NBA power rankings: New No. 1? Jazz, Warriors, Bulls climb while Nets, Lakers, Suns fall
* Through games played 10/27
1. Utah Jazz (3-0)
Last week: 5
Rudy Gobert had 23 points and 16 rebounds in a 122-110 victory over the Nuggets after the Jazz opened with wins over the Thunder and Kings. Now Utah gets a tough Saturday-Sunday road back-to-back against the Bulls and Bucks.
2. Golden State Warriors (4-0)
Last week: 11
The Warriors are 4-0 for the first time since 2015-16. They opened the season with a solid win over the Lakers and then rode a 45-10-10 triple-double from Stephen Curry to a two-point victory over the Clippers.
3. Miami Heat (3-1)
Last week: 6
Miami suffered an overtime loss to the Pacers, but Tyler Herro had 27 points in the Milwaukee massacre, Jimmy Butler poured in 36 in an easy win over Orlando and Bam Adebayo had 24 in a win over the Nets.
4. Chicago Bulls (4-0)
Last week: 10
The Bulls have been really good against bad teams, but the next 14 games are absolutely brutal with the Knicks, Jazz, Celtics, 76ers, 76ers, Nets, Mavericks, Warriors, Clippers, Lakers, Blazers, Nuggets, Knicks and Pacers.
5. Milwaukee Bucks (3-2)
Last week: 1
That 42-point loss to the Heat was just unsightly. The Bucks beat the Nets by 23 and posted double-digit victories over the Spurs and Pacers before losing to the Timberwolves.
6. New York Knicks (3-1)
Last week: 15
Julius Randle already has two 30-point games and the Knicks have already posted impressive wins over the Celtics and 76ers.
7. Charlotte Hornets (4-1)
Last week: 14
Miles Bridges is averaging 25.0 points, 8.5 rebounds and 2.3 steals for the Hornets, who opened the season with wins over the Pacers, Cavaliers and Nets.
8. Atlanta Hawks (3-1)
Last week: 8
Good win over the Mavericks to open the season and a good test coming up against the 76ers on Saturday.
9. Brooklyn Nets (2-3)
Last week: 3
The Nets are better than this. Kevin Durant is one of the sickest ballers on the planet and James Harden will adjust to these new rules, but right now it’s a struggle without Kyrie Irving.
10. Los Angeles Lakers (2-3)
Last week: 2
LeBron James has missed a couple of games with a sore ankle. Anthony Davis put up 35 points and 17 rebounds in Tuesday’s win over the Spurs, but the Lakers lost Wednesday to the Thunder.
11. Memphis Grizzlies (2-2)
Last week: 18
Ja Morant is averaging 35.0 points and 8.0 assists while shooting 58% from the field and 44.4% from 3-point range. He scored 40 against the Lakers.
12. Philadelphia 76ers (2-2)
Last week: 9
The 76ers have wins over the Pelicans and Thunder with losses to the Nets and Knicks. They clearly miss Ben Simmons – or whoever will eventually come in to replace his production.
13. Dallas Mavericks (2-1)
Last week: 13
Luka Doncic led the Mavs to back-to-back wins over the Raptors and Rockets following an ugly loss to the Hawks in the season opener.
14. Washington Wizards (3-1)
Last week: 22
Spencer Dinwiddie had 34 points in an OT victory over the Pacers after being held to 10 points on 3-of-13 shooting in a season-opening loss to the Nets.
15. Cleveland Cavaliers (2-2)
Last week: 24
Rookie center Evan Mobley has been outstanding, averaging 14.3 points, 8.3 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 2.0 blocks and 1.3 steals over the first four games.
16. Denver Nuggets (2-2)
Last week: 7
Reigning MVP Nikola Jokic went down with a right knee contusion in Tuesday’s loss to the Jazz, but coach Michael Malone doesn’t believe “it’s anything too, too serious.”
17. Minnesota Timberwolves (3-1)
Last week: 25
Karl-Anthony Towns is averaging 29.0 points, 9.3 rebounds and 2.3 blocks. He had 25 in Wednesday’s win over the Bucks.
18. Sacramento Kings (2-2)
Last week: 20
The Kings picked up a good road win over the Blazers to start the season, but they squandered second-half leads against the Jazz and Warriors.
19. Boston Celtics (2-3)
Last week: 12
The Celtics opened with losses to the Knicks and Raptors, but Jayson Tatum had 31 points in a win over the Rockets and 41 in an overtime win over the Hornets.
20. Los Angeles Clippers (1-2)
Last week: 16
Paul George already has a 40-point game for the Clippers, who opened with close losses to the Warriors and Grizzlies before beating the Blazers.
21. Phoenix Suns (1-3)
Last week: 4
The Suns need Devin Booker, Chris Paul and Deandre Ayton to step up their games. Frank Kaminsky led the team with five rebounds in Saturday’s loss to the Blazers.
22. Portland Trail Blazers (2-2)
Last week: 17
Damian Lillard is averaging just 17.0 points per game. He’s shooting 36% from the field and 8.3% (!) from 3-point range.
23. Toronto Raptors (2-3)
Last week: 21
The Raptors might be bad but rookie Scottie Barnes has been good, averaging 16.8 points and 8.5 rebounds.
24. Indiana Pacers (2-3)
Last week: 19
Tough start for coach Rick Carlisle. The Pacers could easily be 3-1 after suffering a 123-122 loss to the Hornets and a 135-134 OT loss to the Wizards.
25. Orlando Magic (1-4)
Last week: 29
The Magic has dropped three of four under first-year coach Jamahl Mosley, but Cole Anthony had 29 points, 16 rebounds and eight assists in a solid win over the Knicks.
26. San Antonio Spurs (1-3)
Last week: 27
The Spurs opened the season with a win over Orlando and held their own in losses to the Nuggets, Bucks and Lakers.
27. New Orleans Pelicans (1-4)
Last week: 23
The Pelicans lost three in a row to start the season before picking up a win over the Timberwolves.
28. Houston Rockets (1-3)
Last week: 30
Rookie Jalen Green erupted for 30 points in the third game of his career. He’s averaging 16.0 points, 3.7 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 1.3 steals and 1.0 blocks.
29. Detroit Pistons (0-3)
Last week: 26
No. 1 draft pick Cade Cunningham should make his NBA debut soon after missing the start of the season with an ankle injury, but it might be a while before the Pistons win one if they can’t beat the Magic at home on Saturday.
30. Oklahoma City Thunder (0-4)
Last week: 28
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is shooting 15.8% from 3-point range for the Thunder, which lost its first four games by an average of 18.5 points.
This story was originally published October 28, 2021 at 4:00 AM.
