This week in the NBA saw a pair of juggernauts—the Oklahoma City Thunder and reigning champion Boston Celtics—finally show some signs of mortality.

And a pair of teams in each of their respective conferences—the Cleveland Cavaliers and Golden State Warriors—may have done enough to finally catch them for those top two spots.

Those four and every other team in the league are sorted below by the same criteria we rely on every week: championship chances, team and individual numbers, recent performance and plenty of good ol' fashioned subjectivity.

30. Utah Jazz (1-7)

Previous Rank: 30

Net Rating: -15.5

Longtime Utah Jazz fans who grew accustomed to winning with John Stockton and Karl Malone, Deron Williams and Carlos Boozer, and most recently, Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert, could be in for a rough season in 2024-25.

Utah got its first win of the season this week, but it's clearly committed to playing the young core the bulk of the minutes, and that's going to lead to tons of blowout losses.

On Thursday, the Jazz lost to the then-1-6 Milwaukee Bucks by 23 points. And their season-long point differential is now down to a staggering minus-15.8 per game.

29. Washington Wizards (2-4)

Previous Rank: 24

Net Rating: -8.2

The Washington Wizards haven't beaten anyone but the Atlanta Hawks, and they're near the bottom of the league in point differential, but some of their young core is showing real upside.

Amid a season that will include plenty of losses, encouraging signs from prospects is really all a team in Washington's position can hope for.

Twenty-year-old Bilal Coulibaly is averaging 17.7 points, 5.8 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.8 threes and 1.0 steals while shooting 44.0 percent from deep. Carlton Carrington, who's just 19, is averaging 10.3 points and 4.8 assists in under 30 minutes per game. And Alex Sarr trails only Donovan Clingan, Victor Wembanyama and Chet Holmgren in block percentage.

28. Portland Trail Blazers (3-6)

Previous Rank: 28

Net Rating: -5.7

There probably won't be a ton of opportunities to praise the Portland Trail Blazers this season.

This week, they went 1-3 and most recently lost to the sub-.500 San Antonio Spurs. At some point, they could move veteran Jerami Grant and get even worse in an effort to improve draft odds.

But there are some silver linings. Shaedon Sharpe scored 13 points on 6-of-9 shooting in his season debut against San Antonio. Anfernee Simons is averaging 2.7 threes per game. Rookie Donovan Clingan has the highest block percentage in the NBA.

And Deandre Ayton may be playing well enough to turn himself into a trade asset, too. After going for 21 points and 10 rebounds against the Spurs, he's averaging 15.1 points and 11.3 rebounds.

27. Toronto Raptors (2-7)

Previous Rank: 29

Net Rating: -6.5

The Toronto Raptors are better than their record suggests.

The biggest evidence for that is the continued absences of Scottie Barnes, Immanuel Quickley and Kelly Olynyk. Once two or three of them are back, the Raptors should be more competitive.

Even without them, they've played the Denver Nuggets close twice. And four of their last five losses have been by single digits.

Most importantly, despite a Wednesday loss the Sacramento Kings suppressing their numbers a bit, two of the available members of the young core have looked solid in expanded roles.

RJ Barrett is averaging 25.7 points and 7.0 assists, while second-year wing Gradey Dick is averaging 20.0 points and 2.6 threes.

26. New Orleans Pelicans (3-6)

Previous Rank: 22

Net Rating: -8.7

Stop me if you've heard this before. The New Orleans Pelicans have been wrecked by injuries this season.

Zion Williamson has missed three of their nine games. CJ McCollum has missed five. And their new point guard, Dejounte Murray, played on opening night and hasn't been able to get on the floor since (surgery on his hand).

So, this lackluster start in the win-loss columns probably shouldn't be surprising.

On the bright side, all the absences have given Brandon Ingram a chance to juice his trade value. And by February, he may be able to generate enough interest to flip him for a starting-caliber center. On the season, Ingram is averaging 24.1 points, 4.6 assists and 2.4 threes.

25. Chicago Bulls (3-6)

Previous Rank: 18

Net Rating: -7.5

After starting the season 3-2, the Chicago Bulls have rattled off four straight losses and are starting to look like a potential tanker.

The front office insisted on competing for a playoff spot again, but if this keeps up, it'll have to seriously consider unloading Zach LaVine and Nikola Vučević for whatever young players and draft picks it can get.

On the bright side, after handing 13 assists in Thursday's loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves, 22-year-old playmaker Josh Giddey is averaging 7.0 assists per game. At the very least, he looks like a solid table-setter for whatever this next version of the Bulls looks like.

24. Detroit Pistons (3-6)

Previous Rank: 27

Net Rating: -2.8

The Detroit Pistons' losses may double their wins, but they're undoubtedly a more competitive and organized team under new coach J.B. Bickerstaff than we've come to know over the last several years.

While the addition of some veterans in the offseason sure helped, a mini star turn from Cade Cunningham is the bigger reason for the improvement.

Cunningham notched back-to-back triple-doubles on Monday and Wednesday and is now averaging 22.9 points, 7.7 assists and 6.8 rebounds. More importantly, he's within striking distance of an average effective field-goal percentage for the first time in his career.

23. Charlotte Hornets (3-5)

Previous Rank: 26

Net Rating: -5.7

In this era of fast-paced offenses, volume three-point shooting and heavy usage for star players, we may have gotten a little numb to gaudy stat lines.

But LaMelo Ball is forcing us to take notice anyway.

After going for 25 in a win over the Detroit Pistons on Wednesday, LaMelo is now averaging 28.1 points, 6.0 assists, 4.8 rebounds and 4.6 threes while hitting 39.4 percent of his long-range attempts.

The Charlotte Hornets may not be a great bet to make the playoffs, but as long as Ball keeps playing like this and getting solid contributions from Brandon Miller and Miles Bridges, they'll at least be pesky.

22. Brooklyn Nets (4-4)

Previous Rank: 23

Net Rating: +0.2

If the Brooklyn Nets really want to enter the Cooper Flagg sweepstakes in earnest, they might have to unload some of their veterans sooner than expected.

Brooklyn has a positive point differential through eight games, and 31-year-old point guard Dennis Schröder is second on the team in total individual plus-minus. He's averaging 19.9 points and 7.3 assists. Cameron Johnson is putting up 16.6 points and 2.0 threes. Dorian Finney-Smith is averaging double-figures.

There could be some teams out there interested in the playmaking of Schröder or the three-and-D prowess of Johnson or DFS. If the Nets can get some future draft capital or prospects (or both) for them, they should probably go for it.

On the other hand, Brooklyn has nine of its next 11 games on the road. One of those home games is against the Boston Celtics. The schedule alone could juice the lottery odds and delay the trade talk for a few weeks.

21. Atlanta Hawks (4-5)

Previous Rank: 25

Net Rating: -5.4

Zaccharie Risacher had one of the best games any rookie's had this season on Wednesday when he went for 33 points, six triples, three assists, three steals and two blocks in a win over the New York Knicks.

And after a slow start to the campaign (at least in terms of shots falling), this past summer's No. 1 pick is up to 12.0 points per game on the season.

If this game serves as the confidence boost Risacher needed to start hitting his threes at an above-average clip, the Hawks should stay in the mix for a play-in spot all season.

Deploying Risacher and Jalen Johnson's three-and-D-plus potential around Trae Young makes a lot more sense than the undersized "your turn, my turn" backcourt Atlanta had with Young and Dejounte Murray last season.

20. San Antonio Spurs (4-5)

Previous Rank: 21

Net Rating: -2.9

There's obviously no alarm bells ringing or anything, but Victor Wembanyama has quietly started this season a fair bit worse than he did as a rookie, particularly on the offensive end.

After posting a comfortably positive offensive box plus/minus in 2023-24, he's below average this season. And after going for 12 points on 4-of-13 shooting in Thursday's win over the Portland Trail Blazers, he's now shooting 41.3 percent from the field and 22.6 percent from three.

And while there's plenty of intrigue in Wemby's potential as a jump shooter, a little more rim-running and lob-finishing should be the aim of the Spurs' attack.

19. Philadelphia 76ers (1-6)

Previous Rank: 16

Net Rating: -8.5

As Joel Embiid serves a three-game suspension for "shoving" a media member, the losses just keep piling up for the Philadelphia 76ers.

After dropping Paul George's return to Los Angeles on Wednesday, they're now 1-6 and have a 3.2 percent chance to make the postseason in Basketball Reference's Playoff Probabilities Report.

Of course, that model doesn't account for the context of this particular team. George has only been back for two games, and Embiid has yet to play. If they win three or four in a row, that probability will skyrocket.

They just need to do that soon, and a wave of news makes it tricky to guess whether they can.

Wednesday evening, ESPN's Shams Charania reported that Embiid is set to make his debut on Tuesday when his suspension is up. But the next day, he reported that star guard Tyrese Maxey would miss "multiple weeks" with a hamstring injury.

18. Miami Heat (3-4)

Previous Rank: 20

Net Rating: +0.1

If you're looking for reasons for the Miami Heat's uninspiring start, you don't have to go much further than the starters.

Their two most important players, Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo, have logged 165 minutes together, and Miami is minus-6.5 points per 100 possessions with that duo.

Last season, the team's general lack of offense was a problem, but the bigger issue for that duo in 2024-25 is on the defensive end. Miami is surrendering 120.0 points per 100 possessions when both are on the floor.

Does that mean Tyler Herro should go back to being a heat-check scorer off the bench? Is it time to take Nikola Jović out of his token starter role (he played five minutes in the last lass and just 12 in the one before that)?

Somehow, coach Erik Spoelstra needs to get some more consistent defenders in minutes with Butler and Adebayo.

17. Orlando Magic (3-6)

Previous Rank: 14

Net Rating: -3.3

The Orlando Magic's Paolo Banchero-less slide continued on Wednesday, when they lost 118-111 to the Indiana Pacers. They're now 0-4 since Banchero left the rotation with an injury.

Though Franz Wagner had 28 in the latest loss, he'll have to be better for Orlando to stay afloat without its All-Star.

During this four-game stretch, Wagner is averaging 20.0 points and shooting 26.7 percent from three.

16. Los Angeles Clippers (4-4)

Previous Rank: 19

Net Rating: +1.9

The Los Angeles Clippers lost Paul George in free agency, and their franchise cornerstone, Kawhi Leonard, has yet to play a second this season. In that context, their .500 start is actually pretty impressive.

At the very least, the Clippers are scrappy, particularly on the defensive end. With a solid anchor in Ivica Zubac and several switchable forwards and wings like Derrick Jones Jr., Terance Mann, Amir Coffey and Nicolas Batum, they're fifth in points allowed per 100 possessions.

And they're getting just enough offense from Zubac (17.1 points), Norman Powell (25.0 points, 4.1 threes and a 48.5 three-point percentage) and James Harden (20.8 points and 9.4 assists) to eke out some wins.

15. Milwaukee Bucks (2-6)

Previous Rank: 15

Net Rating: -2.7

The Milwaukee Bucks were in desperate need of a get-right win, and the Utah Jazz obliged on Thursday.

With the worst team in the league at the Fiserv Forum, Milwaukee scored 123 points (its highest total since an opening-night win).

Damian Lillard (34) and Giannis Antetokounmpo (31) each went for 30-plus. And perhaps most interesting of all, second-year wing Andre Jackson Jr. entered the starting five and provided a defensive boost that had to intrigue head coach Doc Rivers.

There are still plenty of concerns, especially if Giannis is hampered by an adductor strain for much longer, but Thursday was a decent reminder of how explosive Milwaukee's top two can be (albeit against a terrible opponent).

14. Los Angeles Lakers (4-4)

Previous Rank: 10

Net Rating: -4.1

The good vibes that attended the Los Angeles Lakers' 3-0 start have faded a bit.

They've now dropped four of their last five. And the most recent loss, a 17-point blowout at the hands of the Memphis Grizzlies, highlighted an issue that could plague them all season.

When one of Anthony Davis or LeBron James is out, L.A.'s questionable depth is bound to be...well...questioned.

AD missed Wednesday's game with a heel injury (and is now dealing with plantar fasciitis), and though soon-to-be-40-year-old LeBron impressed with 39 points, the Lakers lost the points-in-the-paint battle, 60-44.

13. Indiana Pacers (4-4)

Previous Rank: 17

Net Rating: -3.2

They came out of the gates slowly, but the Indiana Pacers have suddenly won three of their last four—with one of those wins coming over the Boston Celtics and another over the Dallas Mavericks (in Dallas).

While there's still some concern that Tyrese Haliburton can't recapture the magic (and productivity) of his first few months of 2023-24, Indiana's replaced his gaudy numbers with a balanced attack that may be more sustainable.

Through four games, Haliburton (15.8), Bennedict Mathurin (16.8 on 10.0 shots), Myles Turner (17.0) and Pascal Siakam (19.9) are all between 15 and 20 points per game.

12. New York Knicks (3-4)

Previous Rank: 6

Net Rating: +3.4

The New York Knicks are off to a bit of a head-scratching start.

They lost by 23 on opening night to the Boston Celtics. And after dropping a close one to the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday, they're now below .500. But somehow, they're still comfortably above zero in point differential.

The glass-half-full analysis has to start with the location of most of these games. Five of these first seven (including the loss to Atlanta) were all on the road. Jalen Brunson averaging 25.3 points and Karl-Anthony Towns shooting 57.1 percent from deep are obviously pluses, too.

But for the Knicks to live up to the offseason hype that came from the acquisitions of Mikal Bridges and KAT, they're going to have to defend more consistently. They're currently flirting with a bottom-10 ranking in points allowed per 100 possessions.

11. Memphis Grizzlies (5-4)

Previous Rank: 13

Net Rating: +3.0

Despite some recent absences from Jaren Jackson Jr. and Desmond Bane, the Memphis Grizzlies have charged right back into relevance this season. And it's pretty easy to pinpoint why.

Ja Morant has played in eight of Memphis' nine games. He's averaging 20.6 points and 9.1 assists, and the Grizzlies are +13.1 points per 100 possessions when Ja's on the floor (compared to minus-4.3 when he's off).

As if that wasn't good enough, 7'4" rookie Zach Edey is showing early signs of progress, too. The big man has reached double-figures in four of his last five games, and he's averaging 13.2 points, 7.8 rebounds and 1.2 blocks during that stretch.

10. Houston Rockets (5-3)

Previous Rank: 12

Net Rating: +7.5

The Houston Rockets are in the top seven in both offensive and defensive rating. They have six players averaging double-figures (and a seventh at 9.8). And every player with at least 80 minutes has a season-long plus-minus over zero.

So, even if Jalen Green is struggling to make twos, Alperen Şengün's threes aren't falling and Fred VanVleet is struggling from everywhere (though he did have 21 points on 10-of-11 shooting Wednesday), it's easy to be optimistic about this young roster.

That optimism is likely led by the recently extended Green and Şengün. The former is averaging 22.6 points 3.6 threes and 3.1 assists while shooting 38.2 percent from deep. While the latter isn't piling up assists quite like he did last season, he's still stuffing the stat sheet to the tune of 16.4 points, 11.4 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 1.3 blocks and 1.1 steals.

9. Sacramento Kings (5-3)

Previous Rank: 11

Net Rating: +6.0

The Sacramento Kings started 0-2 and had a disappointing loss to the Toronto Raptors this week, but they've won five of their last six games. And the star trio of Domantas Sabonis, De'Aaron Fox and DeMar DeRozan couldn't be fitting together much better.

DeRozan is averaging a team-high 25.6 points. He's also doubling his career average of 0.5 threes and shooting 38.1 percent from deep. Fox is at 23.8 points, 5.1 assists and 2.0 threes. Sabonis is putting up 20.3 points, 13.1 rebounds and a team-high 7.3 assists.

But none of that would mean much if Sacramento was losing games or that trio's minutes. It's early, but the Kings are plus-15.7 points per 100 possessions when those three stars are on the floor.

8. Denver Nuggets (5-3)

Previous Rank: 8

Net Rating: +1.5

The Denver Nuggets got off to a shaky 0-2 start. They seem genuinely averse to comfortable victories (two came in overtime and four have finished with margins of victory within five points). Jamal Murray (concussion) and Aaron Gordon (calf strain) have both missed time.

But this stretch could be pretty important in the long run. Russell Westbrook is getting extended minutes alongside Nikola Jokić, and the young players who have been such an important component of Calvin Booth's team-building strategy are picking up valuable experience in clutch time.

In Wednesday's 124-122 upset over the Oklahoma City Thunder, Christian Braun had 24 points and eight rebounds. Peyton Watson had the game-winning block on Shai Gilgeous-Alexander as time expired.

But come on, Denver being on pace for 50 wins despite some early bumps on the road is a credit to Jokic. He's surged into first place in Basketball Reference's MVP Tracker thanks to his video-game averages of 28.8 points, 13.5 rebounds, 11.0 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.3 blocks.

7. Minnesota Timberwolves (5-3)

Previous Rank: 7

Net Rating: +4.1

Following the Minnesota Timberwolves' late offseason trade of Karl-Anthony Towns, there was some understandable concern about a potential lack of spacing in lineups with Rudy Gobert and Julius Randle.

Will there be enough room for Anthony Edwards' slashing on these post-KAT T-Wolves?

Turns out, Edwards was willing to tackle the consternation himself. In Thursday's blowout win over the Chicago Bulls, he went 5-of-9 from deep, bringing his season-long average to 5.1 per game.

In other words, he's on pace to break Stephen Curry's all-time record of 402 threes in a single season.

Still, Minnesota's offense is barely above average when Edwards is on the floor. There are still some issues to work through for the revamped Timberwolves. But Ant's shooting will help them keep winning while they try to figure out the spacing.

6. Dallas Mavericks (5-3)

Previous Rank: 5

Net Rating: +5.2

The Dallas Mavericks are on pace for 50 wins, and the rest of the league should maybe be a little worried about this being the worst version of this team.

They've jumped out to this start, which includes a road win over the Minnesota Timberwolves, despite Luka Dončić being nowhere near hitting his stride.

Through eight games, his averages for points (28.6), rebounds (8.1) and assists (8.1) are down from last season, and he's shooting just 45.5 percent on twos and 32.9 percent from deep.

All of those marks are likely to creep up over the course of the season, and Dallas will be even tougher to beat because of it.

5. Phoenix Suns (7-1)

Previous Rank: 4

Net Rating: +3.4

Like the Nuggets, the Phoenix Suns aren't authoring a lot of convincing wins, but they're winning nonetheless. And their 36-year-old superstar is a big reason why.

Kevin Durant has eclipsed 30 points five times this season. He's averaging 27.8 points, 3.4 assists and 2.6 threes, and he's currently rocking a 62.2 effective field-goal percentage.

If those marks hold, he'll have his 12th season with 500-plus minutes, 25-plus points per game and a 55-plus effective field-goal percentage. That would be an all-time high (unless LeBron also secures his 12th such campaign in 2024-25).

4. Golden State Warriors (7-1)

Previous Rank: 9

Net Rating: +15.5

There was some chatter during the Golden State Warriors' 6-1 start about the schedule being soft. And it was fair. Five of those wins came against the Portland Trail Blazers, Utah Jazz, New Orleans Pelicans and Washington Wizards.

But they made a statement on Wednesday by beating the Boston Celtics (in Boston) behind 27 points and nine assists from Stephen Curry. And oh yeah, Curry missed three of those wins with an injury.

So, even if some of their early opponents are likely to finish the season below .500, there are plenty of signs that Golden State might just be a contender again.

The depth of this team looks stout, with almost all of their offseason acquisitions making positive contributions. Youngsters Brandin Podziemski, Trayce Jackson-Davis and Moses Moody have all shown hints of continuing development. And perhaps most importantly, Buddy Hield looks ready to more than make up for the loss of Klay Thompson.

He had 16 points in Wednesday's win, and it was one of his quietest performances of the season. On the year, he's averaging 21.1 points (barely shy of Curry's 21.2), 4.6 threes and 2.3 assists while shooting 50.7 percent from deep.

3. Cleveland Cavaliers (9-0)

Previous Rank: 3

Net Rating: +12.1

Cleveland fans have to be a little annoyed to see their still-undefeated Cavaliers stuck in third place. The "recent performance" and "team stats" criteria look great for them, but they're still ninth in betting odds to win the title. And while that certainly isn't the end-all, be-all of analysis for "championship chances," it does reflect the fact that Cleveland is still gaining the trust of both fans and media.

The Cavs still don't feel like a top-tier title contender, but we may not be able to say that much longer.

Cleveland is first in points per 100 possessions and ninth in points allowed per 100 possessions. The core four (Donovan Mitchell at 23.8, Darius Garland at 19.8, Evan Mobley at 17.3 and Jarrett Allen at 15.1) are all averaging at least 15 points per game. And the bench is getting real contributions from Caris LeVert, Ty Jerome and Sam Merrill.

2. Oklahoma City Thunder (7-1)

Previous Rank: 2

Net Rating: +14.6

The Oklahoma City Thunder dropped their first game of the season on Wednesday, but it was on the road and against a hungry Nuggets team hoping to prove it still belongs among the title contenders.

All the key indicators for OKC are still pointing to a deep playoff run.

The 96.5 points per 100 possessions they're allowing gives them the best defensive rating in the league by a whopping 7.3 points. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is once again playing like an MVP candidate. Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren are both playing, at the very least, like fringe All-Stars. Their depth looks strong (the team is winning the non-SGA minutes).

And OKC will still get Isaiah Hartenstein back at some point, which will better equip it to play big against teams like Denver.

1. Boston Celtics (7-2)

Previous Rank: 1

Net Rating: +11.9

There have been stretches of this season when the Boston Celtics looked borderline unbeatable.

They crushed the New York Knicks on opening night. Five of their seven wins have been by double-digits. One of the losses took overtime. And they're connecting on a whopping 19.0 threes per game.

But they're starting to show some hints of mortality, with losses to the Indiana Pacers and Golden State Warriors over the last week and change.

And while it's easy to point to the absence of Jaylen Brown against Golden State and Kristaps Porziņģis for both losses, it's fair to have some concern about the games when the threes aren't pouring in.

Boston should have the talent to adjust and do more damage inside, when necessary, but waiting too long to make that change could be costly in a playoff game.

Is this all pretty nitpicky? Yeah. But the Celtics have been good enough to take genuine worries off the table.

Stat of the Week

After winning three of the last four MVPs and losing in the second round of the 2024 playoffs, Nikola Jokić entered 2024-25 facing almost a half-decade of voter fatigue.

A fourth nod in five years felt pretty unlikely.

But after the shorthanded Nuggets beat last season's second-place finisher in MVP votes, Jokić surged ahead in the MVP Tracker, and the blueprint for another honor is starting to reveal itself.

Somehow, the Nuggets are relying on Jokić more than ever before. He's averaging a triple-double, and he's on pace for another 50-win season. If all of those things hold, he'll be in the mix again.