Week 22 NBA Rankings

1. Boston Celtics (60-15) (1) About the only thing the Celtics have to fear is random mascots firing shirts at them.
2. Detroit Pistons (53-21) (3) Stuckey had his first big breakout game with a 27 point performance against the TWolves.
3. San Antonio Spurs (52-23) (4) One of the biggest keys to the winning streak has been the Spurs' stifling defense, which has held 6 of 8 opponents under 90 during their 8-game winning streak.
4. New Orleans Hornets (52-22) (2) Just one more week and the Hornets will have made the playoffs, completing an incredible four-year rebuilding success.
5. Los Angeles Lakers (51-24) (7) Ira Newble will be a popular interview in a year when people ask him who's better between Kobe and LeBron.
6. Phoenix Suns (50-25) (6) I'm guessing the basket manufacturers in New Jersey aren't the biggest Shaq fans in the world.
7. Utah Jazz (50-26) (8) CJ Miles made things happen with a career-high 29 points when given an opportunity against the Wizards.
8. Houston Rockets (49-25) (5) Reality has set in, as the Rockets have now fallen to 6th in the West since their 22-game winning streak.
9. Orlando Magic (47-28) (9) With the Magic struggling to rebound and Cook getting hurt, the Magic don't want to face a big team like the Raptors in round 1.
10. Dallas Mavericks (47-28) (12) Dirk's comeback was huge in a pivotal showdown with the Warriors, as the Mavs now have some breathing room to work with in this congested race.
11. Denver Nuggets (46-29) (11) After going 3-1 in a four game stretch against the Suns, Mavs and Warriors, the Nuggets can feel better about their playoff chances.
12. Golden State Warriors (45-30) (10) The Warriors' offense suddenly has gone flat in the last two games, and they couldn't have picked a worse time.
13. Cleveland Cavaliers (42-33) (14) Big Ben's Big Bad Back is once again giving out on him.
14. Philadelphia 76ers (38-37) (13) The Sixers' ascent to .500 has been nothing short of miraculous and they'll be a tough out in the postseason.
15. Toronto Raptors (38-37) (17) The Raptors can't help but feel a little cheated by the Hawks' scorekeeper.
16. Washington Wizards (38-37) (16) It was almost the perfect storybook ending, but Ramon Sessions' game-winner foiled Arenas's much anticipated return.
17. Atlanta Hawks (35-40) (18) If you watched your team miss the playoffs for the last eight years and they're finally looking like they have a shot, wouldn't you alter the outcome of games as well?
18. Portland Trail Blazers (38-37) (15) With their playoff hopes dashed, the best the Blazers can do is play spoiler.
19. Sacramento Kings (34-40) (19) A lot of people were quick to criticize the Kings for signing him, but Mikki Moore has earned his contract with his performance this year.
20. Indiana Pacers (31-44) (21) Donnie Walsh's curious decision to take over the Knicks' GM job has everything to do with Bird's longstanding vendetta against Zeke.
21. New Jersey Nets (31-44) (20) Increasing the tempo will only work if the Nets exert more effort on the defensive end.
22. Chicago Bulls (29-45) (22) If the other Bull players were as accurate shooting a basketball as Benny the Bull is with the shirt-gun, they wouldn't lose half as many games as they've lost.
23. Charlotte Bobcats (28-47) (23) Anyone else see Morrison's 'do when he was spotted in the stands at the Gonzaga game? He's traded the Jim Morrison 'stache for more of a grunge look.
24. Milwaukee Bucks (26-48) (25) I wonder how Bobby Simmons must feel stealing all that money from the Bucks.
25. Los Angeles Clippers (23-52) (26) Elton's back! Hooray! Now my fantasy team has a real shot at winning it all!
26. Memphis Grizzlies (20-55) (28) Why are the Grizzlies running Iavaroni out? Who expected this team to actually be good?
27. Minnesota Timberwolves (19-55) (24) Taylor wants to talk about KG tanking it, but how do you explain his team losing to Detroit's backups?
28. New York Knicks (20-55) (26) Isiah's at about that point in his coaching tenure with the Knicks as Denzel was in training day before he got gunned down by the Russian mob.
29. Seattle Supersonics (17-58) (29) Fred Brown is admirable for trying to save the Sonics with a new arena proposal, but he just doesn't carry the clout of a Clay Bennett.
30. Miami Heat (13-62) (30) Why does Shaq have to cause drama to every team that trades him?