NBA Power Rankings, Week 21 — Milwaukee Bucks win a Finals rematch, LeBron James and Jayson Tatum go for 50-plus
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Which NBA teams are making the biggest moves after an action-packed weekend?
On Saturday, the Miami Heat toppled the Philadelphia 76ers in a matchup of the top two teams in the Eastern Conference. James Harden didn’t suit up — he was held out in the second leg of a back-to-back — but the Heat limited Joel Embiid to 26.7% shooting to hand the Sixers their first loss since the All-Star break.
Saturday’s finale witnessed a historic performance that the Los Angeles Lakers hope can spark their stretch run. LeBron James poured in 56 points — his most as a Laker — to fuel a comeback win over the Golden State Warriors. It was just the Lakers’ second win over the past nine games as they cling to the Western Conference’s No. 9 seed.
The points kept coming on Sunday, as the Boston Celtics’ Jayson Tatum dropped 54 on Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and the Brooklyn Nets. Boston has won 14 of its past 16 games. And in a Finals rematch, the Milwaukee Bucks got 44 points from Khris Middleton to outduel the Phoenix Suns.
Who’s rising and falling with five weeks remaining in the regular season?
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. Phoenix Suns
2021-22 record: 51-13
Previous ranking: 1
In Friday’s 115-114 win over the New York Knicks, Cameron Johnson had a career night. After never making more than five 3-pointers in any game in his career, Johnson made six in the fourth quarter alone (including the game-winner). He finished with a career-high 38 points and a career-high nine triples. Also in the fourth quarter, Johnson scored 21 points — the same total the Knicks had as a team. — Lopez
2. Miami Heat
2021-22 record: 43-22
Previous ranking: 4
The Heat have now won 11 of their last 13 — and they pulled off one of…
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Source : espn
