NBA Power Rankings: Celtics continue to be best team in league; LeBron makes scoring history

NBA Power Rankings: Celtics continue to be best team in league; LeBron makes scoring history.

As the calendar flips to March, the NBA is in the stretch run of its 2023-24 regular season. With a little over a month left, teams will vie for seeding as the playoffs quickly approach.

While the standings shuffle, one constant has remained the entire season — the Boston Celtics have been the best team in the league this season. A historic win over the Golden State Warriors continues to cement that.

Meanwhile, the Western Conference remains loaded. The Oklahoma City Thunder have gained some space in first place to start this new week.

LeBron James also made league history this past week, becoming the first player to eclipse 40,000 career points. This comes a year after he became the league’s all-time leading scorer.

Let’s look at this week’s edition of Thunder Wire’s NBA power rankings for the week of Feb. 27 to March 4:

Rookie Wire Power Rankings: Victor Wembanyama remains No. 1 post-All-Star break

Rookie Wire took a look at the top first-year players over the last two weeks of the 2023-24 season.

The NBA enters the last two months of the regular-season schedule with teams positioning themselves for the playoffs entering .

The rookie class continues to impress nightly with players contributing at a high level on playoff contenders and other teams in the hunt. The group has been one of the most memorable in recent memory, headlined by Victor Wembanyama and Chet Holmgren.

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They have established themselves as the top rookies and are the front-runners for Rookie of the Year as a result. The two 7-footers have dazzled seemingly every time they step onto the court and have had some strong performances.

To make sense of it all, we looked at the best recent performances of these first-year players and ranked them in the Rookie Wire Power Rankings. The rankings are not for Rookie of the Year purposes but to illustrate the best players week to week.

NBA Power Rankings: League enjoys All-Star break; Celtics remain dominant

NBA Power Rankings: League enjoys All-Star break; Celtics remain dominant.

It was a light week around the NBA as it enjoyed its 2024 All-Star break. The weekend extravaganza marked the unofficial halfway point of the 2023-24 regular season.

Returning to its original format, the East defeated the West, 211-186. Milwaukee Bucks guard Damian Lillard was named the All-Star MVP.

The top of the West remains the same: the Minnesota Timberwolves, Oklahoma City Thunder, LA Clippers and Denver Nuggets. Meanwhile, the Boston Celtics remain a dominant force and are the only team to reach 40-plus wins.

Let’s look at this week’s edition of Thunder Wire’s NBA power rankings for the week of Feb. 12-19:

Rookie Wire Power Rankings: Victor Wembanyama maintains No. 1 spot after historic performance

Rookie Wire took a look at the top first-year players over the last two weeks of the 2023-24 season.

The regular season is past the trade deadline and approaching NBA All-Star Weekend, with the top players in the game set to compete in various events in Indianapolis, Indiana.

The crop of rookies continues to perform well this season, resulting in some remarkable performances of late. Led by Victor Wembanyama, Chet Holmgren, Brandon Miller, Scoot Henderson and others, they have captured national attention and have been fascinating at times.

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The class will be represented in the Rising Stars game, as 11 first-year players will participate in the revamped exhibition. Including 10 sophomores, and seven players from the G League, the game will feature the top up-and-coming players.

To make sense of it all, we looked at the best recent performances of these first-year players and ranked them in the Rookie Wire Power Rankings. The rankings are not for Rookie of the Year purposes but to illustrate the best players week to week.

NBA Power Rankings: NBA trade deadline over; 4-team logjam at top of West

NBA Power Rankings: NBA trade deadline over; 4-team logjam at top of West.

The 2024 trade deadline is over, which means contenders have cemented their rotations as they prepare for the stretch run of the regular season and playoffs.

The 2024 All-Star break is also fast approaching, as the four-day extravaganza will be held in Indiana this upcoming weekend.

Out East, the Boston Celtics continue to be the best team in the league as they’re the first to reach 40 wins. The Cleveland Cavaliers have been one of the hottest teams in the league recently.

Meanwhile, the Oklahoma City Thunder, Minnesota Timberwolves, LA Clippers and Denver Nuggets are in a four-team logjam for the top of the West. The first-placed and fourth-placed teams are separated by just half a game.

Let’s look at this week’s edition of Thunder Wire’s NBA power rankings for the week of Feb. 5-11:

NBA Power Rankings: All-Star rosters announced; Sixers suffer catastrophe

NBA Power Rankings: All-Star rosters announced; Sixers suffer catastrophe.

As the calendar flips to February, the 2023-24 regular season is mere days away from the NBA trade deadline. This will give contenders one last chance to make significant upgrades on their roster before the playoffs.

This past week also saw the All-Star rosters fully announced as the league prepares for the weekend festivities. The best players this season were recognized.

The Boston Celtics and Oklahoma City Thunder continue to be two of the best teams in the league this season. Meanwhile, the Minnesota Timberwolves celebrated sending three representatives to the All-Star game.

Meanwhile, it’s a doomsday scenario with the Philadelphia 76ers, who’ve lost MVP candidate Joel Embiid for an extended period with a knee injury. It will likely cost him a chance to repeat as MVP due to the 65-game minimum requirement.

Let’s look at this week’s edition of Thunder Wire’s NBA power rankings for the week of Jan. 29 to Feb. 4:

Rookie Wire Power Rankings: Hornets’ Brandon Miller rises up past Chet Holmgren

Rookie Wire took a look at the top first-year players over the last two weeks of the 2023-24 season.

Over half of the NBA season is in the books as teams and players around the league look ahead to the trade deadline and All-Star break in the next two weeks.

The trade chatter figures to ramp up considerably before the deadline on Feb. 8, with several teams expected to be active. The impending rumors and other speculation should once again create plenty of storylines to watch over the next several days.

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The league announced the All-Star starters for each conference last week and will unveil the reserve players on Thursday. Though there likely won’t be a rookie announced as an All-Star, the class will be well-represented during the NBA Rising Stars game on Feb. 16.

To make sense of it all, we looked at the best recent performances of these first-year players and ranked them in the Rookie Wire Power Rankings. The rankings are not for Rookie of the Year purposes but to illustrate the best players week to week.

NBA Power Rankings: Timberwolves whimper; Clippers silence Celtics

NBA Power Rankings: Timberwolves whimper; Clippers silence Celtics.

The 2023-24 regular season is in the dog days of January but this past week provided some fireworks as four players scored 60-plus points including a pair of 70-point outings by Joel Embiid and Luka Doncic.

The 2024 All-Star starters were also announced this week, which means we’re a step closer to the All-Star break as teams grind out the busiest part of their schedules.

A pair of bad losses have rocked the Minnesota Timberwolves a bit, who’ve lost possession of first place in the Western Conference standings to the Oklahoma City Thunder. Meanwhile, the LA Clippers blew out the Boston Celtics — LA looks every bit of a title contender.

Let’s look at this week’s edition of Thunder Wire’s NBA power rankings for the week of Jan. 22-28:

NBA Power Rankings: Celtics slip against Nuggets; Thunder tame Timberwolves

NBA Power Rankings: Celtics slips against Nuggets; Thunder tame Timberwolves.

The 2023-24 NBA regular season continues to play through the dog days of the calendar. January has been a jam-packed month for several teams as the All-Star weekend approaches.

Before then, the Feb. 8 trade deadline nears. The first major domino fell when Pascal Siakam was dealt to the Indiana Pacers. Expect more moves to trickle in.

The Boston Celtics continue to be the best team in the league despite a close loss to the Denver Nuggets this week. Meanwhile, the Oklahoma City Thunder handed the Minnesota Timberwolves their second home loss of the season.

Let’s look at this week’s edition of Thunder Wire’s NBA power rankings for the week of Jan. 15-21:

Rookie Wire Power Rankings: Wemby retakes No. 1 amid minutes restriction

Rookie Wire took a look at the top first-year players over the last two weeks of the 2023-24 season.

The schedule has reached the midway point of the 2023-24 season, as most teams around the NBA have played in at least half of their games to this point.

The halfway mark of the season serves as a milestone of sorts for the rookie class. Players who have appeared in most of their games have likely already surpassed their previous career high for games in a season, given that college teams typically play fewer than 40 games a year.

As cliche as it may be, the group could soon begin to hit the infamous rookie wall with the rigors of the schedule and other obstacles factoring into play. In other words: The second half will serve as a litmus test to see who is prepared for the stretch run.

To make sense of it all, we looked at the best recent performances of these first-year players and ranked them in the Rookie Wire Power Rankings. The rankings are not for Rookie of the Year purposes but to illustrate the best players week to week.