NBA Power Rankings Week 15: Concerns for Milwaukee Bucks, other contenders
By Phil Watson
17-30. Previous: . Detroit Pistons. 19. team. 64.
Last week: Lost at Washington 106-100, beat Sacramento 127-106, lost to Memphis 125-112, lost to Brooklyn 121-111 (OT)
This week: Monday vs. Cleveland, Wednesday at Brooklyn, Friday vs. Toronto
The Detroit Pistons shuffled players in and out due to injuries, with Andre Drummond missing a pair of games while Reggie Jackson returned Wednesday after a 42-game absence with a back injury. He had 22 points in 19 minutes against the Kings before cooling off against Memphis on Friday. Jackson was held out of the back end of the back-to-back Saturday against the Nets.
With 1.9 seconds remaining, Derrick Rose tied the game with Brooklyn with a running layup after a steal, but the Pistons lost in overtime. Rose had another very good week, however, averaging 23.0 points, 6.8 assists, 4.3 rebounds and 1.3 steals in 33.6 minutes per game, shooting 44.4 percent overall and 3-for-12 from deep, even as trade rumors continued to rumble.
New Orleans Pelicans. 18. team. 69. . 17-29. Previous:
Last week: Won at Memphis 126-116, lost to San Antonio 121-117, lost to Denver 113-106
This week: Sunday vs. Boston, Tuesday at Cleveland, Friday vs. Memphis
Although it flew under the radar in the national media, the New Orleans Pelicans did have top overall pick Zion Williamson in uniform for the first time this season. That was the good news. The bad news was the Pelicans dropped both games in which Williamson played. It’s the first consecutive losses for New Orleans since it stopped a 13-game losing streak on Dec. 18.
There was another important return for the Pelicans last week. Jrue Holiday came back from a seven-game absence with a strained left elbow to match his season-high with 36 points at Memphis. For the week, he averaged 20.0 points, 4.7 assists, 4.7 rebounds, 2.0 steals and 1.0 blocks in 35.2 minutes per game, shooting 45.7 percent overall and 8-of-19 from 3-point range.