NBA Power Rankings: Lakers Back on Top, Just in Time for Christmas

The Lakers and the Cavaliers will highlight the NBA's Christmas Day schedule, but at least at this point in the season, they are not the undisputed top two teams in the league. The Celtics are in that conversation somewhere, and seeing how they fare against the Magic as part of the league's five-game holiday lineup should give us some idea of where, exactly, that may be.

There was plenty of movement beyond the big three in this week's Rankings, so read on to find out where your team landed this week.

1. Lakers (23-4)
The Lakers and Celtics remain neck-and-neck atop the league, as most observers expected heading into the season. L.A. has left Southern California for a minute, but hasn't yet slowed down. Most impressive to me is the Lakers' stellar 13-4 record within the Western Conference. The Celtics have played a majority of their games (18 of 27) against the East, which is still inferior once you get past the top four teams. (Example: the West's 13th-place team, the Clippers, have a better record the East's 8th-place team, the Bobcats.) -- Tom Ziller
2. Celtics (22-5)
Winners in 13 of their last 14, there really isn't much to complain about in Boston. Kevin Garnett sat out Tuesday night's comeback win over the Pacers with a thigh bruise, and if he somehow isn't able to go on Christmas Day against the Magic, then that game just got a whole lot less interesting. -- BP
3. Cavaliers (21-8)
This team may have its occasional lapses, as it did in losing to a Dirk Nowitzki-less Mavericks team this week. But anyone that doesn't count the Cavs among the legitimate title contenders isn't paying close enough attention. These guys can defend as well as anyone when motivated, as they were Monday night in Phoenix. And even if Shaq turns out to not be the one to carry the club over the hump like they were hoping, as long as the team moves the ball offensively, they can beat anyone. -- BP

4. Magic (21-7)
Orlando keeps winning, and they've been doing so largely without any assistance from Vince Carter. VC's shooting has been dismal in December, and he's hitting shots at only a 39 percent clip for the month. He's been worse lately: 14-49 from the field in his last four games. But with the Magic getting wins in three of those outings, it appears as though they can afford to let him shoot through his struggles. -- BP

5. Hawks (20-7)
A little high perhaps considering the loss to the Bulls this week. But considering that the team is 8-2 in its last 10, and the game in Chicago was on the second night of a back-to-back (and it was the team's first two-game-in-two-night set in two weeks), we'll give them a pass. -- BP

6. Mavericks (20-9)
Better without Dirk Nowitzki? That was the case this week, beating the Cavaliers while Dirk sat out with a DNP-- TEETH IN ARM, then losing to the Blazers upon his return. -- BP

7. Nuggets (19-9)
The Nuggets have to learn how to play when a key player is out. They're 0-5 this season when either point guard Chauncey Billups, who quarterbacks the offense, or power forward Kenyon Martin, who leads the defense, is out. Billups has missed the past due to a groin strain and might miss a third Wednesday against Atlanta. The Nuggets remain dominant at home (12-1) but regularly take snoozes on the road, where they've lost four straight. And none of the four opponents -- Charlotte, Detroit, New Orleans and Memphis -- has a winning record. -- Chris Tomasson

8. Blazers (18-12)
Now, here's a team that can handle adversity. Bodies keep dropping, but these Trail Blazers have been more resourceful than Lewis and Clark. With center Greg Oden already done for the season with a knee injury, replacement Joel Przybilla went down with what is likely a season-season ending knee injury of his own in the first half Tuesday at Dallas. But gritty Portland, which has won four of five, still won 85-81. Trail Blazers will battle Denver at home on Christmas night. -- CT

9. Suns (18-10)
The Suns have flittered back to Earth a bit, just 4-7 in December thanks to a road-heavy schedule and the team's first home defeat, against Cleveland. This month has been totally brutal, and the Suns do have two great wins in recent weeks (against the Magic and Spurs). But it's clear the early heights of this team -- challenging the Lakers for the conference's best record -- were just a bit inflated by the schedule. Still, this is a surprisingly good team that instead of praying for the 8th seed should instead be in play for home-court advantage in the first round. -- TZ

10. Rockets (17-11)
So, Carl Landry loses teeth in a collision with Dirk Nowitzki, but only misses one game, before returning to score a career-high 27 points against the Clippers. I'd say Landry is among the toughest dudes on the game right now, but I wouldn't be telling you anything that we didn't learn last season, when he only missed eight games after being shot in the freaking leg! -- BP

11. Spurs (15-10)
San Antonio has a three-game winning streak, and all have been by a comfortable margin. The most recent, a 16-point victory over the Clippers, featured Theo Ratliff, Antonio McDyess, and Roger Mason combining for 32 points, 16 rebounds, and nine assists. I'm sure that was just the way Gregg Popovich had it planned. -- BP

12. Jazz (16-12)
Utah saved more than $9 million in a salary dump of promising rookie point guard Eric Maynor. Saving all that money, though, means the Jazz don't have to give away forward Carlos Boozer at the trade deadline even though he still could be moved. Utah is a tough bunch to figure out. The Jazz this month has beaten the Lakers, Orlando and San Antonio while losing twice to Minnesota. One of the defeats to the Timberwolves was at home. Egads. -- CT

13. Kings (13-14)
How excited does the monster 35-point comeback at Chicago have Kings fans? Watch the reaction when Jon Brockman checks in off the bench tonight, and you'll find out. The Kings have nearly sold out two home Christmas week games (against Cleveland and the Lakers), and there's good reason: the team is eternally competitive at ARCO, with a glistening 10-3 home record (tied for 4th in the conference) this season. The Kings fight for respect, as it will take more injuries above for Sacramento to have a shot at the eighth seed. But after a 17-win season, respect is enough. As the Bulls well know, this team never quits. We'll see if they can hold serve against a tough schedule this week. -- TZ

14. Grizzlies (13-15)
What's this? The Grizzlies all the way at 14? Trust me, it's with good reason. Memphis has won seven of its last 10 games, and the team's last two losses were against Boston and Atlanta -- perfectly understandable. And Zach Randolph has gone into beast mode lately, averaging just over 30 points and 19 rebounds in his last three games. -- BP

15. Heat (13-12)
The quote from Dwyane Wade about he and LeBron James plotting to possibly play together somewhere next season (understandably) sent everyone into a tizzy. Meanwhile, Wade is just trying to get through this one healthy, as a series of ailments and possible conditioning issues has Pat Riley justifiably concerned. -- BP

16. Knicks (11-17)
New York has won seven of its last 10 all of a sudden, and is getting contributions from just about everyone. Except Nate Robinson, that is, whose benching, for better or worse, seems to have been the right decision -- at least for this Knicks team as currently constructed. -- BP

17. Thunder (13-14)
Interesting Utah would hand an up-coming player such as Eric Maynor to a Northwest Division rival. The Thunder will take it, adding Maynor to its impressive stable of young talent. Oklahoma City does need a boost, having lost five of six. At least third-year forward Kevin Durant, who overall is having a top-notch season, bounced back with 30 points in Tuesday's tough 111-108 loss to the Lakers after he had averaged a pedestrian 17.3 points and shot very poorly in his previous three games. -- CT

18. Raptors (13-17)
The team remains up and down, currently "up" and on a mini-two-game winning streak. Chris Bosh continues to put up big numbers in his contract year, but you have to wonder if he wouldn't be the odd man out if that mythical LeBron-Wade pairing actually ends up going down somewhere next season.-- BP

19. Hornets (12-14)
Chris Paul has played heavy minutes since returning from injury, but that's really the only way that NOLA can compete on a consistent basis. He's averaging a tick under 40 minutes per game in December, which has helped him creep back up near the top of the league in assists -- he trails Steve Nash by just three tenths of a point for the league lead. -- BP

20. Bucks 12-14
Milwaukee showed plenty of promise in the past week, but they weren't able to get many wins in the process. Arguably should have beaten the Lakers at home, then came within three points of the Cavaliers on the road two nights later, before losing a heartbreaker by a single point to Tyreke Evans and the Sacramento Kings. -- BP

21. Clippers (12-16)
The Clips had a nicely segmented road trip this week, with games at Minnesota (big win), New York (disappointing loss) and Philadelphia (win) followed by San Antonio (massive loss), Houston (loss) and, on Christmas Day, Phoenix. That loss to the Knicks is exactly why the Clippers find themselves four games below .500: the team has no consistency whatsoever. While 2008-09's failure to compete could have been chalked up to injuries, that original core has been basically healthy ... and the team is still failing. Blake Griffin is the (still) missing piece, but let it be written that the 2008-09 Clippers would never have been competitive. We have proof now. -- TZ

22. Bobcats (11-16)
Gerald Wallace has certainly made the most of his 42 minutes per game in December. He's averaging 21.7 points, 12.5 rebounds, and one (possible) concussion over his 11 games this month. -- BP

23. Pistons (11-17)
Detroit's on a five-game losing streak, but it's really not their fault. Injuries have depleted the team to the point where Rodney Stuckey has led the team in scoring in each of the last four games. Any Pistons fan will tell you that that is by no means a good thing. -- BP

24. Wizards (9-17)
After completely giving up in the final game of their road trip, the Wizards came home and got their second win in the team's last three games. That's the good news. The bad news is, it was only against the Allen Iverson-less 76ers, and it was a struggle at that. -- BP

25. Bulls (10-17)
The Bulls have fired two head coaches on Christmas Eve: Tim Floyd and Scott Skiles. Vinny Del Negro has to be in line to be number three, because that's really the only explanation for his still being employed at this point. -- BP

26. Pacers (9-18)
Indiana has been competitive the last three games, barely losing in San Antonio and keeping things just as close in a loss to the Bucks. They also led by 15 points at halftime on Tuesday against a Celtics team playing without Kevin Garnett, before Boston flipped the switch and demolished them in the second half. Mike Dunleavy has been back for 14 games, but appears to be regressing a bit, going just 8-32 from the field and averaging seven points per game over his last three. -- BP

27. Warriors (7-20)
How tough have things been for the Warriors? They are in danger of falling behind the Timberwolves (who lost 15 straight this season) for Worst of the West designation. Golden State has dropped six straight, and have a road game at New Orleans tonight, followed by games against the Suns, Celtics, Lakers, Blazers and Nuggets. All that -- a very real possibility at a 12-game losing skid -- leads up to a showdown with Minnesota on Jan. 6. I'm sure neither team thought they'd be in a battle to avoid 15th place at any point this season, let alone nearly halfway through. -- TZ

28. Sixers (7-21)
The enthusiasm behind Allen Iverson's return has quickly gone away. A.I. managed to appear in just four games for his new (old) team, before swelling and pain in his knee forced him to the sidelines. They're calling it arthritis, and Iverson is scheduled to be back on the 28th. But don't hold your breath for any type of big turnaround from the Sixers this season. -- BP

29. Timberwolves (5-24)
At least the Timberwolves have put some distance ahead of the New Jersey Nets (2-28) to see who has the best chance of challenging Philadelphia's 1972-73 futility mark of 9-73. The Wolves have been helped by going 3-11 (hey, that's good by Minnesota standards) since forward Kevin Love returned from a broken hand. Of course, how much the Wolves really have progressed won't be known until after Wednesday's epic game at New Jersey. -- CT

30. Nets (2-26)
The Nets are riding a seven-game losing streak, and the losses have come by an average of over 17 points per game in that stretch. History awaits. -- BP