As the calendar flips to March, the NBA is in the stretch run of its 2023-24 regular season. With a little over a month left, teams will vie for seeding as the playoffs quickly approach.
While the standings shuffle, one constant has remained the entire season — the Boston Celtics have been the best team in the league this season. A historic win over the Golden State Warriors continues to cement that.
Meanwhile, the Western Conference remains loaded. The Oklahoma City Thunder have gained some space in first place to start this new week.
LeBron James also made league history this past week, becoming the first player to eclipse 40,000 career points. This comes a year after he became the league’s all-time leading scorer.
Let’s look at this week’s edition of Thunder Wire’s NBA power rankings for the week of Feb. 27 to March 4:
30
Washington Wizards (9-51)
Previous ranking: 30
Thanks to a 14-game losing streak, the Wizards have done the improbable and have tied records with the Pistons for the worst mark in the league. An impressive accomplishment considering how historically awful Detroit’s been this season.
29
Detroit Pistons (9-51)
Previous ranking: 29
The Pistons continue to be one of the worst teams in the league this season, although not at the historical rate that they were earlier this season. The good news is Cade Cunningham has had a nice stretch of games where he’s looked legit. If he can finish his season strongly, then Detroit can take solace in that.
28
Charlotte Hornets (15-46)
Previous ranking: 24
After four consecutive wins, the Hornets returned to their losing ways with a current four-game losing streak. It doesn’t sound like LaMelo Ball will return soon as head coach Steve Clifford said hasn’t made serious progress with his ankle injury.
27
Portland Trail Blazers (17-42)
Previous ranking: 27
The Trail Blazers snapped a nine-game losing streak with a pair of wins over the injury-depleted Grizzlies. The second consecutive victory featured an overtime thriller that saw Anfernee Simons score 30 points on Saturday.
26
San Antonio Spurs (13-48)
Previous ranking: 28
The Spurs returned home after nearly a month away on their annual lengthy rodeo road trip. In their first game back, Victor Wembanyama likely sealed his case for Rookie of the Year in an upset win over Chet Holmgren and the Thunder. The rookie center has had a historic season.
25
Memphis Grizzlies (20-41)
Previous ranking: 25
The Grizzlies have lost five in a row, including a pair of games against the lowly Trail Blazers. Memphis has dealt with an extremely poor hand with injuries as now Jaren Jackson Jr. — who’s been relatively healthy — has missed time with a quad injury
24
Toronto Raptors (23-38)
Previous ranking: 23
The Raptors got hit with major news this week when they announced All-Star Scottie Barnes suffered a broken hand. The injury will indefinitely keep him out of action with a little over a month left in the season. Toronto has had a rough season and Barnes’ injury is the latest example.
23
Brooklyn Nets (24-36)
Previous ranking: 26
After an adjustment period, interim coach Kevin Ollie has had the Nets play better basketball. They’ve won three of their last four games, including two straight double-digit wins over the Hawks. Mikal Bridges scored 38 points in their latest win on Saturday.
22
Houston Rockets (26-34)
Previous ranking: 21
It’s been a disaster of a season for the Rockets. After spending significant money to bring in veterans, they won’t even make the Play-In tournament barring a miracle. Houston also officially lost key contributor Tari Eason to foot surgery for the rest of the season.
21
Utah Jazz (27-34)
Previous ranking: 20
A 3-7 stretch has likely ended any fainting hopes of a late Play-In tournament push for the Jazz, who’ve cooled off after a hot start to their season. They’ll now focus on collecting more losses so they can keep their 2024 first-round pick, which is top-10 protected in a trade with the Thunder.
20
Atlanta Hawks (26-34)
Previous ranking: 22
The Hawks will need to get more wins without Trae Young if they want to keep their 10th seed. They only have a two-game lead over the 11th seed, so it’ll likely be a tight race down the stretch for the Play-In tournament spots. Atlanta has to survive without its franchise player or else.
19
Chicago Bulls (28-32)
Previous ranking: 19
Even without Zach LaVine, it looks like the Bulls will make a second straight Play-In tournament appearance this season. They continue to tread around mediocrity and have gone a fitting 5-5 in their last 10 outings. DeMar DeRozan led Chicago to a double overtime win over the Cavaliers with 35 points this past week.
18
Los Angeles Lakers (33-29)
Previous ranking: 18
LeBron James made history on Saturday when he became the first player in league history to score 40,000 points. He became the league’s all-time scorer last season. The Nuggets spoiled James’ achievement as they handed the Lakers a loss.
17
Indiana Pacers (34-28)
Previous ranking: 15
The Pacers have lost two in a row, including losing to the Spurs on Sunday. It’s nothing concerning right now but Indiana can’t afford to lose winnable games down the stretch due to seeding implications.
16
Golden State Warriors (32-28)
Previous ranking: 17
The Warriors have caught fire, winning seven of their last 10 games. It’s caused fans and media to buy back into the Golden State hype. But an embarrassing 52-point loss to the Celtics on Sunday cooled off any talks of the Warriors being serious threats, showing how far away they are from the best team in the league.
15
Dallas Mavericks (34-27)
Previous ranking: 9
It was a rough week for the Mavericks, who’ve lost three of their last four contests. This includes a blowout loss to the Celtics, a miracle game-winner by the Cavaliers’ Max Strus and a bad loss to the Embiid-less Sixers. Considering how thin the margins are in the standings, Dallas needs to snap out of its funk.
14
Philadelphia 76ers (35-25)
Previous ranking: 16
The Sixers have gone 5-5 in their last 10 contests, which is respectable enough considering Joel Embiid’s lengthy absence. They will need to stay above water so they aren’t forced to play in the Play-In tournament. The reigning MVP reassured his return this season.
13
Sacramento Kings (34-25)
Previous ranking: 8
The Kings lost two tough contests to the Heat and Nuggets but capped off their week with an impressive win over the Timberwolves. Malik Monk scored 39 points in their overtime win over Minnesota on Friday.
12
Phoenix Suns (35-26)
Previous ranking: 10
It was a rough end to the week for the Suns. In their loss to the Rockets on Saturday, they lost Devin Booker to an ankle sprain. The following day, they lost to the Thunder. Phoenix is running out of room for error as it barely holds a lead over the Play-In tournament teams in the standings.
11
New York Knicks (36-25)
Previous ranking: 13
It’s been a struggle for the Knicks recently. They’ve gone 3-7 in their last 10 games. Even in their win over the Cavaliers on Sunday, they lost Jalen Brunson to a bruised knee. If he misses time, it could spell trouble for New York.
10
Miami Heat (34-26)
Previous ranking: 12
The Heat have caught fire, collecting wins in 10 out of their last 30 contests. In their most recent win on Saturday, Jimmy Butler scored 37 points in a thriller against the Jazz. After hovering around for most of the season, it looks like Miami has collected momentum at the right time of the year.
9
Orlando Magic (35-26)
Previous ranking: 14
The Magic have also strung together a ton of wins recently, going 8-2 in their last 10 contests. They’ve won three in a row. Orlando will need to keep winning at its current rate to strive off the Heat, who are 0.5 games back at the 10th spot in the standings.
8
New Orleans Pelicans (36-25)
Previous ranking: 11
The Pelicans have been one of the more underrated teams in the league this season. Brandon Ingram and Zion Williamson have stayed healthy for the most part. New Orleans scored a franchise-record 48 first-quarter points in its win over the Pacers on Friday.
7
Cleveland Cavaliers (39-21)
Previous ranking: 5
The Cavaliers have hit a rough patch recently, splitting their last 10 contests. Donovan Mitchell has missed two straight games with knee soreness, a tough absence to overcome considering he’s played like an MVP candidate this season. An improbable Max Strus game-winner was the highlight of their week.
6
LA Clippers (39-20)
Previous ranking: 6
The Clippers capped off their week with an important win over the Timberwolves on Sunday. A two-game winning streak has LA hoping to turn the corner after a slow start following the All-Star break. It’ll need to happen without Russell Westbrook, who broke his hand this past week and could be out for a while.
5
Milwaukee Bucks (40-21)
Previous ranking: 7
It was a rough start, but the Bucks have found a rhythm with head coach Doc Rivers. They’ve won five in a row, with the last four by double-digit points. Granted, it’s been a soft stretch in their schedule, but tallying up wins over worse teams is what all contenders do.
4
Minnesota Timberwolves (42-19)
Previous ranking: 3
A two-game losing streak has knocked the Timberwolves out of first place. They will need to rack up wins to keep pace if they want home-court advantage throughout the playoffs.
3
Denver Nuggets (42-19)
Previous ranking: 4
The Nuggets have won six consecutive games, including three straight quality wins over the Lakers, Kings and Heat. Nikola Jokic has played like an MVP favorite this season and the reigning NBA champions are getting hot at the right time.
2
Oklahoma City Thunder (42-18)
Previous ranking: 2
A bad loss to the Spurs isn’t enough to drop the Thunder as they start the week in sole possession of first place thanks to a win over the Suns on Sunday. They’ve been a contender all season and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander could be on his way to his first career MVP award.
1
Boston Celtics (48-12)
Previous ranking: 1
The Celtics have been a regular-season monster this year. They currently own the longest active win streak in the league at 11 in a row. Their latest win was a 52-point wallop of the Warriors on Sunday. Boston has been clearly the best team this season and that likely isn’t going to change in the stretch run.
