Big move up NBA Power Rankings in Week 4 for Houston Rockets
By Phil Watson
17. team. 149. . 5-7. Previous: . Oklahoma City Thunder
Last week: Lost at Indiana 111-85, beat Philadelphia 127-119 (OT)
This week: Monday at Clippers, Tuesday at Lakers, Friday vs. Lakers
The Oklahoma City Thunder will star in their own version of L.A. Story this week, with a back-to-back on the road against the Clippers and Lakers, before getting the Lakers back in OKC.
It was a light week for the Thunder last week — an overtime win over the scuffing 76ers after being blown out at Indiana.
Chris Paul certainly reflected the extremes, scoring 27 points with eight rebounds and five assists against Philadelphia after mustering seven points with eight dimes, four boards and three steals in 25 minutes against the Pacers.
Andre Roberson is still out recovering from his knee wreck from two seasons ago and high-flyer Hamidou Diallo missed the Philadelphia game with a knee issue and is listed as day-to-day.
. 5-7. Previous: . Brooklyn Nets. 16. team. 147
Last week: Lost at Utah 119-114, lost at Denver 101-93, won at Chicago 117-111
This week: Monday vs. Indiana., Wednesday vs. Charlotte, Friday vs. Sacramento, Sunday at New York
The Brooklyn Nets legitimately could have been 4-1 on their five-game road trip that ended with Saturday’s win at Chicago. But blown double-digit leads at both Utah and Denver turned their sojourn into a 2-3 affair.
The Nets are getting a bit better at taking care of the ball, as their turnover rate in non-blowout situations is now down to 15.9 percent — still 18th in the NBA, but far better than the 17.8 percent rate it was at after two weeks (27th in the NBA at the time).
Garrett Temple struggled mightily last week, averaging 9.7 points and 2.7 rebounds in 26.2 minutes per game, starting all three games. He shot just 29.0 percent overall and was 4-for-20 (20 percent) from 3-point range.
Kyrie Irving has been nursing a shoulder impingement and did not play at Chicago Saturday night, while Caris LeVert‘s luck continued to be bad. LeVert had surgery Thursday to repair a ligament in his thumb and will be out four to six weeks.