.png?w=1280)
NBA Playoff Power Rankings with Knicks Rising, Warriors Down Bad In Chaotic Round 2
We've made it to the second round of the 2025 NBA playoffs, and these conference semifinals have been legitimately bonkers.
Home teams restored a little order toward the end of the week, but the visitors still have a winning record in this round.
And while everyone else is seemingly beating each other out of contention, the Oklahoma City Thunder are still cruising.
They and everyone else are sorted below by our typical criteria: recent performance, team and individual numbers, championship chances (which is itself heavily influenced by which side of the bracket each team is on) and plenty of subjectivity.
Championship odds via FanDuel Sportsbook.
8. Golden State Warriors (+3500)
1 of 8
Previous Rank: 8
Playoff Net Rating: 1.3
Conference Semifinals: 1-1
It should come as little surprise that the Golden State Warriors' offense looked, to put it mildly, drab in their blowout Game 2 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Thursday.
Without Stephen Curry, who could miss the remainder of the series with a hamstring strain, scoring is going to be grueling.
And it's not like they got lucky with the team they happen to be facing when their offensive engine went down. The Timberwolves, with Rudy Gobert, Jaden McDaniels and Anthony Edwards, would've been a challenge to score on even with a healthy Curry.
Without him, the Warriors might be drawing dead.
They snuck a win in Game 1 and could get a little boost going back to Golden State, but this team's path out of the second round suddenly looks mighty narrow.
7. Denver Nuggets (+1700)
2 of 8
Previous Rank: 7
Playoff Net Rating: -5.5
Conference Semifinals: 1-1
The Denver Nuggets shocked the NBA world in Game 1 against OKC, erasing a 14-point second-half deficit and winning on a last-second three-pointer from Aaron Gordon.
But in the very next game, OKC reminded Denver why it's such an overwhelming favorite in this series, winning 149-106.
The Nuggets allowed themselves to be bullied, pushed around and generally dominated on both sides of the floor. The length, switchability and activity of OKC's perimeter defenders completely shut Denver down. And the floodgates seemed to be open all night.
The Nuggets sneaking out one win in OKC was a remarkable feat, but it probably shouldn't change expectations for either team too much.
6. Minnesota Timberwolves (+1000)
3 of 8
Previous Rank: 4
Playoff Net Rating: 4.7
Conference Semifinals: 1-1
Despite an easy win on Thursday and Curry's absence nearly guaranteeing a trip to the conference finals, the Minnesota Timberwolves still slipped a bit in this week's power rankings.
The first reason is how clunky their offense looked against the Curry-less Warriors in Game 1. It looked like they'd hopped in a time machine and returned as the early-season squad that was still struggling to integrate Julius Randle.
Minnesota's attack looked more comfortable in Game 2, but not so much as to inspire a ton of confidence heading into their next (likely matchup).
Being in the West almost certainly means the T'Wolves will have to beat the Oklahoma City Thunder to make the Finals. And that feels like a long shot.
5. Cleveland Cavaliers (+850)
4 of 8
Previous Rank: 3
Playoff Net Rating: 19.6
Conference Semifinals: 0-2
The Cleveland Cavaliers are down 2-0 to the fourth-seeded Indiana Pacers after dropping consecutive games at home.
And while no one seems to be dealing with serious injuries, Darius Garland, Evan Mobley and De'Andre Hunter all missing Game 2 has to be concerning.
Even if they're back for the next contest, there's a chance they won't be 100 percent. And whether they are or not, Cleveland's bigger problem might be its inability to contain Tyrese Haliburton and the offense he's engineering.
Even with Donovan Mitchell erupting for 48 points in the last loss, the Cavs couldn't summon enough offense to keep pace.
4. Boston Celtics (+340)
5 of 8
Previous Rank: 2
Playoff Net Rating: 9.2
Conference Semifinals: 0-2
When the playoffs started, it felt like the Boston Celtics were the biggest threat to the Thunder winning the championship. That remained true after a five-game series against the Orlando Magic.
Even in the first halves of their two games against the New York Knicks, Boston seemed like the right pick to come out of the East.
But the Celtics blew each of those contests in spectacular fashion, thanks to terrible three-point shooting, an inability to contain Jalen Brunson in the clutch and Kristaps Porziņģis' long-term struggles with a viral ailment.
The series isn't over, but Boston now has to win four of the next five to advance, with three of those games being in Madison Square Garden.
Right now, the mathematical odds against them feel a little stronger than the Vegas odds that still have them as the conference's title favorite.
3. Indiana Pacers (+1400)
6 of 8
Previous Rank: 9
Playoff Net Rating: 6.7
Conference Semifinals: 2-0
The Indiana Pacers are on the other side of a similar "math vs. Vegas odds" conundrum.
The Cavs still have shorter odds to win the title, but their chances of escaping the second round feel mighty slim right now.
Thanks to an absurd comeback that ended with a Tyrese Haliburton game-winner, the Pacers are up 2-0 without playing a game at home in this series.
The series now shifts back to Indiana, where the team is 25-7 (when you include the playoffs) since December 9 (which cuts off the underwhelming 10-15 start to 2024-25).
Even if the Cavs get a couple of their regulars back and manage to steal a game on the road, the Pacers will have a significant advantage going back to Cleveland up 3-1.
2. New York Knicks (+1100)
7 of 8
Previous Rank: 6
Playoff Net Rating: 0.6
Conference Semifinals: 2-0
A pair of 20-plus-point comebacks in Boston have Brunson and the Knicks surging toward their first conference finals appearance since 2000.
And while is still feels too early to completely bury the Celtics, it's clear that New York's combination of length on the wings (with Mikal Bridges and OG Anunoby), size inside (with Karl-Anthony Towns and Mitchell Robinson) and general grit (thanks in large part to Josh Hart) are bothering the typically unbotherable Boston offense.
All of that backing up Brunson, who's averaging 29.4 points, 7.6 assists and 2.8 threes in the postseason, makes the Knicks feel like a near-lock to win two out of the next five potential games.
1. Oklahoma City Thunder (+125)
8 of 8
Previous Rank: 1
Playoff Net Rating: 20.1
Conference Semifinals: 1-1
The Nuggets probably aren't quite as bad as their 43-point loss on Wednesday suggests, but OKC probably isn't as bad as its Game 1 collapse suggests either.
The truth about this matchup probably lies somewhere in the middle of Denver's two-point win and the subsequent blowout, which of course still favors the Thunder.
They simply have too much high-end perimeter defense for the Nuggets to solve. As long as the officials allow them to play as physically as they did in the first two games, they can even bother Nikola Jokić.
And with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander seemingly finding his rhythm (after averaging 21.0 points on 33.3 percent shooting in his first two playoff games, he's at 34.0 points on 51.7 percent shooting over the last four), OKC likely has more than enough offense to back that defense up.
The Thunder are still overwhelming favorites to win this series. And with each passing round, they feel like a safer bet to win the title.
