Power Rankings: Week 14

This is when it gets interesting ladies and gents. The NBA is over the hump and heading to the straight away. The pressure will mount on some young teams trying to make the playoff push. Teams like Memphis, Oklahoma City, and Milwaukee. Who can handle the heat? For teams like this, the last month and a half is the playoffs. It becomes a grind. Every game is vital and can make or break a youthful ball club.

Looking on the other side of the spectrum, the Lakers and Cavs are still on top of the mountain, with Atlanta, Denver, and Utah climbing and trying to catch up. The Jazz is a push, but they have found their stride. They are winning without Carlos Boozer and Deron Williams in the lineup. Paul Millsap is playing well and continually improves on a night to night basis. However, this is the West, and running into the brick wall is inevitable. Ask the Phoenix Suns on that one. They are falling fast and the safety net is nowhere in sight. Steve Nash has to bring them out of the dark again because Amare Stoudemire doesn’t have it in him.

I talk to much. Here are the Power Rankings through The Ref’s eyes…

Biggest Gain: New Orleans (+7)
Biggest Loss: Houston (-5)

1. Cleveland (38-11) 8 game winning streak, a sweep of the Lakers, and complete dominance at home (19-3) is more than enough reasons to keep the Cavs at number 1 for a little while.
2. LA Lakers (37-11) The Kobe saga continues. The Lakers own the Celtics and the West. They are ending their 8 game road trip and coming home to face of the Nuggets this week. Can’t Wait.
3. Denver (32-15) I am going to accept that blowout loss against the Thunder as a “Hey, we are tired, we just won 9 games in a row, and we can let this one go.” However, I will not accept that when they face off against the Lakers on Friday, with or without Carmelo Anthony.
4. Atlanta (30-16) The Hawks are back and playing like they did in the beginning of the year. Jamal Crawford continues to run away with the sixth man award. He’s the MVP of the team and is getting better and more comfortable in Mike Woodson’s system.
5. Orlando (32-16) A good rebound week for Stan Van Rama and the Houdini’s. They won three in a row including a blowout over the Hawks. Let’s see what happens this week.
6. Utah (28-18) The Jazz have won 9 out their last ten and look like they are firing on all cylinders… without their two best players. Millsap and Ronnie Brewer are stepping up and it can only pay dividends down the road entering the playoff season.
7. Dallas (30-17) The Mavericks are reeling and need to make a move before the deadline if they think they can compete for the Western Conference crown this June. Josh Howard, you are on the trading block.
8. Boston (29-16) Losers of 6 out of their last 8 and no sign of the bleeding stopping. The Celtics have lost their identity. They are nowhere as good as they were in the title year. Maybe half. Ray Allen is now on the trading block. Expect him to go to Chicago.
9. Portland (28-21) As long as this team continues to win without Travis Outlaw and Brandon Roy, they will stay in the top 10. Simple.
10. New Orleans (26-21) The Hornets just loss Chris Paul for pretty much the remainder of the season, but I am not writing them off yet. Darren Collison gives defense’s problems and the front court presence of David West and Emeka Okefor are established. Something that wasn’t there when Paul went down earlier in the season.
11. San Antonio (27-19) The Spurs are 10-16 against teams with .500 record and better and only 8-9 on the road. I can’t defend them anymore. With this lineup, they should be competing with the Lakers at this point. They’re 9 games back.
12.Oklahoma City (26-21) The 2 wins against Denver and Golden State were needed badly. I was afraid they were on the downward slide, but Scott Brooks always seems to always get through to the young core. They are one of the most resilient teams in the league; their best quality as a team.
13.Memphis (25-21) The Grizzlies came back down to Earth after their incredible 11 game home winning streak. Let’s see how they handle hitting the wall when they face LA and Cleveland this week.
14.Phoenix (28-21) The team is not making the playoffs. Channing Fyre is playing like he did when he was on the Blazers, Jason Richardson couldn’t hit the ocean if he fell out of a boat, and Steve Nash’s back is slowly wearing out. Tick Tock.
15.Toronto (26-22) With the Raptors playing so well, Chris Bosh will stay for the remainder of the season. Now, I wonder what will happen if they can make a deep playoff run. They face off against the Celtics if the season ended today. They would give them a countless amount of problems.
16.Chicago (23-22) 13-4 with Kirk Hinrich in the lineup. That’s amazing. Who could have ever predicted that? They should trade him now… for Ray Allen. Then, the possibilities are vast.
17.Houston (25-22) With Trevor Ariza struggling from the floor and Aaron Brooks finding out he can’t do it by himself, the Rockets are ready to deteriorate if they don’t find another scoring option.
18.Charlotte (24-22) Just when I thought they were going to go downhill. They win 3 games on the road, in a row. They are now 5-2 in 2010 away from Charlotte. Good resolution.
19.Miami (24-23) The Heat continue to ride the D-Wade wave, but how long until another internal blow up? Erick Spolestra can’t contain another one… can he?
20.Milwaukee (20-25) Where did Carlos Delfino come from. He has single handedly brought this team together with his stellar and consistent play. He takes a lot of pressure off Brandon Jennings, who is starting to settle in his role.
21.Philadelphia (16-31) The Sixers have a lot of work to do and get something in return to help this team now and in the future. 1. Get rid of Samuel Dalembert. 2. Get rid of Elton Brand. 3. Play Lou Williams more, he will find his way back.
22.New York (18-29) The Knicks are losing left and right and against teams they were once a lot better than, but losing to the Wizards and Minnesota by +15 margins is ridiculous.
23.LA Clippers (20-27) What an embarrassment. I wonder what excuse Michael Dunleavy is going to use this time. Maybe, it’s the “Oh wait, I am supposed to coach basketball tonight, not curling.” Alright, that joke was bad, but it’s serendipitous.
24.Sacramento (16-30) I defended Kevin Martin last week. I can’t anymore. It’s simple mathematics. They are a bad team with him in the lineup. Kevin Martin is on the trading block.
25.Washington (16-30) Caron Butler’s struggles continues and as do the Wizards. If it wasn’t for Earl Boykins, they would have given New Jersey their only win streak this season.
26.Indiana (16-32) The Pacers have no unity, no leader (sorry Danny Granger), and no coach (not sorry Jim O’Brien).
27.Golden State (13-33) At least the development of Stephen Curry is nice to watch. Maybe, Donnie Boy will let him play like he did at Davidson. I would pay to see that.
28.Detroit (15-31) With the lineup the Pistons have, I should have them lower than the Nets. They are terrible and no way of getting out of it. And who is the one that predicted Ben Gordon to be a terrible pickup. I need to start getting paid for this.
29.Minnesota (11-38) 2-1 this week for the T-Wolves. Kevin Love and Al Jefferson combined for 47 points and 22 points against the Knicks, pretty impressive, even though it’s against the Knicks.
30.New Jersey (4-42) At this point, I really do feel bad for the Nets. The Nets had a chance to be 3-0 this week, but suffered heartbreaking losses to the Sixers and Wizards. You’re really bad if you have heart wrenching losses to teams like that.

This is The Ref signaling I’m out until next time and remember: We miss calls, you miss lay ups.