The third-annual NBA Cup concluded last night with the New York Knicks claiming the tournament trophy over the San Antonio Spurs and collecting their cash prize in Las Vegas.
Now, the regular season carries on as we reach the end of 2025 and ramp up play toward the back half of the season.
In the East, the Detroit Pistons continue their dominance over an injury-riddled conference, riding a four-game winning streak. However, expect a lot to change between now and the New Year as the Toronto Raptors, Boston Celtics, Orlando Magic and Philadelphia 76ers are all one game apart.
In the West, the Oklahoma City Thunder remain staunchly at the top of the standings, having been handed only their second loss of the season to the Spurs in the NBA Cup semifinals and 4.5 games ahead of the No. 2 Denver Nuggets. And keep an eye on the Western Conference play-in, as the Utah Jazz and Memphis Grizzlies have snuck their way back into contention as the year comes to a close.
Our NBA insiders break down and rank where all 30 teams stand as we approach the holiday season in this week’s Power Rankings.
Note: Team rankings are based on where members of our panel (ESPN’s Anthony Slater, Dave McMenamin, Jamal Collier, Kevin Pelton, Michael C. Wright, Ohm Youngmisuk, Tim Bontemps, Tim MacMahon, Vincent Goodwill and Zach Kram) think teams belong this season.
Previous rankings: Preseason| Oct. 29| Nov. 5| Nov. 12| Nov. 19 | Nov. 26| Dec. 3 | Dec. 10
Jump to a team:
ATL | BOS | BKN | CHA | CHI | CLE
DAL | DEN | DET | GS | HOU | IND
LAC | LAL | MEM | MIA | MIL | MIN
NO | NY | OKC | ORL | PHI | PHX
POR | SAC | SA | TOR | UTAH | WAS
1. Oklahoma City Thunder
In the midst of the Thunder’s recent 16-game win streak, it suddenly felt reasonable to believe they had a chance to rip off an NBA trifecta — NBA Cup champs, regular-season wins record and NBA title. The Spurs put an end to that in Las Vegas, reminding the league that, while still the prohibitive title favorites, the Thunder aren’t invincible. Oklahoma City is a streaky 3-point shooting team and went 9-of-37 on 3s in the semifinal loss to San Antonio. But it’s fortunate timing for the league. The Thunder will get the Spurs in a rematch twice next week, including a Christmas Day matchup in OKC.– Anthony Slater
2. Detroit Pistons
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