{"id":903707,"date":"2026-11-02T22:40:42","date_gmt":"2026-11-02T22:40:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/903707\/"},"modified":"2026-11-02T22:40:42","modified_gmt":"2026-11-02T22:40:42","slug":"power-rankings-undefeated-grizzlies-surge-into-top-5","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/903707\/","title":{"rendered":"Power Rankings: Undefeated Grizzlies surge into Top 5"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-2415046\" class=\"size-large wp-image-2415046\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/GettyImages-2302465477-scaled-e1793629182248-1568x882.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1568\" height=\"882\"  \/><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-2415046\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Rookie forward Cameron Boozer and the Grizzlies are 6-0 before Week 3 of the regular season.<\/p>\n<p>The last undefeated team in the league is \u2026 the Memphis Grizzlies?<\/p>\n<p>The Grizzlies finished 12 games out of the Play-In Tournament last season. They\u2019re led by a guard who\u2019s averaged 9.7 points per game over his career and a forward who made his NBA debut just 12 days ago.<\/p>\n<p>Now they\u2019re the 21st team in the 22 years since the league expanded to 30 teams to begin the season with six straight wins.<\/p>\n<p>Of those 20 other teams that were 6-0:<\/p>\n<p>All 20 went on to make the playoffs.<\/p>\n<p>19 of the 20 finished as a No. 5 seed or higher, with 10 earning the No. 1 seed in their conference.<\/p>\n<p>18 of the 20 won a playoff series, 12 reached the conference finals, seven reached the Finals, and four won the championship.<\/p>\n<p>The two teams that started the season 6-0 and didn\u2019t win a playoff series were the 2010-11 New Orleans Hornets (No. 7 seed) and the 2022-23 Bucks, who were the No. 1 seed but <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612749\/boxscores-traditional?Season=2022-23&amp;SeasonType=Playoffs\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">lost<\/a> to the No. 8 seed Miami Heat in five games. Giannis Antetokounmpo missed Games 2 and 3 after leaving Game 1 with a back injury.<\/p>\n<p>All in all, those are good numbers for the Grizzlies. But how much longer can they keep this streak going? <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/schedule\/grizzlies\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">Their November schedule<\/a> begins with home games against the Pelicans and Pacers before they host the Thunder in Emirates NBA Cup action on Friday.<\/p>\n<p>Plus-Minus Players of the Week<\/p>\n<p>Teams of the Week<\/p>\n<p>Make It Last Forever: Golden State (4-0) \u2014 The Rockets and Warriors are the only teams with three wins over teams currently over .500, and a;; three of the Warriors\u2019 wins came last week.<br \/>\nSomething Just Ain\u2019t Right: Indiana (0-4) \u2014 Tyrese Haliburton is great, but the Pacers shouldn\u2019t be losing to both the Bucks and the Nets (teams that are a combined 0-10 otherwise), whether he\u2019s in the lineup or not.<\/p>\n<p>East vs. West<\/p>\n<p>The West is <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/traditional?Conference=West&amp;Season=2026-27&amp;SeasonType=Regular+Season&amp;VsConference=East&amp;dir=A&amp;sort=W_PCT\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">10-2<\/a> (.833) against the East in interconference games after going <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/traditional?Conference=West&amp;DateFrom=10\/26\/2026&amp;DateTo=11\/01\/2026&amp;VsConference=East&amp;dir=A&amp;sort=W\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">5-1<\/a> last week.<\/p>\n<p>Movement in the Rankings<\/p>\n<p>High jumps of the week: Memphis (+12), Golden State (+11)<br \/>\nFree falls of the week: Indiana (-10), Minnesota (-9)<\/p>\n<p>Week 3 Team to Watch<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/schedule\/cavaliers?cal=3&amp;pd=false\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Cleveland<\/a> \u2014 The Cavs are off to a solid but unconvincing 4-2 start. They could use some signature wins, and this week\u2019s schedule \u2014 four games against the Thunder (x 2), Sixers and Knicks \u2014 gives them an opportunity to prove they\u2019re a serious contender.<\/p>\n<p>Previous Power Rankings<\/p>\n<p>Key Stats to Know<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/advanced\/?sort=OFF_RATING&amp;dir=-1\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">OffRtg<\/a>: Points scored per 100 possessions (League Rank)<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/advanced\/?sort=DEF_RATING&amp;dir=-1\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">DefRtg<\/a>: Points allowed per 100 possessions (League Rank)<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/advanced\/?sort=NET_RATING&amp;dir=-1\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">NetRtg<\/a>: Point differential per 100 possessions (League Rank)<\/p>\n<p>The league has averaged 111.9 points scored per 100 possessions and 101.2 possessions (per team) per 48 minutes this season.<\/p>\n<p>A rest-advantage game (or rest-disadvantage game) is one where one team played the day\/night before, but the other (the team with the advantage) did not. Teams are 8-8 in rest-advantage games, 6-3 at home and 2-5 on the road this season.<\/p>\n<p>* = <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/nba-cup\/2026\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Emirates NBA Cup<\/a> game<\/p>\n<p>NBA.com\u2019s Power Rankings, released every Monday during the season, are just one man\u2019s opinion. If you have an issue with the rankings, or have a question or comment for John Schuhmann, <a href=\"https:\/\/bsky.app\/profile\/johnschuhmann.bsky.social\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">contact him via Bluesky<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>#1<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.nba.com\/logos\/nba\/1610612745\/primary\/L\/logo.svg\" title=\" Logo\" alt=\" Logo\" class=\"TeamLogo_logo__8OGEP\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/rockets\" class=\"Anchor_anchor__wnmj2 ArticlePowerRankings_prTeam__LzUML Link_styled__TysPH\" data-is-external=\"false\" data-has-more=\"false\" data-has-children=\"false\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Houston Rockets<\/a>Last Week:4\u2191<\/p>\n<p>Record: 6-1<\/p>\n<p>OffRtg: 121.2 (1) DefRtg: 108.9 (9) NetRtg: +12.3 (2)<\/p>\n<p>The Rockets lost for the first time when they played without Alperen Sengun and missed some critical free throws in Dallas on Friday. But Sengun was back in the lineup the following night, when they beat the Thunder by 21 points.<\/p>\n<p>Two takeaways<\/p>\n<p>According to tracking data, the Rockets have seen the league\u2019s biggest improvement in shot quality, jumping from 22nd last season to seventh through the first two weeks. Kevin Durant\u2019s shot quality is his highest mark in the 14 seasons for which we have tracking data, and he\u2019s also registering a career-high free throw rate of 63 attempts per 100 shots from the field. But he went 0-for-2 from the line with the Rockets down two and less than two minutes left in Dallas on Friday.<\/p>\n<p>The Rockets held the Bucks to fewer than one point per possession\u00a0without Sengun last week, but the defense has still been at its best (<a style=\"font-size: 1.125rem\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612745\/onoffcourt-summary?dir=A&amp;sort=ON_DEF_RATING\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">99.4 allowed per 100<\/a>) with him on the floor. Some of that is opponent 3-point shooting (<a style=\"font-size: 1.125rem\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612745\/onoffcourt-opponent?PerMode=Totals\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">25%<\/a>), but it\u2019s also about <a style=\"font-size: 1.125rem\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612745\/onoffcourt-four-factors\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">free throws and rebounding<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Coming up: The road team has won the last five meetings between the Rockets and Celtics, with both of last season\u2019s games decided by more than 20 points. Their meeting in Houston on Monday will be the Rockets\u2019 fourth game against an Eastern Conference opponent.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/schedule\/rockets?pd=false&amp;cal=3\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Week 3<\/a>: vs. BOS, vs. MIN, @ PHX<\/p>\n<p>#2<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.nba.com\/logos\/nba\/1610612765\/primary\/L\/logo.svg\" title=\" Logo\" alt=\" Logo\" class=\"TeamLogo_logo__8OGEP\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/pistons\" class=\"Anchor_anchor__wnmj2 ArticlePowerRankings_prTeam__LzUML Link_styled__TysPH\" data-is-external=\"false\" data-has-more=\"false\" data-has-children=\"false\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Detroit Pistons<\/a>Last Week:2<\/p>\n<p>Record: 5-1<\/p>\n<p>OffRtg: 111.3 (17) DefRtg: 103.2 (1) NetRtg: +8.1 (6)<\/p>\n<p>The Pistons were outscored by 38 points (63-25) in the second and third quarters in New York on Tuesday, losing to the Knicks for the first time in almost 18 months. But they took care of business against the Hornets and Nets and are off to their best six-game start (5-1) in the last 11 years.<\/p>\n<p>Two takeaways<\/p>\n<p>The Pistons held their opponent to fewer than one point per possession <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612765\/boxscores-advanced?CF=DEF_RATING*L*100&amp;Season=2025-26&amp;dir=A&amp;sort=GDATE\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">just twice through Dec. 31<\/a> last season. They\u2019ve already done so <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612765\/boxscores-advanced\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">three times<\/a> this year, even with Isaiah Stewart in Memphis and Jalen Duren having played just 38 total minutes. They\u2019ve allowed just <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612765\/lineups-advanced?CF=GROUP_NAME*E*Thompson:GROUP_NAME*E*Reed&amp;DateTo=&amp;GroupQuantity=2\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">91.3 per 100<\/a> in 78 minutes with Ausar Thompson and Paul Reed on the floor together.<\/p>\n<p>But their current starting lineup (with Reed in place of Duren) has struggled offensively, scoring just 62 points on 79 possessions (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/lineups\/advanced?CF=MIN*GE*25&amp;dir=A&amp;sort=OFF_RATING\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">78.5 per 100<\/a>). After <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612765\/boxscores-traditional?Period=1\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">some terrific first quarters<\/a> on their three-game road trip, the Pistons trailed by double digits in the first half against both Charlotte and Brooklyn last week.<\/p>\n<p>Coming up: The Pistons have two games left on a stretch where they\u2019re playing six straight against teams that rank in the bottom 11 offensively. They\u2019ve played a role in where those teams rank, of course, with their Week 1 win in Philadelphia being the Sixers\u2019 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612755\/boxscores-advanced\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">worst offensive game<\/a> of the season. They were without Joel Embiid, who could be available in Detroit on Wednesday.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/schedule\/pistons?pd=false&amp;cal=3\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Week 3<\/a>: @ CHA, vs. PHI, vs. LAL<\/p>\n<p>#3<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.nba.com\/logos\/nba\/1610612755\/primary\/L\/logo.svg\" title=\" Logo\" alt=\" Logo\" class=\"TeamLogo_logo__8OGEP\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/sixers\/\" class=\"Anchor_anchor__wnmj2 ArticlePowerRankings_prTeam__LzUML Link_styled__TysPH\" data-is-external=\"false\" data-has-more=\"false\" data-has-children=\"false\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Philadelphia 76ers<\/a>Last Week:5\u2191<\/p>\n<p>Record: 6-1<\/p>\n<p>OffRtg: 108.6 (23) DefRtg: 104.9 (3) NetRtg: +3.7 (11)<\/p>\n<p>The Sixers are 6-1, even though they have just the league\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/traditional?dir=A&amp;sort=PLUS_MINUS\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">11th-best point differential<\/a> (plus-3.9 per game). All six wins were <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/clutch-traditional?PerMode=Totals&amp;dir=A&amp;sort=W\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">within five points in the last five minutes<\/a>, while the one loss (a rest-disadvantage game without Joel Embiid against Detroit) was not.<\/p>\n<p>Two takeaways<\/p>\n<p>VJ Edgecombe is just 8-for-27 (29.6%) on non-clutch 3-pointers, but he\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/players\/clutch-traditional?CF=TEAM_ABBREVIATION*E*PHI&amp;PerMode=Totals&amp;dir=A&amp;sort=FG3A\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">2-for-4 in the clutch<\/a>, having given the Sixers 4-point leads in almost identical scenarios against New York (a catch-and-shoot 3 with 32.6 seconds left) and Charlotte (a step-back 3 with 35.4 seconds left). Tyrese Maxey <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/players\/clutch-traditional?PerMode=Totals&amp;dir=A&amp;sort=PTS\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">is tied for the league lead<\/a> with 21 total points scored in the clutch, and the Sixers have scored 59 points on their 45 clutch offensive possessions (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/clutch-advanced?dir=A&amp;sort=OFF_RATING\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">131 per 100<\/a>).<\/p>\n<p>Coming up: The Sixers won\u2019t have another back-to-back until Nov. 15-16, and they\u2019ll have a pair of marquee rematches when they visit the Pistons and Cavs on the three-game trip that begins Wednesday in Detroit.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/schedule\/sixers?pd=false&amp;cal=3\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Week 3<\/a>: vs. CHI, @ DET, @ CLE*, @ CHI<\/p>\n<p>#4<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.nba.com\/logos\/nba\/1610612759\/primary\/L\/logo.svg\" title=\" Logo\" alt=\" Logo\" class=\"TeamLogo_logo__8OGEP\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/spurs\/\" class=\"Anchor_anchor__wnmj2 ArticlePowerRankings_prTeam__LzUML Link_styled__TysPH\" data-is-external=\"false\" data-has-more=\"false\" data-has-children=\"false\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">San Antonio Spurs<\/a>Last Week:6\u2191<\/p>\n<p>Record: 4-2<\/p>\n<p>OffRtg: 115.2 (9) DefRtg: 108.5 (8) NetRtg: +6.7 (8)<\/p>\n<p>The Spurs lost their first two games of the season, but have since won four straight. They\u2019ve scored <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612759\/advanced?DateFrom=10%2F24%2F2026&amp;DateTo=10%2F31%2F2026\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">119.2 points per 100 possessions<\/a> over the streak, with Victor Wembanyama <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/player\/1641705\/boxscores-traditional\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">totaling 79 points<\/a> over the last two games.<\/p>\n<p>Two takeaways<\/p>\n<p>Not surprisingly, Stephon Castle has had the biggest offensive adjustment with Dylan Harper moving into the starting lineup this season. Castle has gone from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/players\/touches?Season=2025-26&amp;TeamID=1610612759&amp;dir=D&amp;sort=TIME_OF_POSS\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">a team-high 5.7 minutes per game<\/a> of possession (19% of his minutes on the floor) last season to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/players\/touches?Season=2026-27&amp;TeamID=1610612759&amp;dir=D&amp;sort=TIME_OF_POSS\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">3.9 per game<\/a> (third on the team and 13% of his minutes) this season. His efficiency <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/player\/1642264\/advanced?Split=yoy\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">is down<\/a> and he had his first scoreless game in almost two years on Saturday.<\/p>\n<p>But Castle\u2019s overall scoring and usage rate isn\u2019t down significantly. He\u2019s just playing more off the ball and averaging <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/players\/catch-shoot?PerMode=PerGame&amp;sort=CATCH_SHOOT_FG3A&amp;dir=1&amp;TeamID=1610612759&amp;Season=2026-27\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">6.3 catch-and-shoot 3-point attempts per game<\/a>, up from just <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/players\/catch-shoot?PerMode=PerGame&amp;sort=CATCH_SHOOT_FG3A&amp;dir=1&amp;TeamID=1610612759&amp;Season=2025-26\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">2.9 per game<\/a> last season. The Spurs are in the top six in both ball and player movement and lead the league by a wide margin in the percentage of their 3-point attempts (84%) that have been off the catch.<\/p>\n<p>Coming up: The winning streak includes wins over the Jazz, Mavs and Kings, who the Spurs will face again in the next five days. The Mavs were without both Kyrie Irving and Cooper Flagg when the Spurs won in Dallas in Week 1.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/schedule\/spurs?pd=false&amp;cal=3\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Week 3<\/a>: vs. UTA, vs. DAL, @ SAC*, @ POR<\/p>\n<p>#5<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.nba.com\/logos\/nba\/1610612763\/primary\/L\/logo.svg\" title=\" Logo\" alt=\" Logo\" class=\"TeamLogo_logo__8OGEP\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/grizzlies\/\" class=\"Anchor_anchor__wnmj2 ArticlePowerRankings_prTeam__LzUML Link_styled__TysPH\" data-is-external=\"false\" data-has-more=\"false\" data-has-children=\"false\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Memphis Grizzlies<\/a>Last Week:17\u2191<\/p>\n<p>Record: 6-0<\/p>\n<p>OffRtg: 118.8 (3) DefRtg: 104.1 (2) NetRtg: +14.7 (1)<\/p>\n<p>Cam Boozer recorded his first career triple-double as the Grizzlies won a battle of unbeaten teams in Portland on Thursday. Then they clobbered the Kings (without Ty Jerome) to make this the second 6-0 start in franchise history. The first came 12 years ago, when the Grizzlies finished 55-27 and lost in the conference semifinals after <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612763\/boxscores-traditional?Season=2014-15&amp;SeasonType=Playoffs\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">taking a 2-1 series lead<\/a> over the eventual champion Warriors.<\/p>\n<p>Two takeaways<\/p>\n<p>The win in Portland was the third time that the Grizzlies shot below 50% in the paint. But they kept the Blazers in check on the other end and have been winning from the outside. They\u2019ve outscored their opponent from 3-point range in all six of their games and by 15 points or more in each of the last four. The percentages are sure to start going the other way at some point, though. While the Grizzlies have shot <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/traditional?PerMode=Totals&amp;dir=A&amp;sort=FG3_PCT\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">a league-best 41.6%<\/a> from beyond the arc, their opponents have shot just 30.1% (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/opponent?PerMode=Totals&amp;dir=A&amp;sort=OPP_FG3_PCT\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">third lowest<\/a>).<\/p>\n<p>Coming up: With the Pelicans and Pacers in town early this week, the Grizzlies have a good chance of keeping this streak going. Jerome isn\u2019t on the injury report for the game against New Orleans on Monday.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/schedule\/grizzlies?pd=false&amp;cal=3\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Week 3<\/a>: vs. NOP, vs. IND, vs. OKC*<\/p>\n<p>#6<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.nba.com\/logos\/nba\/1610612738\/primary\/L\/logo.svg\" title=\" Logo\" alt=\" Logo\" class=\"TeamLogo_logo__8OGEP\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/celtics\/\" class=\"Anchor_anchor__wnmj2 ArticlePowerRankings_prTeam__LzUML Link_styled__TysPH\" data-is-external=\"false\" data-has-more=\"false\" data-has-children=\"false\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Boston Celtics<\/a>Last Week:8\u2191<\/p>\n<p>Record: 5-1<\/p>\n<p>OffRtg: 117.7 (5) DefRtg: 107.6 (6) NetRtg: +10.1 (4)<\/p>\n<p>The Celtics have won <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612738\/boxscores-advanced?Season=2026-27\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">five straight games<\/a> after blowing a 22-point lead in the season opener. They\u2019ve mostly been taking care of business against bad teams, though they did need a rookie mistake from Mikel Brown Jr. and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/watch\/video\/jayson-tatum-hits-the-jumper-to-win-it-as-the-ot-clock-expires\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">a Jayson Tatum buzzer-beater<\/a> to edge the Nets in overtime on Tuesday.<\/p>\n<p>Two takeaways<\/p>\n<p>The Celtics have been getting to the line. After averaging just 18.5 free throw attempts through their first two games, they\u2019ve averaged 33.3 over <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612738\/boxscores-traditional\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">the last four<\/a>. Jayson Tatum has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612738\/players-traditional?DateFrom=10\/26\/2026&amp;DateTo=11\/01\/2026&amp;PerMode=Totals&amp;dir=D&amp;sort=FTA\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">led the way<\/a>, with 22 attempts in the overtime win over Brooklyn and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/player\/1628369\/boxscores-traditional\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">another 17<\/a> in Orlando on Sunday afternoon. As things stand, only the Bulls have seen a bigger jump in free throw rate from last season (when the Celtics ranked <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/four-factors?Season=2025-26&amp;dir=D&amp;sort=FTA_RATE\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">30th<\/a> by a healthy margin).<\/p>\n<p>With more free throws and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/misc?PerMode=Per100Possessions&amp;dir=A&amp;sort=OPP_PTS_PAINT\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">the league\u2019s best paint defense<\/a>, the Celtics are a little less dependent on 3-point shooting. While the rest of the league is 21-62 (.253) when it\u2019s been outscored from beyond the arc, the Celtics are 4-0.<\/p>\n<p>Coming up: The Celtics have four games left on a stretch where they\u2019re playing eight of nine against teams that currently have losing records. The lone exception is their visit to Houston on Monday. It\u2019s one of two matchups this week between <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/traditional?CF=L*LE*1\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">the six teams<\/a> with fewer than two losses.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/schedule\/celtics?pd=false&amp;cal=3\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Week 3<\/a>: @ HOU, vs. MIL, @ CHA*, @ MIL<\/p>\n<p>#7<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.nba.com\/logos\/nba\/1610612760\/primary\/L\/logo.svg\" title=\" Logo\" alt=\" Logo\" class=\"TeamLogo_logo__8OGEP\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/thunder\" class=\"Anchor_anchor__wnmj2 ArticlePowerRankings_prTeam__LzUML Link_styled__TysPH\" data-is-external=\"false\" data-has-more=\"false\" data-has-children=\"false\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Oklahoma City Thunder<\/a>Last Week:1\u2193<\/p>\n<p>Record: 4-2<\/p>\n<p>OffRtg: 108.7 (21) DefRtg: 109.4 (11) NetRtg: -0.7 (17)<\/p>\n<p>Chet Holmgren (right knee injury) has joined Jalen Williams and Cason Wallace on the list of Thunder players who are out long-term, and Alex Caruso has missed the last two games with a sprained ankle. After a 4-0 start, Oklahoma City has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612760\/boxscores-traditional\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dropped two<\/a> by a total of 45 points. That\u2019s already as many losses by more than 20 as they had all of last season (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612760\/boxscores-traditional?CF=PLUS_MINUS*L*-20&amp;Season=2025-26\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">two<\/a>) and more than they had in 2024-25 (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612760\/boxscores-traditional?CF=PLUS_MINUS*L*-20&amp;Season=2024-25\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">one<\/a>).<\/p>\n<p>Two takeaways<\/p>\n<p>The three games that they\u2019ve been without Williams, Wallace and Holmgren have been one of the Thunder\u2019s worst defensive stretches (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612760\/advanced?DateFrom=10%2F26%2F2026&amp;DateTo=10%2F31%2F2026\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">122.1 points allowed per 100 possessions<\/a>) over the last three years. They\u2019ve yielded <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/shooting?PerMode=Totals&amp;DistanceRange=By+Zone&amp;OpponentTeamID=1610612760&amp;DateFrom=10%2F26%2F2026&amp;DateTo=10%2F31%2F2026\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">22 corner 3s<\/a> over the three games (the league average is 3.6 per game) and forced just 11.8 turnovers per 100 possessions, down from 20.8 per 100 through their first three games.<\/p>\n<p>Shai Gilgeous-Alexander\u2019s true shooting percentage of 55.2% would be <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/player\/1628983\/advanced?Split=yoy\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">the lowest mark of his career<\/a>, and it\u2019s not just about struggles (30%) from beyond the arc. He\u2019s also registering career-low marks for field goal percentage in the paint (50%) and free throw rate (21.7 attempts per 100 shots from the field). The good news is that the offense <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612760\/onoffcourt-summary?LastNGames=3\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">hasn\u2019t been totally anemic<\/a> with him off the floor over these last three games.<\/p>\n<p>Coming up: The Thunder\u2019s longest losing streak over the last three-plus seasons (since the start of 2023-24) was three games in April of 2024. To avoid matching that, they\u2019ll need to win in Cleveland on Monday. That\u2019s the second game of a stretch where they\u2019re playing six of seven against teams that currently rank in the top eight offensively.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/schedule\/thunder?pd=false&amp;cal=3\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Week 3<\/a>: @ CLE, vs. CLE, @ MEM*, vs. WAS<\/p>\n<p>#8<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.nba.com\/logos\/nba\/1610612739\/primary\/L\/logo.svg\" title=\" Logo\" alt=\" Logo\" class=\"TeamLogo_logo__8OGEP\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/cavaliers\" class=\"Anchor_anchor__wnmj2 ArticlePowerRankings_prTeam__LzUML Link_styled__TysPH\" data-is-external=\"false\" data-has-more=\"false\" data-has-children=\"false\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Cleveland Cavaliers<\/a>Last Week:11\u2191<\/p>\n<p>Record: 4-2<\/p>\n<p>OffRtg: 115.8 (8) DefRtg: 111.5 (17) NetRtg: +4.3 (10)<\/p>\n<p>The Cavs are the only team with multiple losses in games they led by at least 15 points, having blown a 15-point lead in Atlanta on Thursday. But they\u2019ve won <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612739\/boxscores-advanced\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">four of their last five<\/a>, having handed the Wolves their first defeat (in a game the Cavs trailed by 15) earlier in the week.<\/p>\n<p>Two takeaways<\/p>\n<p>Each of the Cavs\u2019 first five games was within five points in the final five minutes, and Sam Merrill has played <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/players\/clutch-traditional?CF=TEAM_ABBREVIATION*E*CLE&amp;PerMode=Totals&amp;dir=A&amp;sort=MIN\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">twice as many clutch minutes<\/a> as Jarrett Allen thus far. The Cavs have struggled (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612739\/lineups-advanced?CF=GROUP_NAME*E*Mobley:GROUP_NAME*E*Allen&amp;GroupQuantity=2\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">minus-15.0 points per 100 possessions<\/a>) in 81 minutes with both Allen and Evan Mobley on the floor, but their one-big lineups (202 total minutes) have generally been terrific (plus-14.4 per 100), and the difference has been about even on both ends of the floor.<\/p>\n<p>Some of the role players haven\u2019t shot well from 3-point range, but Mobley is <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/players\/traditional?CF=FG3A*GE*25&amp;PerMode=Totals&amp;dir=A&amp;sort=FG3_PCT\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">17-for-27<\/a> (58%) from beyond the arc, with those 27 attempts accounting for 35% of his shots, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/player\/1630596\/scoring?Split=yoy\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">the highest rate of his career<\/a> by a healthy margin. He\u2019s not going to keep shooting 58%, but he does look more comfortable with that shot than he did six months ago.<\/p>\n<p>Coming up: The Cavs\u2019 first blown lead came in their season opener, when they lost in Philadelphia after leading by as many as 29 points. They\u2019ll meet the Sixers again on Friday, part of an intriguing week where they\u2019ll play both of their games against the Thunder and face the Knicks for the first time.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/schedule\/cavaliers?pd=false&amp;cal=3\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Week 3<\/a>: vs. OKC, @ OKC, vs. PHI*, vs. NYK<\/p>\n<p>#9<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.nba.com\/logos\/nba\/1610612757\/primary\/L\/logo.svg\" title=\" Logo\" alt=\" Logo\" class=\"TeamLogo_logo__8OGEP\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/blazers\/\" class=\"Anchor_anchor__wnmj2 ArticlePowerRankings_prTeam__LzUML Link_styled__TysPH\" data-is-external=\"false\" data-has-more=\"false\" data-has-children=\"false\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Portland Trail Blazers<\/a>Last Week:15\u2191<\/p>\n<p>Record: 4-1<\/p>\n<p>OffRtg: 118.0 (4) DefRtg: 107.9 (7) NetRtg: +10.1 (5)<\/p>\n<p>The Blazers went 1-1 in two games between unbeaten teams, outlasting the Lakers (on the road) in a barn-burner on Tuesday, but succumbing to the Grizzlies (at home) two nights later. This is their first 4-1 start since 2022-23, the last time they had Damian Lillard in uniform.<\/p>\n<p>Two takeaways<\/p>\n<p>Ja Morant is going to be out at least a month after suffering a hamstring injury on Thursday, and Scoot Henderson was in the starting lineup when the Blazers won in Utah over the weekend. They were good (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612757\/lineups-advanced?CF=GROUP_NAME*E*Lillard:GROUP_NAME*E*Morant&amp;GroupQuantity=2\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">plus-5.2 per 100 possessions<\/a>) in 69 minutes with Morant and Lillard on the floor together, but have been terrific (plus-25.2 per 100) in 110 minutes with one on the floor without the other.<\/p>\n<p>The Blazers and Lakers combined to score more than 130 points per 100 possessions in Portland\u2019s win on Tuesday. L.A. has led the league in free throw differential in each of the last four seasons, but the Blazers had the edge last week and attempted 40 more free throws than their opponents over their last three games. Deni Avdija is still getting to the line a ton and Lillard\u2019s free throw rate (43 attempts per 100 shots from the field) would be the second-highest of his career.<\/p>\n<p>Coming up: The Blazers\u2019 schedule remains tough for the next few weeks. They\u2019ve lost their last 12 (and 22 of their last 24) games in Denver, where they\u2019ll play on Monday. Their first back-to-back of the season \u2013 another visit to the Lakers and their first meeting with the Spurs \u2013 is over the weekend.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/schedule\/blazers?pd=false&amp;cal=3\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Week 3<\/a>: @ DEN, @ PHX, @ LAL*, vs. SAS<\/p>\n<p>#10<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.nba.com\/logos\/nba\/1610612752\/primary\/L\/logo.svg\" title=\" Logo\" alt=\" Logo\" class=\"TeamLogo_logo__8OGEP\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/knicks\/\" class=\"Anchor_anchor__wnmj2 ArticlePowerRankings_prTeam__LzUML Link_styled__TysPH\" data-is-external=\"false\" data-has-more=\"false\" data-has-children=\"false\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">New York Knicks<\/a>Last Week:10<\/p>\n<p>Record: 2-4<\/p>\n<p>OffRtg: 109.6 (20) DefRtg: 110.6 (14) NetRtg: -1.1 (18)<\/p>\n<p>The Knicks got their first win with a 40-point turnaround (from down 13 to up 27) against the team (Detroit) that swept them in convincing fashion last season. Another comeback win (in Chicago) followed, but they\u2019re now 0-2 against the Sixers after an ugly offensive performance in Philadelphia on Friday.<\/p>\n<p>Two takeaways<\/p>\n<p>The Knicks have trailed by at least nine points in all six of their games, falling into double-digit holes in each of the last five. No team is more comfortable playing from behind, and the win over the Pistons was certainly a flashback to their postseason run. But <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/news\/takeaways-first-9-days-2026-27-regular-season\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">double-digit deficits still mean something<\/a> and, as a whole, the league is 30-77 (.280) when trailing by at least 10 points this season.<\/p>\n<p>The Knicks rank 29th in initial offense, with only the Hornets having scored fewer points per 100 possessions before a rebound. But offensive boards have kept them somewhat afloat, with their 21.5 second-chance points per 100 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/misc?PerMode=Per100Possessions&amp;dir=A&amp;sort=PTS_2ND_CHANCE\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">leading the league<\/a>. Andre Drummond (16.8%) ranks <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/players\/advanced?CF=GP*GE*3:MIN*GE*10&amp;dir=A&amp;sort=OREB_PCT\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">fourth<\/a> in offensive rebounding percentage and Karl-Anthony Towns (10.3%) is registering <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/player\/1626157\/advanced?Split=yoy\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">the highest mark<\/a> of his career.<\/p>\n<p>Coming up: The Knicks have a pretty good chance of climbing to .500 when they host the Nets and Bulls early this week. They\u2019ll have a rest advantage against Brooklyn and again when they play in Cleveland (Saturday) for their first meeting with the team they swept in the Eastern Conference finals.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/schedule\/knicks?pd=false&amp;cal=3\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Week 3<\/a>: vs. BKN, vs. CHI, @ CLE<\/p>\n<p>#11<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.nba.com\/logos\/nba\/1610612747\/primary\/L\/logo.svg\" title=\" Logo\" alt=\" Logo\" class=\"TeamLogo_logo__8OGEP\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><a href=\"http:\/\/nba.com\/lakers\" class=\"Anchor_anchor__wnmj2 ArticlePowerRankings_prTeam__LzUML Link_styled__TysPH\" data-is-external=\"false\" data-has-more=\"false\" data-has-children=\"false\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">Los Angeles Lakers<\/a>Last Week:7\u2193<\/p>\n<p>Record: 5-2<\/p>\n<p>OffRtg: 119.9 (2) DefRtg: 113.9 (20) NetRtg: +6.1 (9)<\/p>\n<p>The Lakers have split the first four games of a stretch of five in seven days. They beat the Clippers without Luka Don\u010di\u0107 on Wednesday, but then blew a 25-point lead (with him back in the lineup) at Golden State two nights later.<\/p>\n<p>Two takeaways<\/p>\n<p>The Lakers rank second offensively, even though they\u2019re <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/four-factors?dir=D&amp;sort=TM_TOV_PCT\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">28th<\/a> in turnover rate, having committed more than 20 turnovers in each of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612747\/boxscores-traditional\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">their last three games<\/a>. Don\u010di\u0107\u2019s assist\/turnover ratio of 1.33 would be <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/player\/1629029\/advanced?Split=yoy\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">the lowest of his career<\/a> by a wide margin.<\/p>\n<p>But the Lakers\u2019 effective field goal percentage of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/four-factors?dir=A&amp;sort=EFG_PCT\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">60.0%<\/a> would be the highest mark in NBA history, and their free throw rate of 37.1 attempts per 100 shots from the field would be the second highest in the last 13 seasons. Don\u010di\u0107 isn\u2019t completing all his passes, but when he does, those passes have created the highest-quality shots in the league, according to tracking data.<\/p>\n<p>Coming up: The Lakers will be at a rest disadvantage when they face the Heat on Monday, with Don\u010di\u0107 having scored 60 points the last time the two teams met (in March). They\u2019ll visit the Pistons over the weekend, against whom Don\u010di\u0107 has averaged 35.1 points, the highest career average for any active player (in at least 10 games) against any opponent.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/schedule\/lakers?pd=false&amp;cal=3\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Week 3<\/a>: vs. MIA, @ SAC, vs. POR*, @ DET<\/p>\n<p>#12<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.nba.com\/logos\/nba\/1610612750\/primary\/L\/logo.svg\" title=\" Logo\" alt=\" Logo\" class=\"TeamLogo_logo__8OGEP\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/timberwolves\" class=\"Anchor_anchor__wnmj2 ArticlePowerRankings_prTeam__LzUML Link_styled__TysPH\" data-is-external=\"false\" data-has-more=\"false\" data-has-children=\"false\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Minnesota Timberwolves<\/a>Last Week:3\u2193<\/p>\n<p>Record: 4-3<\/p>\n<p>OffRtg: 116.0 (7) DefRtg: 105.0 (4) NetRtg: +11.1 (3)<\/p>\n<p>Anthony Edwards scored 47 points in Cleveland on Monday \u2026 and was shut down (for multiple months) with a knee issue less than 24 hours later. The Wolves had their best offensive game of the season in a win over the Clippers on Friday night, but are 1-2 without their franchise player.<\/p>\n<p>Two takeaways<\/p>\n<p>With Edwards out and LaMelo Ball averaging just <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612750\/players-traditional?dir=D&amp;sort=MIN\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">25.2 minutes per game<\/a>, the Wolves are now relying heavily on Ayo Dosunmu and Bones Hyland, with Jaden McDaniels also <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/players\/touches?DateFrom=10\/28\/2026&amp;DateTo=10\/31\/2026&amp;Season=2026-27&amp;TeamID=1610612750&amp;dir=D&amp;sort=TIME_OF_POSS\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">handling the ball<\/a> more. Hyland had a nice offensive game (19 points, eight assists and just one turnover) off the bench in a win over the Clippers on Friday, but the Wolves have allowed <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612750\/onoffcourt-summary?dir=D&amp;sort=ON_DEF_RATING\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">122.5 points per 100 possessions<\/a> in his 82 minutes on the floor.<\/p>\n<p>The Wolves had <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/advanced?DateTo=10\/30\/2026&amp;dir=A&amp;sort=DEF_RATING\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">the league\u2019s No. 1 defense<\/a> through Friday, but they were also without Rudy Gobert when they lost a rest-disadvantage game in San Antonio on Saturday night. Their defensive success has been more about the perimeter than the interior, but while their opponents had shot just 23.6% from 3-point range through their first three games, they\u2019ve shot 37.2% over <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/boxscores-traditional?OpponentTeamID=1610612750\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">the four games since<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Coming up: Done with their first set of five games in seven days, the Wolves won\u2019t have another back-to-back until Nov. 16-17. They\u2019ve got some teams they can beat without Edwards on the schedule this week, with their game against the Jazz on Sunday being the start of an eight-game homestand.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/schedule\/timberwolves?pd=false&amp;cal=3\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Week 3<\/a>: vs. MIL, @ HOU, @ NOP*, vs. UTA<\/p>\n<p>#13<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.nba.com\/logos\/nba\/1610612743\/primary\/L\/logo.svg\" title=\" Logo\" alt=\" Logo\" class=\"TeamLogo_logo__8OGEP\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/nuggets\/\" class=\"Anchor_anchor__wnmj2 ArticlePowerRankings_prTeam__LzUML Link_styled__TysPH\" data-is-external=\"false\" data-has-more=\"false\" data-has-children=\"false\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Denver Nuggets<\/a>Last Week:12\u2193<\/p>\n<p>Record: 3-2<\/p>\n<p>OffRtg: 112.4 (14) DefRtg: 114.1 (21) NetRtg: -1.6 (19)<\/p>\n<p>The Nuggets were the first team to lose to the 0-3 (at the time) Warriors, allowing Golden State to have <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/boxscores-advanced?dir=D&amp;sort=OFF_RATING\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">the most efficient offensive game<\/a> (134 points on 96 possessions) for any team this season. But Denver got back on the right side of .500 with wins in New Orleans and Phoenix.<\/p>\n<p>Two takeaways<\/p>\n<p>Last season (true shooting percentage of 62.2%) was <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/player\/1627750\/advanced?Split=yoy\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">the most efficient season<\/a> of Jamal Murray\u2019s career, and he\u2019s been even sharper through five games this year (64.4%). Amazingly, that\u2019s with him having made just four (24%) of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/players\/shooting?CF=PLAYER_NAME*E*Jamal%20Murray&amp;DistanceRange=By%20Zone&amp;PerMode=Totals\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">his 17 mid-range attempts<\/a>. His efficiency has been all about his 3-point shooting (23-for-43, 53%) and his career-high free throw rate (37.2 attempts per 100 shots from the field). He was 7-for-9 from deep and 12-for-15 from the line as he scored 39 points in Phoenix on Friday.<\/p>\n<p>Only the Kings have allowed their opponents to take higher-quality shots than the Nuggets. Denver has the league\u2019s highest rate (48%) of opponent shots that have come in the restricted area or from the corners, and it\u2019s probably a little lucky that the Pelicans shot <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/shooting?DistanceRange=By%20Zone&amp;OpponentTeamID=1610612743&amp;PerMode=Totals&amp;dir=D&amp;sort=Corner%203%20FGA\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">3-for-24<\/a> on corner 3s over their two meetings.<\/p>\n<p>Coming up: Before heading to Mexico City, the Nuggets will have two serious challenges at home, hosting the Blazers and Raptors. Nikola Joki\u0107 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/player\/1642270\/head-to-head?CF=MATCHUP_PLAYER_NAME*E*Joki%C4%87&amp;Season=2025-26\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">shot well<\/a>, but didn\u2019t get to the line much against Donovan Clingan last season, and they\u2019ll meet again on Monday.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/schedule\/nuggets?pd=false&amp;cal=3\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Week 3<\/a>: vs. POR, vs. TOR, vs. IND (Mexico City)<\/p>\n<p>#14<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.nba.com\/logos\/nba\/1610612742\/primary\/L\/logo.svg\" title=\" Logo\" alt=\" Logo\" class=\"TeamLogo_logo__8OGEP\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.mavs.com\" class=\"Anchor_anchor__wnmj2 ArticlePowerRankings_prTeam__LzUML Link_styled__TysPH\" data-is-external=\"false\" data-has-more=\"false\" data-has-children=\"false\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">Dallas Mavericks<\/a>Last Week:20\u2191<\/p>\n<p>Record: 4-2<\/p>\n<p>OffRtg: 114.1 (12) DefRtg: 111.3 (15) NetRtg: +2.9 (12)<\/p>\n<p>After a 1-2 start, the Mavs have won three straight games, handing both the Thunder and the Rockets their first losses of the season. Cooper Flagg missed just one game with his shoulder injury and has been the star of the streak, averaging <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612742\/players-traditional?LastNGames=3&amp;PerMode=PerGame&amp;dir=D&amp;sort=PTS\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">29.3 points<\/a>, 6.7 rebounds, 8.3 assists, 2.3 steals and 1.3 blocks over the three games.<\/p>\n<p>Two takeaways<\/p>\n<p>Flagg had the ball in his hands down the stretch against Houston on Friday, and he put the game away with an iso floater (plus a foul) against Jabari Smith Jr. and an iso turnaround over Tari Eason. He\u2019s shot <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/players\/clutch-traditional?PerMode=Totals&amp;dir=A&amp;sort=FGM\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">8-for-9 on clutch shots<\/a> over the Mavs\u2019 two games (both wins) that were within five points in the last five minutes, and he\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/players\/shooting?DateFrom=10\/26\/2026&amp;DistanceRange=By%20Zone&amp;PerMode=Totals&amp;TeamID=1610612742&amp;dir=D&amp;sort=Mid-Range%20FGM\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">11-for-14 from mid-range<\/a> over the three-game winning streak.<\/p>\n<p>Kyrie Irving hasn\u2019t been getting to the basket or the line much, but he\u2019s still been efficient, shooting <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/players\/shots-general?CF=PLAYER_LAST_TEAM_ABBREVIATION*E*DAL&amp;PerMode=Totals&amp;dir=D&amp;sort=FGA\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">70% inside the arc<\/a> and 39% from beyond. His true shooting percentage of 67.1% ranks fifth among the 40 players who\u2019ve averaged at least 20 points in four games or more.<\/p>\n<p>Coming up: The Mavs still have five games left on a stretch where they\u2019re playing six of seven at home. They\u2019re in San Antonio on Wednesday, but their four home games over the next eight days are against the Kings, Jazz, Nets and Pacers.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/schedule\/mavericks?pd=false&amp;cal=3\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Week 3<\/a>: vs. SAC, @ SAS, vs. UTA*, vs. BKN<\/p>\n<p>#15<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.nba.com\/logos\/nba\/1610612744\/primary\/L\/logo.svg\" title=\" Logo\" alt=\" Logo\" class=\"TeamLogo_logo__8OGEP\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/warriors\" class=\"Anchor_anchor__wnmj2 ArticlePowerRankings_prTeam__LzUML Link_styled__TysPH\" data-is-external=\"false\" data-has-more=\"false\" data-has-children=\"false\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Golden State Warriors<\/a>Last Week:26\u2191<\/p>\n<p>Record: 4-3<\/p>\n<p>OffRtg: 117.2 (6) DefRtg: 114.9 (23) NetRtg: +2.4 (13)<\/p>\n<p>Cue the GIF of WWE\u2019s The Undertaker rising up off the mat. After a 0-3 Week 1, the Warriors have won <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612744\/boxscores-advanced\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">four straight games<\/a>. The first three came against other teams \u2014 the Nuggets, Wolves and Lakers \u2014 with winning records, and their win over the Clippers on Sunday came without Stephen Curry and Draymond Green.<\/p>\n<p>Two takeaways<\/p>\n<p>The Warriors have seen a pretty significant drop in 3-point rate from when they led the league last season, but they\u2019re still the only team that ranks in the top five in both 3-point percentage (40.0%, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/traditional?PerMode=Totals&amp;dir=A&amp;sort=FG3_PCT\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">second<\/a>) and the percentage of their shots that have come from beyond the arc (47.2%, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/scoring?dir=A&amp;sort=PCT_FGA_3PT\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">fifth<\/a>). They account for three of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/boxscores-traditional?CF=FG3M*GE*20\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">the 11 times<\/a> when a team has made at least 20 3s, with no other team having done it more than once.<\/p>\n<p>Coming up: The Warriors will have rest advantages for two of the remaining four games on their six-game homestand. But for the second time this season, they\u2019ll be at a disadvantage when they face the Suns (Monday). Curry, Green and Brandin Podziemski all missed <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/game\/0022600111\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">the first meeting<\/a>, when Phoenix scored 131 points on 101 possessions.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/schedule\/warriors?pd=false&amp;cal=3\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Week 3<\/a>: vs. PHX, vs. MIA, vs. ORL<\/p>\n<p>#16<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.nba.com\/logos\/nba\/1610612761\/primary\/L\/logo.svg\" title=\" Logo\" alt=\" Logo\" class=\"TeamLogo_logo__8OGEP\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/raptors\/\" class=\"Anchor_anchor__wnmj2 ArticlePowerRankings_prTeam__LzUML Link_styled__TysPH\" data-is-external=\"false\" data-has-more=\"false\" data-has-children=\"false\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Toronto Raptors<\/a>Last Week:9\u2193<\/p>\n<p>Record: 3-3<\/p>\n<p>OffRtg: 115.1 (10) DefRtg: 107.3 (5) NetRtg: +7.8 (7)<\/p>\n<p>After a 2-0 start with Kawhi Leonard, the Raptors have gone 1-3 without him. They had a Jekyll-and-Hyde two-game series with the Magic and then began a four-game trip with an ugly loss to the Lakers.<\/p>\n<p>Two takeaways<\/p>\n<p>The Raptors\u2019 six games have mostly been determined by the other team\u2019s ability to shoot from beyond the arc. In their three wins, the opponents have shot <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612761\/opponent?PerMode=Totals\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">26-for-108<\/a> (24.1%) from 3-point range. In their three losses: 51-for-102 (50.0%). The Magic rank in the bottom 10 offensively and scored less than a point per possession in their first of two games in Toronto last week, but then they shot <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/boxscores-traditional?dir=D&amp;sort=FG3_PCT\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">18-for-34<\/a> (53%) from deep two nights later.<\/p>\n<p>For the second straight season, the Raptors rank in the top three in both <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/transition?SeasonYear=2026-27&amp;TypeGrouping=offensive&amp;dir=D&amp;sort=PTS\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">transition points scored<\/a> (30.5) and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/transition?SeasonYear=2026-27&amp;TypeGrouping=defensive&amp;dir=A&amp;sort=PTS\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">transition points allowed<\/a> (17.7) per game, according to Synergy tracking. They outscored the Magic by 44 points (61-17) in transition over their two-game series last week.<\/p>\n<p>Coming up: The Raptors\u2019 four-game trip concludes with three games this week against teams that rank in the bottom half of the league offensively, though the Nuggets (who they\u2019ll visit on Wednesday) are sure to climb those rankings soon enough. Denver has won the last six meetings, all by single digits.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/schedule\/raptors?pd=false&amp;cal=3\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Week 3<\/a>: @ LAC, @ DEN, @ MIL*<\/p>\n<p>#17<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.nba.com\/logos\/nba\/1610612748\/primary\/L\/logo.svg\" title=\" Logo\" alt=\" Logo\" class=\"TeamLogo_logo__8OGEP\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/heat\/\" class=\"Anchor_anchor__wnmj2 ArticlePowerRankings_prTeam__LzUML Link_styled__TysPH\" data-is-external=\"false\" data-has-more=\"false\" data-has-children=\"false\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Miami Heat<\/a>Last Week:21\u2191<\/p>\n<p>Record: 2-4<\/p>\n<p>OffRtg: 113.6 (13) DefRtg: 117.2 (26) NetRtg: -3.6 (21)<\/p>\n<p>After a 0-4 start, the Heat picked up <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612748\/boxscores-traditional\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">double-digit wins<\/a> over the Hawks and Pacers to avoid having to hit the panic button. Giannis Antetokounmpo totaled <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/player\/203507\/boxscores-traditional\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">55 points, 36 rebounds and 13 assists<\/a> over the two wins.<\/p>\n<p>Two takeaways<\/p>\n<p>More important than Antetokounmpo\u2019s numbers is that Bam Adebayo also got going. He totaled <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/player\/1628389\/boxscores-traditional\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">51 points<\/a> on 19-for-30 (63%) shooting over the two wins. He played bigger, with 23 (77%) of those 30 shots coming in the paint, up from 47% (21\/45) through the first four games. He\u2019s still just 3-for-21 (14%) from 3-point range, but the long-range shooting matters less if he\u2019s not shooting as much from long range.<\/p>\n<p>The win over Indiana also came with some much-needed positive minutes from the Heat\u2019s starting lineup, which had allowed <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612748\/lineups-advanced?DateTo=10%2F28%2F2026\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">141 points per 100 possessions<\/a> over its 53 minutes through their first four games. They closed their four-point loss to Dallas last Monday with Pelle Larsson <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/players\/clutch-traditional?CF=TEAM_ABBREVIATION*E*MIA&amp;DateFrom=10\/26\/2026&amp;DateTo=10\/26\/2026&amp;PerMode=Totals&amp;dir=A&amp;sort=MIN\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">on the floor<\/a> instead of Klay Thompson, though the Larsson lineup has played <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612748\/lineups-advanced?CF=GROUP_NAME*E*Larsson:GROUP_NAME*NE*Hardaway&amp;DateTo=10\/28\/2026\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">just 17 minutes total<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Coming up: The Heat begin a five-game road trip on Monday with a visit to the Lakers, against whom Giannis Antetokounmpo has averaged 27.8 points per game (in 25 games), his highest career average against any opponent.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/schedule\/heat?pd=false&amp;cal=3\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Week 3<\/a>: @ LAL, @ LAC, @ GSW, @ SAC<\/p>\n<p>#18<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.nba.com\/logos\/nba\/1610612753\/primary\/L\/logo.svg\" title=\" Logo\" alt=\" Logo\" class=\"TeamLogo_logo__8OGEP\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/magic\" class=\"Anchor_anchor__wnmj2 ArticlePowerRankings_prTeam__LzUML Link_styled__TysPH\" data-is-external=\"false\" data-has-more=\"false\" data-has-children=\"false\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Orlando Magic<\/a>Last Week:16\u2193<\/p>\n<p>Record: 2-4<\/p>\n<p>OffRtg: 108.5 (22) DefRtg: 116.9 (25) NetRtg: -8.3 (25)<\/p>\n<p>The Magic were able to split their two games in Toronto last week, somehow registering <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/boxscores-advanced?dir=D&amp;sort=OFF_RATING\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">the fourth most efficient offensive game<\/a> for any team on Friday. But they\u2019re 0-3 at home after coming up empty against the Celtics on Sunday afternoon.<\/p>\n<p>Two takeaways<\/p>\n<p>The Magic are getting killed in the possession game. They\u2019ve had at least four fewer shot opportunities than their opponent in all six of their games, now tied with Washington (who they\u2019ll face on Monday) for the worst average discrepancy (9.1 fewer per game) in the league. They ranked eighth in the possession game last season (plus-1.7 opportunities per game), but they\u2019ve gone from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/advanced?Season=2025-26&amp;dir=A&amp;sort=DREB_PCT\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">fifth<\/a> to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/advanced?dir=D&amp;sort=DREB_PCT\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">27th<\/a> in defensive rebounding percentage, also seeing a huge drop in turnover differential.<\/p>\n<p>Anthony Black was not one of the seven first-round picks from 2023 that got a contract extension before the season began, so he\u2019ll be an intriguing, restricted free agent next summer. And he\u2019s off to a good start in Year No. 4, averaging <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/player\/1641710\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">16.5 points<\/a> on a true shooting percentage of 68.2% in his four games. With Tristan da Silva playing well off the bench, the Magic can put together some lengthy lineups where 6-6 Desmond Bane is the smallest guy on the floor.<\/p>\n<p>Coming up: After the Magic host the Wizards on Monday, their next five games will come against teams that rank in the bottom eight defensively. They\u2019ll have a rest advantage in Phoenix on Thursday night, the start of a stretch where they\u2019re playing 10 of 13 on the road.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/schedule\/magic?pd=false&amp;cal=3\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Week 3<\/a>: vs. WAS, @ PHX, @ GSW<\/p>\n<p>#19<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.nba.com\/logos\/nba\/1610612737\/primary\/L\/logo.svg\" title=\" Logo\" alt=\" Logo\" class=\"TeamLogo_logo__8OGEP\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/hawks\/\" class=\"Anchor_anchor__wnmj2 ArticlePowerRankings_prTeam__LzUML Link_styled__TysPH\" data-is-external=\"false\" data-has-more=\"false\" data-has-children=\"false\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Atlanta Hawks<\/a>Last Week:13\u2193<\/p>\n<p>Record: 3-4<\/p>\n<p>OffRtg: 112.3 (15) DefRtg: 111.4 (16) NetRtg: +1.0 (16)<\/p>\n<p>The Hawks got a comeback win over the Cavs on Thursday, the end of their only stretch of five games in seven days. But they\u2019ve lost <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612737\/boxscores-advanced\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">four of their last five<\/a>, with some inconsistency on both ends of the floor. This is the eighth straight year where they\u2019ve been either 4-3 or 3-4 after seven games.<\/p>\n<p>Two takeaways<\/p>\n<p>The Hawks have been facing some teams with large frontlines, and over this 1-4 stretch, they\u2019ve been outscored by 83 points (16.6 per game) when you combine scoring in the restricted area or at the free throw line. Most of that is about the defense, where Atlanta is one of three teams that rank in the bottom five in both opponent field goal percentage in the paint (61.2%, 26th) and the percentage of its opponent shots that have come in the paint (51%, 29th).<\/p>\n<p>On offense, the Hawks lead the league in shot quality, according to tracking data, with four guys in the top 25 among 133 players with at least 50 field goal attempts. And they\u2019re getting more shots than their opponents, one of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/four-factors?CF=TM_TOV_PCT_RANK*LE*5:OPP_TOV_PCT_RANK*LE*5&amp;dir=A&amp;sort=TM_TOV_PCT\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">two teams<\/a> that rank in the top five in both turnover rate and opponent turnover rate.<\/p>\n<p>Coming up: The Hawks\u2019 schedule remains pretty busy this week, but they will have their first rest-advantage game when they visit the Pacers on Monday. Then it\u2019s a home-and-home set with Trae Young and the Wizards, which could, ultimately, be pretty important in regard to the Eastern Conference standings.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/schedule\/hawks?pd=false&amp;cal=3\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Week 3<\/a>: @ IND, @ WAS, vs. WAS*, vs. BKN<\/p>\n<p>#20<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.nba.com\/logos\/nba\/1610612764\/primary\/L\/logo.svg\" title=\" Logo\" alt=\" Logo\" class=\"TeamLogo_logo__8OGEP\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/wizards\" class=\"Anchor_anchor__wnmj2 ArticlePowerRankings_prTeam__LzUML Link_styled__TysPH\" data-is-external=\"false\" data-has-more=\"false\" data-has-children=\"false\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Washington Wizards<\/a>Last Week:18\u2193<\/p>\n<p>Record: 3-3<\/p>\n<p>OffRtg: 110.5 (19) DefRtg: 109.3 (10) NetRtg: +1.2 (15)<\/p>\n<p>The Wizards have as many Emirates NBA Cup wins this season (they beat the Hornets on Friday) as they had in the first three years of the competition combined (1-11). With four of their six games having come against Milwaukee, Chicago and (shorthanded) Charlotte, it\u2019s still hard to tell where this team stands.<\/p>\n<p>Two takeaways<\/p>\n<p>After missing the first four games with an ankle injury, AJ Dybantsa <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/player\/1643407\/boxscores-traditional\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">totaled 36 points<\/a> on 13-for-23 (57%) shooting against the Cavs and Hornets last week. That breaks down to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/players\/shooting?CF=PLAYER_NAME*E*Dybantsa&amp;DistanceRange=By%20Zone&amp;PerMode=Totals\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">10-for-11<\/a> in the paint and 3-for-12 outside it. He also got in on the action (6-for-7) as the Wizards outscored Charlotte by 22 points at the free throw line on Friday. That\u2019s the biggest differential in the league this season.<\/p>\n<p>The Wizards have been getting clobbered in the possession game. They\u2019ve had at least 10 fewer shot opportunities than their opponent in four of their six games, including 19 fewer than the Hornets (the biggest discrepancy in any game this season) on Friday. Washington ranks in the bottom five in offensive rebounding percentage (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/four-factors?dir=D&amp;sort=OREB_PCT\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">30th<\/a>), defensive rebounding percentage (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/four-factors?dir=D&amp;sort=OPP_OREB_PCT\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">26th<\/a>) and opponent turnover rate (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/four-factors?dir=D&amp;sort=OPP_TOV_PCT\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">27th<\/a>).<\/p>\n<p>Coming up: Trae Young is set to face his former team for the first two times this week, and the second half of the home-and-home set (Friday in Atlanta) is the start of the Wizards\u2019 only stretch of five games in seven days.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/schedule\/wizards?pd=false&amp;cal=3\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Week 3<\/a>: @ ORL, vs. ATL, @ ATL*, @ OKC<\/p>\n<p>#21<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.nba.com\/logos\/nba\/1610612740\/primary\/L\/logo.svg\" title=\" Logo\" alt=\" Logo\" class=\"TeamLogo_logo__8OGEP\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/pelicans\" class=\"Anchor_anchor__wnmj2 ArticlePowerRankings_prTeam__LzUML Link_styled__TysPH\" data-is-external=\"false\" data-has-more=\"false\" data-has-children=\"false\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">New Orleans Pelicans<\/a>Last Week:25\u2191<\/p>\n<p>Record: 2-4<\/p>\n<p>OffRtg: 112.0 (16) DefRtg: 110.3 (13) NetRtg: +1.7 (14)<\/p>\n<p>After a 0-4 start in which three of the losses came by a total of 10 points, the Pelicans have won two straight games by dominating the paint.<\/p>\n<p>Two takeaways<\/p>\n<p>Against the Hawks on Saturday, the Pelicans attempted just 17 3-pointers, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/boxscores-traditional?Season=2026-27&amp;dir=A&amp;sort=FG3A\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">seven fewer<\/a> than any other team in any game this season. But they\u2019ve totaled <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612740\/boxscores-misc\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">146 points in the paint<\/a> over the two wins, with Zion Williamson (30) and Jeremiah Fears (26) <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/players\/misc?CF=TEAM_ABBREVIATION*E*NOP&amp;DateFrom=10\/29\/2026&amp;DateTo=10\/31\/2026&amp;PerMode=Totals&amp;dir=A&amp;sort=PTS_PAINT\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">leading the way<\/a>. Williamson\u2019s 66.2% shooting in the paint this season would be the highest mark of his career.<\/p>\n<p>With Dejounte Murray out for personal reasons, Herb Jones started the two games, and the starting lineup (with Karlo Matkovi\u0107 at center) outscored the Kings and Hawks <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612740\/lineups-traditional?CF=GROUP_NAME*E*Matkovi%C4%87&amp;DateFrom=10\/29\/2026&amp;DateTo=10\/31\/2026&amp;PerMode=Totals\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">by 26 points<\/a> in just 25 total minutes. His shooting is still an issue, but the Pels have allowed just <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612740\/onoffcourt-summary?dir=A&amp;sort=ON_DEF_RATING\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">89 points per 100 possessions<\/a> in Jones\u2019 127 minutes on the floor, compared to more than 125 per 100 in his 166 minutes on the bench.<\/p>\n<p>Coming up: After trying to knock off the undefeated Grizzlies, the Pels will hope to avenge a one-point, Week 1 loss (Utah\u2019s lone win) when they host the Jazz on Wednesday.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/schedule\/pelicans?pd=false&amp;cal=3\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Week 3<\/a>: @ MEM, vs. UTA, vs. MIN*, @ LAC<\/p>\n<p>#22<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.nba.com\/logos\/nba\/1610612756\/primary\/L\/logo.svg\" title=\" Logo\" alt=\" Logo\" class=\"TeamLogo_logo__8OGEP\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/suns\/\" class=\"Anchor_anchor__wnmj2 ArticlePowerRankings_prTeam__LzUML Link_styled__TysPH\" data-is-external=\"false\" data-has-more=\"false\" data-has-children=\"false\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Phoenix Suns<\/a>Last Week:22<\/p>\n<p>Record: 1-3<\/p>\n<p>OffRtg: 114.3 (11) DefRtg: 125.8 (30) NetRtg: -11.5 (27)<\/p>\n<p>The Suns have played just four games over the first 13 days of the season, and they\u2019ve yet to discover the defense that they made them one of the league\u2019s biggest surprises last year. They allowed <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612756\/advanced?DateFrom=10%2F26%2F2026&amp;DateTo=10%2F30%2F2026\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">almost 129 points per 100 possessions<\/a> in losses to the Thunder and Nuggets last week.<\/p>\n<p>Two takeaways<\/p>\n<p>The good news is that this is a very similar start to the one the Suns got off to last season. They ranked <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/advanced?DateTo=10\/28\/2025&amp;Season=2025-26&amp;SeasonType=Regular%20Season&amp;dir=D&amp;sort=DEF_RATING\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">29th<\/a> defensively after four games before getting things together and finishing <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/advanced?Season=2025-26&amp;SeasonType=Regular%20Season&amp;dir=A&amp;sort=DEF_RATING\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">ninth<\/a> on that end of the floor. They lost four of their first five, but they went <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612756\/boxscores-advanced?Season=2025-26&amp;dir=A&amp;sort=GDATE\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">10-2<\/a> over the next 3 1\/2 weeks.<\/p>\n<p>The defense has been bad unless Ryan Dunn has been on the floor, and the starting lineup has also <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612756\/lineups-advanced\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">struggled offensively<\/a>, scoring 96 points on 96 possessions. It\u2019s a limited sample size, but the offense has been efficient (104 points on 86 possessions, 121 per 100) when Collin Gillespie has been on the floor with Devin Booker and Dillon Brooks, but without Jalen Green.<\/p>\n<p>Coming up: The Suns\u2019 game against the Blazers on Wednesday is the start of a seven-game homestand, their longest of the season. But it\u2019s also the start of the first of their three stretches of five games in seven days, and they\u2019ll be at a rest disadvantage the following night against Orlando.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/schedule\/suns?pd=false&amp;cal=3\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Week 3<\/a>: @ GSW, vs. POR, vs. ORL, vs. HOU<\/p>\n<p>#23<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.nba.com\/logos\/nba\/1610612766\/primary\/L\/logo.svg\" title=\" Logo\" alt=\" Logo\" class=\"TeamLogo_logo__8OGEP\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/hornets\/\" class=\"Anchor_anchor__wnmj2 ArticlePowerRankings_prTeam__LzUML Link_styled__TysPH\" data-is-external=\"false\" data-has-more=\"false\" data-has-children=\"false\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Charlotte Hornets<\/a>Last Week:19\u2193<\/p>\n<p>Record: 3-4<\/p>\n<p>OffRtg: 101.3 (30) DefRtg: 109.6 (12) NetRtg: -8.2 (24)<\/p>\n<p>After a 3-1 start, the Hornets have felt the absences of Kon Knueppel and Coby White, struggling to score and losing three straight games. They\u2019re 3-4 with the point differential of a team that\u2019s 1-6.<\/p>\n<p>Two takeaways<\/p>\n<p>The Hornets now account for two of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/boxscores-advanced?dir=A&amp;sort=OFF_RATING\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">the three worst offensive games<\/a> of the season, having scored just 79 points on 95 possessions in Washington on Friday. Offensive rebounds have kept them somewhat afloat, but they\u2019ve seen the league\u2019s biggest drop in effective field goal percentage, its second biggest drop in free throw rate, and its fifth biggest jump in turnover rate from last season.<\/p>\n<p>Coming up: The Hornets\u2019 game against the top-ranked Pistons on Monday will be their fifth straight against a team that currently ranks in the top 10 defensively. White isn\u2019t on the injury report, so he should be making his season debut.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/schedule\/hornets?pd=false&amp;cal=3\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Week 3<\/a>: vs. DET, @ BKN, vs. BOS*<\/p>\n<p>#24<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.nba.com\/logos\/nba\/1610612754\/primary\/L\/logo.svg\" title=\" Logo\" alt=\" Logo\" class=\"TeamLogo_logo__8OGEP\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/pacers\/\" class=\"Anchor_anchor__wnmj2 ArticlePowerRankings_prTeam__LzUML Link_styled__TysPH\" data-is-external=\"false\" data-has-more=\"false\" data-has-children=\"false\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Indiana Pacers<\/a>Last Week:14\u2193<\/p>\n<p>Record: 2-5<\/p>\n<p>OffRtg: 111.0 (18) DefRtg: 114.2 (22) NetRtg: -3.5 (20)<\/p>\n<p>The Heat (2-4), Bucks (1-5) and Nets (1-5) are a combined 4-14, with three of those four wins having come against the Pacers last week. Indiana has lost <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612754\/boxscores-advanced\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">four straight games<\/a>, playing without Ivica Zubac for all four and without Tyrese Haliburton for the last three.<\/p>\n<p>Two takeaways<\/p>\n<p>The Pacers\u2019 projected starting lineup has played in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612754\/lineups-advanced?CF=GROUP_NAME*E*Haliburton&amp;GroupQuantity=5\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">just one game<\/a> together. Quenton Jackson has played <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612754\/players-traditional?PerMode=Totals&amp;dir=D&amp;sort=MIN\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">more minutes<\/a> than Haliburton, Larry Nance Jr. has played more than Zubac, and Indiana has scored an anemic 89 points per 100 minutes in the 71 minutes that Jackson and Nance have been on the floor together.<\/p>\n<p>The good news with Aaron Nesmith\u2019s shooting is that his field goal percentage in the paint is back over 50% after a precipitous drop below last season. But he\u2019s just 10-for-33 (30%) from 3-point range and somehow registering a lower effective field goal percentage (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/player\/1630174\/advanced?Split=yoy\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">48.2%<\/a>) than he had last year (51.7%). It\u2019s making 2024-25, the year the Pacers went to the Finals, look somewhat anomalous.<\/p>\n<p>Coming up: The Pacers were at a rest disadvantage when they lost in Milwaukee last week, and they\u2019ll be at a disadvantage again when they host the Hawks on Monday. They\u2019ve lost 11 of their last 12 meetings with the Nuggets, who they\u2019ll meet in Mexico City on Saturday afternoon.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/schedule\/pacers?pd=false&amp;cal=3\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Week 3<\/a>: vs. ATL, @ MEM, vs. DEN (Mexico City)<\/p>\n<p>#25<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.nba.com\/logos\/nba\/1610612762\/primary\/L\/logo.svg\" title=\" Logo\" alt=\" Logo\" class=\"TeamLogo_logo__8OGEP\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/jazz\/\" class=\"Anchor_anchor__wnmj2 ArticlePowerRankings_prTeam__LzUML Link_styled__TysPH\" data-is-external=\"false\" data-has-more=\"false\" data-has-children=\"false\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Utah Jazz<\/a>Last Week:23\u2193<\/p>\n<p>Record: 1-5<\/p>\n<p>OffRtg: 105.3 (27) DefRtg: 115.4 (24) NetRtg: -10.0 (26)<\/p>\n<p>The Jazz have lost Jaren Jackson Jr. (torn MCL) for an extended period, and their only win came by a single point against the Pelicans. But they did go down to the wire against both the Grizzlies and Spurs last week, losing in overtime to San Antonio without either Jackson or Lauri Markkanen.<\/p>\n<p>Two takeaways<\/p>\n<p>Four of the Jazz\u2019s six games have been within five points in the last five minutes, and they\u2019ve scored just 34 points on 41 clutch possessions (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/clutch-advanced?dir=D&amp;sort=OFF_RATING\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">83 per 100<\/a>). Keyonte George and Darryn Peterson have been <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/players\/clutch-traditional?CF=TEAM_ABBREVIATION*E*UTA&amp;PerMode=Totals&amp;dir=A&amp;sort=GP\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">the only two guys<\/a> to play clutch time in all four games, and they\u2019re a combined 4-for-21 (19%) on clutch shots.<\/p>\n<p>Even with Jackson missing the last 2 1\/2 games, the Jazz have seen the league\u2019s second biggest drop in opponent field goal percentage in the paint. But they\u2019re not forcing many turnovers and have committed more than their opponents in all six of their games. They had <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/boxscores-traditional?GameSegment=Overtime&amp;DateFrom=10%2F28%2F2026&amp;DateTo=10%2F28%2F2026\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">four turnovers<\/a> (all live balls) in overtime against the Spurs on Wednesday, leading to some San Antonio transition buckets on what was a 12-0 run.<\/p>\n<p>Coming up: The Jazz will face the Spurs again on Monday, the start of what could be a tough, four-game trip. They\u2019ve lost nine straight games in Dallas, where they\u2019ll play their first Emirates NBA Cup game on Friday night.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/schedule\/jazz?pd=false&amp;cal=3\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Week 3<\/a>: @ SAS, @ NOP, @ DAL*, @ MIN<\/p>\n<p>#26<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.nba.com\/logos\/nba\/1610612746\/primary\/L\/logo.svg\" title=\" Logo\" alt=\" Logo\" class=\"TeamLogo_logo__8OGEP\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/clippers\/\" class=\"Anchor_anchor__wnmj2 ArticlePowerRankings_prTeam__LzUML Link_styled__TysPH\" data-is-external=\"false\" data-has-more=\"false\" data-has-children=\"false\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">LA Clippers<\/a>Last Week:24\u2193<\/p>\n<p>Record: 1-5<\/p>\n<p>OffRtg: 105.6 (26) DefRtg: 112.3 (18) NetRtg: -6.7 (22)<\/p>\n<p>The Clippers faced the Lakers without Luka Don\u010di\u0107, the Wolves without Anthony Edwards, and the Warriors without Stephen Curry last week. And <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612746\/boxscores-traditional\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">they lost all three games<\/a> by double digits, running their losing streak to five games.<\/p>\n<p>Two takeaways<\/p>\n<p>Darius Garland had some great bucket-getting sequences in Minnesota on Friday, but only the Hornets have seen a bigger drop in offensive efficiency from last season than the Clippers, who\u2019ve scored <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612746\/advanced?Split=yoy\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">10.7 fewer points per 100 possessions<\/a> than they did in 2025-26. They\u2019ve seen the league\u2019s biggest jump in turnover rate by a wide margin, with Garland averaging 17.2 per 100 possessions, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/player\/1629636\/advanced?Split=yoy\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">up from 11.2 last season<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>There are some interesting names (of formerly non-shooters) among <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/players\/traditional?CF=FG3A*GE*25&amp;PerMode=Totals&amp;dir=A&amp;sort=FG3_PCT\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">the players<\/a> who\u2019ve shot better than 48% on at least 25 3-point attempts: Matisse Thybulle, Toumani Camara, Evan Mobley and Derrick Jones Jr., who was 12-for-20 before going 1-for-5 from beyond the arc on Sunday. If the Clippers want to trade some of their vets between now and February, it would help if Jones (on a reasonable, expiring contract) remains a much-improved shooter.<\/p>\n<p>Coming up: Having played four of their last five games on the road, the Clippers will play six of their next seven at home. They\u2019ve won seven of their last eight meetings with the Raptors, who will be without Kawhi Leonard at the Intuit Dome on Monday.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/schedule\/clippers?pd=false&amp;cal=3\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Week 3<\/a>: vs. TOR, vs. MIA, vs. NOP<\/p>\n<p>#27<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.nba.com\/logos\/nba\/1610612741\/primary\/L\/logo.svg\" title=\" Logo\" alt=\" Logo\" class=\"TeamLogo_logo__8OGEP\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/bulls\" class=\"Anchor_anchor__wnmj2 ArticlePowerRankings_prTeam__LzUML Link_styled__TysPH\" data-is-external=\"false\" data-has-more=\"false\" data-has-children=\"false\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Chicago Bulls<\/a>Last Week:27<\/p>\n<p>Record: 1-5<\/p>\n<p>OffRtg: 105.9 (25) DefRtg: 121.6 (28) NetRtg: -15.7 (29)<\/p>\n<p>The Bulls are going through a tough stretch of schedule, and they\u2019ve lost <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612741\/boxscores-advanced\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">four straight games<\/a>, really struggling to get stops. The league has averaged 111.9 points per 100 possessions, and the Bulls have allowed more than that in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612741\/boxscores-advanced\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">all six of their games<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Two takeaways<\/p>\n<p>The Bulls have also lost the first quarter in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612741\/boxscores-traditional?Period=1\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">all six<\/a> of their games, and they\u2019ve lost it by at least 12 points in four of those. They\u2019ve scored an anemic 88.5 points per 100 possessions (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/advanced?Period=1&amp;dir=D&amp;sort=OFF_RATING\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">6.7 fewer than any other team<\/a>) over those six first quarters combined, with point guards Josh Giddey and Tre Jones having combined to make <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612741\/players-traditional?PerMode=Totals&amp;Period=1&amp;dir=D&amp;sort=FGA\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">just four<\/a> (17%) of their 24 first-quarter shots.<\/p>\n<p>The Bulls trailed the Knicks by just one point after the first quarter in Chicago last Wednesday; they had a 19-point lead in the second half, and they were a plus-13 in Norman Powell\u2019s 37 minutes on the floor. But they were somehow outscored by 30 (59-29) over a 13 1\/2-minute stretch spanning the third and fourth quarters. Over their six games, they\u2019ve been outscored by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612741\/onoffcourt-summary?dir=A&amp;sort=OFF_NET_RATING\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">35.1 per 100 possessions<\/a> in Powell\u2019s 109 minutes off the floor.<\/p>\n<p>Coming up: The Bulls and Knicks will meet again in New York this Wednesday, with Chicago\u2019s other two games this week coming against another team (the Sixers) that\u2019s struggled (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/advanced?Period=1&amp;dir=D&amp;sort=NET_RATING\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">minus-15.9 per 100<\/a>) in first quarters.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/schedule\/bulls?pd=false&amp;cal=3\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Week 3<\/a>: @ PHI, @ NYK, vs. PHI<\/p>\n<p>#28<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.nba.com\/logos\/nba\/1610612751\/primary\/L\/logo.svg\" title=\" Logo\" alt=\" Logo\" class=\"TeamLogo_logo__8OGEP\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/nets\" class=\"Anchor_anchor__wnmj2 ArticlePowerRankings_prTeam__LzUML Link_styled__TysPH\" data-is-external=\"false\" data-has-more=\"false\" data-has-children=\"false\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Brooklyn Nets<\/a>Last Week:28<\/p>\n<p>Record: 1-5<\/p>\n<p>OffRtg: 105.0 (28) DefRtg: 112.6 (19) NetRtg: -7.6 (23)<\/p>\n<p>They blew a great opportunity in Boston earlier in the week, but the Nets finally got their first win on Sunday, taking advantage of the shorthanded and struggling Pacers. It\u2019s the second straight year that they got their first win of the season in Indiana. (It came <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612751\/boxscores-advanced?Season=2025-26&amp;dir=A&amp;sort=GDATE\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">in Game 8<\/a> last year.)<\/p>\n<p>Two takeaways<\/p>\n<p>Mikel Brown Jr. made a rookie mistake in Boston on Tuesday, shooting a contested layup with the Nets up one and the shot clock off in the closing seconds of overtime, then failing to stay with Jayson Tatum (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/watch\/video\/jayson-tatum-hits-the-jumper-to-win-it-as-the-ot-clock-expires\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">who hit the game-winner<\/a>) on the other end of the floor. It was still a breakout game for Brown, who sank <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/watch\/video\/rookie-mikel-brown-jr-shows-ice-in-his-veins-with-a-last-second-triple-to-force-ot\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">the game-tying 3<\/a> in regulation, had three more 3s spin in and out in OT, and finished with 17 points and five assists. He\u2019s played just four minutes alongside Egor D\u00ebmin, who\u2019s missed the last 2 1\/2 games with a leg contusion.<\/p>\n<p>Might the Nets\u2019 defense be decent? The overtime loss to the Celtics and the win over the Pacers were both the worst offensive games of the early season for those teams, and Detroit also scored less efficiently than its season-long mark on Thursday. Brooklyn has seen the league\u2019s third biggest jump in defensive rebounding percentage and its biggest drop in the percentage of opponent shots that have come in the paint.<\/p>\n<p>Coming up: The Nets have lost 14 straight games to the Knicks and they\u2019ll be at a rest disadvantage for three of this season\u2019s four meetings, including Monday at Madison Square Garden. But there might not be a better time to face the champs.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/schedule\/nets?pd=false&amp;cal=3\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Week 3<\/a>: @ NYK, vs. CHA, @ ATL, @ DAL<\/p>\n<p>#29<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.nba.com\/logos\/nba\/1610612749\/primary\/L\/logo.svg\" title=\" Logo\" alt=\" Logo\" class=\"TeamLogo_logo__8OGEP\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/bucks\/\" class=\"Anchor_anchor__wnmj2 ArticlePowerRankings_prTeam__LzUML Link_styled__TysPH\" data-is-external=\"false\" data-has-more=\"false\" data-has-children=\"false\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Milwaukee Bucks<\/a>Last Week:29<\/p>\n<p>Record: 1-5<\/p>\n<p>OffRtg: 106.6 (24) DefRtg: 119.4 (27) NetRtg: -12.8 (28)<\/p>\n<p>The Bucks got off the schneid with a comeback win over the Pacers last Monday. But they then lost games to the Rockets and Cavs by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612749\/boxscores-traditional\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">a combined 57 points<\/a>, allowing <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/team\/1610612749\/boxscores-advanced\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">almost 130 per 100 possessions<\/a> in both.<\/p>\n<p>Two takeaways<\/p>\n<p>Indiana shot poorly and scored less than a point per possession on Monday, but the Bucks\u2019 defense doesn\u2019t have much bite. They rank <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/hustle?dir=A&amp;sort=DEFLECTIONS\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">last<\/a> in deflections per game, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/four-factors?dir=D&amp;sort=OPP_TOV_PCT\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">last<\/a> (by a wide margin) in opponent turnover rate, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/traditional?PerMode=Per100Possessions&amp;dir=D&amp;sort=BLK\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">28th<\/a> in blocks per 100 possessions. AJ Green has played <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/players\/hustle?CF=DEFLECTIONS*E*0&amp;PerMode=Totals&amp;dir=D&amp;sort=MIN\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">the most minutes<\/a> (116) among the 39 players with zero total deflections.<\/p>\n<p>The Bucks\u2019 starting lineup has outscored their opponent in five of their six games, only registering a minus-2 in their Week 1 loss in Philadelphia. Overall, it\u2019s outscored opponents by 20 points per 100 possessions, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/lineups\/advanced?CF=MIN*GE*50&amp;dir=D&amp;sort=NET_RATING\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">the third best mark<\/a> among the 13 lineups that have played at least 50 minutes. But outside of the win over Indiana, bench minutes continue to be a struggle.<\/p>\n<p>Coming up: Two of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/advanced?Season=2026-27&amp;SeasonType=Regular%20Season&amp;StarterBench=Bench&amp;dir=A&amp;sort=NET_RATING\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">top three benches<\/a> in the league belong to the Celtics and Raptors, against whom the Bucks will play three of their four games this week. They\u2019ve lost six of their last seven meetings with Boston.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/schedule\/bucks?pd=false&amp;cal=3\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Week 3<\/a>: @ MIN, @ BOS, vs. TOR*, vs. BOS<\/p>\n<p>#30<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.nba.com\/logos\/nba\/1610612758\/primary\/L\/logo.svg\" title=\" Logo\" alt=\" Logo\" class=\"TeamLogo_logo__8OGEP\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/kings\" class=\"Anchor_anchor__wnmj2 ArticlePowerRankings_prTeam__LzUML Link_styled__TysPH\" data-is-external=\"false\" data-has-more=\"false\" data-has-children=\"false\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Sacramento Kings<\/a>Last Week:30<\/p>\n<p>Record: 0-6<\/p>\n<p>OffRtg: 104.8 (29) DefRtg: 122.6 (29) NetRtg: -17.8 (30)<\/p>\n<p>With the Nets\u2019 win in Indiana on Sunday, the Kings are the only team without a win. This is their first 0-6 start since the 1990-91 season, when they were led in scoring by Wayman Tisdale and eventually won 25 games.<\/p>\n<p>Two takeaways<\/p>\n<p>Darius Acuff Jr. is the silver lining, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/player\/1643411\/boxscores-traditional\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">he\u2019s totaled 72 points and 19 assists<\/a> over the Kings\u2019 last two games, shooting 9-for-14 from 3-point range in their loss in Memphis on Saturday. He\u2019s taken some bad shots, but he\u2019s also got good patience and vision in the pick-and-roll. He\u2019s precise with his pocket passing and there were some real dimes among his 14 assists in New Orleans on Thursday.<\/p>\n<p>In the previous 13 seasons of tracking data, Trae Young was the rookie who had the ball the most, averaging <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/players\/touches?CF=GP*GE*25&amp;PlayerExperience=Rookie&amp;Season=2018-19&amp;dir=D&amp;sort=TIME_OF_POSS\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">7.4 minutes of possession<\/a> in 2018-19. Acuff has averaged <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/players\/touches?PlayerExperience=&amp;Season=2026-27&amp;dir=D&amp;sort=TIME_OF_POSS\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">9.5 minutes of possession<\/a>, trailing only Young (9.9) and Jalen Brunson (10.7) this season.<\/p>\n<p>Coming up: After they finish their four-game trip in Dallas on Monday, the Kings will begin their longest homestand of the season (seven games over 15 days) with a visit from the Lakers. They won\u2019t leave the state of California until December.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/schedule\/kings?pd=false&amp;cal=3\" target=\"stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Week 3<\/a>: @ DAL, vs. LAL, vs. SAS*, vs. MIA<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Rookie forward Cameron Boozer and the Grizzlies are 6-0 before Week 3 of the regular season. The last&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":903708,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[64],"tags":[355,149778,151270,45273,99],"class_list":["post-903707","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nba","tag-nba","tag-nba-power-rankings","tag-nba-rankings","tag-power-rankings","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/903707","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=903707"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/903707\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/903708"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=903707"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=903707"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=903707"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}