We’re back! This is Part 2 of this year’s bi-weekly NBA power rankings. The criteria of these rankings include (in no particular order):
- Team Record
- Net Rating (Point Differential Per 100 Possessions)
- SRS (Combination of Strength of Schedule and Net Rating
- Sprinkle where teams are trending
Not to the extent of last time, but we are still going pretty strong off the teams’ records with only a sprinkle of advanced stats. As the NBA season goes on, we will begin leaning more heavily on the advanced stats.
With this being said, here are the top 10 NBA teams after Week 4. Stats are accurate as of Sunday, Nov. 17.
NBA Honorable Mentions
New York Knicks, Dallas Mavericks, Sacramento Kings
10. Phoenix Suns (-6 from last ranking)
The drop-off is obviously because of Kevin Durant‘s injury. Since he went down, the Suns are 1-4 and have lost three in a row. Durant should not be out much longer, and I would expect them to jump up from the No. 5 seed to No. 3 or 2.
9. Orlando Magic (Not Previously Ranked)
I was not expecting the Magic to be on this list two weeks ago. Their star player, Paolo Banchero, went down, and they lost four in a row. Since then, they have won five in a row. The league will be super excited to see Banchero return and watch him and Franz Wagner play great alongside each other. In my opinion, there are not many teams in the Eastern Conference that I would take over the fully healthy Magic.
Paolo Banchero’s engagement level with the players and Jamahl Mosley has been a vital aspect of the team’s 6-game win streak. He left his seat multiple times last night to consult with Jamahl Mosley on what he was seeing & the first player off the bench providing hype & advice: pic.twitter.com/Bvg49jlFtf
— Fawzan Amer (@FAmer__) November 19, 2024
8. Minnesota Timberwolves (Not Ranked)
The Wolves are a pretty hard team to rank. On one hand, they have one of the best young players in the NBA, Anthony Edwards. With him alone, they have the potential to make a final run. However, they have been slightly inconsistent. They lost to the Blazers twice, beat the Kings in overtime, and beat the Durant-less Suns by only three points. However, they are winning close games, and showing they can overcome adversity is very important.
7. Los Angeles Lakers (+1)
I have no idea what to think about the Lakers. On one hand, they have not had many super impressive wins, especially outside the first three games of the season. However, they do have some hard-fought victories, led by their two top-10 players, and JJ Redick has done a solid job making adjustments. We’ll have a better idea of who they are in two weeks, but Los Angeles will be interesting to watch the entire year.
6. Houston Rockets (Not Ranked)
Easily the most underrated team comes in at No. 6. The Rockets have been on fire lately. They have won five in a row, are third in the West, and fifth in net rating. They have done all this without any player on their team averaging over 20 points per game, but seven players averaging at least 11. The Rockets, led by Ime Udoka, have demonstrated nearly perfect team basketball.
Two years ago, I never thought I would see Sengun running the floor like this on defense.
Ime Udoka has done a phenomenal job of getting this team to buy-in and play hard. Future is bright in Houston. pic.twitter.com/yfXmox33gy
— Mat Issa (@matissa15) November 14, 2024
5. Denver Nuggets (Not Ranked)
Despite losing two in a row, I think the Nuggets are a top-five team in the West. Sure, they are only 13th in net rating, but I feel like some of the big stats are deflated by the beginning of the season. Nikola Jokic may be the whole team, but this shows how good he is. I think that no matter what the roster looks like, Jokic will lead his team to the playoffs, and the Nuggets will be a threat to win a playoff series. His supporting cast has been pretty brutal, but I think as the season goes on, they will get much better.
4. Boston Celtics (-1)
I said two weeks ago that No. 3 might be Boston’s lowest ranking of the whole season. That was, evidently, not the case. Maybe the Celtics would have been higher had they not lost to the Hawks or only beat the Raptors in overtime, but this is where they are now. I think that once everyone is healthy, they will be better. However, as of now, they are not as good as they were last year.
3. Oklahoma City Thunder (-1)
The last time I wrote about the Thunder, they were undefeated. Since then, young star center Chet Holmgren went down and they have lost three games. As a result, you might think that the Thunder should be much lower, but they were so dominant for the first two weeks that moving them down to anything lower than No. 3 or 4 would be ignoring how great they were. With that being said, do not be surprised if, for the next couple of weeks, you see the Thunder slip a little bit because Holmgren will be out for so long.
2. Golden State Warriors (+3)
If there is one team I have been wrong about the most so far, it has been the Warriors. This is similar to 2022 when they went into the season with low expectations but improved their bench a ton. Now, they are looking like one of the best teams in the West. In addition, Steph Curry has improved on everything except for points per game. This is huge given that he was extremely inefficient last year (to his standards); both his impact and efficiency have been a lot better through the first four weeks this season. I think this is sustainable, so do not be surprised if you see Curry lead the Warriors on yet another playoff run.
RIDICULOUS STEPH CURRY 3 ALERT 🚨
His 5th of the night on NBA TV! pic.twitter.com/kiyDeLonIv
— NBA (@NBA) November 19, 2024
1. Cleveland Cavaliers
We’re partying like it’s 2017 with teams in the top five. The Cavs, similar to the Rockets, have been dominant without having a superstar player. Donovan Mitchell is one of my favorite players, but he has not played as great as in the past. Mitchell’s potential to improve is probably the scariest thing about this team. I think he will eventually turn things around and this team will be first or second in the East. On Tuesday, they face the Celtics. It will certainly be must-watch TV.
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