Every Monday, we look back over the previous week of NBA action and put five teams under the microscope as we grade their recent performances.
As the league got back into full flow following the All-Star break, who found their groove and who needs to worry about time running out in the regular season?
Houston Rockets (38-25, Week 20 record 4-0) Grade - A
The Houston Rockets everyone expected to see at the start of the season have finally shown up.
Last year's Western Conference finalists built on a week 19-ending victory over the Golden State Warriors with four more impressive performances.
Admittedly the Atlanta Hawks, Charlotte Hornets and Miami Heat didn't pose the toughest of schedules, but with the latter two fighting for Eastern Conference playoff spots, the Rockets were tested.
James Harden had to be at his very best to see off the Heat, as the reigning MVP finished with 58 points and 10 assists to add another memorable game to his historic season.
He wasn't done there though as the Rockets' saved their best until last, pulling off a road win over the Boston Celtics, with Harden adding another 42 points.
While Harden continued to - justifiably - dominate the headlines, it is no coincidence that the Rockets' streak has coincided with an upturn in Chris Paul's form and Clint Capela's return from injury.
Paul, who struggled in February after returning from a hamstring injury, has caused those who assumed he was on the decline to reconsider, with both his minutes and productivity having lifted significantly.
Capela has yet to find his offensive rhythm in the six games he's played since recovering from thumb ligament damage, but the fact the Rockets have been able to win anyway suggests there is room for more improvement.
Los Angeles Lakers (30-33, Week 20 record 1-3) Grade - E
The situation in Los Angeles is beginning to spiral out of control - for the Lakers at least.
Going into a relatively gentle week 20 schedule, the Lakers expected to pick up some victories and apply some pressure to the seventh and eighth-seeded Los Angeles Clippers and San Antonio Spurs in the process.
The opposite occurred.
The Lakers began the week with a loss at the lowly Memphis Grizzlies and although LeBron James then willed them to an unconvincing victory over the dysfunctional New Orleans Pelicans, more trouble was to follow.
Eric Bledsoe, nicknamed 'mini-LeBron' due to his similarly freakish athleticism, outshone the real LeBron as he led the Milwaukee Bucks to victory at the Staples Center.
While losing to the NBA's best team could be excused, the loss that followed a night later to the league's worst, the Phoenix Suns, could not.
An inexplicably tepid performance saw the struggling Suns pull off a 118-109 victory in Phoenix, during which Lakers head coach Luke Walton fiddled with his rotation to no avail.
To add to Lakers concerns, this disappointing stretch has come with Brandom Ingram playing his best basketball of the season, averaging 28 points across his last five games.
With Ingram - often a target of Lakers followers criticism - playing well, attention has turned to James' lack of effort on defense, which led him to welcome challenges from his opposing teams.
A Monday night meeting with the Clippers represents perhaps the last chance to resurrect what is developing into the most underwhelming of seasons for the Lakers.
Boston Celtics (38-26, Week 20 record 1-3) Grade - D
Much like their great rival in the West, the Boston Celtics are falling apart.
Despite an indifferent first half of the season, such is their talent, most remained confident that the Celtics would 'figure out' whatever it was that was preventing them from reaching their potential.
Those days are over. Faced with some top quality opposition in week 20, the Celtics have failed miserably and a first-round playoff exit seems a more realistic prospect than reaching the NBA finals at this point.
A blowout loss in Toronto, during which Kyrie Irving scored just seven points, was followed up by a home defeat to the Portland Trail Blazers.
A win followed against the visiting Washington Wizards, but when the Houston Rockets came to the TD Garden on Sunday evening, the Celtics were exposed once more.
The Rockets led by 22 points at halftime, and while the Celtics showed some spirit in closing to nine in the fourth quarter, there wasn't enough in the tank to recover from an abysmal first-half display,
Not only are the Celtics' post-season prospects looking bleak, but the long-term future of the franchise has been thrown into doubt.
Irving gave a despondent interview following Sunday's defeat, and the chances of the All-Star point guard resigning with the Celtics this summer are surely decreasing with every loss.
Utah Jazz (36-26, Week 20 record 3-0) Grade - A+
Much like they did last season, the Utah Jazz appear to be peaking at the right time.
After a first half of the season that left many questioning whether the Jazz's impressive performance in last year's playoffs had led to an overvaluation of their talent, Quin Snyder's team have begun to crush the doubters once more.
The same could be said of the team's star player Donovan Mitchell, who appeared to be encountering some growing pains at the start of his second NBA season.
Faced with three tough games in week 20, the Jazz delivered a trio of performances that will have the Western Conference on high alert.
Mitchell scored 32 points as they saw off the Clippers at home, before making a late jump shot to complete an impressive road victory over the Denver Nuggets, who occupy second place in the West.
Next came the visit of the high-flying Milwaukee Bucks, who arrived in Salt Lake City with a seven-game winning streak.
It looked as though it would become eight as the Bucks opened up a 17-point lead early in the fourth quarter, but Mitchell took over, making two late three-pointers to seal victory and a career-high 46 points.
With comfortably the easiest schedule remaining in the NBA, all signs point to the Jazz pulling off something similar to their 28-6 finish to last season.
Orlando Magic (30-35, Week 20 record 2-2) Grade - B
Having appeared to be drifting towards another season of disappointment, a strong February restored hope of the Orlando Magic ending their six-year playoff drought.
Any optimism appeared misplaced when the Magic began week 20 by losing to the struggling New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden.
However, having won in Milwaukee and Toronto in earlier in February, the Magic responded by adding two more impressive scalps.
Aaron Gordon starred with 22 points and 15 rebounds as the Magic overturned a 13-point second-half deficit to topple the Golden State Warriors.
Playing with the confidence having knocked off the defending champions, the Magic then picked up a gritty road win over the Indiana Pacers, as All-Star center Nikola Vucevic poured in 27 points.
The Magic were required to take to the court less than 24 hours later in Cleveland and fatigue showed as they ended a strange week with a 107-93 defeat to the Cavaliers.
Wins over the Warriors and Pacers prove the Magic have the talent to reach the playoffs, but consistency will be required if they are to hold onto the eighth and final Eastern Conference playoff spot.