NBA Standings shake-up: Celtics, Nuggets, Thunder roll while LeBron’s Lakers cling to ground
26.01.2026 - 16:27:08
The NBA standings tightened again overnight, with the Boston Celtics, Denver Nuggets and Oklahoma City Thunder reinforcing their status near the top, while LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers continue to grind to stay in the thick of the Western Conference race. It felt less like a midseason grind and more like a series of mini playoff auditions across the league.
[Check live stats & scores here]
Instant-impact nights: contenders flex, pretenders get exposed
In a season where every win shifts the playoff picture by a full notch, the latest slate of games delivered exactly the kind of drama you expect when the standings start to matter. The Celtics once again leaned on Jayson Tatum’s two-way dominance and late-game shotmaking to steady their position at or near the top of the East. He continues to put up MVP-race numbers, stacking 30-plus point nights with ease and hammering home why Boston’s offense is such a nightmare to guard.
Out West, the Nuggets did what champions do: survive rough patches, then strangle games in crunchtime behind Nikola Jokic. Whether he’s walking into a casual triple-double or bending the defense with high-post playmaking, Jokic’s box scores barely tell the full story. His gravity turns role players into killers from downtown and keeps Denver in control of their own destiny near the top of the conference.
The Thunder, meanwhile, feel less like a cute upstart and more like a fully grown problem. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander keeps shredding defenses from all three levels, gliding to the rim, living at the line and punishing any defender who dares go under a screen. His Player Stats profile is that of a top-tier MVP candidate, not just a breakout scorer.
Lakers, Warriors and the squeeze in the middle
While the elite keep stacking wins, the middle of the West is a nightly knife fight. LeBron James and Anthony Davis are carrying a heavy load as the Lakers cling to the crowded play-in range. One cold stretch from downtown or one flat defensive quarter can be the difference between an impressive road win and another frustrating loss to a team they feel they should beat.
Just a couple of spots away in that same morass, Stephen Curry’s Golden State Warriors remain the ultimate wild card. Curry is still detonating games with those trademark flurries from way beyond the arc, but the margins are thin. When his supporting cast does not lock in defensively or hit open looks, Golden State can quickly slide down the NBA standings, forced to chase instead of control.
That tension defines the season right now: the top seeds policing their edge, the middle tier scrambling just to avoid the wrong matchup come April, and veterans like LeBron and Curry trying to squeeze one more deep run out of aging but still terrifying arsenals.
Where the NBA standings sit: contenders and the chase pack
The current conference tables tell the story of a league stratifying into clear tiers. At the top, you have the heavyweights like Boston, Denver and Oklahoma City who own both record and eye test. Just behind them sit teams like the Minnesota Timberwolves, Los Angeles Clippers and Milwaukee Bucks, good enough to win the title but still chasing something in terms of consistency, health or late-game execution.
Below that, the mess. Phoenix, Dallas, Sacramento, New Orleans, the Lakers and Warriors all fluctuate between looking like dark-horse threats and vulnerable play-in squads depending on the night. In the East, the story is similar with the likes of the Philadelphia 76ers, New York Knicks, Miami Heat and Indiana Pacers trying to lock down homecourt advantage or, at minimum, stay out of that dangerous 7–10 bubble.
Here is a compact look at how the upper half of each conference is shaping the race right now:
| East Rank | Team | Key Star | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Boston Celtics | Jayson Tatum | Steady at the top |
| 2 | Milwaukee Bucks | Giannis Antetokounmpo | Offense rolling, defense streaky |
| 3 | Philadelphia 76ers | Joel Embiid | Health is the question |
| 4 | New York Knicks | Jalen Brunson | Gritty, playoff-ready vibes |
| 5 | Miami Heat | Jimmy Butler | Hovering, waiting for the playoffs |
| West Rank | Team | Key Star | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Denver Nuggets | Nikola Jokic | Champions in cruise control |
| 2 | Oklahoma City Thunder | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander | Surging, fearless |
| 3 | Minnesota Timberwolves | Anthony Edwards | Elite defense, maturing offense |
| 4 | Los Angeles Clippers | Kawhi Leonard | Finding a late peak |
| 5 | Phoenix Suns | Kevin Durant | Star-heavy, depth questions |
Those tiers will define the playoff picture. The top three seeds in each conference control matchups and rest patterns; everyone below them is at the mercy of hot streaks, injuries and tiebreakers.
Box score storylines: who owned the night
The latest slate did not produce a historic 70-piece or a record-shattering triple-double, but it did grind the MVP race into sharper focus. Tatum poured in another efficient scoring line, flirting with 35 points on strong shooting while also shouldering tough defensive assignments on the perimeter. It was the kind of quiet dominance that does not always go viral in highlight packages but is gold for coaches and voters who watch the full game tape.
Jokic kept stacking video-game numbers, brushing up against yet another triple-double with his typical blend of 25-plus points, double-digit rebounds and near double-digit assists. Coaches around the league talk about how there is no clean coverage for him: double and he finds cutters, stay home and he punishes single coverage on the block, switch and he picks apart mismatches with surgical passing.
And then there is Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, putting up Player Stats that look like something out of a custom career mode. Efficient 30-point nights, strong rebounding from the guard spot, playmaking when defenses load up, and a knack for closing games at the line. His late-game poise has turned Oklahoma City from fun to flat-out terrifying.
On the other end of the spectrum, some big names are scuffling. LeBron still fills the box score with points, rebounds and assists, but he is forced to carry so much creation duty that any night where the Lakers role players go cold can quickly spiral. In Golden State, Curry’s gravity is still there, but when the threes do not fall around him, the Warriors’ offense can look shockingly ordinary.
MVP race snapshot: Tatum, Jokic, SGA and the usual giant
With the grind of the schedule in full effect, the MVP conversation has quietly narrowed. Voters tend to lean on a mix of Player Stats, team success and narrative juice, and right now a few names keep coming up.
Jayson Tatum checks the boxes: elite scoring, elite record, and real two-way impact. He might not have the loudest counting stats every night, but advanced metrics love the way he tilts the floor, and the Celtics’ place atop the NBA standings keeps his candidacy sturdy.
Nikola Jokic is the living, breathing advanced-stat cheat code. Every season he seems to casually average near triple-double lines while posting absurd efficiency. As long as Denver keeps posting wins and Jokic keeps anchoring both their offense and their late-game execution, he will live on the MVP short list.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander provides the narrative twist. His scoring is elite, his defense has taken a leap, and he is doing it for a Thunder team that many expected to be at least a year away from true contention. Instead, they have vaulted into the top tier of the West, and SGA’s per-game production has him comfortably in the MVP conversation.
Hovering near all of them is Giannis Antetokounmpo, still stuffing the stat sheet in Milwaukee. Even when the Bucks defense wobbles or the half-court offense stalls, Giannis can single-handedly flip a game with a flurry of rim attacks, putbacks and chasedown blocks.
Injuries, rotations and the fragile nature of contention
The news cycle around the league is not just about wins and losses; it is about who is available. Several contenders have been juggling injuries and minutes restrictions. Coaches are trying to balance the urge to grab every possible win with the long-view reality that stars need to be upright in April and May.
Teams like the Clippers and Suns know this tightrope too well. A minor tweak for Kawhi Leonard or Kevin Durant can change the calculus of the entire playoff picture. Rotations shrink, defenders get stretched, and suddenly the scheme that looked airtight on paper springs leaks everywhere. Depth becomes the most valuable currency in the league.
You can feel that caution in postgame comments. Coaches talk about being “smart with the workload” and “trusting the next man up,” but underneath it all is the awareness that one awkward landing could take a team from favorite to long shot overnight.
Playoff picture pressure: every possession counting more
With the NBA standings compressed from seeds 4 through 10 in both conferences, every game is a mini playoff test. Mistakes get magnified, and Game Highlights are full of playoff-style intensity. You see veterans barking out coverages on defense, young stars begging for the ball in crunchtime, and role players deciding games with corner threes or hustle putbacks.
For teams on the bubble, the math is simple but brutal. Drop two or three straight, and you are suddenly staring at a road play-in game instead of a safe first-round slot. String together a four-game win streak, and you might jump three full spots. That volatility is why you see so many fan bases pressing refresh on Live Scores and scoreboard-watching every night.
From a league-wide vantage point, that chaos is gold. It fuels debates, shapes the MVP race, and turns even a random Tuesday into must-see TV when the right matchups hit.
What is next: must-watch clashes and shifting storylines
The schedule ahead offers exactly the kind of tests that will either solidify current tiers or blow them up. Boston and Denver both have heavyweight showdowns looming against other top-four seeds, games that will not just be about bragging rights but about tiebreakers that could decide homecourt in a conference finals.
LeBron’s Lakers and Curry’s Warriors face a brutal reality: there is almost no margin for error left. A couple of off nights, a minor injury to a key rotation piece, or a blown late-game lead could push them deeper into play-in territory. Conversely, a short surge could vault them right back into the conversation as teams nobody will want to see in a seven-game series.
For the Thunder, the next stretch is about proving their rise is sustainable. Back-to-back tests, hostile road environments, and opponents building scouting reports specifically designed to slow Shai Gilgeous-Alexander will stress every seam of their young roster.
For fans, the assignment is easy: lock in. The NBA standings will not sit still, the MVP race will keep twisting with every 40-point outburst or clutch defensive stand, and the playoff picture will sharpen a little more with every final buzzer. Stay close to the box scores, keep an eye on those Live Scores, and be ready, because the next week is going to feel a lot like April.
