NBA Power Rankings: Philadelphia 76ers the last unbeaten after Week 2

Last week: Lost at Lakers 120-91, lost to Phoenix 114-105

This week: Monday vs. Houston, Wednesday vs. Minnesota, Friday at Orlando, Saturday vs. Dallas

The young Memphis Grizzlies took some lumps this week, both on the court and on the injury front. Jaren Jackson Jr.  and Grayson Allen both left Saturday’s loss to the Phoenix Suns, Jackson with a right knee injury and Allen with an ankle issue.

Not ideal for a team that is already both thin and inexperienced. Ja Morant‘s education as the franchise’s new point guard is going well on some fronts; he is averaging 18.8 points and 5.4 assists in just 27.0 minutes per game, but he’s also turning the ball over 4.8 times per night.

Dillon Brooks, who started 74 games as a rookie in 2017-18 before injuries wrecked his 2018-19 efforts, is back in the starting lineup and as he was limited to just 18 games due to a left knee injury and later a right toe problem that required surgery was one of the bright spots against the Suns.

He scored 17 points in 24 minutes and was a plus-13, the same rating he managed in Tuesday’s 29-point drubbing at the hands of the Los Angeles Lakers.

Last week: Won vs. Chicago 105-98, lost at Orlando 95-83, lost at Boston 104-102, lost to Sacramento 113-92

Next week: Wednesday at Detroit, Friday at Dallas, Sunday vs. Cleveland

The New York Knicks began the week well with their first win of the season over the Bulls, but from there it went downhill with three straight losses, including a heartbreaker at Boston and a blowout at home at the hands of the Kings.

Through seven games, New York has already twice lost three games in a row, with what could be tough road games at Detroit and Dallas coming up.

The revolving door in the backcourt is spinning rapidly, with Frank Ntilikina starting the last two games at the point. Elfrid Payton made three starts, but it now out with a hamstring, while Wayne Ellington and Allonzo Trier have each made a start as well. The only constant is RJ Barrett at the 2. Dennis Smith Jr., meanwhile, has vanished from the rotation, getting just 26 minutes so far.

Ntilikina’s first start was something of a success, with 10 points, three rebounds, three steals and two assists in the two-point loss to the Celtics. But the third-year guard needs to take advantage of the opportunity he has and will have to improve on his 8-for-27 shooting overall (29.6 percent) thus far this season.

Last week: Lost at Clippers 111-96, won at Sacramento 118-111, won at Golden State 93-87

This week: Tuesday vs. Indiana, Thursday vs. Boston, Saturday vs. New Orleans, Sunday at Philadelphia

So a 2-2 record on an early trip West was an unexpected development for the Charlotte Hornets, who followed up three straight losses with back-to-back victories over the Kings and Warriors to end the road swing.

Rookie PJ Washington continues to light it up from 3-point range, as he’s hitting 50.0 percent from the land of plenty on 4.7 attempts per game while averaging 15.0 points, second on the club behind only Terry Rozier‘s 16.0 points per game.

But third-year guard Malik Monk showed some signs of life last week, scoring a season-high 18 points in a strong 20 minutes at Sacramento on Wednesday, hitting 7-of-12 from the floor and 4-of-7 from deep. Monk was just 2-for-10 from behind the arc on the season entering that game.

As has been the case throughout Monk’s young career, though, he came back on Saturday with a 1-for-4 effort from deep at Golden State, scoring nine points in 20 minutes.