NBA Power Rankings: Rockets, Warriors Battle For Top Spot as Trade Deadline Approaches
There is barely a day left until the trade deadline arrives. That said, it is a good time to check the National Basketball Association teams' power rankings and see who among them are most likely going to make a move based on where they currently stand in the league.
The Golden State Warriors is undoubtedly one of the best teams in the league right now and has been playing fairly consistently to maintain its run for the playoffs season. However, various NBA power rankings reports has put the team only at the second spot this week behind the Houston Rockets.
Though the Warriors were still able to snatch wins here and there, the team's level of exhaustion has obviously been increasing especially in the defense department. Even head coach Steve Kerr agrees, but he is confident that all the team needs is time to relax which the All-Star week can provide.
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"Our guys are dying to get to the All-Star break," Kerr told Mercury News. "But we got to fight through the break and then get the h*** away from each other and go sit on a beach and relax and then we'll be in great shape."
As for the current no. 1 team, the Rockets now have 39 wins and 13 losses and has notably won nine out of their last 11 games. They have the same number of losses that the Warriors (41-13) have as of this writing.
Meanwhile, if there is another team that every NBA fan has their eyes on, it has to be the Cleveland Cavaliers. In the past few years, it has been meeting the Golden State Warriors in the NBA Finals, and a rivalry between the two teams has naturally been recognized.
However, the Cavs are badly trailing in the latest power rankings as the trade deadline arrives.
USA Today has placed them in no. 9 -- down from last week's no. 8 position -- with a record of 30 wins and 22 losses. John Schuhmann of NBA.com, meanwhile, designated the Cavaliers to a much lower position at no. 13. CBS Sports even ranked the team way below at no. 20 and noted that the team had a number of issues to resolve including rumored misunderstandings among players on top of their problematic defense.
With all these issues rising, the Feb. 8 trade deadline is a very crucial day for the Cleveland front office to make a wise and aggressive move in the hope of replenishing the team's roster and convincing LeBron James to stay for the seasons to come.
