The Miami Heat and Houston Rockets soar up our rankings after slow starts to the season, while the Memphis Grizzlies and Los Angeles Clippers slide back after hot ones.
| Ranking | Team | Record | nERD | Last Ranking | Plus/Minus |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20 | Portland Trail Blazers | 22-16 | 48.6 | 22 | 2 |
| 19 | Minnesota Timberwolves | 17-21 | 49.2 | 20 | 1 |
| 18 | Memphis Grizzlies | 18-19 | 49.3 | 15 | -3 |
| 17 | New Orleans Pelicans | 17-22 | 50.4 | 15 | -2 |
| 16 | Los Angeles Clippers | 21-16 | 51.6 | 12 | -4 |
| 15 | Dallas Mavericks | 18-19 | 52.1 | 14 | -1 |
| 14 | Miami Heat | 18-18 | 52.4 | 19 | 5 |
| 13 | Houston Rockets | 22-15 | 53.3 | 17 | 4 |
| 12 | Charlotte Hornets | 18-19 | 53.5 | 11 | -1 |
| 11 | Utah Jazz | 18-20 | 53.9 | 13 | 2 |
Risers
The Miami Heat have been on the rise in our rankings lately, going from 23rd to 19th to 14th in just two short weeks. They've now won 11 of their last 16, and have moved into sixth place in the Eastern Conference with a record of 18-18. We give them a fairly commanding 81.6% chance of making the postseason at this point, and they're doing it all without Goran Dragic, who is out at least another 4-to-6 weeks following arthroscopic knee surgery.
Remember when the Houston Rockets were 9-11 and a member of the bottom-10 of our power rankings? My, how things have changed. They've gone 12-4 since November 30th, and have rocketed (pun very intended) up to fourth place in the Western Conference in the process. They've won six in a row -- all without Chris Paul (hamstring) -- and James Harden is playing like a guy that wants to win back-to-back MVP awards.
WHAT. A. PERFORMANCE.
😳 @JHarden13 (44 PTS, 10 3PM, 15 AST, 10 REB) records his 3rd 40+point triple-double of the season and hits the game-winning triple for the @HoustonRockets in Oakland! #Rockets pic.twitter.com/7fz1zU6YkR
— NBA (@NBA) January 4, 2019
The Memphis Grizzlies are spiralling out of control, going 3-10 over their last 13 after starting the season 15-9. A little over a month ago, the Grizz sat at the top of the Western Conference standings and were flirting with our top-10, and now they've slipped to 10th in the conference and are on the verge of tumbling into our bottom tier. It's hard to say where they'll land when all is said and done, but we only give them a 17.4% chance of making the postseason at this point.
The Los Angeles Clippers are another team that were flying high just over a month ago, but that have come crashing back to earth since then. They racked up a 15-6 record to start the season, and sat atop the Western Conference at the end of November. Since December 1st, however, they've gone 6-10 and slipped back to sixth. We still give them a 63.4% chance of making the postseason, so they haven't fallen off as hard as the Memphis Grizzlies, but they still need to get back on track. On the plus side, they have a pretty easy schedule coming up, with six of their next eight being played at home, and only two of those coming against opponents with records north of .500.