Here at the ICT Zone our rankings are molded after Ric Flair's famous quote, "to be the man, you gotta beat the man." The week's ranking are based solely on the week's results so if a lower ranked team defeats a higher ranked team, the two teams automatically swap rankings.
The Northwest Division has flexed its muscles this week, with three teams from the division being in the top 5 (Thunder, Timberwolves, and Trail Blazers.) The only surprising team is the Timberwolves, who suddenly got hot going into the All Star Break, despite (or because of) Andrew Wiggins sitting out the last couple games with an illness. While the team is a long shot to make the playoffs, it's nice to see a team that's been ravaged by injuries all year have a good week.
The Memphis Grizzlies have descended to where they were expected to be after trading away longtime center Marc Gasol at the Trade Deadline. Unfortunately, they are too far ahead of the worst teams in the league to be serious contenders for the Zion Williamson sweepstakes in the draft this summer. Side note: poor Mike Conley does not deserve to be on such a miserable team.
Here are the current NBA Power Rankings, as determined by Ric Flair's legendary quote, "To be the man, you gotta beat the man":
1. Boston Celtics +18
(37-21)
2. Oklahoma City Thunder +1
(37-19)
3. Minnesota Timberwolves +20
(27-30)
4. Orlando Magic +2
(26-32)
5. Portland Trail Blazers +10
(34-23)
6. Milwaukee Bucks -2
(43-14)
7. Detroit Pistons
(26-30)
8. Toronto Raptors
(43-16)
9. Denver Nuggets +11
(39-18)
10. San Antonio Spurs +20
(33-26)
11. Sacramento Kings
(30-27)
12. Indiana Pacers +1
(38-20)
13. Charlotte Hornets +8
(27-29)
14. Atlanta Hawks -2
(19-38)
15. Miami Heat -6
(26-30)
16. Washington Wizards +9
(24-34)
17. Houston Rockets -15
(33-24)
18. Golden State Warriors -13
(41-16)
19. Philadelphia 76ers -5
(37-21)
20. Dallas Mavericks -2
(26-31)
21. Los Angeles Lakers -20
(28-29)
22. New Orleans Pelicans
(25-33)
23. Los Angeles Clippers -6
(32-27)
24. Chicago Bulls +4
(14-44)
25. Brooklyn Nets -9
(30-29)
26. Utah Jazz
(32-25)
27. Phoenix Suns
(11-48)
28. Cleveland Cavaliers -4
(12-46)
29. New York Knicks
(10-47)
30. Memphis Grizzlies -20
(23-35)
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