2023-24 Vendetta NBA Power Rankings: February
The calendar has turned February and we have less than 24 hours until the 2024 NBA Trade Deadline. We are at an exciting time in the NBA! But, it’s time to do our monthly NBA Power Rankings! Here are our February rankings!
(Note: All stats are courtesy of Basketball Reference, unless otherwise stated, and are updated through Feb. 6!)
30. Detroit Pistons
(Matt Hanifan 30, Anthony Miranda 30, Jack Sabin 30)
Average: 30
Last month: 30
The Pistons remain the worst team in this month’s power rankings. They’ve looked more competitive over the last month–relative to their 28-game losing skid. But Detroit’s still lost 12 of their 15 games in January and will embark on a six-game road trip against the Kings, Trail Blazers, Clippers, Lakers, Suns and Pacers. That’s not a favorable stretch. This is obviously a team that will be looking to part with pieces ahead of Thursday’s deadline.
29. Washington Wizards
(Matt 29, Anthony 29, Jack 29)
Average: 29
Last month: 27
While the Pistons have been the butt of jokes for the majority of the 2023-24 season, the Wizards aren’t far from Detroit. The Wizards are only three games up on the standings and are an NBA-worst 3-21 at home this season. They recently booted their coach (to the front office), owning the league’s third-worst NET Rating (minus-8.8). Will any suitors be interested in Kyle Kuzma, whose salary is front-heavy, Tyus Jones, Deni Avdija or Daniel Gafford? They have multiple potential trade chips that could be intriguing, but this team is unquestionably one of the worst in the league.
28. San Antonio Spurs
(Matt 28, Anthony 28, Jack 28)
Average: 28
Last month: 29
The Spurs might be bad, but No. 1 pick Victor Wembanyama continues to improve. He’s averaged 23.2 points, 9.6 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 3.3 blocks on 50.6 percent shooting and 60.5 percent true shooting in the month of January. Spurs guards still have a hard time getting him enough touches, believe it or not, but he’s been everything they could’ve hoped for roughly three months into his rookie campaign, all things considered.
27. Charlotte Hornets
(Matt 27, Anthony 27, Jack 27)
Average: 27
Last month: 28
In the month of January, the Hornets fielded the NBA’s worst offense combined with the worst NET Rating. Star guard LaMelo Ball has missed time due to an injured ankle and the team traded Terry Rozier to the Miami Heat. But we can’t ignore how awesome rookie Brandon Miller looked in the month of January; the 6-foot-9 wing has posted 23.6 points on 49.0/40.9/86.5 shooting splits over his last 11 games, including a pair of 35- and 33-point performances over the Pacers and Lakers, respectively. Getting these additional reps in Ball’s absence has been key and, hopefully, the water will still be above the level when he returns.
26. Portland Trail Blazers
(Matt 26, Anthony 26, Jack 26)
Average: 26
Last month: 26
Speaking of rookies who have found their footing: Scoot Henderson! His decision-making can still be sporadic, but his overall process and shooting have been much smoother as the season’s progressed. He’s averaged 13.4 points, 3.3 boards and 4.6 assists on 34.8 percent shooting from deep on 3.9 3-point attempts since his return from injury in late November. He’ll need to continue his efficiency from inside the arc, but I’ve been impressed with how he’s progressed of late.
25. Memphis Grizzlies
(Matt 25, Anthony 25, Jack 25)
Average: 25
Last month: 21
The Memphis Grizzlies had … two of their players on standard contracts healthy Sunday in their 40-point loss to the Boston Celtics. No, not Ja Morant (who’s out for the season) or Desmond Bane–but David Roddy and Luke Kennard. That sums up the current state of the Grizzlies … right?
24. Toronto Raptors
(Matt 24, Anthony 24, Jack 23)
Average: 23.7
Last month: 25
Immanuel Quickley and RJ Barrett‘s transition to Toronto has looked seamless, fitting in alongside Scottie Barnes, who was recently named to his first All-Star team. Toronto’s still looking to make moves–perhaps moving Bruce Brown, Gary Trent Jr. and/or Chris Boucher–but the future core of Quickley, Barnes and Barrett have strong upside.
23. Chicago Bulls
(Matt 20, Anthony 23, Jack 22)
Average: 21.7
Last month: 22
The Bulls are in a precarious position ahead of the deadline; they are 3.5 games ahead of the Nets (more on them shortly) in the play-in standings, but lost Zach LaVine for the season. They also (understandably) want a haul for Alex Caruso, but outside of him, does DeMar DeRozan get moved before it risks losing him for nothing? Does Coby White’s emergence make him expendable or untouchable? Or will Chicago move some of its lower role players in Torrey Craig, Jevon Carter and/or Andre Drummond? A lot of questions to answer over the next 24 hours or so for Chicago.
22. Atlanta Hawks
(Matt 22, Anthony 18, Jack 24)
Average: 21.3
Last month: 23
There’s been plenty of smoke around Dejounte Murray’s availability this offseason over the last several weeks, but a couple of other names worth mentioning are Bogdan Bogdanovic and Saddiq Bey. The former is in the first year of a front-loaded $68 million salary with ample experience at the NBA and international level. The latter is a little more inconsistent, but is an intriguing, young 3-and-D player on a rookie contract who a contender could plug-and-play off the bench for 20-25 minutes a night.
21. Brooklyn Nets
(Matt 23, Anthony 21, Jack 20)
Average: 21.3
Last month: 18
The Nets fell flat on their face to Golden State Monday and are in between a rock and a hard place at 20-30. They are two games out of the play-in and won’t trade star wing Mikal Bridges. Though I’m not sure how willing they are to move their other tradable pieces–such as Dorian Finney-Smith, Royce O’Neale and Spencer Dinwiddie–ahead of Thursday’s deadline. They can acquire future assets and draft capital to continue to build around Bridges, but the direction of this organization feels more unclear than it should.
20. Golden State Warriors
(Matt 21, Anthony 22, Jack 21)
Average: 21.3
Last month: 20
After winning just four of their first 11 since the turn of the calendar, the Warriors have won three of their last four, though the one loss featured a 60-point masterpiece from Stephen Curry. An aside: Players who score 60-plus points are 3-3 this year after going 14-3 in the six seasons prior. Wild stat.
Anyway, while Curry is playing out of his mind, Golden State’s gotten valiant contributions from Jonathan Kuminga, who’s assumed the second role over this most recent stretch, and rookie Brandin Podziemski, a Swiss Army Knife willing to do the dirty work. I’m very fascinated with how this team approaches the deadline, should they decide to relieve some of their tax bill for now and in the future.
19. Utah Jazz
(Matt 18, Anthony 20, Jack 19)
Average: 19
Last month: 24
The Jazz have been a top-10 team since the turn of the calendar, going 12-7–which included a dominant fourth-quarter comeback against the Bucks on Sunday–with a plus-3.8 NET Rating. They traded Simone Fontecchio to the Pistons on Wednesday, so they could be looking to sell off additional pieces–such as Kelly Olynyk or Kris Dunn–ahead of Thursday’s deadline.
18. Houston Rockets
(Matt 16, Anthony 19, Jack 18)
Average: 17.7
Last month: 16
The Rockets just added Steven Adams from the Grizzlies; though he’s likely out for the season, he will provide very nice insurance for Alperen Sengun. They are currently two games out of the play-in and will presumably be looking to add at the deadline. I’ve appreciated the recent emergences of rookies Cam Whitmore, who’s averaging 15.2 points and 4.8 rebounds on 45.9 percent shootings and 39.5 percent from deep over his last 13 games, and Amen Thompson in lieu of Fred VanVleet’s injury.
17. Miami Heat
(Matt 17, Anthony 17, Jack 17)
Average: 17
Last month: 8
After the worst losing streak of the Erik Spoelstra era, the Heat have won three of their last four games over the Kings, Wizards and Magic, respectively. Their offense has looked particularly dire–dating back to the start of last season–but have recently gotten a more engaged Jimmy Butler in spite of a struggling Bam Adebayo, who’s in a shooting slump. The superstar wing has averaged 25.5 points, 7.3 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 1.8 steals on 58.3/55.6/80.4 shooting splits over his last six games. Most importantly, regardless of what they do Thursday, they need their two best players–along with Tyler Herro and Terry Rozier–to produce for this team to make another deep playoff run.
16. Los Angeles Lakers
(Matt 19, Anthony 16, Jack 16)
Average: 17
Last month: 17
I’m very curious to see what the Lakers do ahead of the trade deadline. Their roster is imbalanced and Darvin Ham still hasn’t figured any many combinations to help his squad succeed; it’s been Jekyll and Hyde the whole 2023-24 campaign, as they are 27-25 and the No. 9 seed in the West. We know LeBron James won’t get traded (could you imagine if he did, though?), but what’s next to come is one of the biggest question marks leaguewide.
15. Orlando Magic
(Matt 15, Anthony 15, Jack 15)
Average: 15
Last month: 9
The Magic have had difficulties away from home lately, including getting thumped by the Miami Heat by 26 points on Tuesday. They still own a top-3 defense in the sport, but will need to get additional shooting if they want to make a run in April–even though that might be too much to ask for a core without much current playoff experience. Watching Jalen Suggs, Franz Wagner, Paolo Banchero and Wendell Carter Jr. all continue to develop has been a treat.
14. Dallas Mavericks
(Matt 13, Anthony 14, Jack 14)
Average: 13.7
Last month: 11
The Dallas Mavericks recently got Kyrie Irving back from injury, but the production from their wings–in particular Grant Williams–hasn’t quite lived up to par through the team’s first 51 games. It does not help that an extra burden has been placed on their shoulders defensively with Dereck Lively II’s broken nose, but there is still too much of a burden on Luka Doncic’s shoulders. They are still five games above .500 and two games removed the No. 6 seed in the West, so they aren’t in the worst spot in the world, all things considered.
13. Sacramento Kings
(Matt 14, Anthony 10, Jack 13)
Average: 12.3
Last month: 13
The Sacramento Kings are the fifth seed in the Western Conference. De’Aaron Fox is averaging 27.3 points, 5.3 assists, and 1.8 steals and Domantas Sabonis is averaging 19.7 points, 13.1 Rebounds and 8.2 assists. However, these stats are not good enough for these players to be All-Stars, which does not make sense. Sacramento has been playing good basketball as of late with Harrison Barnes and Kevin Huerter finally stepping up. It will be interesting to see if the Kings can reach the next level and crack a top-3 seed in the West before the end of the season. — Miranda
12. Indiana Pacers
(Matt 12, Anthony 13, Jack 11)
Average: 12
Last month: 14
The Indiana Pacers just made a huge trade for power forward Pascal Siakam. They now have a core of Tyrese Haliburton, Myles Turner and Siakam. It will be interesting to see if this core is good enough to really contend in the East. The Pacers are currently the sixth seed and are in a good position to climb up the standings. They will need more production from role players like Buddy Hield, Bennedict Mathurin, and Aaron Nesmith if they really want to make waves. — Miranda
11. New Orleans Pelicans
(Matt 11, Anthony 12, Jack 12)
Average: 11.7
Last month: 15
The Pelicans are sneakily eight games above .500, though they remain the No. 7 seed in the West by a half-game behind Phoenix and Sacramento. They have plenty of talent invested in C.J. McCollum, Brandon Ingram, Jonas Valanciunas, Zion Williamson, Trey Murphy and Herb Jones, but are they willing to go the extra mile at the deadline to put themselves in the same conversation as the other contenders in the West? For a team that historically doesn’t dip its toes into the tax, that remains to be seen.
10. Philadelphia 76ers
Average: 9.7
Last month: 5
Well, it was a fun season while it lasted … right? But in a shocking turn of events that nobody could have ever seen coming, Joel Embiid has gotten injured and likely will miss the rest of the year. I know they are saying the door isn’t closed for him to return late in the year, but as a lifelong pessimistic 76ers fan, I’m not counting on it. That’s all before I even mention the fact that Embiid has had countless knee issues and has practically been dealing with them since he got to the NBA.
The point is: I don’t expect Embiid to come back, and if that happens, I just don’t see it going very well for this team. With Maxey and Tobias Harris, with this depth, should still see them hold on to a playoff spot. But I can’t see them beating any real contenders without the efforts of Joel Embiid. Philly better start praying for a perfect procedure and recovery because anything less could result in a wasted season. — Sabin
9. Phoenix Suns
(Matt 10, Anthony 9, Jack 10)
Average: 9.3
Last month: 19
The Phoenix Suns are starting to put some good stretches together this season. They are 7-3 in their last t10 as they sit at the No. 6 seed. This is a little underwhelming for a team with Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, and Bradley Beal. However, this team should only get better as the season goes on and Grayson Allen has been red hot as of late. Also, with Durant and Bookers’ scoring, they can be competitive with any team. — Miranda
8. Cleveland Cavaliers
(Matt 9, Anthony 11, Jack 8)
Average: 8
Last month: 12
While it looked bleak once Darius Garland and Evan Mobley subsequently got injured in mid-December, it didn’t end up being that way. In fact, Cleveland owns the NBA’s best defense with the second-best record (22-7) and NET Rating since the start of December. The Max Strus signing has reaped benefits while they’ve found an untapped sharpshooting gem in Sam Merrill, who’s shooting 44.3 percent from 3-point range on 5.5 triple tries per game this season.
7. New York Knicks
(Matt 7, Anthony 8, Jack 9)
Average: 6.3
Last month: 10
The Knicks will be without Julius Randle for the next month after dislocating his shoulder two weeks ago against Miami. This team is still in a great spot and surged up the standings in January, as they are winners of 16 of their last 19 and barely out of the No. 2 seed in the East. This team should prioritize getting additional ballhandling behind Jalen Brunson, who was nominated for his first All-Star team, plus additional frontcourt depth until center Mitchell Robinson returns, if he does.
6. Milwaukee Bucks
(Matt 5, Anthony 7, Jack 7)
Average: 6
Last month: 3
Well, it was quite an eventful last month for the Bucks, who fired their first-year head coach Adrian Griffin after a 31-10 start and hired Doc Rivers, who was fired by the Philadelphia 76ers after three seasons. The Bucks are 1-4 since Rivers’ debut, including blowing double-digit leads to the Nuggets and Jazz with losses to the lowly Blazers and, most recently, the Suns. Though Milwaukee’s defense, which got off to a horrific start to the season, has looked better under Rivers than it has under Griffin, albeit the small sample. We’ll see what’s in store once the All-Star break passes and this group has an opportunity to practice more with one another under Rivers.
5. Los Angeles Clippers
(Matt 2, Anthony 6, Jack 6)
Average: 4.7
Last month: 7
You can make an argument that the Clippers are, currently, the best team in the West. Either way, they deserve their flowers. I’ve previously mentioned how their most important stat is games played–and they’ve gotten that from their star trio of Kawhi Leonard, James Harden and Paul George. Ever since Harden’s first game, they have combined to play in 95 percent of the team’s 44 games, where they are 31-13 … which included a five-game skid over that stretch (six straight losses, in aggregate).
4. Minnesota Timberwolves
(Matt 6, Anthony 3, Jack 4)
Average: 4.3
Last month: 4
The Minnesota Timberwolves have tailed off slightly from their 20-5 start, and their defense hasn’t been as world-beating over the last month. Nevertheless, they are still tied for first in the West with arguably the best 51-game start in their franchise’s history. Acquiring Monte Morris should help stabilize its bench without Mike Conley on the floor, but I’m interested to see how they approach the latter half of the season with their main trio–Anthony Edwards, Rudy Gobert and Karl-Anthony Towns–healthy, unlike it was at this time last year.
3. Denver Nuggets
(Matt 3, Anthony 4, Jack 2)
Average: 3
Last month: 2
The Thunder have climbed to 19 games above .500 and are tied for the top spot in the West, despite Jamal Murray missing over a dozen games earlier this season. I trust how they’re developing the young guns in Peyton Watson, a versatile bulldog of a defender, and Christian Braun, whose role on both ends has increased as a sophomore. Regardless, with MVP favorite Nikola Jokic and Murray heading the snake, this team will be one to certainly keep an eye on as April rolls around … even though we are still two months away.
2. Oklahoma City Thunder
(Matt 4, Anthony 2, Jack 3)
Average: 3
Last month: 6
Despite being in a four-way tie in the West with the Clippers, Timberwolves and Nuggets, the Thunder lead this month’s power rankings, coming in second. They have surpassed even the most optimistic Thunder believers over halfway through the 2023-24 season, going 11-6 in the month of January with a plus-6.3 NET Rating. They are the most interesting team ahead of the trade deadline to me: Will they go all-in, push some chips to the middle or go through a playoff run with this core and assess in the summer? Fun and fascinating times ahead for Oklahoma City!
1. Boston Celtics
(Matt 1, Anthony 1, Jack 1)
Average: 1
Last month: 1
When I was a part of the MLB Power Rankings, I wrote descriptions of the Braves for pretty much every month. This became pretty redundant to talk about as they very quickly established themselves as the best team in the league and didn’t really look back. I bring this up because it’s kind of starting to feel like that with this Celtics team. They were heavy favorites to make and/or win the NBA Finals going into this year, and they are showing why that’s the case.
They currently sit at 38-12, comfortably atop the Eastern Conference and I don’t expect them to make any big moves at the deadline. It’s really now just a matter of making sure everyone stays healthy and avoiding serious injury. That’s the only real thing that could derail this Boston season. Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown are both playing at an elite level with Kristaps Porzingis and Derrick White also playing at very high levels. It’s still championship or bust for this team. No more excuses. — Sabin
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