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The NBA 2018-19 season has been superb so far, with few teams exceeding all expectations, while a few others have failed to reach the high hopes their fans had pinned on them. Some surprising results were on display in the Week 23 of the 2018-19 campaign, and these results could shuffle some of the positions in the run-up to the post-season.
This is the time where most teams are looking to make a run for the playoffs and sneak in as the 7th or the 8th seed, giving their fans hope that they too are competitive enough to challenge at the top. With this in mind, let us look at the top five teams of Week 23.
#5 Philadelphia 76ers:
The Philadelphia 76ers have been one of the league's best teams with some amazing potential ever since making their trades for Jimmy Butler and Tobias Harris. They have consequently lost their bench strength but have put together a line-up worthy of overcoming almost every other team across the league as a result.
They find themselves third in the Eastern Conference at the time of writing, with a 47-26 record and have won seven of their last 10 matches. With three games this week, including two on the road, they ended up victorious in two.
Their first game was a closely contested victory against the Charlotte Hornets, which they ended up winning 118-114. The next was a mammoth game against the Boston Celtics at home - again prevailing in a close game, 118-115 against their fierce rivals.
Their final game of the week was against the Atlanta Hawks, which they ultimately should have closed out but ended up falling short, losing the match in spectacular fashion as Trey Young's last-gasp winner saw them lose 127-129. The 76ers need to keep their run going if they want to keep their home court advantage this season, into the playoffs.
#4 Houston Rockets:
The Houston Rockets are soaring of late and currently placed third in a Western Conference dogfight. With a 47-27 record this season and eight wins from their last 10 matches, they played four games this past week and were carried to three wins in them - courtesy of some crazy scoring performances from James Harden.
They took on the Atlanta Hawks in a road game and came out on top, winning 121-105. They then travelled to the Memphis Grizzlies, where they suffered an overtime loss in the dying seconds of the game, losing 125-126. Facing conference rivals San Antonio Spurs, they prevailed 111-105 in that one.
The final game of the week was when the Houston Rockets faced the New Orleans Pelicans, which they ended up winning, 113-90. The Rockets are surging at the right time and they need to figure out how to keep their run going to finish in the top four seeds.
#3 Miami Heat:
The Miami Heat have always been a sort of bogey team this season, with them not performing on a given day to being unbeatable at their best. Nobody truly knows what sort of form they will be on a gameday - but have played some really good basketball of late and risen into the 8th spot in the East, with a 36-37 record.
They are just one game ahead of the 9th placed Orlando Magic and two games ahead of the 10th placed Charlotte Hornets. They have been great because of some solid tactics by their head coach and their amazing bench strength. They had four tough matches this week but managed to win three of those, all of which were on the road. Starting with the game against the Oklahoma City Thunder, who they overcame 116-107.
They travelled to Texas to face the San Antonio Spurs in a brutal game and won that too, in a close 110-105 game. The next match was against the Eastern Conference leaders Milwaukee Bucks, who blew them off the court in a 87-116 loss.
The final game of the week was against the Washington Wizards, who the Miami Heat finally edged out in the final quarter, 113-108. The Heat have been trending upwards lately and they are going to throw a spanner in the works of a lot of teams if they continue playing in this way.
#2 San Antonio Spurs:
The San Antonio Spurs are the type of organisation their competitors aim to be more like. They have been super competitive and are on track to make 22 consecutive years where they have reached the post-season.
With a 43-31 record in the Western Conference, they currently occupy the 8th spot and are just a game behind the 5th spot - it's clearly becoming very congested between the five and eighth spots, having won eight of their last 10 games.
This week the Spurs arguably had the most difficult schedule and passed their test with flying colours. They had 4 games, starting with the Golden State Warriors, who they dispatched with a solid 111-105 win.
They faced the Miami Heat next and they lost the match, even when they had it in control, losing out 105-110. A tough two-game road trip starting with the Houston Rockets, which they lost, 105-111.
Their final game of the week was against the Boston Celtics, who they blew out of the court at Boston, winning the match 115-96. The Spurs will look to keep it going as they would like to finish as high as they can in the coming weeks before the playoffs.
#1 Los Angeles Clippers:
The Los Angeles Clippers have been superb this season and have exceeded all expectations set upon them. They have won 44 games out of a possible 74 to date and find themselves in 5th in the Western Conference.
They have won nine of their last 10 games and are enjoying a five-game winning streak. Although their most recent games were not against top tier teams, they are looking to keep their spot and push higher if possible - with wins over the gritty Indiana Pacers (115-109), Cleveland Cavaliers (110-108) and New York Knicks (124-113) have seen them soar to the fifth spot in the West at present.
Naturally, the Clippers would like to keep their solid form going but face a tough game against the East's top side, the Milwaukee Bucks. That fixture will test their playoff credentials to their maximum, but given recent results, will be bullish about their chances of coming away with a tough win on the road.
Guess the Lakers players!
