1. San Antonio Spurs (17-3): The Spurs may not be the hottest team in the league, but they've been the most consistent team all year long. They are playing extremely balanced ball. I just wonder if they can win in the playoffs with Tim Duncan scoring just 14 points a game. That may be a moot point if Duncan logs more minutes in the playoffs, but Gregg Popovich is being very careful with his veteran right now.
2. Dallas Mavericks (16-4): When this team buckles down on defense and shares the ball on offense they are an absolute bear to deal with. They have so many ways to score and so many unique athletes. Jason Terry, Dirk Nowitzki, Shawn Marion, Jason Kidd, Caron Butler and Tyson Chandler represent as good a top-six as exists in the league. The red hot Mavs are rolling, nine straight wins.
3. Boston Celtics (16-4): Boston has won seven straight, and in such a terrible division, they have a chance to really pile up some victories throughout the season. Rajon Rondo has been in and out of the lineup, but Nate Robinson has filled in well. Still, Rondo is clearly the key to this team's long term success.
4. Denver Nuggets (13-6): This team was 6-6 two weeks ago, but has since rattled off seven straight. With the talent and depth the Nuggets have, if they can play focused, they can beat anyone. Carmelo Anthony may want to leave, but he's in a pretty good situation right now.
5. Orlando Magic (15-5): With the NBA taking control over the New Orleans Hornets, rumblings will intensify over Chris Paul's future. I'm sure Dwight Howard would welcome Paul to Orlando with open arms.
6. Utah Jazz (15-6): They've won seven of their last eight and are leading the league in team assists. That's a credit to Deron Williams and Jerry Sloan who have this team playing as a well-oiled, cohesive unit.
7. Oklahoma City Thunder (14-7): Point guard is a loaded position in the NBA, but it's hard to keep Russell Westbrook off the top-five at his position list. Kevin Durant has been injured and Westbrook still has this team winning. 24 points, 9 assists, and 2 steals per game are MVP-type numbers. You just can't keep this guy out of the lane.
8. New York Knicks (12-9): After a rough start to the year the Knickerbockers have won nine of their last ten. Raymond Felton is seizing his opportunity to lead a team and is playing like an All Star. 18 points and 8 assists per game sound like Most Improved Player numbers. Amare Stoudemire is starting to post an MVP stat line, and the Knicks are showing that they have some nice, all around talent.
9. Los Angeles Lakers (14-6): The Lakers endured their first four-game losing streak in the Pau Gasol era, and it seems that after a hot start, the champs lost focus and perhaps are a bit tired. They'll be fine and will get a huge boost to their depth and talent when Andrew Bynum comes back, but they have sure looked vulnerable over the past week.
10. Miami Heat (13-8): LeBron James did a lot to shake his non-clutch label simply by performing in the toughest environment the NBA has produced in years, last Thursday in Cleveland. There's plenty of kinks left in the system in Miami, but four straight wins will ease up the pressure for a minute or two.
--from Adam
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