NBA Power Rankings: Boston Falls (Jan. 10)

1. Cleveland - Rolling now, even with Big Z out. LeBron looks like he's leading the MVP race as well, with his unbelievable scoring and leadership.

2. LA Lakers - Doing just as well as Cleveland, but with a little less momentum. A little less from Cleveland will put them on top.

3. San Antonio - Just Plain and Simple. On a Roll.

4. Orlando - Not much reason to put them higher, or lower. Saw an incredible game against the Hawks, which earns them the No. 4 spot.

5. Denver - Still clinging onto the No. 2 seed in the West, but a few losses recently might put them below San Antonio, which still isn't bad. Melo out should also help the Spurs go ahead too. It's nice for them win without Anthony though.

6. Detroit - Even though they won against Denver, they are still below Denver. They are still trying to figure out what to do with some new star players and what to do with the old ones. Hopefully they will, and get on track.

7. New Orleans - Clicking with many alley-oops from Paul to Chandler, but aren't doing as well as they were last year. You'd think the young guys would only be doing better...

8. Dallas - They are playing like a championship team, although Dirk could learn not to grab any part of his body touched by a defender. Referees call basketball games, based on fouls, not boo-boos.

9. Portland - They aren't the No. 9 team in the league. They are the No. 9 team of the week.

10. Boston - Compared to other teams, should be way WAY lower, but it's insulting to put them under the top 10. Really though, they played like a 15, 16 team recently. Marbury looking good right about now...

11. Houston - While looking a little better than the Celtics, still not looking GREAT. Below .500 in the past 10, and only one win higher than the defending champs. And I can't seem to keep track anymore, which All-Star is injured now?

12. Atlanta - 50 points behind....speechless....

13. Miami - Chalmers, like the rest of the team, looks like he's going to be a streaky player. But at least the team is healthy, and looking towards the playoffs.

14. Phoenix - Shaq looks the greatest he's been since his last ring, but he's far from getting another. Looking from some more hustle plays from bench players.

15. Utah - Good

16. New Jersey - Also Good

17. Philadelphia - That ugly first part of the season? Better. Just better.

18. Milwaukee - They have to beat the "rolling" Wolves to keep their respect as a playoff(ish) team, but we'll see if streaks will beat skill.

19. Toronto - It's nice to see Andrea playing well without O'Neal. Let's hope he can keep it up with him, so they can put more wins in the column.

20. Chicago - While they did lose to Minnesota, the Wolves were looking good (look one rank below). They are chasing a playoff spot, with injuries, so they'll be good when they all get back.

21. Minnesota - I really don't care which teams they beat. They're on a roll and looking good. If they can beat Milwaukee tonight, they will shock us all going on a five-game winning streak against two semi-decent teams. And individually? Only Rashad McCants hasn't been playing well (or at all) recently.

22. Indiana - Granger unappreciated? Maybe. Indiana overappreciated? Yes. Better than (I personally) expected, but they aren't going to go much higher.

23. Charlotte - While only on a two-game losing streak, they are only better than 1 Eastern Conference team. And recently? Nothing's happened.

24. Memphis - Signing Miles just looks stupid. He's not getting them to the playoffs, and it could be a potential illegal move. Yikes...

25. New York - Just get Starbury out somehow, please? Then win a few more!

26. Golden State - Injuries suck, but so does the team. On the bright side, their current streak matches the champion Celtics. 

27. Washington - I like what Mike James has done to the team recently, but the team hasn't given us much of a reason to put them much higher then where they are.

28. Oklahoma City - Won two of their last 10, but they have won five. Ever.

29. Sacramento - They haven't lost 10 straight, but they have lost five, and only one win in the past 10. Brad Miller's only going to get older, too...

30. LA Clippers - When you lose 10 straight games, you are No. 30.