Welcome NBA Fans! Were about two weeks into the New Year and nearly halfway towards the season. With an idea of how the NBA standings are looking, it will be interesting to see which teams get into the postseason, while other stars look toward improving their lottery odds. Also, with Wednesday’s matchup between the Thunder and Cavaliers, is this the preview of this season’s NBA finals? With only a month left until the All-Star break, the biggest storylines will be related to the trade deadline. Where will Jimmy Butler end up? Which other stars will be dealt with? Who will be the biggest winners from the deadline? Who will end up having a entering a rebuild phase?
Let’s get right into it!
My heart goes out to all the citizens who have been affected by California Wildfires and we thank the firefighters that are out there risking their lives to contain the fires.
Next Week: January 18, 2025
Risers: Pacers +6, Nuggets +5, Kings +4
Fallers: Spurs -6, Suns -5, Heat -4
Stats as of January 10, 2025
NBA Power Rankings Week 11/12
1. Cleveland Cavaliers 33-4(1) –
OFF: 121.9 (1st) DEF: 110.7(10th) NET:+11.2 (2nd)
Can a weakness be spotted on this squad? Their current win streak is up to 12 games and in an anticipated NBA Finals preview matchup against the Thunder, the Cavs were able to take care of business. Any talk of them being a pretender should be completely erased.
2. Oklahoma City Thunder 31-6 (2) –
OFF: 115.2 (7th) DEF: 103.3(1st) NET: +12.0 (1st)
Since their loss in the NBA Cup, the Thunder are a dominant 11-1. Their only loss, well, that came against the Cavaliers in Cleveland. This team no question is heads and shoulders above everyone in the West and Shai Gillgeous Alexander has been dominant proving his runner-up MVP season was no fluke last year.
3. Boston Celtics 27-11 (4) +1
OFF: 119.2 (2nd) DEF: 109.5 (7th) NET: +9.7 (3rd)
Losing to the red-hot Kings at home isn’t ideal mainly due to a big night from Domantis Sabonis. However, the Celtics had some big wins against teams like the Rockets and Nuggets in the past couple of weeks. They are still dominant yet cruising. Yawn.
4. Houston Rockets 25-12 (6) +2
OFF: 113.2 (11th) DEF: 107.0 (3rd) NET: +6.2 (5th*)
Is it too early to call the Rockets the next OKC? This team is young and deep in all positions. It was a bummer losing Jabari Smith to his broken wrist but Amen Thompson has stepped in a big way which includes 17.7 points and 12.7 rebounds on 61% shooting since the start of the new year.
5. New York Knicks 25-14 (3) -2
OFF: 118.7 (3rd) DEF: 112.5 (15th) NET: +6.2 (5th*)
Not a good week for the Knicks. A couple of bad losses especially one to a rebuilding Bulls team. In their loss to the Thunder in Oklahoma City, the Knicks bench had 5 points. Yes, only 5 points. This bench which was known to be a weakness for New York is currently the worst in the NBA and it’s not even close.
6. Memphis Grizzlies 24-14 (5) -1
OFF: 116.4 (5th) DEF:109.2 (5th) NET: +7.3 (4th)
Good news Ja Morant is back. And my goodness, Memphis could be a dark horse threat in the West. The amount of depth on this squad has been phenomenal and Jaren Jackson Jr has a great start to the New Year averaging 27 points and 9 rebounds on 52% shooting.
7. Denver Nuggets 22-15 (12) +5
OFF:117.3 (4th) DEF: 113.3(19th) NET: +4.0(8th)
The Nuggets are hoping that this 6-2 run in the past 2 weeks will be the turning point of what has been an underwhelming season so far. The biggest takeaway was the battle of the big men between MVP Nikola Jokic and rising star Victor Wembyama. The Nuggets went 1-1 but Jokic proved why he was the MVP by averaging 43.5 points 13.5 boards and 9.5 assists in those 2 games.
8. Milwaukee Bucks 20-16 (8) +1
OFF: 112.5(14th) DEF: 110.5(9th) NET: +1.9 (10th)
As long as the Bucks don’t play the Nets, then they should be okay. This team has been very erratic all year going from a 2-8 start to winning the NBA Cup. The past couple of weeks resulted in many wins but also some bad losses all by 5 points or less.
9. Minnesota Timberwolves 20-18 (10) -1
OFF: 111.0(19th) DEF: 109.3(6th) NET:+1.6(10th)
Anthony Edward’s career night of 53 points has shown why many people believe he can be the face of the NBA and why people have seen glimpses of Kobe Bryant or Michael Jordan. He needs to be more consistent with scoring to continue the comparisons and for his team’s sake because their season has been like a roller coaster at Six Flags.
10. Los Angeles Clippers 20-17 (7) -3
OFF: 109.9 (23rd) DEF: 108.9 (4th) NET: +0.9 (14th)
Good news. Kawhi Leonard has made his debut. It was a promising thing to see for a Clipper team that has always played well without their stars. However, the biggest tragedy was the tragedy going on with the wildfires. The Clippers are eager to return to the floor and play for the city of Los Angeles.
11. Dallas Mavericks 22-16 (8) -3
OFF: 115.7 (6th) DEF: 111.3(3rd) NET: +4.4 (7th)
The Mavericks were expected to have a tough week with both Kyrie Irving and Luka Doncic missing significant time. Nevertheless, Dallas’ depth came through and proved their worth in a 21-point blowout against the Lakers which ended a 5-game losing streak. It will be important for the Mavericks to stay afloat to still in the playoff picture until their stars return.
12. Orlando Magic 22-17 (13) +1
OFF: 108.3 (27th) DEF: 106.7 (2nd) NET: +1.7 (11th)
You have to give credit to Orlando. Both of their stars were out for the past month and they found a way to remain competitive. Despite the 3-point loss to Milwaukee, Paolo Banchero made his return after 2 months and hasn’t missed a beat. His offensive creation will be needed for a team desperate for offensive efficiency.
13. Miami Heat 20-17 (10) -4
OFF: 112.1 (15th) DEF: 110.9 (11th) NET: +1.2 (13th)
It is unfortunate that a couple of weeks ago it appeared Miami and Jimmy Butler have buried the hatch and will keep the partnership alive. Now, Jimmy stated “he isn’t happy on the court” and Miami has suspended him for 7 games due to being “detrimental to the team”. At least, the Heat are on a 3 game-win streak, but it appears Butler’s days are numbers.
14. Los Angeles Lakers 20-16 (15) +1
OFF:112.9 (12th) DEF:115.3 (24th) NET: -2.4(20th*)
This Lakers team is very intriguing. On the one hand, they are hanging in the Western Conference playoff picture and yet have a net rating that ranks 20th in the league. The loss to Dallas though was extremely rough as they lost to a team missing their star players. Nevertheless, it was a rough week for the city of Los Angeles due to the fires. The Lakers will be ready to play for their city.
15. Indiana Pacers 21-18 (21) +6
OFF: 114.1 (9th) DEF:114.4 (21st) NET:-0.4(16th)
Now, this team resembles the team that was the runner-up in the Eastern Conference. It’s been a great two weeks for Indy as they have gone 6-1 and are boasting the 3rd best offense in the past two weeks. More importantly, Tyrese Halliburton is starting to return to his peak form and is playing his basketball so far this season.
16. Detroit Pistons 19-19 (19) +3
OFF: 111.7 (17th) DEF:113.0 (15th) NET: -1.3 (18th)
Here comes Detroit basketball! To be honest. I didn’t think Detroit would win more than 25 games. I knew they were improved but who would have thought that the Pistons would be in the play-in and .500 nearly half through the season? Losing Jaden Ivey is unfortunate but Detroit is looking very solid and improved. For the first in at least nearly a decade, there is hope in the Motor City.
17. Atlanta Hawks 19-19 (14) -3
OFF: 111.7 (16th) DEF: 114.3(20th) NET: -2.6 (22nd)
Not a very good start for the 2025 portion of the season for the Hawks as they have gone 1-4 and lost pretty convincingly in 3 of those losses. If it weren’t for a game-winner from Trae Young, Atlanta would have been winless in the past 2 weeks. This team is too up and down.
18. Golden State Warriors 19-19 (20) +2
OFF: 111.0 (19th) DEF: 110.5(18th) NET: +0.6 (15th)
Perhaps the Steph Curry tweet about calling the Warriors’ season “mid-like” could spark a sense of urgency in this squad. At least Buddy Hield is starting to get more minutes and is looking to get back to his fast start to the season.
19. Sacramento Kings 19-19 (23) +4
OFF: 115.0 (18th) DEF: 112.1 (13th) NET: +3.0 (9th)
What do you know? The Kings fired Mike Brown and have gone 6-1 since and are all of sudden back in the playoff contention. Yes, those wins came against some underperforming teams or injury-prone teams. However, the win against the Celtics are their home floor was legit.
20. Philadelphia 76ers 15-21 (17) -3
OFF: 109.5(25th) DEF: 112.8(16th) NET:-3.3 (23rd)
It wasn’t a horrible couple of weeks for the 76ers. But with a couple of blowouts and losing to the Pelicans, this will knock them down a couple of slots. At least Joel Embid is slowly working his way back into form and Paul George’s play has been improving. However, Paul George has no doubt underperformed this season.
21. Chicago Bulls 18-20 (23) +2
OFF: 112.8(13th) DEF: 115.2 (23rd) NET:-2.4 (20th*)
Since the New Year, Zach Lavine has been on a tear averaging close to 33 points a game, and the Bulls have gone 5-2 the past couple of weeks. Even Coby White has performed well including a poster on Victor Wembyama. Can the Bulls get into the postseason?
22. San Antonio Spurs 17-19 (16) -6
OFF: 111.2 (18th)` DEF: 112.1(14th) NET: -0.9(17th)
The offense is starting to become overly reliant on Victor Wembyama. In their 3 straight losses, Wemby has averaged 17.6 points on 39% shooting. Nevertheless, San Antonio just might have had a bad week but they will need to rely more on the others if they want to seriously be in the postseason.
23. Phoenix Suns 17-19 (18) -5
OFF: 113.3(10th) DEF: 115.2(22nd) NET:-1.9 (19th)
When you lose to the Charlotte Hornets, a team that lost 10 straight, this will shoot you down in the rankings. Who would have thought that a team that started 7-1 would go 10-18 since? This team is in real danger if they don’t get it together. They are too reliant on all 3 stars to play to be competitive.
24. Portland Trail Blazers 13-24 (25) –
OFF: 109.2 (26th) DEF:117.0(26th) NET: -7.8 (27th)
The Blazers have been a respectable team the past couple of weeks. Some good wins against the Bucks and Mavericks and for the most part have been relatively competitive. Anfree Simons has had a great start to 2025 by averaging 25 points on 51% shooting.
25. Brooklyn Nets 13-25 (22) -3
OFF: 110.01(22nd) DEF: 116.4(25th) NET: -6.3(23rd)
Are we seeing the Nets take it up the notch with tanking? The Nets are 1-6 in the past 2 weeks and are 29th in both offensive efficiency and net rating. 4 different players have led the team in scoring in the past 5 games. It is about auditioning players to see who is worth keeping long-term.
26. Utah Jazz 9-27 (26) –
OFF: 111.0 (20th) DEF:118.0 (29th) NET: -7.0 (26th)
The Jazz stink. Well, Utah was able to rack up a couple of good wins while they were in Florida. The pleasant surprise from those games was late first-round pick Brice Sensabaugh who had a career-high 34 points vs the Heat. We should see Those types of games from Utah as they focus on developing for the future.
27. New Orleans Pelicans 8-30 (30) +3
OFF: 108.0 (28th) DEF: 117.7 (28th) NET:-9.6 (29th)
It took a 50-point game from CJ McCollum to end an 11-game losing streak. Since then they were able to get 2 more wins. It is too late to salvage the season, but ending losing streaks like that is always a plus. Major disappointment.
28. Charlotte Hornets 8-27 (29) +1
OFF: 107.0 (29th) DEF: 113.2 (18th) NET:-6.2 (24th)
This team has been a complete disappointment this year with little to no progress. Want an interesting fun fact? In the past 2 weeks, Charlotte has been ranked the 2nd best team in defensive efficiency. That’s something! They also beat a star power team in the Suns to end the losing streak! Good vibes.
29. Toronto Raptors 8-30 (28) -1
OFF: 109.8 (24th) DEF: 117.6(27th) NET: -7.9(29th)
It took a season-high from Scottie Barnes to get a nice win over the Nets on New Year’s Day. However, what else is there to be excited about? This team has had the worst net rating in the NBA in the past 2 weeks at -17.0. Not pretty, huh?
30. Washington Wizards 6-30 (27) -3
OFF: 105.5(30th) DEF: 118.4 (30th) NET:
After a few wins against the Hornets and a big win against the Bulls, the Wizards returned to their losing ways. This included 5 of their 6 games being all losses and by double digits. It was nice being out of the cellar for a minute.
Main Image: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images
