Getty
Jalen Williams #8 of the Oklahoma City Thunder
The Thunder went to Utah this weekend to tip off against the Jazz, and did so with their epic wining streak, then at 14 games, in jeopardy. Star guard and reigning MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was not available, sitting out against Utah along with six other players. But Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams went for 25 points each and, just like that, any threat to the streak was extinguished by a whopping 131-101 score.
That made it 15 in a row for the Thunder and a sterling 23-1 start to the season. It also sets up the reality of the NBA in 2025-26, as was predictable going back to the end of last year’s Finals. This league is the Thunder, then everybody else.
NBA Rankings: The Top 10
There are some noteworthy teams among the everybody else–especially the Celtics, who might be a legitimate challenger to Oklahoma City if healthy. Boston has won 10 of its last 12 games, with its offense humming on all cylinders. That’s especially true of Jaylen Brown, who is averaging a career-high 29.1 points on 49.6% shooting and 36.3% 3-point shooting. (Records as of December 7.)
Thunder, 23-1.
Nuggets, 17-6.
Lakers, 17-6.
Pistons, 19-5.
Rockets, 15-6.
Celtics, 15-9.
Knicks, 16-7.
Timberwolves, 15-8.
Spurs, 15-7.
Magic, 14-10.
GettyCeltics star Jaylen Brown
NBA Part II Rankings: Middle of the Pack
We’re a little more than 20 games into the season, which means it’s time to start separating the teams that got off to hot starts from the teams that have some staying power. Most of the teams in this range started well but are slipping. The Suns lost three of four. The Heat lost three straight. The Raptors have lost five of six, and the Cavaliers five of seven. The ones with staying power will need to bounce back.
Suns, 13-10.
Heat, 14-10.
Raptors, 15-10.
Hawks, 14-11.
Cavaliers, 14-11.
Sixers, 13-10.
Warriors, 13-12.
Grizzlies, 11-13.
Mavericks, 9-16.
Bucks, 10-15.
NBA Part III Rankings: Bottom of the Barrel
Back when the new arena was being built, one of the clear goals of Clippers owner Steve Ballmer was to ensure he had a championship-caliber team on hand to open the building properly. But last year’s season ended in a first-round playoff flameout and this year’s season was a disaster from the get-go, dragged down further still by the ugly drama that saw Chris Paul get released last week.
Trail Blazers, 9-15.
Hornets, 7-17.
Bulls, 9-14.
Jazz, 8-15.
Clippers, 6-18.
Nets, 6-17.
Kings, 6-17.
Pacers, 5-18.
Wizards, 3-19.
Pelicans, 3-21.
Sean Deveney is a veteran sports reporter covering the NBA, NFL and MLB for Heavy.com. He has written for Heavy since 2019 and has more than two decades of experience covering the NBA, including 17 years as the lead NBA reporter for the Sporting News. Deveney is the author of 7 nonfiction books, including “Fun City,” “Before Wrigley became Wrigley,” and “Facing Michael Jordan.” More about Sean Deveney
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