The Cleveland Cavaliers and Phoenix Suns swap spots at the bottom, the Orlando Magic start to put things together, and the Washington Wizards fall apart for the umpteenth time this season.
| Ranking | Team | Record | nERD | Last Ranking | Plus/Minus |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 30 | Phoenix Suns | 11-48 | 18.7 | 29 | -1 |
| 29 | Cleveland Cavaliers | 12-46 | 19.6 | 30 | 1 |
| 28 | Chicago Bulls | 14-44 | 24.3 | 28 | 0 |
| 27 | Atlanta Hawks | 19-39 | 25.0 | 26 | -1 |
| 26 | New York Knicks | 11-47 | 26.8 | 27 | 1 |
| 25 | Memphis Grizzlies | 23-36 | 41.0 | 24 | -1 |
| 24 | Detroit Pistons | 26-30 | 42.5 | 23 | -1 |
| 23 | Washington Wizards | 24-34 | 42.9 | 22 | -1 |
| 22 | Orlando Magic | 27-32 | 45.6 | 25 | 3 |
| 21 | Brooklyn Nets | 30-29 | 47.7 | 21 | 0 |
Risers
The Cavaliers, Suns, and Bulls continue to trade off the honour of being our 30th-ranked team. The Cavaliers won a game this week, and since that's actually a big accomplishment among these three bottom-feeders, they climb out of last place.
The Magic have won five in a row and seven of their last eight. They're not just beating up on bad teams either, as they've amassed victories over the Indiana Pacers, Brooklyn Nets, and first-place Milwaukee Bucks over that span. At 27-32, they now sit only half a game out of eighth-place in the Eastern Conference, and we give them a 35.2% chance of making the postseason at this point.
Fallers
The Suns have lost 15 in a row and now have the NBA's worst record at 11-48. Fittingly, they reclaim the last spot in our rankings after a brief hiatus.
Not long ago, the Wizards looked like they might flirt with a late-season playoff push, but those hopes are fading fast. They're 3-7 over their last 10 and now sit three games out of eighth place in the Eastern Conference with a record of 24-34. We only give them an 11.0% chance of making it at this point.