With week 13 done, the NBA playoff picture is starting to take shape. While the Western Conference continues to be jam-packed, the same can’t be said for their East counterparts. For this week’s rankings, the familiar cellar-dwelling NBA teams have firmly occupied the worst spots while the top dogs have continued to battle it out on top.
With the trade deadline and the all-star break fast approaching, let’s take a quick look at the rankings of all 30 NBA teams after week 13.
Who are the top-ranking NBA teams after week 13 of games?
30. Washington Wizards (29)
Week 13 was not kind to the Wizards. They fell to an awful 0-4 slate against the Wolves, Suns, Kings, and Warriors. What makes things worse is that they are now on a 10-game slide. This is inarguably another awful season for this lowly franchise.
29. Utah Jazz (26)
With their fellow cellar-dwelling buddy – the Pelicans – winning, the Jazz are now back at the last spot in the Western Conference standings. They haplessly came out with a 0-2 record this week against the Hornets and the Pelicans. One positive note is that they are finally starting to play their young guys this season.
28. Toronto Raptors (28)
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We solely thought that Scottie Barnes was going to morph into the franchise guy this team needed to get back to relevance. While he’s all-star material, this team clearly needs to get its hands on a top-3 pick in this year’s draft. Going 2-1 this week was definitely an improvement, but reaching the playoffs is an afterthought now.
27. Charlotte Hornets (29)
With LaMelo back in the lineup, the Hornets now have won two straight games. They have a relatively easier schedule for the rest of January. If they could somehow win more than 50% of their games before this month ends, maybe they still have a fighting chance for a play-in spot this year.
26. New Orleans Pelicans (27)
With Zion Williamson back in the lineup after his one-game suspension, the Pelicans are now riding on a season-high three-game winning streak. Trey Murphy III is balling as of late, especially in the scoring department. Still, they have a tall mountain to climb if they ever want to have a chance for a play-in spot this season or gain some momentum in the weekly NBA rankings.
Also Read: NBA Power Rankings: All 30 NBA Teams Ranked From WORST To FIRST After Week 12
25. Brooklyn Nets (25)
Losers of three straight, nothing has gone right for the Nets since they traded away Dorian Finney-Smith a few weeks ago. The D’Angelo Russell reunion hasn’t panned out yet. Word is that they are trying to unload some assets before the February trade deadline.
24. Portland Trail Blazers (24)
The Blazers lost to the Nets, Clippers, and Rockets before edging out the Bulls to end week 13 with a 1-3 record. While their rankings have stalled, former 2nd overall NBA draft pick Scoot Henderson has been playing well as of late.
23. Philadelphia 76ers (23)
Losers of six straight, the 76ers are in panic mode right now. Joel Embiid continues to miss time due to a knee injury, and Paul George has been in and out of the lineup since the start of this season. Maybe Philly fans are better off just focusing their attention on the Eagles rather than the Sixers at this time of the year.
22. Chicago Bulls (20)
With Zach LaVine and Nikola Vucevic’s names constantly being mentioned in trade talks, the Bulls inevitably suffered from all the outside noise and have now lost five straight games. Oddly, with the Eastern Conference rankings relatively weaker this year, they are projected to reach the NBA play-in games in April.
21. San Antonio Spurs (22)
Even with Victor Wembayama’s brilliance on the court, the Spurs are on a three-game slide right now. What’s worse is that they have completely fallen outside the top 10 standings in the West due to their recent struggles. Maybe they need to push hard for the Jimmy Butler trade to improve their play.
20. Detroit Pistons (17)
The Pistons played a little bit sluggishly this week compared to how they entered the new calendar year. While winning against the Knicks was impressive, they faltered at the hands of Indiana and Phoenix to come out on a 1-2 record in week 13.
19. Golden State Warriors (21)
The Dubs won against the Wolves and the Wizards but inexplicably fell to the struggling Raptors this week. They should have gone 3-0 but missed some opportunities down the stretch, which eventually doomed their chances against Toronto. The Dennis Schroder trade hasn’t panned out as well as they had hoped.
18. Phoenix Suns (18)
The Suns lost to the Hawks but went on to win against the Wizards and the Pistons. Bradley Beal is adjusting well to his new sixth-man role for this team. However, trading wins and losses will not help them reach a top-10 spot in the weekly NBA rankings anytime soon.
17. Miami Heat (12)
The Heat went on an abysmal 1-3 in week 13 despite having Jimmy Butler back in the lineup. Nearly all of their losses were by double digits. They even lost by 20 points to the Nuggets. Is it time to break this team up and acquiesce to Butler’s trade demands?
16. Dallas Mavericks (11)
The Mavs are on a free fall right now in the weekly NBA rankings. The Nuggets made quick work of them, and the Pelicans defeated them after a missed call of a blatant goaltending violation. Sure, they won against OKC, but they were without SGA and Holmgren. They’d surely want to have Luka Doncic back before the all-star break.
15. Minnesota Timberwolves (16)
The Wolves had an up-and-down week, going 2-2. They are just 5-5 in their last 10 games, and there’s little hope of drastically improving their record this year. This might be it for this team’s ceiling. Julius Randle’s fit with this team remains questionable. His lowlights are slowly garnering some serious looks across multiple social media sites.
14. Sacramento Kings (15)
The Kings have won two straight games and are 9-1 in their last 10 games. Domantas Sabonis seems to be thriving under coach Doug Christie’s guidance, as he has posted monster numbers in the last couple of weeks.
13. Orlando Magic (8)
After spending the majority of time inside the top 10 of the NBA rankings this year, the Magic’s recent struggles are just too hard to ignore, and as a result, they slipped down a few spots and are now in an unfamiliar position this season. They are 3-7 in their last 10 while still missing a few starters in their lineup.
12. Los Angeles Lakers (10)
The Lakers posted wins against the Heat and the Nets this week but suffered losses to the Spurs and the Clippers. With just a 5-5 record in their last 10, it seems like their own bench guys are their weak spots. This team desperately needs some scoring punch from their role players.
11. Atlanta Hawks (19)
The biggest leapers in this week’s rankings, this Atlanta team has surprised everybody in the NBA recently, posting quality wins against upper-tier teams despite having a so-so roster. In all seriousness, I think that they need to enter their name in the Jimmy Butler sweepstakes. He’d be a perfect fit for this squad.
10. Los Angeles Clippers (14)
With Kawhi Leonard back, the Clippers sure look like a different team on the court. They are on a four-game winning streak right now and have gone 6-4 in their last 10 games. If Kawhi can keep this up, perhaps they can be pegged as a dark horse team in April.
9. Indiana Pacers (9)
It sure looks like the Pacers have found their groove back after a sluggish start this year. They are 8-2 in their last 10 games and have the potential for a higher seed in the East if they can keep their momentum for the rest of the season.
8. Milwaukee Bucks (13)
Coach Doc Rivers is ecstatic with how the Bucks are playing right now. They have won four straight games and went 7-3 in their last 10. Giannis Antetokoumpo is playing at an MVP level again. They are actively gunning for a higher seed in the East before the all-star festivities in February.
7. New York Knicks (4)
Week 13 was not kind to the Knicks. They fell to Detroit and Minnesota but managed to edge the Joel Embiid-less Sixers to compile a 1-2 record. Coach Thibodeau is getting flak from his critics for his insistence on playing his main guys heavy minutes, even in back-to-back games. Let’s just hope everybody stays healthy throughout the year.
6. Memphis Grizzlies (7)
The Grizzlies have won two straight games to cap off week 13 but have just gone 5-5 in their last 10 games. Their lone loss this week was against the Rockets, who continue to fend them off for the second seed in the Western Conference standings.
5. Denver Nuggets (6)
The Nuggets are starting to show that despite their record, they are still one of the top teams in the entire league. They went 7-3 in their last 10 and have looked like every bit of a contender in the process. Nikola Jokic is nearly averaging a 30-point triple-double this season.
4. Houston Rockets (5)
Except for a blunder against the Kings, the Rockets were pretty solid in week 13. They came out on top against the Grizzlies, Nuggets, and Blazers to end up with a 3-1 record. This is probably the highest ranking this team will get this season, as the top three NBA teams on this list are just well above them in terms of talent and experience. But who knows? Maybe the Rockets still have some magic up in their sleeves to surprise us later this year.
3. Boston Celtics (3)
It’s quite baffling that the Celtics lost to the hapless Raptors and the Hawks(again!) this week. Have they gone down a notch and are disinterested to repeat after winning it all last year? Don’t get me wrong, they are still good, but there’s something missing on the air for this squad this season. Or maybe they are just chucking up too many threes?
2. Oklahoma City Thunder (2)
Yeah…we know that the Thunder just beat the league-leading Cavs, but losing to an injury-riddled Mavs team, even without SGA, was an eyesore. It’s fairly obvious that Shai will win the MVP this year, but their fanbase has received a ton of criticism for prematurely anointing their team as this year’s champs despite the playoffs still being far away. Lofty expectations, we know. No doubt they are good, but can they be this good in the playoffs?
1. Cleveland Cavaliers (1)
Despite losing badly to OKC, the Cavs are still at the top of the weekly rankings. After week 13, they still have the best record in the entire NBA. Cleveland also has a better home and away record than OKC this season. They will be seriously tested before January ends, though, as they will be pitted against playoff-caliber teams in the next couple of weeks.
Also Read: Ranking All 30 NBA Teams’ Head Coaches From WORST To FIRST For The 2024-25 Season
