NBA Standings Shake-Up: LeBron’s Lakers Climb As Celtics, Jokic’s Nuggets Hold The Line
06.02.2026 - 12:23:21
The NBA standings tightened overnight as contenders flexed, pretenders were exposed, and a couple of aging superstars reminded everyone they are not done yet. From LeBron James dragging the Los Angeles Lakers back into the thick of the playoff picture to Jayson Tatum steadying the Boston Celtics at the top of the East, the race is starting to feel like April even if the calendar still says regular season.
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Across the league, the latest wave of games delivered drama in crunch time, box scores stuffed with monster player stats, and another twist in the MVP race. Nikola Jokic continues to put up videogame numbers for the Denver Nuggets, Stephen Curry is fighting to keep the Golden State Warriors relevant, and a couple of young stars are crashing the conversation with highlight-reel nights.
Last night’s drama: statement wins and late-game heartbreak
The Western Conference playoff picture remains a minefield. LeBron and the Lakers came out with clear urgency, attacking the rim, pushing in transition, and leaning hard on Anthony Davis’ two-way dominance. Davis owned the paint with a classic big-man line – a heavy double-double with elite rim protection – while LeBron controlled tempo, bullying smaller defenders, spraying passes to shooters in the corners, and closing the game like it was June, not just another night.
Down the stretch, it felt like a playoff atmosphere. Every possession slowed, every whistle mattered, and the Lakers leaned fully into their size and physicality. A couple of deep threes from the supporting cast broke the game open, but it was LeBron’s downhill drives and late-game decision-making that sealed it. You could see it in the body language on the other bench – this was a reminder that as long as No. 23 is on the court, the door is never truly closed.
In the East, the Celtics handled business with the kind of professional, no-frills dominance that keeps them parked atop the NBA standings. Jayson Tatum didn’t need to force his scoring; instead, he picked his spots, posting an efficient line built on rhythm jumpers and attacks off mismatches. Jaylen Brown backed him up with downhill pressure, and Boston’s defense squeezed the life out of any potential comeback run like a vice.
One of the more intriguing box scores of the night came out of Denver. Jokic put on another clinic, flirting with (or completing) a triple-double and once again reminding voters why he is sitting firmly near the top of the MVP race. Touch passes, no-look dimes, softly arcing floaters from the free throw line – it was all in the bag. When he sits, the Nuggets feel mortal. When he plays, they bend the game to his rhythm.
On the opposite end of the emotional spectrum, Curry and the Warriors are living on the edge. Curry drilled a couple of impossibly deep shots from downtown to keep Golden State in it, but sloppy turnovers and defensive breakdowns down the stretch left them chasing instead of dictating. The box score will show big numbers from Steph, but the eye test says the margin for error around him is thinner than it has been in years.
How the NBA standings look now: contenders, climbers, and bubble teams
With the dust from the latest slate of games barely settled, the conferences have started to sort themselves into clear tiers. At the top, the Celtics in the East and the Nuggets in the West continue to look like the safest bets to secure home-court advantage. Below them, there is chaos – and that is exactly where the Lakers and Warriors currently live.
Here is a compact look at how the upper tier and the critical play-in zone are shaping up based on the most recent results and official listings on NBA.com and ESPN:
| Conference | Seed | Team | Record | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| East | 1 | Boston Celtics | Top of East | Holding |
| East | 2 | Milwaukee Bucks | Top tier | Chasing |
| East | 3 | Philadelphia 76ers | Top tier | Re-tooling |
| East | 7-10 | Play-In Mix | Clustered records | Volatile |
| West | 1 | Denver Nuggets | Top of West tier | Steady |
| West | 2 | Oklahoma City Thunder | Top tier | Surging |
| West | 3 | Minnesota Timberwolves | Top tier | Physical |
| West | 7-10 | Lakers / Warriors zone | Play-In range | Shifting nightly |
The exact win-loss columns are shifting nightly, but the storylines behind the standings are clear. Boston’s combination of size on the wings, switchable defense, and reliable late-game shot creation keeps them insulated from losing streaks. Even on off shooting nights, their defense can drag games into the mud and grind out wins.
Milwaukee, with Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard, still has one of the scariest one-two punches in the league, but defensive slippage has made their hold on the second seed feel less secure. Philadelphia, retooling around Joel Embiid with a deeper, more balanced rotation, is trying to keep pace while managing health and chemistry.
Out West, Denver’s continuity is their superpower. Jokic, Jamal Murray, and the core pieces know exactly where to be, when to cut, and how to read each other. Oklahoma City is the upstart, with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander playing like a two-way superstar, while Minnesota’s bruising defense and size make every possession a fistfight.
Then there is the play-in band, where the Lakers, Warriors, and a rotating cast of mid-tier teams are brawling for every inch. A single mini winning streak can catapult you from the 10-seed conversation to threatening the 6-seed. One bad week, and suddenly you are scoreboard-watching every night.
Player stats and the MVP race: Jokic, Giannis, Tatum, and the king still lurking
The MVP race has the feel of a four-man sprint, with Jokic, Giannis, Embiid, and Tatum sitting at the top of most ballots, and LeBron plus a couple of young stars still in the rearview mirror. Every night, the live scores and box scores bring another data point for voters.
Jokic continues to headline the conversation by stacking massive all-around lines: big scoring nights on elite efficiency, double-digit rebounds, and high single-digit or outright double-digit assists. The way he manipulates defenses – drawing two to the ball, then flipping passes behind his head or over his shoulder – is as demoralizing as it is effective. Denver’s offensive rating spikes when he is on the floor, and the eye test backs every advanced metric.
Giannis remains a statistical hurricane. On any given night he can hang 35 points on 60 percent shooting, living at the rim, punishing help defenders, and getting to the free-throw line in bunches. His rebounding and weak-side shot blocking give Milwaukee just enough defensive backbone to survive their inconsistency.
Tatum is the anchor of the best team in the East, and that matters. His scoring might not always lead the league, but he is delivering efficient 25-30 point nights, solid rebounding, and improved playmaking out of double teams. When the Celtics need a bucket, he is the bailout plan, whether it is a pull-up three, a drive, or a post-up against a mismatch.
LeBron does not sit atop the MVP ladder, but his impact is impossible to ignore. When the Lakers deliver wins on the back of his late-game execution, it adds weight to his case, especially for fans who still see him as the best player on any given night. His player stats remain absurd for his age, with near triple-double lines on some nights and a constant stream of highlight passes and chase-down blocks.
There is also a second tier of stars trying to muscle into the MVP race and All-NBA discussions. Curry’s raw scoring remains elite, even if the Warriors’ record holds him back. Shai in Oklahoma City and Anthony Edwards in Minnesota are producing the kind of signature moments – dagger threes, poster dunks, defensive stands in crunch time – that make voters take notice when the playoff picture tightens.
Who is rising, who is slipping, and what it means for the playoff picture
The beauty of this stretch of the season is that every night feels like a referendum. For the Lakers, every win pushes them closer to escaping the play-in and into the 6-seed conversation. For the Warriors, every loss feels heavier, increasing the odds that they might have to steal their way into the playoffs on the road.
Teams in the middle are making strategic decisions. Some are leaning into heavy minutes for their stars, chasing seeding and home court. Others are load managing, sacrificing a bit in the short term to gear up for a deep run. Injuries add another layer; one rolled ankle or sore hamstring can shift the calculus for a week and rewire the standings.
Coaches know it, and you can hear it in their postgame comments. One Western Conference coach talked after the latest win about the urgency: he said, in essence, that there is no breathing room, that a three-game skid can erase a month of good work. A veteran star in the East echoed it, saying the team is treating these games like a dress rehearsal for the postseason, focusing on half-court execution and late-game defense.
For now, the NBA standings reflect a league with clear favorites but no sure things. The Celtics and Nuggets have the profile of teams built for June, but the path to the Finals runs through minefields packed with experienced stars, hungry young cores, and wild-card rosters that can get hot from three for two weeks and swing a series.
Must-watch ahead: marquee matchups and what to track
The coming days are loaded with games that could swing momentum and shift narratives. Any showdown featuring the Celtics against another East contender carries heavyweight stakes. Out West, every time the Nuggets take the floor against a top-four seed, it feels like a preview of a conference semifinals or finals matchup. Jokic versus elite defenses is must-see TV.
Lakers games are appointment viewing right now because every contest feels like a referendum on their season. Can they keep LeBron and Davis healthy while pushing hard enough to climb the ladder? Will the role players hit just enough threes to keep the floor spaced and the paint open?
Warriors games carry a different kind of tension. The question is not just whether Curry can score 35 or 40 – he usually can – but whether they can string together enough stops to avoid another late-game collapse. One or two signature road wins could stabilize everything. A few more crunch-time losses, and the conversation shifts to bigger-picture questions about this era.
Fans tracking the MVP race should keep a close eye on every Jokic and Giannis outing. Monster triple-doubles, efficient 40-point nights, or statement wins over fellow contenders all matter. For Tatum, continued steady dominance while Boston sits atop the NBA standings might be his most powerful argument.
Bookmark the official league page and keep one eye on the live scores. The race is tight, the margins are thin, and the next wave of buzzer beaters, breakout games, and standings shake-ups is just a tip-off away.
