SoB NBA Power Rankings: 11-30-10

By Andrew Kipp in Celtics, Featured, Now!, Opinion ⋅ November 30, 2010 at 9:32am ⋅ Post a comment

Tim Duncan and the Spurs jumped from No. 8 to No. 2 in this week's rankings. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)

A lot has changed in the NBA during the month of November. The San Antonio Spurs currently own the best record in the NBA, the struggling Miami Heat have fallen out of our top 10, and Chris Paul and the New Orleans Hornets have come back to reality after their torrent 8-0 start.

One thing, however, has stayed the same. The two-time defending champion Los Angeles Lakers remain at the top of our rankings, followed closely by the Spurs and Celtics.

In this week’s SoB NBA Power Rankings, the Atlanta Hawks fell eight places from No. 2 to No. 10, while the Dallas Mavericks climbed from No. 9 to No. 5.

The Chicago Bulls, Oklahoma City Thunder, and Utah Jazz made their debut in the top 10 for the first time this season, while the Portland Trailblazers and Golden State Warriors found themselves on the outside looking in.

Previous Power Rankings: 11/7 |

Rank (points)	Team	Record	Comment
1 (27)	Los Angeles Lakers	13-4	Simply the best all-around team. They have two of the top ten offensive players (Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol) in the NBA. (KC)
2 (26)	San Antonio Spurs	14-2	The Spurs have yet to lose on the road, and currently own the best record in the NBA. (John)
3 (23)	Boston Celtics	12-4	The Celtics are deep, and they’re dominating opposing teams in the paint thanks to the resurgence of Shaq and KG. (Andrew)
4 (19)	Utah Jazz	14-5	Utah is the hottest team in the NBA, having won six straight games. (John)
5 (16)	Dallas Mavericks	13-4	Dirk Nowitzki is quietly having an MVP-type season, and the Mavs are rolling after a big win over the Heat on Sunday. (Andrew)
6 (16)	New Orleans Hornets	12-5	New Orleans continues to win despite a roster that features Chris Paul, David West, and who? (KC)
7 (13)	Orlando Magic	12-4	The Magic share the best record in the Eastern Conference with the Celtics, but they don’t look dominant, and haven’t faired well against elite teams. (Andrew)
8 (7)	OKC Thunder	12-6	The Thunder have been too inconsistent to be considered serious contenders (John)
9 (7)	Chicago Bulls	9-6	Coach Tom Thibodeau has the Bulls playing hard on both of the ends of the floor, and the impending return of Carlos Boozer should put the rest of the Eastern Conference on notice. (Andrew)
10 (5)	Atlanta Hawks	11-7	The Hawks followed up their great start with seven losses in the month of November. (John)