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Power Rankings

Power Rankings, Week 22: Several key E-West matchups await

See where all thirty teams rank heading into Week 22 of the 2021-22 flavour.

Aureate State is rising after completing i of its best 3-game win streaks since Jan.

This is a strange season in that it feels like the East is the ameliorate conference, with more teams that could possibly win the title than the W.

But games played between the two conferences are tracked in this very infinite every week (meet below), and since early December, the Western Briefing has had the edge. Now, the East's record this season (182-194, .484) is its third-best marker of the terminal 23 years, but the W even so has the better record for the 22nd time in that span.

Of form, at that place are a lot of teams across the contenders. And the Due east'due south overall winning per centum is injure by the Detroit Pistons' 4-22 record confronting the Western Conference.

But even if we focus at the top, the West is still best. Through Sunday, the top six teams in the W have a 34-23 (.596) record against the top 6 teams in the Due east. Only ane of those Eastward teams – Milwaukee (5-four) – has a winning record against the pinnacle six in the West, and all six have a negative point differential.

The East can help itself quite a bit this week, as we have eight matchups over the adjacent vii days that characteristic one of the top half-dozen teams in the East facing 1 of the peak half-dozen in the West. That includes both of ESPN's games on Monday night: Denver vs. Philadelphia (7:30 p.g. ET) and Milwaukee vs. Utah (10 p.thou. ET).

There will be two more (including Boston-Golden State) on Wednesday, iii (including Chicago-Phoenix) on Friday, and another (Boston-Denver) on Sunday. Maybe in that location's a Finals preview in there somewhere.

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Plus-Minus Players of the Week

• Correct Fashion: Malik Beasley (MIN) was a plus-76 in four games final week.
• Incorrect Mode: Darius Bazley (OKC) was a minus-53 in three games terminal calendar week.

Teams of the Week

• Make It Final Forever: Toronto (iii-0) — This is the good part of the roller coaster.
• Something Just Ain't Right: Washington (0-iii) — The offset-six-games-after-the-interruption Blazers were maybe the worst team in NBA history. And and then…

Eastward vs. West

• The West is 194-182 (.516) against the East in interconference games though the East was 12-10 last week.

Schedule force through Week 21

• Toughest: one. Portland, 2. Houston, iii. Orlando
• Easiest: one. Phoenix, 2. Philadelphia, iii. L.A. Lakers
• Schedule force is based on cumulative opponent record, and adjusted for home vs. away and days of residue earlier a game.

Movement in the Rankings

• High jumps of the week: Aureate State (+4), Brooklyn (+3)
• Free falls of the week: Denver (-3), LA Clippers (-3), Oklahoma Metropolis (-two), Utah (-two)

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Week 22 Team to Sentry

• Denver — We've got an MVP showdown on the schedule for Monday (seven:30 p.m. ET, ESPN), with Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets visiting Joel Embiid and the Sixers for what would be the outset meeting of the two big men since December of 2019. Afterwards that, the Nuggets' 3-game trip continues through Washington (Wed) and Cleveland (Friday). Then they'll return habitation for another fun, interconference matchup against the Celtics (Sunday).

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Previous Power Rankings

• Final week: Playoff races accept shape as Celtics, Heat rise

• This time last year: Nets, Sixers and Lakers hold Acme 5 spots despite central injuries — Tony Snell crush the Raptors at the buzzer and the Hawks were five games into an 8-game winning streak to outset Nate McMillan'due south tenure as head motorcoach. Caris LeVert made his Pacers debut, the Spurs and LaMarcus Aldridge agreed to part means, and Jamal Murray had a ridiculous behind-the-back dime to Nikola Jokic.

• The annal: NBA.com Power Rankings

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Pace: Possessions per 48 minutes (League Rank)
OffRtg: Points scored per 100 possessions (League Rank)
DefRtg: Points allowed per 100 possessions (League Rank)
NetRtg: Point differential per 100 possessions (League Rank)

The league has averaged 98.7 possessions (per team) per 48 minutes and 110.6 points scored per 100 possessions this flavour.

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NBA.com's Power Rankings, released every Monday during the season, are merely one man'south opinion. If y'all have an issue with the rankings, or have a question or comment for John Schuhmann, send him an email or contact him via Twitter.

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Phoenix Suns

Record: 54-xiv

Pace: 100.ane (9) OffRtg: 113.vii (4) DefRtg: 105.8 (2) NetRtg: +8.0 (1)

It takes longer to clinch a playoff spot these days, because you need to take a better record than the seventh identify team (instead of the ninth place squad) could possibly finish with. Just the Suns clinched a playoff spot with 16 games left in the flavour, shutting downwardly the Oestrus (allowing but 35 points on 48 possessions) in the 2d half in Miami on Wed. Information technology was the second game of a back-to-back (confronting a rested opponent), but the Suns are now viii-iii in rest-disadvantage games, with wins in Minnesota, Brooklyn, Philadelphia and Miami, having held their opponents under a point per possession over those four games confronting good teams.

The Celtics weren't the only team that jumped alee of the Warriors in defensive efficiency last week. The Suns ranked sixth defensively last season and they've had the fifth most improved defense this yr, allowing four.half-dozen fewer points per 100 possessions. They did let one go abroad confronting the Raptors on Friday, coming dorsum from xvi points down, but then committing three back-breaking turnovers (that turned into three Toronto fast breaks) down the stretch. Playing without Chris Paul, the Suns are 3-3 in games that were within five points in the last five minutes since the All-Star break (they were 27-three before information technology), having allowed 54 points on 45 clutch defensive possessions (one.20 per).

Having clobbered the Lakers on Lord's day (and probably not fearing a showtime-round rematch), the Suns are back on the route, where they'll play 10 of their final 14 games. Their visit to Houston on Wednesday is 1 of their iii remaining rest-disadvantage games.

Week 22: @ NOP, @ HOU, vs. CHI, @ SAC

Miami Heat

Record: 45-24

Pace: 96.vi (28) OffRtg: 112.1 (11) DefRtg: 107.v (5) NetRtg: +4.6 (5)

Victor Oladipo fabricated his season debut on Monday and his get-go 49 minutes dorsum on the floor were pretty encouraging. He had 20 points (on 8-for-18 shooting) and ix assists (with but i turnover) on those 49 minutes. Markieff Morris then fabricated his return from a 4-calendar month absence on Sabbatum, scoring six points in 17 minutes against Minnesota. Kyle Lowry also returned from a four-game absenteeism concluding week, and the Rut improved to xix-6 with their full starting lineup, picking upward wins over the Rockets and Cavs in which they scored more 122 points per 100 possessions.

But Jimmy Butler missed their other two games terminal week, and the Oestrus scored less than a point per possession in losses to the Suns and Wolves. Gabe Vincent started in Butler's place and shot 3-for-xviii (including 1-for-ten from 3-point range) over the 2 losses. Lowry, meanwhile, totaled just 22 points in his 133 minutes last week, taking no more than four shots in his outset three games back and shooting just vi-for-22 over the six days. He's obviously more than of a benefactor with this team (and at the age of 35), merely the Rut will need his scoring at some point. His usage rate (17.8%) is his lowest marking in the last 13 seasons (since the year he was traded from Memphis to Houston).

The Heat remain at the peak of the Eastern Briefing, and their vii-game homestand concludes with about as soft of a calendar week as a team could mayhap have. They'll play games confronting the Pistons and Thunder, bracketed by three two-day breaks. But the Suns (32-4) have a amend record than the Heat (27-vi, with 10 straight wins) confronting the xiv teams that currently accept losing records.

Calendar week 22: vs. DET, vs. OKC

Boston Celtics

Record: 41-28

Pace: 97.2 (24) OffRtg: 111.3 (15) DefRtg: 105.6 (one) NetRtg: +5.seven (4)

The Celtics' loss to the Mavs on Lord's day concluded …

• A five-game winning streak, which was their best stretch of offense this season (121.8 points scored per 100 possessions), with Jayson Tatum averaging 39.eight points on an effective field goal percent of 62.2%.

• A 14-game winning streak in games in which they've had their full starting lineup, with the lineup having outscored their opponents by 25.4 points per 100 possessions in 185 total minutes over the stretch.

• A 15-game winning streak in games in which they were rested (non playing the second game of a dorsum-to-dorsum).

They played only eight guys, but the Celtics scored simply 51 points on sixty offensive possessions (0.85 per) with at least one reserve on the floor. Derrick White and Grant Williams combined to shoot iii-for-sixteen, including 0-for-8 from iii-point range. Even with the starting lineup scoring efficiently (41 points on 34 possessions), it was the first fourth dimension the Celtics had been held under a point per possession since January. 28 in Atlanta, their last loss with rest and their last loss with the starting lineup together.

The Celtics even so have the league's No. 1 defense force. But with Draymond Green dorsum, the Warriors could again exist gunnin' for that No. i spot. The two teams will face up off in San Francisco on Wednesday, the start of a four-game trip for the Celtics. Golden Land won the first coming together (in December — Greenish played), losing a 20-point lead, merely holding the Celtics off downwards the stretch.

OH MY GOODNESS JAYLEN Brownish flick.twitter.com/qMxlmLVKSL

— Boston Celtics (@celtics) March 13, 2022

Week 22: @ GSW, @ SAC, @ DEN

Memphis Grizzlies

Tape: 47-22

Pace: 100.ii (7) OffRtg: 113.5 (5) DefRtg: 109.0 (eight) NetRtg: +4.5 (6)

Dillon Brooks returned from a 27-game absenteeism on Sunday and was put right back into the Grizzlies' starting lineup (once the Grizzlies put on the right uniforms). The Grizzlies were previously just 2-6 when that lineup — Ja Morant, Desmond Bane, Brooks, Jaren Jackson Jr. and Steven Adams — played together, just it outscored the Thunder by 19 points in its 11.6 minutes on Sun, scoring 37 points on 24 offensive possessions. Ziaire Williams remained in the rotation and Taylor Jenkins used a five-man bench unit for a few minutes (shout out to Hubie Chocolate-brown). Brooks had xv points and iv assists in his 26 minutes.

Information technology'south a good time for Brooks to make his return, considering the Grizzlies are going through the easiest stretch of their schedule, with iii games left on a string of viii direct against teams currently below .500. They dropped Game 2 of that string (losing in Houston eight days ago) and they take the league's smallest differential betwixt their winning percentage against the 14 teams currently below .500 (24-ten, .706) and their mark against the sixteen teams currently above .500 (23-12, .657). Just that'south mostly nigh how good they've been (only Phoenix – 22-10 – has been better) against the good teams, they've won 3 straight against the bad teams (averaging an amazing 25.7 second risk points) since that loss in Houston, and they'll take a adventure for revenge when they're back at that place on Sunday.

Week 22: @ IND, @ ATL, @ HOU

Dallas Mavericks

Record: 42-26

Stride: 95.7 (30) OffRtg: 111.0 (xviii) DefRtg: 107.vii (vi) NetRtg: +three.2 (8)

Defeats don't come much worse than the one the Mavs suffered (by 30 points to New York) on Wednesday, their worst offensive performance (77 points on 92 possessions) since October. But the Mavs are even so tied for the league's best tape (13-3) over the last v 1/2 weeks, and their two big wins last week far outweigh what was (wildly) their sixth straight domicile loss to the Knicks.

On Monday, the Mavs beat the Jazz to keep themselves very much in the race for a top-four seed in the West. And on Dominicus, they beat the other squad that's 13-3 over the concluding 5 i/2 weeks, coming dorsum from thirteen points down in the second one-half in Boston. In both games, the Mavs were missing a starter (Jalen Brunson or Reggie Bullock), with Spencer Dinwiddie filling in. He shot 8-for-15 from 3-signal range over the two wins, draining the game-winner off a feed from Luka Doncic on Sunday. Dinwiddie is now 8-for-16 (tertiary best amid 56 players with at to the lowest degree 15 attempts) on clutch 3-pointers this flavour, including 2-for-2 with the Mavs. Over the 11 games that they've had him, the Mavs have been eighteen.four points per 100 possessions better with Dinwiddie on the floor (plus-ix.7) than they accept with him on the bench (minus-eight.vii).

The Mavs yet as many games remaining against the Eastern Briefing as they do against the Due west, and all vii of the games against the Eastward are on the road. Fifty-fifty with their 4-game trip starting time with that huge win in Boston, they're just 3-5 in Eastern Conference arenas, set to visit Kevin Durant and Joel Embiid on Midweek and Friday. They'll have a rest advantage in Brooklyn, with the Nets having played in Orlando the dark before.

Week 22: @ BKN, @ PHI, @ CHA

Gilded State Warriors

Record: 46-22

Pace: 98.9 (fourteen) OffRtg: 112.two (9) DefRtg: 105.viii (3) NetRtg: +6.iv (3)

With Jackie Moon warming up with Klay Thompson, and with Stephen Back-scratch making upwards for his previous absenteeism in Denver, the Warriors had all the good vibes last week. With those good vibes came a three-game winning streak, their starting time three wins against teams with winning records since January. Curry treated his Denver fans to 34 points on Th and Thompson scored a season-loftier 38 against the champs on Sabbatum. Jonathan Kuminga has averaged 17.7 points on 50% shooting over the winning streak and Jordan Poole has been on fire, averaging 24.viii points on an constructive field goal per centum of 76.ane% over his terminal six games.

But the bigger divergence betwixt the last three games and the 5-game losing streak that preceded them has been on defense, where the Warriors have allowed simply 104.iv points per 100 possessions, with two of the opponents (Denver and Milwaukee) having peak-ten offenses. Giannis Antetokounmpo had simply half dozen points in the restricted area on Sat after averaging 16.4 over his previous 5 games. And now, the Warriors' all-time defensive player (Draymond Dark-green) is gear up to brand his render from a 31-game absence on Monday.

That leads to an interesting lineup decision, whether it be at the outset of games or at the terminate. Andrew Wiggins has started all 62 of his games (and the All-Star Game) this flavor, just the Warriors started Poole (moving Wiggins to the 4) on Sat and take outscored their opponents by more than 40 points per 100 possessions in 104 total minutes with Back-scratch, Poole and Thompson on the floor together.

Week 22: vs. WAS, vs. BOS, vs. SAS

Philadelphia 76ers

Tape: 41-25

Pace: 96.five (29) OffRtg: 111.7 (13) DefRtg: 109.5 (9) NetRtg: +2.iii (12)

To put it nicely, James Harden — one of the greatest offensive players in NBA history — withal has a lot to prove when it comes to playing big in large games. It was all adept every bit the Sixers won their showtime 5 games with their new star, scoring 125.7 points per 100 possessions over those 5 wins. But with the NBA spotlight on Philly on Thursday and with Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving doing their thing confidently on the other end of the floor, Harden had a rough night against his former team, shooting 0-for-14 inside the arc, with more than turnovers (4) than trips to the free throw line (ane).

He got to the line plenty in Orlando on Sunday, but shot merely 5-for-19 from the field as the Sixers needed overtime to shell the worst team in the Eastward. Among 140 players with at least 500 field goal attempts this season, Harden ranks 43rd in truthful shooting percentage (58.2%) and 113th (just alee of Jalen Green) in effective field goal pct (48.9%). Both marks are his everyman since his rookie flavour, and Harden has seen the 2d-biggest driblet in field goal percentage in the pigment (from 55.6% to 47.4%) among 116 players with at least 200 pigment attempts in each of the last 2 seasons.

Harden sabbatum the 2d game of his first dorsum-to-back with the Sixers, and we're in the middle of dorsum-to-back No. 2. So it'southward possible that he (having played 44 minutes in Orlando) rests confronting Denver on Monday. The Sixers, one of three teams with a league-high 16 games left to play, will have some other Dominicus-Monday back-to-back this coming week and two more back-to-backs later on that.

Calendar week 22: vs. DEN, @ CLE, vs. DAL, vs. TOR

Denver Nuggets

Record: forty-28

Pace: 98.2 (20) OffRtg: 112.half-dozen (eight) DefRtg: 110.0 (12) NetRtg: +ii.half-dozen (eleven)

The Nuggets' starting lineup (missing ii of its four all-time players) has played 556 minutes, third nigh among all league-wide lineups. And it'due south been terrific offensively, scoring 121.3 points per 100 possessions, the third best marking among 29 lineups that have played at least 200 minutes. But Denver doesn't have much depth, and information technology'south played without at least one starter in 4 straight games. The Nuggets had enough to vanquish the Back-scratch-less Warriors and the Kings, but they've lost two straight games for the showtime fourth dimension in five weeks. Playing without Aaron Gordon on Saturday, they had their worst defensive game of the flavour, allowing the Raptors to score 127 points on but 96 possessions.

Nikola Jokic continues to have the highest true shooting per centum (65.4%) amidst loftier-usage players, despite his continued struggles from beyond the arc. His 5-for-29 (17%) from 3-indicate range since the All-Star break is the fourth worst marker among 162 players with at least 25 attempts over that time. He was 0-for-viii from deep in the Nuggets' loss to the Warriors on Thursday and didn't attempt a 3-pointer against Toronto 2 nights later. The skillful news is that the Nuggets still have 3 of the 52 players — Bryn Forbes, Bones Hyland and Monte Morris — who've shot 40% or amend on at least 25 3-point attempts since the break.

With the Nuggets in Philly on Monday, it's fourth dimension for a showdown of Kia MVP candidates. Nikola Jokic is 2-4 confronting Joel Embiid, but the reigning MVP has had better numbers in those six games, and the two haven't met since December of 2019.

Week 22: @ PHI, @ WAS, @ CLE, vs. BOS

Milwaukee Bucks

Tape: 42-26

Pace: 100.3 (half-dozen) OffRtg: 113.seven (3) DefRtg: 110.0 (thirteen) NetRtg: +3.vii (vii)

The Bucks have had the league's No. i criminal offence since the All-Star break and scored 125 points per 100 possessions over their 6-game winning streak. Giannis Antetokounmpo averaged 31.five points over the six games, with 34 of his 43 points against the Hawks on Wednesday coming in the restricted expanse (where he was 11-for-12) or at the free throw line (12-for-17). The percentage of his shots that have come up from the restricted surface area this season is a career-low 45%, but he's shot a career-best 40.2% on non-restricted-area ii-indicate shots.

While the offense has been dominant, the Bucks' defense ranks 20th since the interruption. Over those 2 1/2 weeks, the Bucks rank 27th in opponent 3-point pct (39.5%) and 28th in opponent turnover rate (11.0 per 100 possessions). The Bucks accept faced a bunch of expert offenses lately, but their winning streak came to an end with the Warriors' most efficient offensive functioning since they vanquish the caught Blazers in their first game since the break. It was the 12th time this season the Bucks have allowed eighteen or more 3s, tied with New Orleans for the nigh in the league.

So any time would be a great time for the render of Brook Lopez, who hasn't played since the commencement game of the season. Just Mon seems appropriate, because the next stop on the Bucks' four-game trip is a meeting with the No. 1 law-breaking in the league. The champs were without both Jrue Holiday and Khris Middleton (and Lopez) when the Jazz won in Milwaukee back in Oct.

Week 22: @ UTA, @ SAC, @ MIN

Utah Jazz

Record: 42-25

Stride: 97.9 (22) OffRtg: 116.i (1) DefRtg: 109.seven (11) NetRtg: +6.4 (2)

The Jazz got their first win in a residual-disadvantage game, recovering from an early, 8-point deficit to beat the Kings on Sat without Mike Conley or Rudy Gobert. With Jordan Clarkson scoring 45 points on xv-for-21 shooting, it was the Jazz'southward about efficient offensive game (134 points on 98 possessions) since the All-Star suspension. They remain No. ane in offensive efficiency by a wide margin, ranking in the tiptop five in three of the four factors on that finish of the floor (all except turnover charge per unit).

But the Jazz have lost three of their last four games on the road, with the most critical of those losses being some other rest-disadvantage defeat, when they couldn't recover from an early deficit in Dallas. With that game, they're just four-xix (the league's eighth worst marking) in games they've trailed by double-digits. And that result likewise has the fifth-place Mavs just a one-half game behind the Jazz, with the final head-to-head meeting (which will determine the tiebreaker) back in Dallas, office of a half-dozen-game trip that begins Sunday in New York.

The Jazz take won their last nine games at Vivint Arena, with v of those nine wins having come by 15 points or more. Their iv-game homestand continues with visits from three good teams this week.

Week 22: vs. MIL, vs. CHI, vs. LAC, @ NYK

Chicago Bulls

Record: 41-26

Footstep: 99.1 (13) OffRtg: 113.i (half-dozen) DefRtg: 111.vii (21) NetRtg: +1.4 (13)

The Bulls continue to struggle against the best teams in the league. And with their loss in Philadelphia on Monday (in which they lost all four quarters), they're 2-15 against the eight teams that have better records than they practice. DeMar DeRozan got to the line, simply was just 6-for-17 from the field and has an effective field goal pct of just 41.i% (struggling in and outside the pigment) over his last seven games. With that, only the Blazers take seen a bigger postal service-pause drop in points scored per 100 possessions than the Bulls (113.4 before the break, 110.6 since).

Just the Bulls are getting healthier. Alex Caruso's render from a 22-game absence was the Bulls' all-time defensive game (91 points immune on 98 possessions) in their terminal 29. With Caruso picking up iv steals and a block in his 29 minutes on Dominicus, the Cavs scored just 56 points on 63 possessions (89 per 100) with him on the floor. Now, we await the eventual returns of Lonzo Ball and Patrick Williams.

The Bulls have six games remaining against those 8 teams that have amend records than they practise, and two of those six are on a three-game trip this week. One of their two wins against that group was confronting Utah in Oct. (The other was against Dallas in early on November.)

Week 22: @ SAC, @ UTA, @ PHX

Minnesota Timberwolves

Record: 39-xxx

Pace: 101.1 (2) OffRtg: 112.7 (7) DefRtg: 109.6 (10) NetRtg: +iii.1 (9)

The Wolves had a confounding loss on Fri, blowing an eighteen-point lead in Orlando (the Magic were previously 0-30 when trailing by that much) and missing their final 18 iii-bespeak attempts. But to suffer a "confounding" loss, you have to be a proficient squad, and the Wolves have clearly established themselves equally a skilful team. In fact, they're now 1 of four teams (all in the Western Conference) that rank in the top 10 on both ends of the floor. Only once in franchise history (2003-04) accept the Wolves ranked in the top ten in both offensive and defensive efficiency, and only once in the 17 seasons since then (2013-xiv) take they rated equally an ameliorate-than-average team on both ends of the flooring.

They climbed into the height 10 defensively by (24 hours after the Orlando loss) holding what was a top-ten crime (that of the Heat) to merely a betoken per possession. The Wolves have won seven of their concluding viii games and have the league'south No. 1 defense (101.5 immune per 100) in March. And that's with Patrick Beverley (who's missed iii of the terminal five games) ranking 11th on the team in minutes this month.

The Wolves' three-game trip concludes in San Antonio on Monday. Afterward they host the Lakers on Wednesday, they'll have 2 days off and then play seven straight games against teams with winning records.

Week 22: @ SAS, vs. LAL, vs. MIL

Cleveland Cavaliers

Tape: 38-29

Pace: 97.0 (25) OffRtg: 109.9 (21) DefRtg: 107.0 (4) NetRtg: +3.0 (10)

The Cavs are ten-10 in games within the top eight in the Due east, seven-two (with vi direct wins) at home and three-8 (with half-dozen straight losses) on the route. The bigger difference betwixt those last half dozen home games and final half dozen road games has been on defense and they're playing without Jarrett Allen right at present. But they scored just a point per possession every bit they lost both ends of a dorsum-to-back (in Miami and Chicago) over the weekend. Darius Garland shot just 13-for-41 (32%) and committed 13 turnovers over the ii games.

The Cavs were likewise outscored by 28 points in Rajon Rondo's 31 minutes on the floor over the weekend. And with Caris LeVert out since the All-Star break, Garland has seen a huge jump in usage rate, from 26.1% (38th in the league) earlier the break to 34.two% (5th) since. That's come with only a slight drop in efficiency (true shooting percentage of 58.1% since the pause, down from 58.4% earlier), but could be affecting him on the other end of the flooring. The Cavs accept allowed almost 118 points per 100 possessions in his 226 post-break minutes.

The Cavs play eight of their next 9 games at home, a stretch that includes visits from the Sixers and Bulls. Their last game against Philly (on the road) was their second worst defensive game of the season.

Week 22: vs. LAC, vs. PHI, vs. DEN, vs. DET

Toronto Raptors

Record: 37-30

Stride: 96.eight (26) OffRtg: 111.4 (fourteen) DefRtg: 110.1 (xiv) NetRtg: +1.3 (14)

Since the All-Star intermission, the Raptors have lost to four teams — Charlotte, Atlanta, Detroit and Orlando — that take losing records. Only they've of a sudden won three direct games, and their victories in Phoenix and Denver over the weekend are one of the most impressive back-to-backs any team has had this season. The Raptors have the league's 14th best record overall, but they have the eighth best record (17-18) in games played betwixt the 16 teams currently over .500. That includes an 8-2 mark since tardily January, with the Raptors having scored 116 points per 100 possessions over those 10 games.

They've scored almost 122 per 100 over this winning streak, even though they haven't got the best (or all) of Fred VanVleet. Pascal Siakam has been running more, averaging a league-high 6.4 fast break points in March (up from 3.0 prior to that). Scottie Barnes (with VanVleet out) had a career-high x assists in Denver, and Gary Trent had a huge game (42 points, 8-for-11 from three-point range) in Phoenix, having otherwise shot viii-for-46 (17%) from beyond the arc over his last six games.

This team has had its ups and downs on both ends of the floor, but it's at present just a game behind the Cavs for sixth place in the East. The Cavs have won the kickoff iii meetings, merely the final one (next Th) is in Toronto and the Raps have more than games remaining (7) confronting teams currently below .500. That includes 2 gams confronting the Lakers this week, and Toronto will have a residual advantage in L.A. on Monday.

Week 22: @ LAL, @ LAC, vs. LAL, @ PHI

Brooklyn Nets

Record: 35-33

Pace: 99.iii (12) OffRtg: 111.8 (12) DefRtg: 112.1 (22) NetRtg: -0.iii (17)

There have been 14 l-point performances this season, and vi of the 14 take taken place in the last 2 weeks. The Nets had 2 of them in the terminal six days, getting 50 (with just 19 shots from the field) from Kyrie Irving in Charlotte and 53 (with 37 shots) from Kevin Durant against the Knicks. Of course, the Nets' biggest win of the flavor was the game in between. It was then that they they went to Philadelphia and shellacked James Harden and the Sixers in Brooklyn's second virtually efficient offensive game of the flavor. Amazingly, 13 of the Nets' 14 well-nigh efficient offensive performances take come on the route, and 5 of those 13 came before Irving started playing.

The Nets spent a little more than 48 hours nether .500, but responded with their offset iii-game winning streak since mid-December. And the win in Philly was a reminder to the rest of the Eastern Conference of just how practiced this squad tin can exist. The Nets have scored more than than 123 points per 100 possessions with Irving and Durant on the floor together, but that's been for only 162 minutes. Their well-nigh-used, five-human lineup that doesn't include Harden has played just 38.

Of grade, continuity volition remain elusive, with Irving currently eligible to play only four of the Nets' fourteen remaining games. Nevertheless, how they complement the two offensive stars volition go along to be something to spotter. Neither Bruce Dark-brown (64 3-point attempts in 59 games) nor James Johnson (29% from 3) is much more comfortable than Ben Simmons shooting from the outside, but they've both shown their value (generally on defense force) over the winning streak. And while information technology would be nice to accept Simmons play as soon every bit possible, those 2 guys tin act equally stand-ins as the Nets keep to figure things out. Simmons didn't do on Saturday, and if it will take a ii-day break for him to go some v-on-five in, the Nets' adjacent one is this Saturday and Sun.

Week 22: @ ORL, vs. DAL, vs. POR

Atlanta Hawks

Record: 33-34

Pace: 98.3 (eighteen) OffRtg: 114.v (two) DefRtg: 113.8 (27) NetRtg: +0.7 (xv)

A week ago, the Hawks were in Detroit, with an opportunity to get back to .500 for the offset time since they were fourteen-xiv on Dec. 17. And they lost to the Pistons in overtime, with John Collins splitting a pair of gratuitous throws that could take won the game in regulation. Each of the Hawks' last six games take been within five points in the last v minutes (though their loss in Milwaukee on Midweek was inside five for just ane possession), with the Hawks and their opponents having combined to score 103 points on 79 clutch possessions (ane.thirty per) over that (iv-2) stretch. Overall, the Hawks are 14-xvi in games that were within five in the last five, ranking 29th in clutch defense force.

But, with De'Andre Hunter getting a large bucket against the Clippers on Fri and Trae Young dropping 47 on the Pacers on Dominicus, the Hawks accept some other opportunity go get back to .500. This one (though information technology's the second game of a back-to-back) comes against the Blazers and at home, where the Hawks are 13-2 since mid-January, having scored 122.5 points per 100 possessions over those fifteen games.

Whether or not they beat Portland, the Hawks have a huge game in Charlotte on Wednesday. They've lost ten of their last 13 on the road, but i of those three wins came in Charlotte and was one of only three times this season that the Hawks have held their opponent under a bespeak per possession. (They did it xiii times last season, when the league scored more efficiently overall.)

Week 22: vs. POR, @ CHA, vs. MEM, vs. NOP

LA Clippers

Tape: 36-34

Pace: 98.8 (15) OffRtg: 107.9 (26) DefRtg: 108.6 (vii) NetRtg: -0.8 (19)

The Clippers did it over again. They trailed the Pistons by as many every bit xviii points on Sunday, and they were down 14 at the half. Merely they kept themselves in a higher place .500 with a 67-49 second half, scoring those 67 points on only 42 offensive possessions (1.6 per). In their vii March games, the Clippers have been an astonishing xxx points per 100 possessions improve in the second halves of games (plus-15.1) than they've been in first halves (minus-14.9), and that differential is nigh entirely about crime (98.0 vs. 127.half-dozen score per 100).

Fifty-fifty before March, the Clippers — now tied with the Thunder for the most wins (7) in games they trailed past at to the lowest degree fifteen points — had a pregnant half-to-half differential. And for the season equally a whole, it'southward a league-high 8.2 points per 100 possessions (though three teams accept seen bigger drib-offs from the beginning to the second half). Among 252 players with at least 100 field goal attempts in each half, Ivica Zubac (59.vi% vs. 68.7%), Nicolas Batum (56.i% vs. 64.6%) and Marcus Morris (48.iv% vs. 56.ii%) have the 10th, 16th and 21st biggest half-to-one-half jumps in constructive field goal percentage.

Morris totaled 58 points in the Clips' two wins last calendar week, as their offense (playing at a slow step) showed some life afterwards two straight games of scoring less than a point per possession. 9 of the Clippers' last 10 games have come against teams currently beneath .500. At present they'll play eight straight against teams with winning records, currently thirteen-21 (ii-6 since late Jan) against that group. The Clippers are the only team that'due south played 70 games and their visit to Cleveland on Monday is the end of a stretch of five games in seven nights.

Week 22: @ CLE, vs. TOR, @ UTA

Charlotte Hornets

Record: 33-35

Stride: 101.0 (3) OffRtg: 112.i (10) DefRtg: 112.3 (23) NetRtg: -0.2 (16)

The Hornets played one of their biggest games of the season on Tuesday, and they weren't upwards to the job defensively. Over their back to dorsum last week, the Charlotte defense immune the Nets and Celtics to score almost 125 points per 100 possessions, getting torched by Kyrie Irving (50 points) and Jayson Tatum (44). The Hornets have immune the about games of 40 points or more this flavour (vii) and they've now lost 11 of their last thirteen games against the other teams in the E'southward top 10.

They still accept a acme-five offense since the All-Star pause, with the Hornets' win in New Orleans on Friday being their second well-nigh efficient game of the flavour (142 points on 102 possessions). Terry Rozier has averaged 25 points on an effective field goal per centum of 62.3% over their eight mail-pause games, with the Hornets scoring almost 28 more points per 100 possessions in his 287 minutes on the floor (125.1) than they have in his 102 minutes on the demote (97.4).

Their loss to Boston on Wednesday dropped the Hornets to 1-12 in the second games of dorsum-to-backs. Only the Rockets (0-eleven) have been worse and the Hornets take the league'southward biggest differential between their record with rest (32-23, .582) and their tape without rest. They accept two dorsum-to-backs left on their schedule, but volition have a residual advantage (rested vs. an opponent playing the 2nd game of a dorsum-to-back) in five of their next 7 games. One of the exceptions is their game confronting the Hawks (the start of a five-game homestand) on Wednesday, when ninth place in the East could be on the line. Atlanta has won two of the first three meetings.

Week 22: @ OKC, vs. ATL, vs. DAL

New Orleans Pelicans

Record: 28-40

Pace: 98.0 (21) OffRtg: 110.0 (20) DefRtg: 111.four (19) NetRtg: -1.4 (xx)

Only when it looked like the Pelicans had 10th place on lock (and a decent chance of catching the Lakers for 9th), they lost Brandon Ingram to a hamstring injury and CJ McCollum to Health and Safety Protocols. They lost four straight games, with a bigger drop-off on defence (where they immune more than 125 points per 100 possessions) than on offense from their four-game winning streak coming out of the All-Star break. The Hornets' 142 points on 102 possessions on Friday was the almost efficient game for any team since the break.

Only the Pelicans got to play Houston on Dominicus, which could not handle the frontline of Jaxson Hayes and Jonas Valanciunas, who combined for 53 points on 18-for-26 shooting. The Pelicans have been outscored iii.ane points per 100 possessions in 280 full minutes with Hayes and Valanciunas on the flooring together, but that's plus-five.five per 100 in 165 minutes with Ingram also on the floor and minus-15.two per 100 in 115 minutes with Ingram off the floor. The win over Houston was simply the Pels' third (they're iii-15) without Ingram.

The tenth-place Pelicans still have two games each against the 11th-place Blazers and twelfth-place Spurs. The first of those four games is Friday in San Antonio, with the Spurs having won the first ii meetings by double-digits.

Week 22: vs. PHX, @ SAS, @ ATL

New York Knicks

Record: 28-40

Stride: 96.half-dozen (27) OffRtg: 108.nine (23) DefRtg: 110.3 (15) NetRtg: -1.4 (21)

The Knicks had a pretty adept seven-game trip, going 3-four with wins over the Clippers and Mavs. 3 of the four losses (to the Suns, Grizzlies and Nets) were within three points in the final infinitesimal, but the Knicks have now lost 11 of their last 12 games that were within five in the last five, having scored an anemic 75.8 points per 100 clutch possessions over that stretch. The six Knicks with at least 7 clutch field goal attempts over those 12 games accept shot no ameliorate than Julius Randle's 7-for-19 (37%) on those shots, and Randle has nigh as many turnovers (6) equally buckets with the score within 5 in the last five.

Plough a few of those losses (the at-the-cablegram defeat in Phoenix was obviously the toughest) into wins and the Knicks would have a real shot at a Play-In spot, with ii games remaining against the 10th-identify Hornets. Given the strength of the competition, the road trip (over which the Knicks outscored their opponents by 7.0 points per 100 possessions) was arguably their best stretch of basketball game since they started the flavour 5-one. And it came with most equal improvement on both ends of the floor from the ane-ix stretch that preceded it.

Julius Randle has been more than decisive and the defense ranks fifth in March. The Knicks' win in Dallas on Wednesday featured some great rotations, especially from the young guards off the bench. At that place'southward seemingly no unseating Alec Burks in the starting lineup, but in 176 total minutes with Immanuel Quickley and Miles McBride on the floor together, the Knicks have immune but xc points per 100 possessions.

The Knicks have lost five straight at dwelling, where they'll play nine of their terminal xiv games. Their ii best chances for wins at the Garden in those ix games are Wed and Fri, when they host the Blazers and Wizards.

Week 22: vs. POR, vs. WAS, vs. UTA

Los Angeles Lakers

Record: 29-38

Pace: 100.5 (5) OffRtg: 108.9 (24) DefRtg: 111.two (17) NetRtg: -2.4 (23)

For all the issues regarding Russell Westbrook's fit in L.A., the Lakers have been outscored by just 44 points (one.6 per 100 possessions) in his ane,196 minutes on the floor alongside LeBron James. While that'southward obviously bad for a duo that'due south being paid more than $85 million this season, it's not the worst combination y'all'll find. Heck, the Clippers' most-used combination (Reggie Jackson and Ivica Zubac) has on-court numbers more than twice as bad (minus-three.two per 100 possessions). But the Lakers obviously haven't establish solutions for when one of the 2 stars is on the bench. They've been outscored by 2.eight points per 100 possessions in 609 minutes with James on the floor without Westbrook and by five.four per 100 (with some anemic law-breaking) in ane,068 minutes with Westbrook on the flooring without James.

James had his 2nd l-point game in a vii-day span, and the Lakers continue to accept desultory success playing modest (their latest starting lineup is a plus-23 in its 53 minutes). But those two 50-indicate games sandwiched losses in San Antonio and Houston, and the Lakers had no gamble in Phoenix on Sun.

The Lakers still have the league's second toughest remaining schedule in regard to cumulative opponent winning per centum (.554), with xi of their xv games confronting teams that currently take winning records. Beyond that, after they host the Raptors on Mon (when Toronto will have a rest reward), 10 of their final 14 games will be on the road. And the Lakers accept the league's biggest differential between their home record (20-sixteen, .556) and their road tape (nine-22, .290). They've lost 10 straight road games (including two at Staples Middle), with their last road win having come (in Brooklyn) in January.

Week 22: vs. TOR, @ MIN, @ TOR, @ WAS

Washington Wizards

Record: 29-37

Pace: 97.5 (23) OffRtg: 110.ane (19) DefRtg: 112.8 (24) NetRtg: -2.eight (24)

If the Eastern Conference standings were based on games only played within the Eastern Briefing, the Wizards would be in ninth place at 22-21. Alas, games confronting the Western Conference count too, and the Wizards are at present vii-16 against the W, having lost the start iii games of their iv-game trip. That includes losses to the Lakers (who are otherwise 1-7 since the All-Star interruption) and the Blazers (who lost their first 6 post-break games past an average of 32 points).

Fifty-fifty with Bradley Beal out and Kristaps Porzingis missing the Portland game (second of a back-to-back), the Wizards' criminal offence has been fine. But the final five games have been their worst stretch of defense (124.0 points allowed per 100 possessions) this flavour, and that'southward with the final three opponents having offenses that rank in the bottom seven. With Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Rui Hachimura and Corey Kispert having combined to shoot 49-for-100 (49% for the non-Math majors) from three-point range, the Wizards rank fourth offensively in March. Their opponents would rank commencement.

The Wizards still have seven games remaining against the Western Briefing. That includes three this calendar week and ii confronting the Warriors, who will take Draymond Greenish back on Monday.

Calendar week 22: @ GSW, vs. DEN, @ NYK, vs. LAL

San Antonio Spurs

Tape: 26-42

Step: 100.6 (4) OffRtg: 111.1 (17) DefRtg: 111.four (xviii) NetRtg: -0.3 (xviii)

Gregg Popovich is the all-fourth dimension wins leader, and he passed Don Nelson with the Spurs getting their first win of the season (they were previously 0-33) in a game they trailed after the third quarter. It was also but their quaternary win (they were previously 3-14) against the top vi teams in the West. Only three of their 40 fourth-quarter points against the Jazz came from beyond the arc and the squad that ranks 28th in clutch offense scored 20 points on 13 clutch possessions. Keldon Johnson made the big play, rebounding Josh Richardson'due south missed costless throw and draining two freebies of his own.

With the injury to Brandon Ingram, the Spurs have some new life in the race for the final Western Conference Play-In spot. They went into their game against the Pacers on Saturday simply a game backside the 10th-identify Pelicans. Simply they came out of it with a double-digit defeat to a team that was 3-12 since Feb. 1. The Spurs are the first team done with playing the opposite conference, and they went just 10-xx against the Eastward. Only the Rockets and Clippers accept immune the Pacers to score more efficiently this flavor.

The Spurs still have two games remaining against the Pelicans, and one of those is Friday in San Antonio. The Spurs take scored nearly 122 points per 100 possessions as they've won the first two meetings.

Spurs players gloat with Passenger vehicle Popovich after he moved to first all-time in coaching wins 🙌 pic.twitter.com/5I8Z9IRmro

— NBA TV (@NBATV) March 12, 2022

Week 22: vs. MIN, vs. OKC, vs. NOP, @ GSW

Sacramento Kings

Tape: 24-45

Pace: 100.i (8) OffRtg: 109.seven (22) DefRtg: 114.7 (28) NetRtg: -5.ane (25)

De'Aaron Pull a fast one on has fabricated four or more 3-pointers only 13 times in his v seasons, and 2 of those instances have been the Kings' last two games. Flim-flam continues to have a potent second half of the flavor, now averaging 29.i points on an effective field goal percentage of 56% over the 14 games he'due south played since returning from an viii-game absence in early Feb. Over that stretch, the Kings' offense has scored an amazing 26.5 more points per 100 possessions with Fox on the flooring (115.8) than it has with him on the bench (89.3).

Alas, despite the strong criminal offence from their point guard, the Kings have lost nine of their final 11 games. They rank in the bottom half dozen on both ends of the floor over that stretch. They did erase an eighteen-point arrears against Denver on Wednesday, but came upwards short in the clutch. They're tied with the Spurs for the second worst record (xi-21, .344) in games that were within five points in the last v minutes, having seen the league's third biggest drop in clutch winning percentage from last season, when they were 22-twenty.

With their loss to the Jazz (in which they led for well-nigh of the commencement half) on Saturday, the Kings have dropped their last seven games (and are 7-31) against the 16 teams currently over .500. They'll face four of those teams on the four-game homestand that begins Mon.

Calendar week 22: vs. CHI, vs. MIL, vs. BOS, vs. PHX

Portland Trail Blazers

Record: 26-xl

Step: 98.eight (16) OffRtg: 108.2 (25) DefRtg: 114.8 (29) NetRtg: -6.5 (26)

The Blazers have been both the league'south worst offensive team (by a huge margin) and its worst defensive squad since the All-Star intermission. They lost their start vi postal service-break games by an average of … [checks notes] … 32.iii points! The Blazers atomic number 82 the league with 9 losses of 30 points or more than (Houston is side by side with six), and v of those nine have come up since the break.

All vi of Blazers' post-intermission losses came confronting good teams, and they put an finish to the losing streak with a win over Washington on Saturday. Anfernee Simons missed his third straight game, but with Josh Hart (44 points), Trendon Watford (27) and Drew Eubanks (twenty) all registering career highs, it was the Blazers' third most efficient offensive game of the season. The undrafted Watford is 1 of two 21-yr-olds the Blazers have been starting (CJ Elleby is the other), and he's shot a solid 61.3% in the pigment, the sixth all-time marker among 28 rookies with at least 100 paint attempts.

Amazingly, the Blazers are all the same tied in the loss column with the 10th-identify Pelicans, with two head-to-head meetings remaining. Start, the Blazers take a v-game trip through the Eastern Briefing, with merely one of the opponents (Brooklyn) having a winning record. They're 15-10 (with three straight wins) against the East thus far.

Calendar week 22: @ ATL, @ NYK, @ BKN, @ IND

Detroit Pistons

Record: 18-fifty

Footstep: 98.7 (17) OffRtg: 104.iv (28) DefRtg: 113.ii (25) NetRtg: -8.ix (29)

The Pistons take talent, they play hard, and now, they're executing ameliorate than ever. Starting with their concluding game before the All-Star intermission, they had a 6-two stretch. And though they've dropped iii straight (and were eliminated from the playoffs on Sunday), all iii were against good teams, two of the three were within five points in the last v minutes, and they led the tertiary (in Boston on Friday) late in the 3rd quarter. Nine of the Pistons' last xi games (starting with that terminal pre-intermission game) have been within five in the last 5. They're team spoiler, though if they actually wanted to beat the Clippers (after blowing an 18-point lead) on Lord's day, they shouldn't have gone for layups on three abaft-by-six possessions in the final minute.

The improved execution is, of course, by and large most Cade Cunningham, who has scored 20 points or more in all seven of the Pistons' games in March, one of 9 players (by and large MVPs and MVP candidates) averaging at least 20 points, half-dozen rebounds and six assists this calendar month. The Pistons scored 90 points on 73 offensive possessions through the offset three quarters against the Celtics' acme-ranked defense on Friday, with Cunningham making good reads out of the pick-and-roll and strong drives to the basket. Eventually, the Celtics had no choice but to double-team him.

The Pistons nevertheless accept just two wins that weren't within 5 points in the last five minutes. Ane of those (Oct. xxx) was against the Magic, who they'll face for the quaternary and last fourth dimension (in Orlando) on Thursday. The home team has won all iii meetings thus far.

Calendar week 22: @ MIA, @ ORL, @ CLE

Orlando Magic

Record: xviii-51

Pace: 99.6 (ten) OffRtg: 104.1 (29) DefRtg: 111.6 (twenty) NetRtg: -7.5 (27)

The Magic were the kickoff team officially eliminated from the playoffs, though it wasn't by their own doing. Well, it was, but they were eliminated on Friday by Atlanta and Charlotte victories, not past a loss they suffered themselves. In fact, the Magic got a pretty good win on Friday, coming back from 18 points downwards to beat Minnesota behind a large game (27 points on 10-for-15 shooting) from Mo Bamba. It was the Magic'due south second-well-nigh efficient game of the season (118 points on 99 possessions) and it came with 31 assists on 40 field goals (their second-highest assist rate of the season). Markelle Fultz had seven of those 31 (in less than 18 minutes) and another 11 assists (in less than 19 minutes) as the Magic about trounce the Sixers on Dominicus. Over the two weekend games, Orlando outscored Minny and Philly past 25 points in Fultz's 37 minutes.

The Magic have the league's No. 1 defense since the All-Star suspension (106.iv points allowed per 100 possessions), top-ranked in regard to both opponent effective field goal percentage and defensive rebounding per centum. And they've played more games against teams that rank in the elevation 10 offensively (3) than they have against teams that rank in the bottom 10 (1).

Their remaining schedule is the opposite. 7 of the Magic's terminal thirteen games are against bottom-10 offenses. That includes 2 games each confronting the 21st-ranked Cavs and 30th-ranked Thunder, who are in Orlando on Sunday. Of class, the all-time challenge for that No. one mail service-pause defense is Tuesday, when Misters Durant and Irving come up to boondocks.

Week 22: vs. BKN, vs. DET, vs. OKC

Oklahoma City Thunder

Record: 20-47

Pace: 99.4 (11) OffRtg: 102.6 (thirty) DefRtg: 110.4 (sixteen) NetRtg: -7.8 (28)

The Thunder went into the All-Star interruption with the league's eighth-ranked defence force. And they've speedily fallen to 16th, with only the Blazers having allowed more points per 100 possessions since the intermission. Seven of the Thunder's ix postal service-break games have come against teams that rank in the top 10 in offensive efficiency, so it's been a tough slate. The Thunder are still a lot closer to ninth on defense (0.ix points immune per 100 possessions) than they are to 29th on law-breaking (one.5 scored per 100), but the absences of Lu Dort (done for the flavor) and Kenrich Williams (who besides hasn't played since the intermission) will arrive hard to get dorsum there.

The Thunder'southward second-worst defensive game of the season (142 points allowed on 105 possessions) was Tuesday against Milwaukee. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had a large game (33 points and fourteen assists) on the other end of the flooring and registered a plus-four in more than than 35 minutes against the champs, but OKC was somehow outscored past 31 points (110.7 per 100 possessions!) in his 12:51 on the bench. That'south like Embiid in the Toronto series times two. For the season, his on-off differential (they've been four.0 points per 100 possessions meliorate with him on the flooring) is a footling lower than it was last season (4.2).

The Thunder will play another top-10 offense (that of the Hornets) on Mon, before their weary defense gets a little relief.

Calendar week 22: vs. CHA, @ SAS, @ MIA, @ ORL

Indiana Pacers

Tape: 23-46

Pace: 98.3 (19) OffRtg: 111.2 (sixteen) DefRtg: 113.6 (26) NetRtg: -2.three (22)

They have the league's eighth-ranked offense since they acquired Tyrese Haliburton and Buddy Hield. And while Haliburton has had the ball in his hands for more than than twice the time as Hield over those 13 games (seven.3 vs. 3.6 minutes per game), Hield has too been running a lot of pick and roll. In fact, the Pacers accept gear up 16.7 ball screens per game for Hield, upwardly from just 6.3 per game in his fourth dimension with the Kings this flavour. And while Hield has attempted almost nine pull-up 3s per game (ninth in the league) since the trade, he's too averaged v.six assists with Indiana, up from 1.9 with Sacramento. He's had at least five assists in five straight games and his five dimes in Atlanta on Lord's day included some nice pick-and-whorl reads. Buddy Hield, betoken baby-sit. Who knew?

Of form, even with that eighth-ranked crime, the Pacers are merely four-9 since the trade, because they're 2-vii in games that were inside five points in the last five minutes. The trade helped Hield expand his game, only it couldn't aid the Pacers in close games. Another new Pacer (Jalen Smith) gave them a new manner to lose on Tuesday, committing an absent-minded take foul with the score tied, fourteen seconds on the clock, and the Cavs in the bonus.

Hield and Haliburton accept already lost to the Grizzlies three times this season. And they'll get to confront them twice more than in the next x days.

Week 22: vs. MEM, @ HOU, vs. POR

Houston Rockets

Record: 17-51

Pace: 101.2 (ane) OffRtg: 107.2 (27) DefRtg: 116.3 (xxx) NetRtg: -9.1 (30)

Jalen Greenish hasn't been as consistent every bit Cade Cunningham over these last few weeks, and given the way they play (as well as their size and force), he might non ever be every bit consistent every bit the guy picked ahead of him. But Green has made similarly noticeable progress since the commencement of the season, and he hit some other high note on Wednesday, scoring a career-high 32 points (on xiii-for-21 shooting) in a win over the Lakers, with 10 of those 32 coming in overtime.

Green is one of 28 players who've averaged at least xx points (in eight games or more) since the All-Star intermission, and his post-intermission effective field goal percentage (56.7%) is in the upper half of that group. His true shooting pct (58.0%) is in the lesser one-half considering he'southward not getting to the line as much. His post-break complimentary throw charge per unit (xv.three attempts per 100 shots from the field) is down from 28.5 before the break and ranks last among those 28 20-point scorers. He still has the third most free throw attempts for the team that leads the league in free throw charge per unit.

Green has been a much more efficient scorer at home, where the Rockets will play nine of their final 14 games. That includes visits from the two summit teams in the Western Conference this week. The Rockets are 2-17 against the West'due south top six, having browbeaten the Grizzlies at home eight days agone.

Week 22: vs. PHX, vs. IND, vs. MEM

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