Piston Powered NBA Power Rankings: January 2016

19-15. Previous: 4th. Indiana Pacers. 10. team. 100. A month ago the Pacers were the hottest team in basketball, other than the Golden State Warriors and San Antonio Spurs. Fast forward to January, however, and they’ve won just three of their last seven games and four of their last ten, and are just a half-game ahead of eighth place. Paul George is still having a remarkable season, but his 50 percent clip from three-point range was just as unsustainable as we all knew at the beginning of December. He’s averaging 24.7 points, 7.7 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game, and shooting 41.9 from the field and 40.7 from long range, and while he has slipped from the MVP discussion, he’s still having a tremendous bounce-back season.

81. The more things change, the more they stay the same. The Toronto Raptors remain in the same spot in the rankings that they were in a month ago, and DeMarre Carroll still can’t get healthy. Carroll has only played 23 games, and his impact on the floor hasn’t been remarkable, as he’s averaged just 11.7 points per game on .388/.378/.583 shooting splits. Fortunately, DeMar Derozan has had a career season to help offset Carroll’s early season issues. Derozan is averaging 22.9 points per game on splits of .445/.295/.845. Derozan is good at getting into the lane and finishing through contact, and <a href=. 21-15. Previous: 9th. Toronto Raptors. 9. team

Previous: 10th. Atlanta Hawks. 8. team. 125. The Atlanta Hawks are one of the best infuriating teams in the NBA. They’ve gone on multiple long winning streaks, but they’re also capable of losing three out of four games, including getting swept by the New York Knicks in a recent home-and-home series, all of which just happened. The Hawks are a team that will be there at the end, probably a top three or four seed in the East, but they don’t have the weapons or consistency to get over the hump against teams like the Chicago Bulls or Cleveland Cavaliers. Most likely, they’ll have a good regular season and get pounded into submission in the playoffs by the Cavs, and they’ll be no further ahead than they were at the end of last year’s playoffs.. 21-15

7. team. 110. The Miami Heat’s defense has dipped from the top of the NBA, replaced by the historic defense the San Antonio Spurs are currently displaying, but they’re still ranked fourth in defensive rating. The Heat are giving up just 98.5 points per 100 possessions, and their net rating of +4.6 is fifth in the NBA and second only to the Cleveland Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference. The Heat are mercurial and a bit unpredictable, but as long as they can stay healthy, this star-studded lineup featuring Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh and Hassan Whiteside is going to be a real problem for the rest of the Eastern contenders, even the mighty Cavs.. 21-13. Previous: 5th. Miami Heat

6. team. 24. The Chicago Bulls remain as the most likely team to finish second in the Eastern Conference, a touch better than the rest of the contenders, but clearly inferior to the Cleveland Cavaliers at the top of the conference. Jimmy Butler has been playing out of his mind, a fact which came to league-wide prominence <a href=. 21-12. Previous: 6th. Chicago Bulls