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Klay Thompson returned after 941 days away from the court. The Golden State Warriors Splash Brother, who hadn’t played in an NBA game since the 2019 Finals due to ACL and Achilles injuries, made his much-anticipated season debut with 17 points in 20 minutes during the Warriors’ win over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday.
How dangerous are the Warriors now, as the co-owners of the league’s best record and bona fide title contenders return another offensive weapon?
Meanwhile, outside of San Francisco, the Memphis Grizzlies own the league’s longest active win streak. The Grizzlies’ run now sits at nine games thanks to a win over the Los Angeles Lakers, which included this epic block by Ja Morant.
In the East, the conference-leading Bulls saw their nine-game winning streak snapped Sunday to the Dallas Mavericks. The longest active streaks in the conference now belong to the Philadelphia 76ers and Toronto Raptors, who each take a six-game run into the week.
See where all 30 teams stand now.
Note: Throughout the regular season, our panel (Tim Bontemps, Jamal Collier, Nick Friedell, Andrew Lopez, Tim MacMahon, Dave McMenamin and Ohm Youngmisuk) is ranking all 30 teams from top to bottom, taking stock of which teams are playing the best basketball now and which teams are looking most like title contenders.
1. Golden State Warriors
2021-22 record: 30-9
Previous ranking: 1
After two and a half years, Klay Thompson is back. The former All-Star provided exactly the kind of jolt Steve Kerr & Co. were hoping to see in his return game Sunday night, scoring 17 points in 20 minutes in a win over the Cavs. The Warriors have to hope the good vibes can keep rolling this week during a tough four-game road stretch that includes games against the Grizzlies, Bucks and Bulls. — Friedell
2. Phoenix Suns
2021-22 record: 30-9
Previous ranking: 2
Since his return from a hamstring injury on Dec. 19, Devin Booker’s field goal percentage has taken a dip. He’s shooting 40.8% overall in his past 11 games,…
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Source : espn
