NBA Playoff Power Rankings: Los Angeles Lakers Soar to Top Spot

• The Lakers soared to the top spot after beating the Warriors in Games 3 and 4
• The Heat climbed to second after taking a 3-1 lead in their series against the Knicks
• The Suns soared to third after tying their series against the Nuggets at 2-2 

Action is heating up in the second round of the 2023 NBA Playoffs.

The Lakers and the Heat moved closer to securing spots in the conference finals after building commanding leads in their respective series.   

They claimed the top two spots in this week’s power rankings.

1. Los Angeles Lakers

The Lakers remained unbeaten at home in this year’s playoffs, winning Games 3 and 4 against the Warriors to take a 3-1 lead in their series.

Devin Booker and Kevin Durant make the Phoenix Suns the team to beat in the 2023 NBA Playoffs

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Lonnie Walker IV came to the Lakers’ rescue on Monday night, scoring 15 points in the fourth quarter to lead LA to a 104-101 win in Game 4.

LeBron James and Anthony Davis combined for 50 points, 24 rebounds, and eight assists for the Lakers, who pushed the Warriors to the brink of elimination.

2. Miami Heat

The Heat took care of business during the second part of their series against the Knicks, winning Games 3 and 4 at home to take a 3-1 lead.

Jimmy Butler showed no ill effects after suffering an ankle injury in Game 1, leading the Heat in scoring in both of their home games against New York.

He scored 28 points in Miami’s 105-86 win in Game 3.

Butler then dropped 27 points in the Heat’s 109-101 victory in Game 4 to put the Knicks in a 3-1 hole.

3. Phoenix Suns

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The Suns have turned things around after dropping the first two games in Denver, winning Games 3 and 4 at home.

Devin Booker and Kevin Durant are responsible for the Suns’ revival, accounting for most of Phoenix’s points in Games 3 and 4.

They combined for 86 points in the Suns’ 121-114 win in Game 3.

Booker and Durant continued their hot shooting in Game 4, each scoring 36 points in Phoenix’s 129-124 victory.

4. Boston Celtics

The Celtics came so close to securing a 3-1 lead in their series against the Sixers, with Marcus Smart’s game-winning 3-pointer in overtime ruled out as it was released just after the buzzer sounded.

Boston’s advantage in this series is its depth, with six Celtics players averaging in double figures.

Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown lead the team in scoring, averaging 24.3 and 23.5 points per game, respectively, against Philadelphia.

5. Philadelphia 76ers

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The Sixers avoided falling into a 1-3 hole, recording a 116-115 win over the Celtics in Game 4.

James Harden and Joel Embiid led the Sixers, combining for 76 points against Boston.

Harden knocked down one of the biggest shots of his life, scoring a three-pointer with 18.2 seconds left in overtime to give Philadelphia the all-important victory and tie the series at 2-2.

6. Denver Nuggets

The Nuggets squandered a huge opportunity to go 3-1 up in their series against the Suns.

Booker and Durant wreaked havoc against the Nuggets, who failed to take advantage of Chris Paul’s absence in Games 3 and 4.

The Nuggets will still fancy their chances of winning this best-of-seven series as their top stars are currently playing excellent basketball.

Nikola Jokic went toe-to-toe with Booker and Durant in Game 4, racking up 53 points, 11 assists, and four rebounds, per ESPN.

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Jamal Murray also contributed, scoring 28 points and dishing out seven assists in the Game 4 loss.

7. Golden State Warriors

The Warriors will head back to the Bay Area knowing they squandered golden chances to regain home-court advantage in this series.

They built double-digit leads against the Lakers in Games 3 and 4 but failed to record wins in both contests.

Steph Curry registered a triple-double in Game 4 but missed several shots in the closing minute that could have given the Warriors the lead.

8. New York Knicks

The Knicks are in trouble. They are down 1-3 in the series against the Heat.

They never threatened in Miami, with New York not tasting the lead in Game 3 and the Knicks holding the advantage just twice in Game 4 for a combined 33 seconds.

To make matters worse for Tom Thibodeau, Immanuel Quickley is out injured with a sprained left ankle.

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Booker enters rarefied air

Sports Brief recently reported on Devin Booker’s historic scoring run in the 2023 NBA Playoffs.

He has scored 331 points in his first nine games this postseason.

Only Michael Jordan has scored more points in the same amount of games to start a playoff campaign.