NBA Power Rankings midseason reset: Milwaukee Bucks who we thought they’d be

Last week: Lost to Utah 114-113, beat Boston 116-105

This week: Thursday at Golden State, Saturday at Utah

On the cusp of being in the top 10, it’s hard to think of a team as disappointing, but the Houston Rockets might fall into that category. With the superstar reunion of Russell Westbrook and James Harden over the summer, Houston entered the season at No. 3 in the preseason NBA Power Rankings, but have struggled with consistency.

Houston has 28 games remaining against opponents with a combined winning percentage of .477, so they could still make a move in the West.

Home (14): Feb. 24 New York, Feb. 26 Memphis, March 5 Clippers, March 8 Orlando, March 10 Minnesota, March 17 Cleveland, March 19 Sacramento, March 21 Chicago, April 2 Golden State, April 5 Toronto, April 8 San Antonio, April 10 Washington, April 13 Phoenix, April 15 Memphis
Away (14): Feb. 20 at Golden State, Feb. 22 at Utah, Feb. 29 at Boston, March 2 at New York, March 7 at Charlotte, March 12 at Lakers, March 15 at Portland, March 23 at Dallas, March 25 at Milwaukee, March 27 at Indiana, March 29 at Detroit, March 31 at Philadelphia, April 7 at Dallas, April 12 at San Antonio

The Rockets are currently fifth in the West, 1½ games up on both Oklahoma City and Dallas, while they trail Utah by two games for a spot in the West’s top four.

Game of the first half: It wasn’t quite Klay Thompson’s 60 points in 29 minutes, but it was pretty close. James Harden dropped a 60-piece on the Hawks in a 158-111 blowout win on Nov. 30 and did it in just 31 minutes of action. Harden was 16-for-24, hit 8-of-14 from deep and was 20-for-23 at the free-throw line to go with eight assists, three rebounds and three steals.

Last week: Beat Chicago 118-111, beat Clippers 110-103

This week: Thursday vs. Brooklyn, Saturday at Milwaukee

It’s hard not to consider the Philadelphia 76ers a disappointment to this point, considering many thought it was a two-team race to the Eastern Conference title between the Sixers and Milwaukee. Instead, the 76ers can’t win on the road (9-19), which negates much of their NBA-best 25-2 mark at home.

They entered the season No. 2 in the NBA Power Rankings. Philadelphia has a chance to help itself over its final 27 games, with the 29th-ranked remaining schedule (.455 winning percentage) in the NBA according to Tankathon.

Home (14): Feb. 20 Brooklyn, Feb. 24 Atlanta, Feb. 27 New York, March 11 Detroit, March 14 Indiana, March 16 Washington, March 18 Toronto, March 21 Atlanta, March 27 Phoenix, March 29 Portland, March 31 Houston, April 5 Orlando, April 7 Milwaukee, April 15 Charlotte
Away (13): Feb. 22 at Milwaukee, Feb. 26 at Cleveland, March 1 at Clippers, March 3 at Lakers, March 5 at Sacramento, March 7 at Golden State, March 19 at Charlotte, March 24 at Minnesota, March 26 at Chicago, April 3 at Washington, April 10 at San Antonio, April 11 at New Orleans, April 13 at Memphis

The Sixers are fifth in the East, two games up on Indiana and 1½ behind the fourth-place Heat

Game of the first half: By this point, we are all aware of Ben Simmons‘ reluctance to take 3-pointers, but that doesn’t mean he lacks impact. In a 117-111 win at Brooklyn on Jan. 20, Simmons put together one of the most efficient triple-doubles you’ll ever see. He had 34 points on 12-of-14 shooting to go with 12 rebounds, 12 assists, five steals and two blocks.