NBA Power Rankings: The Rockets Are Moving Up
With a couple of weeks in the 2020-21 NBA regular season in the books, it's time to take a look at numberFire's power rankings and see which teams saw the most movement since last week.
Teams will be ranked in terms of nERD, which is our efficiency metric based on in-game data. These ratings allow us to understand which teams and players are performing best. nERD is indicative of a team's expected winning percentage, so an average team will have a nERD score of 50.0.
Here's a look at how each team stacks up.
The Bottom 10
| Ranking | Team | Record | nERD | Last Ranking | Plus/Minus |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 30 | Minnesota Timberwolves | 5-15 | 26.0 | 30 | 0 |
| 29 | Detroit Pistons | 5-16 | 30.4 | T28 | -1 |
| 28 | Oklahoma City Thunder | 8-11 | 31.0 | T28 | 0 |
| 27 | Orlando Magic | 8-14 | 31.3 | 26 | -1 |
| 26 | Miami Heat | 7-13 | 32.3 | 24 | -2 |
| 25 | Chicago Bulls | 8-11 | 36.7 | 25 | 0 |
| 24 | Sacramento Kings | 9-11 | 37.4 | 27 | +3 |
| T22 | Washington Wizards | 4-13 | 37.8 | 18 | -4 |
| T22 | Cleveland Cavaliers | 10-11 | 37.8 | 23 | +1 |
| 21 | New York Knicks | 9-13 | 43.0 | 21 | 0 |
- The Miami Heat have dropped 9 of their last 12, and they currently possess the fifth-worst net rating in the league, according to NBA.com. Our model still gives Miami a 43.4% likelihood of making it to the postseason, but those odds are dropping by the day.
- In the West, the Sacramento Kings have won four of their last five. The Kings rank ninth in offensive efficiency through 20 games.
- Losers of 8 of their last 10, the Washington Wizards have dropped into the bottom-tier of our rankings. Despite having the worst win percentage in the league, numberFire's algorithm still gives the Wiz an 11% chance of reaching the playoffs.
The Middle of the Pack
| Ranking | Team | Record | nERD | Last Ranking | Plus/Minus |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20 | New Orleans Pelicans | 7-12 | 43.9 | 22 | +2 |
| T18 | Portland Trail Blazers | 11-9 | 44.5 | 17 | -1 |
| T18 | Charlotte Hornets | 10-11 | 44.5 | 19 | +1 |
| 17 | Golden State Warriors | 11-10 | 46.5 | 20 | +3 |
| 16 | Dallas Mavericks | 8-13 | 47.0 | 11 | -5 |
| 15 | San Antonio Spurs | 11-10 | 49.3 | 13 | -2 |
| 14 | Toronto Raptors | 9-12 | 50.7 | 14 | 0 |
| 13 | Memphis Grizzlies | 9-7 | 51.2 | 15 | +2 |
| 12 | Houston Rockets | 10-9 | 53.6 | 16 | +4 |
| 11 | Boston Celtics | 11-8 | 53.7 | 10 | -1 |
- After going through a stretch where they lost eight of nine, the New Orleans Pelicans have had victories over Washington and the Milwaukee Bucks in their last four games.
- The Golden State Warriors lost the first two games of the season by 26 and 39 points, respectively, but they have since played pretty solid basketball. Our models give the Warriors a solid 55.2% chance of attaining a postseason berth.
- With just 2 wins in their last 11 contests, the Dallas Mavericks are free-falling down our rankings. Dallas has the 11th-worst net rating in the league to date.
- Despite no longer having the services of James Harden, the Houston Rockets have come on top in six consecutive games. In fact, since the Harden trade, Houston has only lost one game by more than six points. In a totally weird coincidence (that sarcasm, in case you didn't pick it up), the Rockets have the league's best defensive rating in the 10 games since making the deal.
The Best of the Best
| Ranking | Team | Record | nERD | Last Ranking | Plus/Minus |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | Phoenix Suns | 11-8 | 53.8 | 12 | +2 |
| 9 | Indiana Pacers | 12-9 | 54.6 | 9 | 0 |
| 8 | Atlanta Hawks | 10-10 | 56.7 | 8 | 0 |
| 7 | Denver Nuggets | 12-8 | 60.3 | 7 | 0 |
| 6 | Philadelphia 76ers | 15-6 | 61.5 | 6 | 0 |
| 5 | Brooklyn Nets | 14-9 | 64.1 | 5 | 0 |
| 4 | Milwaukee Bucks | 12-8 | 70.4 | 2 | -2 |
| 3 | Los Angeles Clippers | 16-6 | 70.6 | 4 | +1 |
| 2 | Utah Jazz | 16-5 | 70.9 | 3 | +1 |
| 1 | Los Angeles Lakers | 16-6 | 71.8 | 1 | 0 |
- After a brief rough patch where they lost five of six, the Phoenix Suns have gotten back to their winning ways, coming out victorious in each of their last three.
- The Milwaukee Bucks have dropped four of their last seven, and they just don't look anywhere near as dominant as they did at this time last season. That said, our models still give the Deer a 22% chance of winning a title this season, which is second-best in the league.
- The Utah Jazz have won 12 of their last 13, and their 7.4 net rating is just one point off the league-leading Bucks.
