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posted April 1, 2008 at 16:49 in NBA Articles

It’s finally happened. An east coast team has clawed their way to the top of the power rankings. As most of you know by now, my power rankings aren’t solely based on which teams win straight-up. I base them on a how a team does against the BetUS spread. Winning straight-up is easy for a lot of team. Winning against the spread is difficult to do for almost every team.

Since I’ve been doing these power rankings, the Western Conference has pretty much dominated. The Lakers, Rockets, and Hornets have each had their time to shine. Now, it’s the Eastern Conferences’ turn. Well, at least one team in the Eastern Conference.

Let’s get to it!

NBA Power Rankings

1. Boston Celtics - - It’s taken the Celtics this long to get to the top for the simple fact that they haven’t covered BetUS spreads with regularity this season. Until now, of course. In their last ten games the Celtics have been very, very good. They’ve gone 7 and 3 against the BetUS spread including covering – 22.5 points against the Miami Heat, - 7 against the New Orleans Hornets, and – 7 against the Phoenix Suns. That’s awesome!

2. New Orleans Hornets - - 8 and 2 against the BetUS spread in their last 10 games including beating the Boston Celtics at home by 7 points, the Houston Rockets by 21, and the Toronto Raptors by 7 on the road. Any doubters now?

3. Denver Nuggets - - Up to last Saturday’s loss to the Golden State Warriors, the Nuggets had covered 5 games in a row. They are still 7 and 3 against the BetUS spread in their last 10 games. That’s a good thing. The bad thing is that they haven’t covered in two straight.

4. Phoenix Suns - - Believe it or not their record of 6-3-1 against the BetUS spread in their past 10 games is better than any other team in the NBA besides the top three. That’s how bad a lot of good teams are doing against the BetUS spread. They came back from 19 down on Monday night to cover – 5.5 against the Denver Nuggets. They can play fast or slow. That makes them dangerous in every game from here until the end of the regular season.

5. Philadelphia 76’ers - - Philadelphia makes this list because they have a winning record against the BetUS spread in their last 10 games - - 6 and 4. That’s better than a lot of other teams. They actually might make the playoffs this year. They also get to play the New Jersey Nets twice, the Atlanta Hawks, and the Indiana Pacers in four of their next five games. That might push them up in these rankings.

6. San Antonio Spurs - - The Spurs are 6 and 4 against the BetUS spread in their last 10 games. More importantly, they are 6 and 1 in their last 7 games. That makes the Spurs a hot team. They have tough games against Golden State, Utah, and Phoenix this week. That could be their undoing.

7. Detroit Pistons - - The Pistons are only 5 and 5 against the BetUS spread in their last 10 games. So, why are they even on this list? Because things aren’t that much better for everybody else. The Pistons get a break with their next 5 games against Minnesota, New Jersey, Miami, New York and Philadelphia. Will they take advantage?

8. Orlando Magic - - 5-4-1 against the BetUS spread in their last 10. The reason that this team is below the Pistons on the rankings is because they have to play the New Orleans Hornets and Cleveland Cavaliers in their next two games. That could push them out of the top ten entirely.

9. Memphis Grizzlies - - Don’t laugh. They’re 7 and 3 against the BetUS spread in their last 10 games and would be much higher in these rankings if they hadn’t dropped their last two games both straight up and against the BetUS spread. It wouldn’t have been that bad if the two teams they lost two weren’t Atlanta and the Los Angeles Clippers.

10. Utah Jazz - - 5 and 5 against the BetUS spread in their last 10 games. I like the Jazz for the simple fact that they are solid at home - - going 25 and 12 against the spread this season. They have some tough games coming up but this is usually the time of the year when their coach, Jerry Sloan, turns the screws.

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