A spot in the playoffs have been secured by all the teams listed on this weeks’ Power Rankings list. Who will be playoff participants in the East seems to be determined but positioning can change for seeds 6-10 over these last handful of games. Seeds 4-10 in the Western conference are changing on the daily as Phoenix, who is currently the 4th seed are only 3 games ahead of the Oklahoma City Thunder who currently sit in 10th place as the last play-in team. There is very little margin for error and a good or bad stretch for teams over these last two weeks of the season is more important than ever.

These are my power rankings based on games played through 3/26/2023.

1. Milwaukee Bucks (53-21)

Winners of seven of their last ten. The Bucks destroyed both the Spurs and Jazz to start the week before losing badly to the Denver Nuggets which was a back-to-back game. They have two more games this week before the road trip ends. Every win counts and if the Bucks wish to keep the number one seed in the East. Right now, they sit 1.5 games ahead of the Boston Celtics, who they will face this week on Thursday 3/30.

2. Denver Nuggets (50-24)

The Nuggets capped off the week with a dominant win over the top team in the league and showed that they are serious title contenders despite their recent struggles. Right now, they are three games ahead of the second place Memphis Grizzlies in the West for the number one seed. They will face one more Eastern conference team before finishing the season with games all against Western Conference teams. A lot of those matchups will have playoff positioning importance so the Nuggets will need to continue their good play.

3. Cleveland Cavaliers (48-28)

The Cavaliers have clinched an outright playoff spot for the first time since the departure of LeBron James. The team has a current win streak of four in a row and still own the best win/loss record for the month of March throughout the league. They have a fairly easy remaining schedule with six games to be played and could possibly rise to third place in the East going into the playoffs.

4. Memphis Grizzlies (47-27)

The Grizzlies have not lost since the return of Ja Morant and overall, they have won nine of their last ten games. Currently on a six-game win streak, Memphis is back looking like a real threat out of the West as they had been all year before some uncertainty occurred with Morant’s availability.

5. Boston Celtics (52-23)

Boston got back to their winning ways and scored at a high rate. The play of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown showed why they were both All-Stars and arguably one the best scoring duos in the league. Brown averaged 32 points per game along with 8 rebounds. Tatum scored a total of 70 points in the two games he played last week.

Next in line: Philadelphia 76ers (49-25)

Some of the top performances this week include:

Monday (3/20)

• Zach Lavine scored 26 points to help lift the Chicago Bulls past the Philadelphia 76ers in double overtime 109-105.
• Despite 57 points from Julius Randle, the New York Knicks came up short and the Minnesota Timberwolves who were led by Taurean Prince’s 35 points won 140-134.
• Stephen Curry dropped 30 points and led the Golden State Warriors to a 121-108 victory over the Houston Rockets.
• Jaren Jackson Jr. scored 28 points as the Memphis Grizzlies defeated the Dallas Mavericks 112-108.

Tuesday (3/21)

• Trae Young had 30 points and the Atlanta Hawks defeated the Detroit Pistons 129-107.
• Donovan Mitchell had 31 points and led the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 115-109 victory over the Brooklyn Nets.
• Brandon Ingram scored 32 points and the New Orleans Hornets defeated the San Antonio Spurs 119-84.
• Jayson Tatum led all scorers with 36 points as the Boston Celtics defeated the Sacramento Kings 132-109.
• Shai Gilgeous-Alexander notched 31 points and pushed the Oklahoma City Thunder past the Los Angeles Clippers 101-100.

Wednesday (3/22)

• Nikola Jokic had 31 points and 12 rebounds and the Denver Nuggets defeated the Washington Wizards 118-104 on the road.
• Jimmy Butler dropped 35 points and the Miami Heat defeated the New York Knicks at home 127-120.
• Jaren Jackson had 37 points and 10 rebounds to lead the way for the Memphis Grizzlies and they defeated the Houston Rockets 130-125.
• Giannis Antetokounmpo had 31 points and 14 rebounds as the Milwaukee Bucks easily defeated the San Antonio Spurs 130-94.
• Anthony Davis poured in 27 points with 9 rebounds as the Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Phoenix Suns 122-111.
• Damian Lillard dropped 30 points to end the Portland Trail Blazers losing streak as they won against the Utah Jazz 127-115.

Thursday (3/23)

• Paolo Banchero scored 21 points to lead the Orlando Magic past the New York Knicks 111-106.
• Donovan Mitchell poured in 31 points as the Cleveland Cavaliers defeated the Brooklyn Nets 116-114.
• Brandon Ingram notched his first career triple double (30, 11 & 10) and the New Orleans Pelicans defeated the Charlotte Hornets 115-96.
• Kawhi Leonard dropped 32 points and the Los Angeles Clippers defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder 127-105.

Friday (3/24)

• Jayson Tatum scored 34 points as the Boston Celtics easily defeated the Indiana Pacers 120-95.
• Pascal Siakam had 32 points and the Toronto Raptors won against the Detroit Pistons 118-97.
• Luke Kennard had a career high 30 points to push the Memphis Grizzlies past the Houston Rockets 151-114.
• Grayson Allen had a season high 25 points and led the Milwaukee Bucks past the Utah Jazz 144-116.
• Anthony Davis had 37 points and 14 rebounds to lead the Los Angeles Lakers past the Oklahoma City Thunder 116-111.

Saturday (3/25)

• Mikal Bridges scored 27 points and the Brooklyn Nets defeated the Miami Heat 129-100.
• Nikola Jokic put up 31 points and 11 assists as the Denver Nuggets defeated the Milwaukee Bucks in a battle of the best of each conference 129-106.
• Devin Booker scored 29 points and the Phoenix Suns cruised past the Philadelphia 76ers 125-105.
• Brandon Ingram had 32 points and 13 assists and the New Orleans Pelicans led from start to finish to beat the Los Angeles Clippers 131-110.

Sunday (3/26)

• Ja Morant led the Memphis Grizzlies into Atlanta to defeat the Hawks 123-119.
• Jaylen Brown had 41 points and 13 rebounds as the Boston Celtics picked up a victory over the San Antonio Spurs 137-93.
• G. Anunoby scored 29 points to lead all scorers and the Toronto Raptors defeated the Washington Wizards 114-104.
• Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 31 points and pushed the Oklahoma City Thunder over the Portland Trail Blazers 118-112.