Is it just me or does the NBA’s “silly season” seem to arrive earlier and earlier each year? It would make sense that tanking teams would start to truly throw in the towel even sooner this season due to the plethora of potentially franchise-changing talent at the top of the 2025 draft, but we used to at least get through March before seeing the likes of A.J. Lawson, Johnny Juzang and Daquan Jeffries lighting up the scoreboard.
This is just the way things are going to be until losing is no longer rewarded with a better chance at a top pick, but it’s unfortunate that it can affect the outcomes for teams that are embroiled in actual, competitive playoff races. You just have to hope that the teams in the remaining part of your schedule are less incentivized to win than those of your competition.
One team that’s plowing through any competition whatsoever is the Golden State Warriors, who are now 12-1 with Jimmy Butler in the lineup. It’s hard to recall one single player having this much effect on winning and losing this quickly, especially without going out and scoring 30 points every night. Golden State now has the league’s third-best defense and fifth-best offense since Butler’s first game and has finally cracked the top 10 in this week’s Power Rankings after consistent upward movement.
Heading in the opposite direction are the Los Angeles Lakers, who saw LeBron James go down with a groin injury and have struggled because of it. James and Luka Dončić were starting to develop some real chemistry, and that will now be delayed for as long as James will have to sit out. It affects the standings as well, because the Lakers are jam-packed toward the top of the West with the Memphis Grizzlies, Denver Nuggets and Houston Rockets. Any extended period of losing could take them from No. 2 to No. 5 real quick.
The top of the rankings remains steady, with the juggernaut Cleveland Cavaliers at the top once again, followed by the Oklahoma City Thunder and Boston Celtics. Those aforementioned Grizzlies were the week’s biggest risers, moving up three spots to No. 4.
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