Cleveland remains the hottest team in the league as they are riding a 13 game winning streak into the NBA All-Star weekend. They have a seven game lead in the conference and a 16 ½ game lead over Chicago in the Central division. Orlando has a 1 ½ game lead over Phoenix in the Southeast division. At 26-25, Charlotte is 8 ½ games back. In the Atlantic division, Boston has fallen to 32-18 and their lead over Toronto (29-23) is down to just four games as the Celtic’s slide continues while the Raptors are 8-2 in their last 10 games. Currently, there are only six teams in the East with a winning record and at 25-26 the Bulls are sitting in the eighth position. Here is a brief look at my power rankings for the top three teams in the Eastern Conference.
Cleveland Cavaliers (43-11) Current Odds to Win the Eastern Conference: 4/5
The Knicks gave the Cavs all they could handle last Saturday night, but they still came away with a 113-106 win. Against the Nets, Lebron had a double-double with 32 points and 11 assists. In a game featuring the two best teams in the East, they ran their winning streak to 13 games with a big 115-106 win over Orlando. Once again James scored 32 points, adding 13 assists and eight rebounds in the win. The Cavs now have a league high 42 wins on the season. Through 54 games James leads in points per game with 29.8 and assists with 8.2. Anderson Varejao leads in rebounds with 8 per game. Next up for the Cavaliers are the Nuggets on Thursday, February 18th at home.
Orlando Magic (36-18) Current Odds to Win the Eastern Conference: 4/1
Last Friday night in a nail biter, the Magic dropped a tough one point 91-92 decision to the Wizards. In their next outing, Dwight Howard had a double-double with 16 points and 13 rebounds in a 96-89 win over the Celtics. In a 123-117 win over the Hornets, Vince Carter exploded for 48 points including six three pointers. They won their third straight game by routing the Bulls 107-87. The game was never close after they opened up a 41-17 lead in the first quarter. In a showdown with the Cavaliers, Howard scored 19 points and added 11 rebounds but it was not enough to avoid a 106-115 defeat. Through 54 games Howard leads in points per game with 17.9 and rebounds with 13.4. Jameer Nelson leads in assists with 4.8. Next up for the Magic are the Pistons on Wednesday, February 17th in Orlando.
Atlanta Hawks (35-17) Current Odds to Win the Eastern Conference: 13/2
Last Friday against the Bulls, they outscored Chicago 27-11 in the fourth quarter to win 91-81. Josh Smith recorded a triple-double with 18 points, 14 rebounds, and 10 assists. They followed this up with a 108-94 rout over the Grizzlies with six players scoring in double figures. In their last game they were outscored 27-12 in the fourth quarter, losing to the Heat 76-94. Through 52 games Joe Johnson leads the team in points per game with 21.6 and assists with 4.6. Al Horford is the leading rebounder averaging 9.4 per game. Next up for the Hawks are the Clippers in LA on Wednesday, February 17th.
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