2015 NBA Power Rankings: How All 30 Teams Shake Out in Early April
April isn't just for fools. In the NBA, it's for clinchers as well.
This past week alone, the Golden State Warriors locked down the top seed in the West, the Atlanta Hawks did the same in the East, and the Toronto Raptors collected their second straight Atlantic Division crown—their first such back-to-back success in franchise history.
That's not to mention all the playoff spots that have been sewn up recently. At present, only five of the league's 16 postseason berths are in play. The Milwaukee Bucks figure to wrap up the No. 6 seed in the Eastern Conference, just as the Dallas Mavericks do at No. 7 out West. But the last two slots in the East and the No. 8 one on the other side of the bracket will likely be decided between seven teams that are hoping to survive the regular season.
Their reward? First-round dances of death opposite the Warriors, Hawks and (presumably) Cleveland Cavaliers. Those elites figure to be laughing their way into the second round.
That reckoning won't come for another two weeks or so, though, when the playoffs officially tip off. Until then, let's take a moment to reset the Association by ranking all 30 teams from worst to first, based on recent performance and available personnel.
30. New York Knicks
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Never in their 69-year history had the New York Knicks lost 60 games in a single season.
That is, until the Knicks slogged through a 111-80 loss to the Chicago Bulls on Saturday. Come Wednesday, New York suffered the first 61st loss in franchise history, with the rival Brooklyn Nets adding this particular insult to the injury of a dismal campaign.
It's no wonder, then, that Phil Jackson felt it necessary to do damage control with his team's fans. According to ESPN New York's Ian Begley, Jackson sent out a video message to season ticket-holders that attempted to soothe their concerns and encourage renewals.
"While I know this has been a challenging season for our team on the court, I can also tell you that everyone in the organization is working tirelessly to get our Knicks back to a place where we are once again competing at the highest level," Jackson said.
Who exactly winds up doing that tireless work is another story. Per ESPN New York.com, the Zen Master could have a front-office makeover on his hands this summer, in addition to the one he'll have to handle with the roster.
29. Orlando Magic
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These are dismal days for the Orlando Magic, losers in 10 of their last 11 outings. But there is hope for the Magic, thanks to the young backcourt of Victor Oladipo and Elfrid Payton. As Grantland's Zach Lowe noted, those two are coming off milestone months in March:
"Oladipo just wrapped the best month of his career, and the Magic scored 104.6 points per 100 possessions with their backcourt of the future on the floor—a mark that would rank about 11th overall for the season. Payton notched triple-doubles, Oladipo nailed 43 percent of his non-corner threes, and the two showed a deeper understanding of how to play off of each other.
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Granted, that superb play didn't amount to much, other than three wins in the entire month of March. Nonetheless, Orlando can take heart in the fact that its future rests in the hands of two talented, if wholly incomplete, prospects.
28. Minnesota Timberwolves
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Are the Minnesota Timberwolves "tanking"? Or are they merely looking after their core players' best interests?
Maybe they're doing both—one intentionally, one less so.
According to the Star Tribune's Jerry Zgoda, Nikola Pekovic will miss what remains of the season now that he's due for surgery on his sore right Achilles. Per the St. Paul Pioneer Press' Andy Greder, Ricky Rubio's right ankle is nearly healed, but Minnesota's training staff is holding him out.
"All they're saying is he's not ready to play at the level that he needs to play at right now," head coach Flip Saunders said of Rubio.
To be sure, the T-Wolves don't have any pressing need for either Pekovic or Rubio to play. Their season has been a lost cause for months, and in Rubio's case, the absence of one star has paved the way for the growth of another (i.e., Zach LaVine).
27. Philadelphia 76ers
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For better or worse, Ish Smith isn't having any trouble making friends with the Philadelphia 76ers.
"I love that kid," Sixers rookie Nerlens Noel said after Philly's 113-111 overtime loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday, according to CBS 3's Andrew Porter. "He just finds me whenever I'm open and honestly, he's the first true point guard I've ever really played with. And you know, he said I'm one of the alley-oop men—big men—he's played with. So I think we complement each other so well."
Noel's faith in Smith is well-founded. Since Smith took over the starting point guard job in Philly on March 18, Noel has averaged 15.8 points, 11 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 1.9 steals and 2.3 blocks in 33 minutes.
Smith has done pretty well for himself, too. Over that span, the Wake Forest product has poured in 14.4 points and 6.3 assists in 29.3 minutes per game.
Just don't mistake Noel's praise of Smith for a jab at former Sixer and reigning Rookie of the Year Michael Carter-Williams. "Nah, I'd never do that," Noel said of dissing (or not) his former AAU and NBA teammate, per The Philadelphia Inquirer's Keith Pompey. "He's a playmaker. There are times when you need a scoring point guard that's going to get in the lane, create and make scoring opportunities.
"That's just the way the NBA is when you are that big [6'6"]. It's good that you utilize your length and your ability to get to the basket. I would never take a shot at him."
26. Los Angeles Lakers
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Jordan Clarkson has incurred the wrath of some Los Angeles Lakers fans for, you know, doing his job. The rookie out of Missouri hit a pair of free throws to seal a 101-99 overtime win against Minnesota and subsequently nailed a game-winner in extra time against Philadelphia.
Had Clarkson not come through, the Lakers would have improved their odds of keeping their 2015 draft pick out of the Sixers' hands by depressing their own record and boosting those of their cellar-dwelling competitors. Instead, L.A. might have to sweat out the draft lottery a bit (the pick is top-five protected).
More importantly, Clarkson did come through, and he has to a tantalizing degree of late. Over his last six games, he has averaged a robust 21 points, 6.7 assists, 5.3 rebounds and 5.7 free-throw attempts while shooting 54 percent from the field (40 percent from three), including a career-high 30 points opposite Russell Westbrook and consecutive double-doubles against Philly and New Orleans.
So to all you Lakers fans out there who are hating on Clarkson for growing into a winner—heed the advice of the Los Angeles Times' Eric Pincus: "In the meantime, for those finding these wins absolutely excruciating: Take a breath, see the progress in players like Clarkson for what it is, and relax—the odds still favor the Lakers in the draft."
25. Sacramento Kings
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The Sacramento Kings have boasted one of the NBA's best centers all season in DeMarcus Cousins, who tallied a monstrous triple-double (24 points, 21 rebounds and 10 assists, with six blocks and three steals) in a loss to the Houston Rockets on Wednesday.
Now—and, perhaps, better yet—they can also claim the league's best new nickname. Last week, Nik Stauskas became Sauce Castillo, courtesy of Andrew Unterberger's closed captioning and Deadspin's crack investigative work.
The nickname quickly caught fire—so quickly, in fact, that the Kings announced that they'd be hosting a Sauce Castillo Night on April 5 against the Utah Jazz to celebrate their rookie's accidental surge in popularity.
So, if you're in the Sacramento area Sunday, be sure to stop by Sleep Train Arena to get some sauce and see some Sauce.
And maybe a bit of Boogie, too.
24. Denver Nuggets
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Everyone and their mother have an opinion on what the Denver Nuggets should and will do to improve their situation this summer. Among those prognosticators: current Nuggets forward Kenneth Faried.
"I think they are going to move some components, move some—hopefully not key pieces—but major pieces on the team that need to be moved," Faried told The Denver Post's Christopher Dempsey. "And they'll have to sign some people. But I think it's an easy fix just as far as how things went from a positive standpoint and a 'give it all you've got' standpoint. And (interim coach) Melvin Hunt, I want to go out there and give it all I got for him, no matter if we're down in the dumps or if we're (playing well)."
That commitment from Faried and Co. could help Hunt keep his job once Denver begins its search for a full-time head coach this coming offseason. Per The Post, Mike D'Antoni and Alvin Gentry figure to be in the mix.
Whoever gets the nod could wind up working with a refreshingly retooled roster, as Grantland's Danny Chau suggested: "With Brian Shaw gone, absolutely everyone on the roster on the trading block, and three future first-round picks in the vault as trade chips, the Nuggets can, in theory, be whatever they want to be. That's exciting. Not knowing is exciting."
23. Indiana Pacers
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George Hill has done plenty to dispel doubts about his ability to be not only a starting point guard but a darn good one for the Indiana Pacers. Over his last 11 outings, the IUPUI product has averaged 21.9 points and five assists while knocking down 57.7 percent of his shots (39.3 percent from three).
As NBA.com's David Aldridge wrote, Hill's leap, like those of so many of his peers, is the product of hard work during the offseason:
"The day after the Pacers were eliminated, Hill was back in the gym in Indiana—and stayed there all summer instead of going back to Texas to train, as he normally did in the summer. Hill did "insane" workouts, as [Frank] Vogel put it—five hours daily of shooting and ball-handling drills, combined with weightlifting and yoga. And he looks like a different player than he has in any of his previous six NBA seasons.
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Unfortunately for the Pacers, Hill's sweat equity and attendant improvement hasn't translated positively to Indy's postseason push. The Pacers have gone a dismal 2-9 during that aforementioned 11-game stretch and have fallen from seventh in the East to 11th as a result.
If only the Pacers could count on the return of their other George before their playoff hopes fade to black...
22. Detroit Pistons
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The Detroit Pistons and their fans have a lot to look forward to, despite what a 24-point loss to the Charlotte Hornets suggests.
The potential for fireworks (good and bad) between Brandon Jennings and Reggie Jackson might make for some masterpiece theater in the Motor City, but for Grantland's Juliet Litman, plenty more beyond the point guards has added intrigue to Detroit's near-future:
"We will witness the next step for Andre Drummond, who's starting to put it together; more Greg Monroe (free agency depending), who may have benefited the most from [Josh] Smith's departure; the rising Kentavious Caldwell-Pope; and the second year of Stan Van Gundy's reign. Amid the depressing losing streaks and unwatchable games, there has been a glimmer of bigger things to come.
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Soon enough, that glimmer might look more like a supernova of light to bust out of this team and this city's dark days.
21. Charlotte Hornets
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The Charlotte Hornets just can't seem to shake their bad injury luck. Cody Zeller remains on the shelf with a bum shoulder. He's recently been joined there by Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, who's missed the last three games with an ankle injury.
The Hornets did get one bit of health-related good fortune, though it had nothing to do with their own roster. As NBA.com's David Aldridge noted:
"The Hornets beat an Atlanta team Saturday that sat all of its starters—four of whom were healthy—but that had already clinched the top seed in the East. Which is fine for the Hawks, but not so hot for the Celtics and Nets and Pacers, who are fighting Charlotte for the East's last playoff spot.
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That helping hand, though, might not be enough to get Charlotte into the postseason. The Hornets sit 1.5 games back of the No. 8 seed in the East with eight games to go, including pivotal trips to Indiana and Miami this week.
20. Boston Celtics
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Kudos to the Boston Celtics for hanging around the playoff picture as long as they have, despite circumstances that suggest they shouldn't. The C's are tied with the Heat for the No. 8 seed in the East after taking care of the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday, 100-87.
Should the Celtics survive that particular rat race, they'd be treated to what figures to be a first-round flattening at the hands of the Atlanta Hawks and, as Grantland's Zach Lowe wrote, a road out of the NBA's mediocre middle that's uncertain at best:
"...they have no stars and no clear path to getting one outside a major break in free agency or the trade market. The Celtics have made the leap to mediocrity so fast that they may have no easy way out. They're still not good, but they're not bad enough to get an early first-round pick—to get a clear shot at a star, in other words. Even if they lose this season's slap fight for the final Eastern Conference playoff spot, they will likely pick in the late lottery—a range that looks like their draft ceiling for the next few seasons.
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Not that Boston is bound to toil for the foreseeable future. Celtics general manager Danny Ainge has a track record of flipping the sorts of solid assets he has now for championship-caliber talent (see: the summer of 2007). So does his protege, Houston Rockets brainiac Daryl Morey.
As Lowe went on to discuss, whenever another star is made available via trade, Boston will be prepared to pounce. Until then, the C's might have to get used to life on the treadmill.
19. Miami Heat
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Things went from bad to worse for the Miami Heat in the blink of an eye Thursday. Halfway through the second quarter, with the Heat already trailing the Cleveland Cavaliers by 21 points, Dwyane Wade took a nasty spill that knocked him out of the game and left him with a bruised left knee.
"It could have been worse," Wade said afterward, per the South Florida Sun Sentinel's Ira Winderman. "I knew I was in trouble on my way down."
The Heat can ill afford to lose him for long. The loss in Cleveland dropped Miami into a dead heat with the Celtics, just a game-and-a-half up on the Hornets and two on the Pacers, with seven games to play.
The Heat's remaining schedule wouldn't be too daunting for many teams, but for Miami sans Wade, it might be just enough to knock this snakebitten squad back into the lottery.
18. Phoenix Suns
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It seems clear now that this just isn't the Phoenix Suns' year. They did just about all they could to become the third team this season to take down the mighty Golden State Warriors in Oakland on Thursday night.
But T.J. Warren's star turn down the stretch and Eric Bledsoe's lead-taking layup with five seconds left weren't enough to save the Suns from extending their five-game skid. Harrison Barnes' buzzer-beater was the fifth suffered by the Suns in 2014-15. Worse still, it added to Phoenix's league-leading tally of losses by five points or fewer (16).
This latest loss leaves Phoenix 4.5 games back of the No. 8 spot in the West, with two teams (Thunder and Pelicans) to leapfrog. In other news, somewhere in Arizona, a nail is being driven into a coffin.
17. Milwaukee Bucks
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The Milwaukee Bucks are all about seeing the future in their present nowadays.
According to the Journal Sentinel's Charles F. Gardner, the Bucks will unveil a new color scheme (green, blue and cream) and logo before the end of the regular season. Milwaukee won't get another close look at Jabari Parker until next season, though the rookie has already resumed some on-court activities after tearing his left ACL in mid-December.
"It's good to see him back on the floor, and he's going in the right direction," head coach Jason Kidd said, via the Journal Sentinel. "It's step by step. He's done a great job with being patient and doing everything he's been asked for the rehab."
In the meantime, as Grantland's Zach Lowe wrote, Kidd can and likely will continue to experiment with Michael Carter-Williams in the post: "It's not an ideal configuration, given MCW often shares the floor with at least two other non-shooters, but coaxing him into the post should be a good way to maximize his size and minimize the damage from his broken jumper."
That approach paid off Wednesday, when Carter-Williams bullied his way to 21 points and 10 rebounds in a 95-91 win over the Chicago Bulls.
16. Washington Wizards
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Watch your mirrors, folks. John Wall is getting into warp speed, just in time to spark his slumping Washington Wizards.
During a recent three-game stretch, Wall averaged 30.3 points, seven rebounds, eight assists and 2.7 steals while knocking down 44.4 percent of his threes. He might have extended that spurt to four games, but his Wizards were able to handle the stink-bomb Sixers without Wall playing big minutes.
It would be a bummer to see Wall's next-level ball wasted in one round with a Washington team that might be dead in the water come playoff time. But even if that's the case, we'd all get at least four games of Wall going bonkers to keep the Wizards close.
15. Utah Jazz
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It should be clear by now that no love is lost between the Utah Jazz and Enes Kanter.
The Jazz and their fans welcomed Kanter back to Salt Lake City with something less than warmth when the Oklahoma City Thunder came to town. The crowd booed Kanter during introductions, and the team they supported handed the visitors a 94-89 loss. As has become commonplace, Rudy Gobert, who's seized Kanter's former starting spot with his massive hands and monstrous wingspan, held down the middle to the tune of 13 points, 15 rebounds and four blocks.
Kanter kicked things off by tossing some shade in the general direction of his former squad and its town of residence.
"I think the difference is, I like playing basketball there," Kanter said before the game, via ESPN's Royce Young. "I think that's the most important thing. I never liked playing basketball before in my NBA career, and this is the first time I felt like playing basketball there, for my team, for the fans, for my teammates for my coaches, for everybody. So, that's the first time."
"Hey, he can say what he want to," Trevor Booker told Jazz radio when asked about Kanter's thoughts on Utah, via Sporting News' Jordan Heck. "We know what we got here, it's a great organization, great team, we know what we have. Forget what he says, he got his stats, but, as always he took the L."
One good shade deserves another.
14. Brooklyn Nets
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Brook Lopez turned 27 Wednesday, but it was the former All-Star who gave the biggest gift of the night. With the game tied and the clock winding down in the fourth quarter, Lopez was at the rim to eventually tip home a miss by Deron Williams and give the Brooklyn Nets a 100-98 win over the Knicks.
"D-Will got a good look. He was being aggressive like he had been all night. I was right there around the rim and just tried to keep it alive," Lopez said, per ESPN.com.
In doing so, Lopez also kept alive Brooklyn's resurgent playoff hopes. The win was the Nets' fifth in a row and moved them into sole possession of seventh place in the East.
13. Toronto Raptors
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At this point, the Toronto Raptors will take whatever wins they can get while Kyle Lowry is out with back spasms. This past week brought a string of three in a row, with the Lakers, Rockets and Timberwolves playing the victims.
Therein, the Raptors not only moved into the No. 3 spot in the East but also secured their second straight Atlantic Division title. Say what you will about how bad the Atlantic is, but for a franchise without much of a glorious history, the Raptors, as with Lowry on the mend, will take what they can get.
12. Oklahoma City Thunder
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The Russell Westbrook Show rolls on for the Oklahoma City Thunder, and for good reason. This past week alone, Westbrook averaged an astounding 33.7 points, 9.3 rebounds and eight assists in three games, including a triple-double against the Dallas Mavericks.
Beyond the production, it's Westbrook's attitude and leadership that have helped to keep OKC afloat in the West's ultra-competitive playoff picture. Sports Illustrated's Lee Jenkins wrote: "He gives the Thunder a psychological edge not unlike what the Ravens enjoyed with middle linebacker Ray Lewis. They know they’re riding with the baddest dude in the room, and he is firmly on their side, dispensing his jet fuel."
But unless there's enough fuel to propel the Thunder out of the No. 8 seed in the West, Westbrook and Co. seem doomed to a short stint in this year's postseason.
"Golden State will beat them in four," one general manager predicted to NBA.com's David Aldridge, "and one of the games will be less than double digits."
11. New Orleans Pelicans
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The New Orleans Pelicans are still alive in the playoff hunt, but their hopes are hanging by a thread. On the one hand, a mere game-and-a-half separates the Pelicans from the Thunder, over whom New Orleans owns the season tiebreaker, with a three-game winning streak intact.
On the other hand, the Pelicans' schedule down the stretch is brutal. Of New Orleans' final eight outings, five will come on the road, and six will feature opponents at .500 or better.
OKC's closing schedule is no cupcake either, but the odds of the short-handed-but-battle-tested Thunder hanging on are much better than are those of the young Pelicans pecking their way up the order.
Whatever happens from here on out, the onus will be on New Orleans' front office to surround Anthony Davis, already one of the NBA's best, with better talent this summer.
The Times-Picayune's Jimmy Smith added: "This season, as last, has been a struggle for the emerging talent, carrying an unfair portion of the burden to win because there are barely enough complementary players around him to make this team a one-time contender, much less a perennial one."
10. Dallas Mavericks
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The Monta Ellis-Rajon Rondo connection has had its ups and downs on the court. A 7-of-21 shooting performance from Ellis and a 108-101 loss to the Houston Rockets for the Dallas Mavericks on Thursday count among the latter.
Off the court, though, these two seem to be getting along just fine, for what it's worth.
“That's like my brother," Rondo said of Ellis to Grantland's Jason Gallagher. "We're very supportive of each other. We have a lot of similarities. When you kinda…have the same background, it's just easy to relate. That's how our relationship grew."
That doesn't mean this basketball odd couple will come together in time to spark the Mavs to a deep playoff run. Nor does it guarantee that these guys will stick together in Big D this summer.
What it does mean, though, is that any concerns about conflict between Ellis and Rondo are probably overblown.
9. Portland Trail Blazers
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The Portland Trail Blazers, the NBA's comeback kids, got a comeuppance of their own from the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday.
The Blazers built a 19-point lead in the second quarter before letting the visiting Clippers chip away in what turned out to be a 126-122 loss for the home team. It was just the third time all year that Portland dropped a game it led at the start of the fourth quarter.
"Look, you hate losing games," Blazers coach Terry Stotts said after the game, per ESPN.com. "You hate losing at home, and you hate losing to a team that you might see in the playoffs. There's a lot of things not to be happy about tonight."
Indeed, these two teams are currently on track to meet again later this month. Given the Clippers' 3-1 season-series tally and the extent to which Chris Paul has destroyed Damian Lillard at times, the Blazers had better hope that the seedings sort out in such a way as to keep L.A. away.
8. Memphis Grizzlies
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If the Memphis Grizzlies were dark-horse title contenders before, they might as well be slinking in the shadows right now. The Grizzlies got their hindquarters handed to them by three of the league's top championship hopefuls (the Cleveland Cavaliers, Golden State Warriors and San Antonio Spurs) by nearly 20 points per outing before finding their footing against the Sacramento Kings on Monday.
Neither side of the court served Memphis well in those blowout losses, though the team's inability to score, despite sporting more small-ball lineups, is particularly disconcerting. As Grantland's Zach Lowe wrote, "Classic Jeff Green: The small-ball lineups Dave Joerger is using more, with Green at power forward, look tremendous but don't actually produce."
Lowe went on to note that groups with Green at the 4 could pay off. And now that the Grizzlies have just two back-to-back sets remaining on their schedule—after slogging through a league-high eight between the All-Star break and the end of March—they may well have enough rest and practice time on their hands to get their house in order in time for the postseason.
7. Chicago Bulls
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The Chicago Bulls lost to the Bucks on Wednesday, but if you noticed a pep in their step at all during that meeting, there was a good reason for it. Derrick Rose is back at practice, and though he still has some work to do before he's ready to play in an actual game, his teammates seem to be encouraged by what they've seen.
"It's a big morale boost," Taj Gibson said on Tuesday, per Bleacher Report's Sean Highkin. "It's up there with watching a rookie who overcame so much adversity. Now you see Joakim (Noah) out there, and then you see Derrick coming in there, and just that old attacking personality, how he is.
"He's back in the hunt, talking trash, hitting threes, running back up and down the court. And it's good to know that even while he was hurt, he was still paying attention to detail. It's only a matter of time before he's back out there going up and down the way he normally is."
The team to which Rose returns will be in pretty swell shape. Prior to that defeat in Milwaukee, the Bulls had claimed five of six. A Sunday showcase against the Cleveland Cavaliers will be a tremendous test of just how far Chicago has come in the absence of its former MVP.
6. Atlanta Hawks
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Like Lupe Fiasco, the Atlanta Hawks are kick-push-coasting for the time being.
Mike Budenholzer sat his entire starting lineup in a loss to Charlotte. Two nights later, the Hawks returned to beat the Bucks, 24 hours before Coach Bud tested out some unorthodox platooning in a loss to the Pistons.
"We wanted to really give the starting group with Jeff (Teague), Kyle (Korver), DeMarre (Carroll) and Paul (Millsap) a lot of reps together and a lot of time together," Budenholzer said, per ESPN.com. "The same thing for the second group. We've used a lot of different combinations, so tonight we wanted to give the two main groups all the reps."
Atlanta has the leeway to treat what remains of the regular season as if it were the preseason. Whatever the Hawks do until the playoffs isn't particularly important. They've already sewn up the No. 1 seed in the East. Meanwhile, the Golden State Warriors have practically claimed the league's best overall record.
5. Los Angeles Clippers
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Hate the Los Angeles Clippers if you please, but do give them credit for keeping things interesting by playing the part of WWE-style heels.
They've already established solid rivalries with the Grizzlies and Warriors and now seem set to do the same with Portland. On Wednesday, the Clippers staged a 19-point comeback, sparked by an uncomfortable collision between Chris Paul and Chris Kaman, to beat the Blazers in Rip City, 126-122.
That may be just the beginning of the unpleasantries between these two West Coast clubs. Two weeks from now, they may be going toe-to-toe in a best-of-seven series as the fourth and fifth seeds in the Western Conference.
Is anyone else excited to see that?
4. Houston Rockets
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In a seesaw contest in Texas, the Houston Rockets came out on top over the Mavericks, with help from James Harden's supporting cast. Jason Terry, Josh Smith and Corey Brewer all came up big to erase a six-point fourth-quarter deficit and deliver the Rockets a 108-101 win Thursday.
Harden had earned the help. His game-high 24 points paled in comparison to the career-high 51 points—his second 50-point game in the last two weeks—he scored to carry Houston to a 115-111 victory the night before.
At this point, the Rockets will need all of the hands they can get on deck if they're to hang onto the No. 2 seed ahead of a host of hard-charging rivals.
3. San Antonio Spurs
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If there's anything to take away from the San Antonio Spurs' recent hot streak, it's that health is and will always be paramount to success in the NBA. The Spurs have won five in a row, eight of nine and 15 of 18 dating back to late February, thanks to the renewed fitness of their roster.
According to at least one Spur, that improved fitness isn't just a physical matter.
"I think it's also about the mental part. We've been trying to, we've been going at people," Manu Ginobili told NBA.com's David Aldridge. "It looked like in February we were just waiting for things to happen, or we were trying to get it easy. It looks like the last few games, we've started to go after teams and value more possessions than before. It's been great to see them do it. I watched. But from the outside, you could see more times than before the team that we want to be."
If the Spurs keep this up, they'll be every bit the team they want to be (i.e., a legit title defender) by the time the playoffs roll around—assuming they haven't reached that point already.
2. Cleveland Cavaliers
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If you want to know what makes this hubbub about LeBron James calling plays so silly, let the man himself break it down for you.
"Why wouldn't you give me the freedom for play-calling? That's like telling Peyton Manning or Tom Brady, don't give them the freedom to change in the huddle," James said, according to Northeast Ohio Media Group's Joe Vardon. "I'm a smart, cerebral basketball player, my basketball IQ is very high, and I take that very seriously, so I know what best suits our team and our coaching staff does as well."
They all made that clear Thursday. James' Cleveland Cavaliers scrubbed the Quicken Loans Arena floor with his former team, the Heat, 114-88. They had the game well in hand before Dwyane Wade went down with a bruised left knee.
The Cavs weren't exactly whole themselves. Kevin Love got the night off to rest his achy back.
But if this game is played in the postseason—and it figures to be, with the way the seedings are sorting out—Cleveland would probably have some help from Love, along with another level of offensive ruthlessness.
1. Golden State Warriors
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We've officially reached the point at which the Golden State Warriors are basketball magicians and the regular season is a top hat chock-full of rabbits.
On Tuesday, the Warriors almost nonchalantly erased a 17-point deficit against the Clippers and held L.A.'s league-leading offense to just 18 points in the fourth to claim a 110-106 win. Two nights later, the Dubs fought through sloppy play to beat the Suns on what amounted to a buzzer-beater by Harrison Barnes. Both victories came without Draymond Green, who spent those evenings resting his sore shin.
You can understand, then, why Steve Kerr looks like a guy who's playing with house money—and doubling up, at that—whenever he's on camera. His team, with its 11-game winning streak, is and has been on such a roll that the basketball gods have to be behind it...right?
Josh Martin covers the NBA for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter.
