Ryan Laws
With the talk of the Super Bowl and the NFL season officially quieting down, it’s now the time in the sports calendar where the “casual” fan shifts over to the NBA/NHL, gearing up for the last stretch in the regular season and into the playoffs.
If this happens to be you, then you’re in luck! Here’s my top 10 teams in the league as we approach the “stretch run” in the NBA, along with some explanation behind each.
10. Minnesota Timberwolves: 34-22
The Wolves are the worst of the best in the West to me. When it comes to the top 6 teams currently in the standings, I don’t feel great about them compared to the other five. But they are the type of team that could sneak into the second round and maybe even further with Anthony Edwards leading the helm. The most impressive stat to me regarding the Wolves is that they are 2-1 against the Thunder this season. Just a little bit of consistency can go a long way for this team. They can compete with anybody ahead of them in the standings, but the road becomes a lot more difficult if they have to go through the play-in.
9. Los Angeles Lakers: 33-21
The Lakers might be the only team in this top 10 that I really can’t get a gauge for. Sure, the talent is there, and a team with Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves, and Lebron James should be dangerous. They even were buyers at the deadline! Luke Kennard is the best 3-point shooter in the league percentage-wise. However, every time I see them play a top team in the West, they lose. In fact, they are 2-6 against the West’s top 4 teams, and to be honest, that tells me all I need to know. I don’t think they have a chance to make the Finals or conference Finals with this roster.
8. Cleveland Cavaliers: 34-21
The remainder of the season/postseason is more important for the Cavaliers than maybe anybody on this list. If they can’t go on a deep postseason run, Donovan Mitchell might be on his way out. But credit to the Cavs for realizing they may have hit their ceiling with Darius Garland and Donovan Mitchell as a duo, shipping Garland to the Clippers at the trade deadline for James Harden. After being 17-16 at one point this season, they were able to right the ship, and they are currently on a 5-game winning streak before heading into the break. Once Cleveland can get back Max Strus and Evan Mobley, they will be right there competing as a top 4 team in the East.
7. Houston Rockets: 33-20
The Rockets are in an odd spot, and it looks like they are actually going to be seeded worse than they were last season, despite making a blockbuster trade with Phoenix for Kevin Durant.
Houston knew all season there was going to be a struggle from the guard position without Fred VanVleet, who got injured during the offseason, but Amen Thompson/Reed Sheppard have both done a solid job in FVV’s absence. Houston did head into the break on a positive note, however, taking down the Thunder for the first time all season, losing the previous two games.
6. Boston Celtics: 35-19
Possibly the biggest surprise on this list, given the expectations heading into the season? Even as a diehard Celtics fan, I would have been content with the 6th seed this year! Joe Mazzula has proven he is one of the league’s best coaches, and Jaylen Brown has shown he can compete with the “Superstars”, posting a career high in points and being named to his first All-Star start this past weekend. The Celtics know they are in the discussion to win the East, too, bolstering their center depth at the trade deadline, acquiring Nikola Vucevic from the Bulls. If the rumors are true that Jayson Tatum could be returning in just a few weeks, the Celtics would go from a team playing with house money to one with some expectations to make noise in May.
5. New York Knicks: 35-20
The Knicks find themselves in a similar spot to the last 2 seasons, right around a top spot in the East, but they don’t feel close to being the definitive top team in the conference. Whether it’s been the Celtics or now the Pistons, the Knicks have always kind of felt like the second fiddle.
Nonetheless, they have been one of the most consistent teams when it comes to winning, and even winning in the postseason, but can this be the year they get over the hump and make the Finals? They have already won a trophy this season, that being the NBA Cup, but no team has won the Cup and won the Finals in the same season yet.
4. Denver Nuggets: 35-20
Denver has met their expectations this season. Everyone expected them to be a threat in the West, and with Nikola Jokic in the lineup, they could beat anybody in the West. However, there was a stretch this season that the Nuggets had to find a way to stay afloat without Jokic, who suffered an injury in late December against the Heat. They did a lot more than just stay afloat, having a record of 10-6 minus Nikola. They were swimming well without the Joker, and credit to Jamal Murray, who has been sensational this season, was named an All-Star for the first time in his career. Even heading into this final stretch, Denver is not 100% currently with injuries to rotation pieces such as Aaron Gordon and Payton Watson. If the Nuggets can get everyone back at the same time, they will be in the conversation for a title, especially after proving how they can compete without all of their pieces in the lineup.
3. Detroit Pistons: 40-13
The Pistons land the spot as the highest-ranked Eastern Conference team, and they have been looking down on the rest of the standings for the majority of this season. As of right now, they even have the least amount of losses in the league, with the Thunder’s recent struggles.
The word I would use to describe the Pistons the rest of the way is optimism. They play a style that favors postseason basketball, and their supporting cast around Cade Cunningham and Jalen Duren is exceptional, as to where this team was just 2 years ago. They also still have to play the Spurs and Thunder 4 times, now this could cement that they are a bit behind them in the championship race, or it could prove that they could seriously make a run to the Larry O’Brien.
2. San Antonio Spurs: 38-16
While many might say the league talks too much about how impressive Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs have performed this season, I don’t know if it’s being talked about seriously enough. A team that only won 34 games last season (Wemby only played in 46 games) has not only surpassed that in February, but they have a real chance to be the league’s top team record-wise and have the playoffs run through the Frost Bank Center. The only question mark about this Spurs team is if they are ready to experience postseason basketball, with more than half of their starting 5 never competing in a playoff game. I don’t suspect it to be an issue early on, but in a series against Denver/OKC, teams that have both been crowned champions before, experience could be the difference.
1. Oklahoma City Thunder: 42-14
The league’s best team from the night we tipped off the season until now, and until recently, it wasn’t much of a debate. You could barely be paying attention to the NBA in December, but still know the Thunder are likely going to win the championship. The real question was, who’s getting second place? A 24-1 start to the season had many comparing them to the 73-9 Warriors, but that talk has quickly vanished, as they’ve been a .500 team in their last 10 games, and the Spurs are only 3 games back of the top seed in the West. San Antonio has also been their biggest Kryptonite this season, out of OKC’s 14 losses, 4 of them are via Wembanyama and co.
I suspect this could be a symptom of the dog days of the regular season, and the Thunder will go on a dominant run to close out this season. But if they keep slipping, it could cost them home court, and potentially a trip to the Finals.
