Milwaukee Bucks remain atop NBA Power Rankings by taking care of business

Last week: Lost at San Antonio 117-113 (OT), lost at Minnesota 99-84, lost to Detroit 111-104

This week: Monday at Sacramento, Wednesday vs. Milwaukee, Friday at Clippers

Whatever momentum the Golden State Warriors might have gained with their four straight wins in late December has been washed away by following up that streak with four consecutive losses. It didn’t help last week when leading scorer D’Angelo Russell (yeah, that’s still taking some getting used to) missed all three games with a bruised shoulder.

The week ahead won’t get any easier, with a home game against the NBA-leading Bucks sandwiched between road tilts at Sacramento and in Los Angeles against the Clippers. It’s the most alarming drop off for a team that played in multiple NBA Finals since the Bulls in 1999, only everyone expected Chicago to be awful.

Alec Burks played did what he could for the Warriors last week, with two really solid games and one really awful one. For the week, he averaged 20.7 points, 4.7 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.0 steals in 30.7 minutes per game, while shooting 44.7 percent overall and hitting 8-of-12 from deep. Burks had 27 points, seven boards and five dimes off the bench in the loss to the Pistons.

Last week: Lost at Toronto 117-97, lost to Charlotte 109-106, lost to Oklahoma City 121-106

This week: Sunday vs. Minnesota, Tuesday vs. Detroit, Thursday at Detroit, Saturday at Denver

The good times for the Cleveland Cavaliers have receded once again, as they have gone from winning four out of five to losing four of their last five following an 0-3 week. But at least their highest-paid player didn’t scream at the general manager in front of the entire team to complain about the direction of the club … oh, wait, scratch that.

So things are less than stellar in Cleveland right now. The Cavaliers have already moved Jordan Clarkson and could be convinced to deal Love and fellow veteran Tristan Thompson if the return looks right. Who knows? Maybe the Cavs could land another lottery pick so they can finish off the point guard draft trifecta next June.

Speaking of those lottery pick point guards, Collin Sexton had a whale of a week despite the team’s futility, averaging 24.3 points and 2.3 rebounds in 34.6 minutes per game, shooting 51.9 percent overall and 7-of-16 from 3-point range. That included 30 points on 12-of-22 shooting in the loss to the Thunder on Saturday night.