By: 48 Minutes Staff
1. Golden State Warriors (+1)
The Warriors currently hold a +13 Net Rating and are also top 10 in Pace, Offensive and Defensive rating.
Thought about simply copy-pasting my stats about Miami from last week and replacing them with Golden State's numbers. They are, basically, Miami-West, except their offense is even more impressive. Golden State was not only able to close the gap between them and the Heat, they completely took hold of the top spot.
2. Miami Heat (-1)
For the second week in a row, the Heat are near the top of the rankings. This week they fell victim to a Celtics team that was coming off a player only meeting. While it wasn't a pretty loss to Boston, this team was bound to have a dud after going on a 5-game win streak. The loss did drop them to now being the #3 overall offense and #4 overall defense in the NBA. That being said, they followed up the loss by getting a 118-115 win against Utah. The gap between Miami and Golden State closed significantly this week.
3. Brooklyn Nets (NR)
Rumors of the Brooklyn Nets' demise have been greatly exaggerated. The Nets have woken back up this week and are currently riding a 5 game winning streak. Kevin Durant continues his scoring assault on the league, and James Harden's assist numbers continue to be good enough for top 3 in the league on a nightly basis.
4. Philadelphia 76ers (NR)
Don't look now, but at the time of writing this (Monday evening), Philadelphia is number 1 in the East. They're currently riding a 6 game winning streak. Yes, they beat the Pistons twice in that stretch, but they've also beat Chicago twice & Atlanta. The shooting continues to be absolutely lights out, and their defense continues to find ways to get stops. I made my case for them on Shot Callers last week, and I'm doubling down. This team is GOOD. The 76ers are the #1 offense in the NBA going into the week, though we now know they will be without Joel Embiid and Danny Green, so it will be interesting to see how they will be able to hold down the fort.
5.Utah Jazz (-2)
The Jazz currently hold the 2nd best offensive rating to Philly (113.2) are 10th in defense (104.0) and 3rd in net rating (+9.3). Winning in Atlanta without Donovan Mitchell is impressive as hell. Losing to Orlando with Donovan Mitchell is not. we're still convinced it's going to be Utah and Golden State gunning for that top spot in the West, though.
6. Chicago Bulls (-1)
Two straight losses to the 76ers aren't something to be disappointed about, but how they lost those games is. A brutal fourth quarter from Zach LaVine in the first game and then their closing lineup letting their opportunity to win slip away Saturday. Big games this week vs the Nets, Mavs and Warriors to show how good they are or can be.
7. Cleveland Cavaliers (NR)
Welcome to the countdown, Cavs! Ricky Rubio went into the garden filling in for the now injured Collin Sexton and put on a show! 11 games in, and Evan Mobley has only failed to score in double digits 1 time, and is shooting 52% from the field. The kid is good. Combine his impressive start with Jarrett Allen playing at an All-Star level, and Darius Garland seeing a rise in shooting % across the board (except FT% where he's right at his average of 85%), and it's easy to see why Cleveland is currently in the middle of a 4 game winning streak and sitting at 6th in the East. The Cavs have yet to lose in November, so it will be fun to see how far this run takes them.
8. New York Knicks (-4)
The bing got bong'd this week. 1-3 this last week, albeit the lone win was an impressive 20+ point comeback against Milwaukee. The Knicks' defense has plummeted to near bottom of the league, but there is
9. Washington Wizards (-2)
Not too shabby for a few Laker rejects, right? 7-3, 5th overall in defensive rating and getting contributions from everyone in their rotation. Raul Neto has been a difference maker for this team... Never thought I'd type that.
10. Dallas Mavericks (NR)
Dallas, despite being in the cellar offensively and pedestrian defensively, sits at 3rd in the West. The play of Jalen Brunson has been extremely encouraging to start the season. Another player talked about on last week's Shot Callers, Brunson is turning into the answer to the question "Who's going to help Luka?". What's not encouraging, though? Luka leading the team in points, assists, and rebounds.
Other teams receiving votes: Milwaukee Bucks, Denver Nuggets, Phoenix Suns, Los Angeles Clippers
Agree? Disagree? Let us know over @48MinutesNtwrk on Twitter!
