Monday 3 February 2020 12:59, UK
Which teams have sparkled and which have flattered to deceive over the last seven days in the NBA? Sky Sports NBA assesses the contrasting Week 15 fortunes of four teams.
With an 11-game winning streak, a firm grip on second place in the East and a roster consistently exceeding expectations despite a slew of injuries, defending NBA champions the Toronto Raptors continue to confound those who said their days as title contenders were done when Kawhi Leonard left them in the summer.
The Raptors' exceptional start to 2020 continued in Week 15, as Nick Nurse's team dismissed four Eastern Conference stragglers with minimal fuss.
Toronto's 'next man up' approach was on full display as they lost Marc Gasol, Norman Powell and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson to injuries only for Serge Ibaka (26 points against the Cleveland Cavaliers, 21 against the Detroit Pistons) and rookie Terence Davis (a career-best 31 points on 12-of-15 shooting off the bench in a 27-point hammering of the Chicago Bulls) to step up and make major contributions.
Leonard, their talisman in their title-winning 2018-19 campaign, is long gone but the championship mentality forged last season remains unbreakable.
Languishing outside the playoff spots in the West, the Blazers' season was approaching a crisis point as recently as 10 days ago after two losses to the Dallas Mavericks. And then Damian Lillard said 'no more'.
To say Lillard has put the Blazers on his back and carried then back towards the playoff places doesn't do justice to how superbly he has played.
In four Week 15 games, Lillard averaged 46.3 points per game on 57.3 per cent shooting. He drained 7.5 three-pointers per game, connected on 58.8 per of his triples. He handed out 11.5 assists per game. He posted his first career triple-double.
Because of Lillard's otherworldly production, Portland defeated four playoff teams in Week 15, three of them by double-digit margins, and drew within one-and-a-half games of the Memphis Grizzlies who currently occupy the West's eighth and final playoff place.
Speaking after he dropped 51 points in Portland's 124-107 win over Utah on Sunday night, Lillard said: "I think it's just coming together. I think that's the best way to describe it. We're getting healthier, we're starting to figure out what works for us."
The Magic are clinging onto the eighth seed in the East despite going through their worst stretch of the season. They have lost five straight games, including the two they played (both against the Miami Heat) in Week 15.
Orlando's offensive deficiencies are certainly no secret but things have been especially bad of late. The Magic haven't reached 100 points in any of their last four games, admittedly against tough opposition (Heat twice, Clippers and Celtics).
The Magic's offensive rating - 105.0 points per 100 possessions - is the fifth-worst in the league and heaps pressure on their Top 10-rated defense to earn wins.
"I think we are not playing with flow right now, we have no swag and a little bit of lack of confidence and, yeah, obviously, we've got to make shots," said Magic guard Evan Fournier.
The Chicago Bulls, Detroit Pistons and Washington Wizards edging closer to them and while the Magic are better than all three, their offense must improve if they are to remain in the playoff places. The good news? Their next game comes against the equally offensively-challenged Charlotte Hornets on Tuesday night.
It is almost three weeks since Jamal Murray went down with an ankle injury and there is still no timetable for his return. Without their starting guard, the Nuggets have had to scrap to maintain pace with the LA Clippers for second spot in the West.
In Week 15, the understrength Nuggets did that with varying degrees of success. A home win over division rivals the Utah Jazz preceded a signature road win over Eastern Conference leaders the Milwaukee Bucks, a game in which they were missing three of their starters.
But those back-to-back wins were sandwiched by losses to the Memphis Grizzlies and, on Sunday night, the Detroit Pistons (despite a 39-point triple-double from Nikola Jokic) as the last of three games in four nights proved to be a step too far for undermanned Denver.
With Murray no closer to coming back and the trade deadline looming, could the Nuggets look to leverage the talent on their deep roster to acquire help to fill their vacant point guard spot? Would the New Orleans Pelicans give up Jrue Holiday in exchange for a package of young Nuggets players?
