If there were red lights and a siren attached to the FOX Sports NBA Power Rankings, they would sound immediately.
Although the top-performing teams remained unchanged from last week – with the top nine virtually unchanged – there are several places further down the grid where surges are causing significant disruption.
THE Houston Rockets, living up to their name, moved into the playoff picture. As of March 1, they appeared lottery-bound, seven games out of last place for a play-in tournament with the Utah Jazz in front of them. Their overall stats and performance suggested they were better than their record – 25-34 – but that meant nothing in extending their season.
Until their schedule becomes a little more favorable.
Home and Away with Both Wizards And Spurs and six of 11 games against lottery-bound teams resulted in a 10-1 run that propelled them against the Jazz and made them a threat to topple one of the current play-in teams. Losing center Alperen Sengun five games down the stretch hasn’t slowed them down at all. Going 3-0 last week while the Warriors of the Golden State Losing three of four, the Rockets are now one game away from the final ticket to the play-in tournament and directly behind the Warriors in the power rankings.
THE New Orleans Pelicans exert the same pressure on Los Angeles Clippers. As of February 1, the Clippers were third in the West, just two games out of first place and beating the Celtics And Thunder two digits. But since Feb. 7, they’re 10-10, which includes their most recent embarrassing home loss, this one to Philadelphia. The Pelicans exploited that mediocrity and their own favorable schedule to close within a half-game and threaten to enter the top five in the power rankings for the first time this season.
The spark wires to the east are in Cleveland, where the Riders have lost 3 in a row and six of their last eight, allowing both the surge New York Knicks And Magic of Orlando to get closer to them. The Cavs, who enjoyed a brief stint as the No. 1 team in the power rankings, must hope to find their rhythm heading into seventh place. Miami heat do or they could slip into the play-in tournament after appearing at the All-Star break to be a lock to host a first-round series.
NBA power rankings
- Boston Celtics
- Denver Nuggets
- Milwaukee Bucks
- Oklahoma City Thunder
- Minnesota Timberwolves
- New Orleans Pelicans
- Dallas Mavericks
- New York Knicks
- Magic of Orlando
- Kings of Sacramento
- Los Angeles Clippers
- Phoenix Suns
- the Los Angeles Lakers
- Indiana Pacers
- Miami heat
- Warriors of the Golden State
- Houston Rockets
- Cleveland Cavaliers
- Philadelphia 76ers
- Chicago Bulls
- Atlanta Falcons
- Utah Jazz
- San Antonio Spurs
- Brooklyn nets
- Portland Trail Blazers
- Memphis Grizzlies
- Charlotte Frelons
- Wizards of Washington
- Toronto Raptors
- Detroit Pistons
Ric Bucher is an NBA writer for FOX Sports. He previously wrote for Bleacher Report, ESPN The Magazine and The Washington Post and wrote two books, “Rebound,” about NBA forward Brian Grant’s battle with early-stage Parkinson’s disease, and “Yao : A Life In Two Worlds. He also offers a daily podcast, “On The Ball with Ric Bucher.” Follow him on Twitter @RicBucher.
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