The Atlanta Hawks and Brooklyn Nets slide down, and the Orlando Magic leapfrog 'em both.
| Ranking | Team | Record | nERD | Last Ranking | Plus/Minus |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 30 | Sacramento Kings | 16-34 | 22.6 | 30 | 0 |
| 29 | Phoenix Suns | 17-34 | 28.2 | 29 | 0 |
| 28 | Chicago Bulls | 18-33 | 31.8 | 28 | 0 |
| 27 | Atlanta Hawks | 15-36 | 33.8 | 26 | -1 |
| 26 | Brooklyn Nets | 19-33 | 36.1 | 25 | -1 |
| 25 | Orlando Magic | 15-35 | 36.2 | 27 | 2 |
| 24 | Memphis Grizzlies | 18-32 | 40.1 | 24 | 0 |
| 23 | Los Angeles Lakers | 19-30 | 42.0 | 23 | 0 |
| 22 | Dallas Mavericks | 16-35 | 42.4 | 22 | 0 |
| 21 | New York Knicks | 23-29 | 44.1 | 21 | 0 |
Risers
It's not really that the Magic played well enough to jump two spots in our rankings this week, it's just that the Hawks and Nets each played worse and fell below them in nERD. After starting the season 8-4, the Magic have gone 7-31 since November 11th, including three big losing streaks of nine, nine, and seven contests. They may be risers this week, but make no mistake about it -- they stink.
Fallers
The Hawks have lost four of their last five and now sit dead last in the Association with a win-loss record of 15-36. It's a miracle they're not lower in our rankings, but they're certainly headed that way.
The Nets beat the Philadelphia 76ers last night, but it was their first win in five contests. Prior to that, they lost their three previous matchups by an average of 18.3 points per game, thus the drop this week.