Our weekly NBA power ranking, from first to worst. With the injury-riddled Celtics losing three of five, who took their place in the Top-3? Are the streak-snapping Hawks good enough to crack the Top-10? And have the slumping Suns fallen out of the top half of the League? Read More »

Our weekly NBA power ranking, from first to worst. Were the Lakers able to hold onto the top spot after back-to-back losses last weekend? How far up have the Jazz moved on their current nine-game win streak? And just how bad are the Raptors really? Read More »

So it’s been a while since we’ve done one of these: The All-Star Weekend got in the way, then last week DimeMag.com had been knocked out of commission pretty much all day Friday. With the All-Star break and the trade deadline in the past, how is the League looking going into the playoff stretch?

1. Los Angeles Lakers (48-10) – Leave it to the L.A. fans to start talking 72 wins … when their team already has 10 losses in February. Really, though, there’s not much to nit-pick with their squad. The defense has slipped since Andrew Bynum got hurt, but the offense has been good enough to compensate. We do need Phil Jackson to do one thing, though: Get Shannon Brown some more PT. That kid is an animal. Maybe one of the highest verticals in the League, and he looks like he’s on that Major League Baseball weight-training plan.

2. Boston Celtics (46-13) – Injuries to Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce were the big stories of the team’s recent six-game West Coast trip (that included the All-Star break), but the real story should have been Rajon Rondo. He went for 17.1 points, 7.5 boards and 8.8 assists while facing a lineup of Chris Paul, Jason Kidd, Deron Williams, Steve Nash, Chauncey Billups and Baron Davis. Read More »

1. Los Angeles Lakers (40-9) — You have to give it to them after last night’s win at Boston, but somebody needs to remind L.A. fans you don’t get a trophy for winning the regular season series. The Lakers’ defense has struggled without Andrew Bynum, but at the same time, Pau Gasol’s production has gone past “All-Star” numbers into “MVP” territory (28.6 ppg, 14.3 rpg since Bynum’s injury), Lamar Odom had his first 20-point game of the season, and Kobe reminded us all that he’s still Kobe.

2. Boston Celtics (41-10) — Kobe’s 61. LeBron’s 52-10-11. Paul Pierce can’t go into MSG tonight and drop 15 points and continue thinking he’s better than those two. Speaking of numbers, has anyone noticed that Rajon Rondo is currently sixth in the League in assists?

3. Cleveland Cavaliers (39-9) — Before you go and hand Kobe (sans Bynum) the MVP, don’t forget LeBron. His 52-point effort against the Knicks pulled him into a first-place tie with D-Wade for the League scoring lead. With Kobe just one point behind those two, how sick would it be for this to come down to a David Thompson/George Gervin-esque three-way battle on the last day of the season? Read More »

Our weekly NBA power ranking, this time starting at the top…

1. Los Angeles Lakers (35-9) — Andrew Bynum is starting to earn what almost every great big man has to earn: entire fan bases who hate him for throwing his weight around. Cleveland still hasn’t forgotten when AB popped LeBron in the face on MLK Day. And now Charlotte fans will never forget what he did to Gerald Wallace. Meanwhile, the whole “Kobe’s supporting cast is great” argument took a hit when L.A. completely fell apart the moment Kobe walked off the floor in the Bobcats game.

2. Boston Celtics (38-9) — Eddie House, already a first team All-Garbage Time selection, is making a strong campaign for a Three-Point Shootout invitation. He knocked down eight threes against the Kings, dropped seven on the Mavs, and another seven on Miami in the last week. Meanwhile, his team has won nine in a row.

3. Orlando Magic (35-10) — For everyone who’s already printing the t-shirts for a Celts/Cavs Eastern Conference Finals, slow down: Remember that Orlando has won seven of its last nine games against LeBron’s team, and if these two meet in the second round, it’s anybody’s series. Read More »

Our weekly NBA power ranking, from worst to first…

30. Los Angeles Clippers (9-32) — Finally snapped the losing streak at 12, but lost Marcus Camby in the process. With Camby, Kaman, Zach and Baron all nursing injuries, the Clips may want to consider having somebody carry Al Thornton and Eric Gordon from the plane to the hotel.

29. Memphis Grizzlies (11-30) — Last time we checked, Marc Gasol seems to have toned down the, um, baggage-handling at the free throw line. Do you think somebody in the organization had to have a talk with him?

28. Golden State Warriors (13-30) — Last-second finishes, triple-overtime games, more buckets than a 3BA game … at least they’re keeping it interesting.

27. Sacramento Kings (10-33) — At least last week’s triple-OT win over the Warriors will earn the Kings a spot on that “Top 10 Games of the Year” show this spring. Read More »

Our weekly NBA power rankings, from worst to first…

30. Los Angeles Clippers (8-29) — Helped along by four games of 20-plus boards and 12 games of 15-plus, Marcus Camby has worked his way into a tie with Dwight Howard for the NBA’s rebounding title, currently at 13.8 rpg through Monday. Meanwhile, his team has lost 11 straight games.

29. Oklahoma City Thunder (6-33) — Judging by what the three rookies have done since the Dunk Contest voting was announced, we’ll have to go with Russell Westbrook. Read More »

As we wrap up this holiday season and the calendar year, the Hit List recaps the best gifts received by each NBA team in 2008…

30. Oklahoma City Thunder (3-29) — For Clay Bennett: Just enough apathy. Nothing against the fans who fought to keep the Sonics in Seattle, but back when something could have been done, the city’s bureaucracy failed to step up and stop Bennett and Stern from jacking their team.

29. Minnesota Timberwolves (6-25) — New uniforms, new court. Anything to start fresh in the post-KG era. Read More »

Our weekly NBA power ranking, from worst to first…

30. Minnesota Timberwolves (4-22) — The biggest hindrance to Al Jefferson’s All-Star application? His team. While Al is putting in work to the tune of 22.2 points, 10.3 boards and 2.0 blocks (including Saturday’s 34-13 hot plate for All-Star lock Yao Ming), the Wolves are just awful.

29. Washington Wizards (4-21) — What did Caron Butler do to deserve Mike James and DeShawn Stevenson as his starting backcourt?

28. Oklahoma City Thunder (3-25) — They still have the League’s worst record, but OKC deserves some credit for vastly improving over the last couple weeks. The highlight of this recent showing of a pulse was Friday’s win over the Raptors.

27. Golden State Warriors (8-20) — Was Jamal Crawford’s 50-point outing more or less impressive than the fact that GS held an opponent under 105 points? Read More »

Our weekly NBA power ranking, from worst to first…

30. Oklahoma City Thunder (2-23) — Signs of life? Kevin Durant and Co. had a big lead in an eventual loss to Memphis at home, then went out on the road and gave the Mavs and Spurs all they could handle. Sure, they don’t count moral victories in the pros, but it’s better than getting their heads bashed in repeatedly.

29. Minnesota Timberwolves (4-20) — In losing 10 straight, the Wolves have failed to crack 90 on the scoreboard five times. But hey, it’s not like they had a chance to get O.J. Mayo in the draft, right?

28. Charlotte Bobcats (7-18) — At the moment, the Jason Richardson trade wins the Chris Wallace/Pau Gasol Award for 2008-09. Especially if the ‘Cats flip Boris Diaw into Eddy Curry.

27. Washington Wizards (4-18) — What happened to JaVale McGee? He was building momentum as a rookie to watch, but since then has been M.I.A. Either JaVale hit the wall on Thanksgiving, or Ed Tapscott has a little Larry Brown in his game. Read More »