NBA: Power Rankings 3.0

The Clippers are rolling, winners of their last seven contests, boosting them to being tied for the best record in the league alongside the crosstown Lakers. The saying used to be Battle for LA but it looks like it'll be LA’s battle for the NBA this year. We're here for it. Utah is on an impressive run as well, knocking down eight straight since falling to the Knicks on Jan. 6. We also had a handful of 40 balls this week: Collin Sexton (42), Joel Embiid (41), Jaylen Brown (41), and Bam Adebayo (41).

1. Los Angeles Clippers (13-4, 100, +1): The Clippers are extremely hot, going 3-0 last week against Sacramento and Oklahoma City, and winning their last seven games. We hereby declare that Paul George shall bear the name “Pandemic P” no longer. He's averaging 23.9, 6.2 boards and 5.4 assists per game. Tyronn Lue's team has five players in double digits night in and night out and it's enough to put them atop of this week's rankings.

2. Los Angeles Lakers (13-4, 98, -1): On the other side of town, LeBron James and the Lakeshow dropped a game to Golden State before adding a couple of tallies in the win column with dubs over Milwaukee and Chicago. Anthony Davis seemed to have come out of his slump dropping a season-high 37 points in the win over his hometown Bulls. Despite being ranked 2nd this week, we still believe that the Lakers are the team to beat come June.

3. Utah Jazz (12-4, 96, +1): Utah has won eight straight games, including over Milwaukee (131-118), Atlanta (116-92), and Golden State (127-108) as they've become one of the best defensive units in the league. Donovan Mitchell (24.3 points, 5.0 assists) has looked better as the season continues and guys like Jordan Clarkson and Joe Ingles have made the second unit dangerous. It remains to be seen if this team can compete with the NBA's best but it's beginning to look that way.

4. Philadelphia 76ers (12-5, 94, +1): The 76ers have shifted to completely focusing their offense around Joel Embiid (27.7 points, 11.5 rebounds) and it's worked out so far despite Ben Simmons taking a step back. The 76ers rank 8th in offense and 12th in defense, and have picked up wins over New York (109-89), Orlando (116-92), and Boston (117-109) twice last week. Doc Rivers' team will look to keep it going agains the Lakers on Wednesday night.

5. Brooklyn Nets (10-8, 87, +4): It's kind of hard to put the Nets this high because they've lost eight games and have struggled on defense recently, but they've beaten each of the other top teams in the Eastern Conference: the Celtics (123-95), 76ers (122-109), and Bucks (125-123). Brooklyn, especially now with the addition of James Harden (24.3 points, 11.0 assists), should be the considered favorites to win the conference even if Philadelphia has played more consistently.

Other Playoff Teams:

6. Celtics (8-6, 86, +1)

7. Bucks (9-6, 86, -4)

8. Trail Blazers (8-6, 86, +2)

9. Nuggets (9-7, 85, +8)

10. Pacers (9-7, 84, -4)

11. Grizzlies (7-6, 79, +7)

12. Suns (8-7, 77, -4)

13. Cavaliers (8-7, 75, +2)

14. Warriors (8-8, 74, -1)

15. Hawks (8-7, 72, +6)

16. Knicks (8-9, 70, +4)

Rest of the League:

17. Spurs (8-8, 69, -5)

18. Mavericks (8-8, 67, -7)

19. Raptors (7-9, 65, +7)

20. Bulls (7-9, 60, +3)

21. Magic (7-9, 59, -7)

22. Rockets (6-9, 58, +5)

23. Hornets (6-9, 56, -7)

24. Heat (6-9, 54, +0)

25. Thunder (6-9, 53, -6)

26. Kings (6-10, 52, -1)

27. Pelicans (5-10, 47, -5)

28. Timberwolves (4-11, 47, +1)

29. Wizards (3-8, 44, -1)

30. Pistons (3-13, 42, +0)

MVP Rankings:

1. Joel Embiid (76ers, +1)

2. Nikola Jokic (Nuggets, +1)

3. LeBron James (Lakers, -2)

Defensive Player of the Year:

1. Myles Turner (Pacers, +0)

2. Rudy Gobert (Jazz, +1)

3. Anthony Davis (Lakers, -1)

Rookie of the Year:

1. Anthony Edwards (Timberwolves, +1)

2. LaMelo Ball (Hornets, -1)

3. James Wiseman (Warriors, +0)

Most Improved Player:

1. Julius Randle (Knicks, +0)

2. Jerami Grant (Pistons, +1)

3. Jaylen Brown (Celtics, -1)

Sixth Man of the Year:

1. Jordan Clarkson (Jazz, +0)

2. Montrezl Harrell (Lakers, +0)

3. Terrence Ross (Magic, +1)

Photo Credit: Essentially Sports.