Kuwait Times infographic: NBA Power Rankings

In addition to its usual coverage of the NBA, Kuwait Times introduces a new feature this year: the NBA Power Rankings. It is a weekly list ranking each team based on its performance during the week. The actual record for each team (put between brackets, for games played as of Sunday morning in Kuwait’s local time) plays a role in the assessment process but is not the main factor for deciding each team’s ranking, thus making it different from traditional league standings. This week’s edition features no changes in the top four spots. (For any comments or suggestions, e-mail the writer at: a.jabr@kuwaittimes.net) 1- Cleveland Cavaliers (27 - 8) Last week: 1 -

The addition of Kyle Korver brings in another scoring option and a shooter that LeBron James can pass the ball to, and his true value will manifest during the playoffs. The Cavs are still looking to add another point guard before the Feb 23 trade deadline. 2- Golden State Warriors (31 - 6) Last week: 2-

The Warriors blew a 24-point third quarter lead and lost to the Grizzlies on Friday after shooting 5-for-22 and scoring 21 points in the fourth quarter and overtime. This is something the team has to address in order to avoid similar late collapses in the postseason. 3- Houston Rockets (29 - 9) Last week: 3 -

Russell Westbrook went for 49 points compared to James Hardens’ 26 on Thursday, but the rest of the Rockets propelled their team to victory over the Thunder. Some of that success can be attributed to Hardens’ passing; he finished the game with 12 assists compared to Westbrook’s five. 4- San Antonio Spurs (30 - 7) Last week: 4 -

The Spurs could easily be first in the rankings if it was not for the stellar play of the Cavs, Warriors and Rockets, and they certainly have what it takes to compete with the rest of the league’s elite. They demonstrated their offensive versatility and defensive prowess in their 28-point victory over the Raptors on Tuesday. 5- Boston Celtics (23 - 14) Last week: 8 -

Riding a four-game winning streak, the Celtics next plays against the Raptors, Wizards, Hawks, Hornets and Knicks respectively - a stretch of games that could help them take over the second place in the Eastern Conference standings. 6- Toronto Raptors (24 - 12) Last week: 5 -

Kyle Lowry’s heroics were the reason behind the Raptors’ only two wins in their last six games, whereas their offense was not enough to hold off the Bulls Saturday night. Acquiring Paul Millsap seems like a perfect solution to address most of their problems, but it is a tough decision considering the question whether it is worth surrendering multiple assets for a free-agent-to-be who could walk away in the summer or be simply too expensive to re-sign. 7- Utah Jazz (23 - 15) Last week: 6 -

George Hill returned from concussion-like symptoms in time to help his team narrowly beat the Timberwolves on Saturday. Utah’s record with Hill in the lineup is 11 - 3 and 12 - 12 without him. 8- Los Angeles Clippers (25 - 14) Last week: 11 -

Chris Paul returned after missing seven of the Clippers’ last eight games before their match against the Kings on Friday, which ended with a third-straight victory for LA. During that game, Paul passed Rod Strickland into 10th place on the NBA’s all-time assists list and passed Isiah Thomas for 15th place on the alltime steals list. 9- Oklahoma City Thunder (22 - 16) Last week: 7 -

Russell Westbrook recorded his 17th triple-double (54th overall) in Oklahoma’s win against Denver on Saturday. He managed to reach that mark in just 38 games this season, compared to 18 triple-doubles he achieved in the entirety of last season. (P.S. He enters Monday still averaging a triple-double). 10- Memphis Grizzlies (23 - 16) Last week: 9 -

Following ugly losses to the Lakers and Clippers, an emphatic win against Golden State prevented the Grizzlies from slipping further down in this week’s rankings. Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph playing together, which has been used limitedly this season, was crucial in Memphis’ victory over the Warriors. 11- Atlanta Hawks (21 - 16) Last week: 12 -

Normally a team that trades away valuable assets would be struggling and looking to rebuild for the future. But the Hawks, fresh off trading Kyle Korver and still continue to aggressively shop Paul Millsap, are on a sixgame winning streak that brought them right back up in the East’s playoff picture after a shaky performance earlier this season. 12- Indiana Pacers (20 - 18) Last week: 15 -

The trio of Paul George, Jeff Teague and Myles Turner have been playing exceptionally well as of late, fueling their team to victory in its last five games. They hope to remain healthy and continue their dominant performance to keep up with the East’s tight playoff race. 13- Charlotte Hornets (20 - 18) Last week: 10 -

Speaking of which, fellow playoff contender Charlotte do not find themselves in the most optimal position as they have lost four of their last five games - three of which against potential Eastern Conference playoff teams. Nicolas Batum played a key role in the Hornets’ victory over Oklahoma on Wednesday. 14- Chicago Bulls (19 - 18) Last week: 16 -

The Bulls can thank Jimmy Butler for their three-game winning streak entering Monday. He scored 52, 20 and 42 points in his teams’ wins over the Hornets, Cavs and Raptors respectively, drawing “MVP! MVP!” chants from the home crowd on Saturday. 15- Milwaukee Bucks (18 - 17) Last week: 14 -

Giannis Antetokounmpo, who continues to lead his team in every statistical category, added yet another element to his superstar resume: the buzzer-beater. His game-winning shot gave the Bucks victory over New York last Wednesday. 16- Washington Wizards (17 - 18) Last week: 13 -

John Wall was named the Eastern Conference Player of the Month for December, in which he averaged 24.5 points, 10.7 assists and 4.4 rebounds in 37.1 minutes per game. He scored a career-high 52 points on Dec 6 against the Magic. 17- Detroit Pistons (17 - 20) Last week: 18 -

The Pistons have found some success last week behind strong play from its bench. In Thursday’s win over Charlotte, Tobias Harris scored 25 points on 10-16 shooting, and Boban Marjanovic finished with 15 points and 19 rebounds - both coming off the bench. 18- Portland Trail Blazers (16 - 22) Last week: 21 -

In the first game since Damian Lillard returned from injury, the Blazers recorded a tough, come-from-behind victory over the struggling Lakers. They rose up to seventh in the league in defensive efficiency in the last five games (they rank 28th overall). 19- New York Knicks (17 - 20) Last week: 17 -

The Knicks lost seven of their last eight games, allowing their opponents to score an average of nearly 111 points while averaging only 104 points per game during that stretch. Carmelo Anthony’s ten assists were integral to key his team’s only win during that stretch, which came against the Bucks on Friday. 20- New Orleans Pelicans (14 - 24) Last week: 20 -

The Pelicans have lost three straight games after winning four in a row following the decision to shift power forward Anthony Davis to the starting center position. Their losses came against the Cavs, Hawks and Celtics respectively, and they hope to end their current losing streak as they visit the Knicks and Nets. 21- Sacramento Kings (15 - 21) Last week: 22 -

It appears that not only are the Kings, who remain in the playoff picture for the eighth seed in the West, are willing to keep DeMarcus Cousins past the Feb 23 trade deadline, but according to reports, they also plan to offer their star center an unprecedented extension worth over $200 million. 22- Denver Nuggets (14 - 23) Last week: 19 -

With names like Jusuf Nurkic, Danilo Gallinari, Kenneth Faried and Wilson Chandler likely on the trading block (plus draft picks), the Nuggets could possibility present the most lucrative offer to obtain the services of Atlanta’s Paul Millsap. 23- Orlando Magic (16 - 22) Last week: 23 - The Magic lost four of their last five games which were all played against potential playoff contenders (their only win came against the Knicks), and embark on a tough six-game road trip in the West; starting with last night’s game against the Lakers which is probably their easiest challenge in that stretch. 24- Phoenix Suns (22 - 25) Last week: 26 -

In addition to the rumors surrounding Brendon Knight’s future in Phoenix, reports emerged last week that Portland - looking for a solution to their defensive woes - could potentially offer to trade for the Suns’ defensive anchor Tyson Chandler. 25- Dallas Mavericks (11 - 26) Last week: 25 -

The experiment of starting Dirk Nowitzki at center failed miserably, prompting coach Rick Carlisle to reinsert disgruntled center Andrew Bogut back to the starting lineup. Not only that, but Nowitzki made it clear that he would not even mind coming off the bench if that would help the Mavs find ways to win. 26- Los Angeles Lakers (14 - 26) Last week: 27 -

Julius Randle finished with a triple-double in the Lakers’ win over the Grizzlies on Tuesday, snapping Memphis’ league-best streak of 177 consecutive games without allowing one - a streak that survived multiple attempts from triple-double machines such as Russell Westbrook and James Harden. 27- Minnesota Timberwolves (11 - 26) Last week: 24 -

You know your defense must be really bad when the President of the United States takes a break from his busy schedule to offer you an advice to play better defense. The Wolves received that rare insight from Barack Obama during their visit to the White House ahead of their match against the Wizards last Friday. 28- Philadelphia 76ers (9 - 25) Last week: 29 -

The Sixers benched both Nerlens Noel and Jahlil Okafor in favor of power forward Ersan Ilyasova in their last two games as the team continues to struggle to find a way to pair one of their natural centers with rookie standout Joel Embiid in the frontcourt. 29- Miami Heat (11 - 27) Last week: 28 -

Justise Winslow is likely out for the season after he underwent surgery on his injured right shoulder last Thursday, dealing yet another heavy blow to their already slim chances of making the playoffs this year. 30- Brooklyn Nets (8 - 27) Last week: 30 -

The Nets are reportedly looking for two first round picks in exchange for Brook Lopez, which is a reasonable price considering the fact that their first round pick in the 2017 Draft, projected to be in the top five, will be swapped with Boston’s pick instead, courtesy of the infamous Kevin Garnett

— Paul Pierce trade four years ago.