straight games and made a three team jump from #19 to #16. The Bulls with their recent streak of great play have moved into seventh place in the Eastern Conference, as well as second place in the Central Division. The Bulls have gotten solid play from John Salmons who scored 22 points in Chicago’s latest win, a six point win over Indiana. The Bulls will look to continue their streak with a pair of road games this week; at Toronto and Indiana. Following those two games, the Bulls will then host three teams from the Atlantic Division; New Jersey, New York and Philadelphia.

17. Detroit Pistons (35-37) – At 35-37, the Detroit Pistons are holding on, with dear life the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. This week Detroit saw the surging Chicago Bulls pass them up, not only in the standings, but also in the rankings taking their #16 spot from last week. The Pistons were able to hold off Washington on Saturday evening, behind Richard Hamilton’s 31 points. The game for Hamilton was his first back after missing six straight with a left groin strain. Allen Iverson continues to miss action for the Pistons with a bad back. The Pistons will host the Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday, followed by three straight road games, starting in Cleveland, and heading to New Jersey and Philadelphia. An April 5th battle with Charlotte could give the NBA a better look at who is going to garner the final playoff berth.

18. Charlotte Bobcats (33-40) – At 33-40 the Bobcats still have a slim chance for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Charlotte has won two straight games, and made a three team jump from #21 to #18. The Bobcats are in ninth place, trailing Detroit by 2.5 games, with just nine to play. The Bobcats got 23 points from Gerald Wallace in their latest win; a 96-85 decision over New York. Charlotte will not have it easy the remainder of the way out, as they host the Lakers on March 31st, followed by a trip to Boston on April 1st. Miami, Detroit, Philadelphia, Oklahoma City, Chicago, New Jersey and Orlando are their remaining games.

19. Milwaukee Bucks (31-43) – The Bucks drop two spots from #17 to #19 as their playoff chances begin to dwindle. Milwaukee has lost five games, due in part to losing the services of Andrew Bogut and Michael Redd. The Bucks have won just two games in their last ten games and have fallen five games back of 8th place Detroit. In their last loss, the Bucks saw Dwyane Wade score 27 points in the 102-85 loss. The loss for Milwaukee came despite 31 points from leading scorer Richard Jefferson. Jefferson is scoring just under 19 points per game for Milwaukee on the season. The Bucks will look to snap their losing streak when they travel to New Jersey on Monday night. On April 1st the Bucks will host the West leading Los Angeles Lakers, followed by an April 2nd trip to Philadelphia.

20. New Jersey Nets (30-42) – The Nets drop two spots from #18 to #20, as both Charlotte and Chicago bypass them. The Nets are five games back of eighth place Detroit with just ten games left in the 2008-2009 season. New Jersey fell victim on Friday night to the Los Angeles Lakers, seeing Pau Gasol pour in 36 points. The Nets trail the Celtics by 24.5 games in the Atlantic Division, and are 7.5 games behind second place Philadelphia. The Nets have had a solid first season in New Jersey from point guard Devin Harris. Harris leads the team in scoring with 22.4 points per game. New Jersey will play at Minnesota on March 29th, and then host both Milwaukee and Detroit, before heading back on the road for a single game at Chicago on April 4th.

21. Indiana Pacers (30-43) – The Pacers picked up their 30th win on March 25th, but that appears to be the only positive for Indiana. The Pacers are 5.5 games behind the Pistons for the final playoff spot, and with nine games to go, the postseason appears very unlikely. Despite their most recent defeat, Indiana has moved up a spot, passing up the Knicks for the #21 position. Indiana will play three straight home games this week, as Washington, Chicago and San Antonio will all come to town. Following the home stand, the Pacers will play at Oklahoma City, before coming back home to host Toronto on April 8th.

22. New York Knicks (29-44) – The Knicks are on life support. With just nine games remaining, they trail 8th place Detroit by 6.5 games, with three teams in the middle. The Knicks have fallen down two spots from #20 to #22. New York is 3-7 in their last ten games, including a 96-85 loss at the hands of the Charlotte Bobcats on Saturday night. In that loss, Wilson Chandler scored 18 points. New York leads last place Toronto by just 1.5 games in the Atlantic Division. The Knicks will play four of their next five games on the road, starting with a Monday night battle at Utah. A trip to Denver will certainly not be easy for Utah, before coming home for one home game on April 4th with Toronto. The Knicks will then head to Toronto and Chicago on April 5th and 7th.

23. Toronto Raptors (27-45) – The Toronto Raptors will be glad to see the 2008-2009 season come to an end. A team that was picked as high as #4 in the Eastern Conference has fallen to the second worst record in the Eastern Conference. The Raptors remain #23 overall, just behind New York and barely ahead of the Golden State Warriors. The Raptors lone bright spot has been big man Chris Bosh. Bosh is scoring 22.6 points per game, and grabbing just fewer than 10 rebounds per game. The Raptors have won three straight games; over the Clippers, Bucks and Thunder. Toronto will conclude their four game home stand on Sunday when the Chicago Bulls come to town. Following the home game, the Raptors will play at Orlando and New York, before coming back home to host New York and Atlanta.

24. Golden State Warriors (25-48) – The Warriors are the team stuck in the middle. While they were not able to compete with the big boys at the top of the Western Conference, they have been able to avoid the logjam of dismal teams at the bottom. Golden State is on the verge of losing 50 games on the season though. Saturday nights 129-116 loss to Denver was their 48th defeat on the season. With nine games to go, it appears the Warriors are destined for a 50+-loss campaign. Stephen Jackson will miss the remainder of the season for the Warriors with a toe injury, which places even more pressure on top scorer Kelenna Azubuike, who leads in points and rebounds. The Warriors have dropped four straight games; all on the road. Golden State will now host three straight games, as Memphis, Sacramento and New Orleans all come to town. Following the home stand, the Warriors will travel to Sacramento, and then come back home to host the Timberwolves.24

25. Oklahoma City Thunder (20-52) – The Thunder have made their way above the Timber wolves for the #25 position, coming in at #26 last week. At 20-52, the Thunder feel they have solid parts to work with, as their leading scorer Kevin Durant came onto his own in 2008-2009 scoring 25.8 points per game. Big man Nick Collison is averaging 7.1 rebounds per game, and Earl Watson leads the squad in assists with 5.6 per game. The Thunder have struggled defensively, allowing 103 points per game. Oklahoma City will continue their three game road trip with games at Boston and San Antonio. After the trip, the Thunder will then come back home and take on Portland, Indiana and San Antonio.

26. Minnesota Timber wolves (20-53) – The Timber wolves fell one more position from #25 to #26, after losing seven straight games. The most recent loss for Minnesota was a 107-85 loss at the hands of the Cleveland Cavaliers. Minnesota has now fallen ½ game behind the Oklahoma City Thunder for last place in the Northwest Division. Randy Foye has taken over as the scoring leader for Minnesota, replacing Al Jefferson, who is out with a torn right ACL. The Timber wolves will host New Jersey and Dallas to start the week off, before traveling to Utah to start the April portion of their schedule.

27. Memphis Grizzles (18-54) – The Grizzles remain #27, as they trail divisional leader San Antonio by 30 games. The Grizzles are a dismal 12-24 at home, and even worse at 6-30 when playing on the road. Memphis picked up a win Friday night at Sacramento, but could not keep the streak going Saturday as the Portland Trailblazers held them to just 66 points. Rudy Gay leads the Grizzles in scoring with 18.6 per game. The Grizzles will travel to Golden State on Monday, and then host Washington and Dallas.

28. Los Angeles Clippers (18-56) – The Clippers barely come in ahead of the Wizards for #28 in the NBA. The Clippers are 18-56 and 41 games behind city rival the Lakers in the Pacific Division. The Clippers have lost two straight and seven out of their last ten. Los Angeles took a 110-93 loss at the hands of the Houston Rockets on Saturday night. In the loss rookie Eric Gordon scored 17 points on 7 of 16 shooting. Los Angeles will host the New Orleans Hornets on Wednesday, then play back to back nights at Denver and the Lakers.

29. Washington Wizards (17-57) – The Washington Wizards got their best player, Gilbert Arenas back on Saturday, but were not able to top the Detroit Pistons. Kwame Brown of the Pistons blocked Arenas shot as time expired, which would have given Washington the win. In his first game since April 2008, Arenas finished with 15 points and 10 assists in 30 minutes of play. The Wizards remain at #29, just ahead of the Kings, and trailing both Memphis and the Clippers. The Wizards will play two straight road games this week, at Indiana and at Memphis, before coming home to host Cleveland and Miami. Arenas will be tested with James and Wade coming in for back to back games.

30. Sacramento Kings (15-56) – The Kings, at 15-56 remain at the bottom of the NBA rankings, and are on pace to finish with the worst record, and the highest odds of receiving the #1 draft choice. Sacramento trails the Wizards by a full game in the standings, with Washington having played two more games; both wins. The Kings are coming off two straight losses, after a win at Madison Square Garden on March 20th. The Kings will continue their four game home stand with games with Phoenix and New Orleans. Sacramento will then take the road on April 1st, and take on Golden State and Phoenix, before coming back home to host the Warriors on April 5th.