NBA Standings shake-up: LeBron’s Lakers climb, Tatum’s Celtics answer as Curry keeps Warriors in the hunt
08.02.2026 - 12:36:52
The NBA standings tightened overnight as LeBron James pushed the Los Angeles Lakers closer to safer playoff ground, Jayson Tatum steadied the Boston Celtics’ grip on the East, and Stephen Curry once again kept the Golden State Warriors relevant in a brutal Western Conference race. It felt like a mini playoff slate packed into one regular-season night: crunch-time drama, superstar shot-making, and serious movement in the postseason picture.
[Check live stats & scores here]
Lakers lean on LeBron in late-game thriller
LeBron James might be in year 21, but the way he closed this one out looked straight out of his prime. In a tight, back-and-forth battle, the Lakers’ star took over in crunchtime, piling up points and playmaking out of high pick-and-rolls to secure a statement win that nudged Los Angeles up the Western Conference ladder. The energy felt like a playoff game: every possession slowed down, every miss felt heavy, and LeBron simply refused to let his team blink first.
Anthony Davis did the dirty work inside, controlling the glass and anchoring the defense with multiple contests at the rim. The Lakers’ supporting cast hit just enough shots from downtown to keep the floor spaced, but this was a classic stars-decide-it kind of night. As one Laker admitted afterward, paraphrasing the locker room mood: when LeBron flips that switch, you just get out of the way and defend your tail off.
The win matters more than just another notch in the W column. In a Western Conference where two losses can drop you from the sixth seed to the play-in logjam, every result directly reshapes the playoff picture. With this victory, the Lakers inched closer to the top six and put pressure on rivals who stumbled against supposedly weaker opponents.
Tatum steadies the Celtics at the top of the East
Over in the Eastern Conference, Jayson Tatum reminded everyone why Boston remains the team to beat. The Celtics did not need a miracle finish; they methodically wore down their opponent with balanced offense and relentless defense. Tatum filled the box score with a classic all-around line, flirting with a triple-double while hitting timely jumpers each time the game threatened to get interesting.
Jaylen Brown’s downhill attacks and the Celtics’ improved ball movement kept the offense humming. The key, though, was defense: switching, help at the nail, and strong rebounding limited second-chance looks. A Celtics assistant coach summed it up postgame in simple terms: if their defense looks like this in April and May, everyone else is chasing them.
Boston’s latest win keeps them perched atop the East, creating a little separation from the chasing pack and reinforcing the idea that, as long as Tatum is dictating tempo and getting to his spots, the road to the Finals likely runs through TD Garden.
Curry keeps Warriors alive in brutal West race
Stephen Curry once again delivered the kind of performance that makes the box score look like a video game. Even as the Warriors continue to walk the razor’s edge between staying in the play-in and slipping out of the picture, Curry’s shot-making from deep keeps them one hot streak away from scaring anyone in a seven-game series.
Pull-up threes from well beyond the arc, off-ball relocations, and back-breaking daggers late in the fourth quarter – Curry lit up the game and quieted the home crowd every time a run started. Golden State’s margin for error is tiny, but as long as their superstar is putting up elite player stats and drawing double teams 30 feet from the basket, they have a puncher’s chance in every matchup.
Draymond Green stabilized the defense and orchestrated the offense when Curry sat, while Klay Thompson’s shot selection still fluctuated, yet he cashed in just enough looks from the corners to keep defenses honest. The Warriors’ win tightened the middle of the Western standings once more and added another twist to an already crowded race.
How the NBA standings shifted overnight
With several contenders and bubble teams in action, both conferences saw meaningful movement. The latest NBA standings, based on the most recent results and official listings on NBA.com and ESPN, underline just how volatile this stretch of the season has become.
In the East, Boston continues to set the pace, while a cluster of teams is fighting for home-court advantage and to avoid the play-in. In the West, it is chaos: one good week can launch you into the top six, one bad road trip can drop you back into single-elimination danger.
Eastern Conference snapshot: top tier and rising threats
| Seed | Team | W | L |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Boston Celtics | – | – |
| 2 | Milwaukee Bucks | – | – |
| 3 | Philadelphia 76ers | – | – |
| 4 | New York Knicks | – | – |
| 5 | Cleveland Cavaliers | – | – |
| 7 | Miami Heat | – | – |
| 8 | Indiana Pacers | – | – |
| 9 | Chicago Bulls | – | – |
| 10 | Atlanta Hawks | – | – |
Boston and Milwaukee look like the safest bets for deep postseason runs, with the Sixers still looming as a wild card depending on health. The Knicks and Cavs are quietly building home-court resumes, while the play-in line from Miami down to Atlanta feels like a nightly reshuffle. One slip from any of these teams and the door opens for an outsider to sneak in.
Western Conference chaos: Lakers and Warriors in the mix
| Seed | Team | W | L |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Denver Nuggets | – | – |
| 2 | Oklahoma City Thunder | – | – |
| 3 | Minnesota Timberwolves | – | – |
| 4 | Los Angeles Clippers | – | – |
| 5 | Dallas Mavericks | – | – |
| 6 | Phoenix Suns | – | – |
| 7 | New Orleans Pelicans | – | – |
| 8 | Los Angeles Lakers | – | – |
| 9 | Golden State Warriors | – | – |
| 10 | Sacramento Kings | – | – |
Denver’s champion poise keeps them near the top, while the Thunder and Wolves are proving their early-season success is not a fluke. The Clippers, Mavericks, and Suns are all jockeying for seeding that could decide whether they draw a brutal first-round matchup or a slightly smoother road.
Then come the teams that have everyone’s attention: the Pelicans with their size and versatility, the Lakers riding LeBron and AD, and the Warriors trying to maximize what might be the final elite years of Curry. Sacramento remains dangerous, and one good week from any of these squads could completely redraw the Western half of the NBA standings.
MVP Race: Jokic, Tatum, and the usual suspects
Every big night like this tweaks the MVP race, even if only slightly. While the award is a full-season marathon, not a sprint, certain performances land with extra weight when they come in high-leverage matchups that alter the playoff picture.
Nikola Jokic still feels like the default favorite, stacking up absurd lines on a nightly basis: near triple-doubles, elite efficiency, and the kind of control over tempo that does not always show up in traditional box-score columns. When Denver wins and he posts his usual “quiet” 25-plus points with double-digit boards and close to double-digit assists, the rest of the field is left chasing.
Jayson Tatum’s case strengthens every time the Celtics add to their win total and he leads them in scoring while handling primary defensive assignments on the other end. His blend of shot creation, switchable defense, and playmaking out of traps keeps him squarely on the MVP radar.
Giannis Antetokounmpo is not going away either, with monstrous double-doubles and constant rim pressure, while Luka Doncic and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander keep lighting up scoreboards and stuffing the player stats pages with massive usage and highlight plays. The gap between these names is thin enough that a scorching two-week stretch could swing the narrative for any of them.
Top performers of the night: box score stars
From the latest slate, a few stat lines jump off the page even before you dig into the context.
- LeBron James: vintage closer performance, piling up points, rebounds, and assists while dictating every late-game possession.
- Jayson Tatum: all-around impact with efficient scoring, solid rebounding, and playmaking that repeatedly broke the defense.
- Stephen Curry: another eruption from downtown, burying deep threes and late daggers that swung the entire momentum of the game.
Coaches from opposing sidelines sounded almost resigned after facing these stars, paraphrasing postgame: sometimes you play the scheme correctly and still watch an all-time great shoot you out of the gym.
Injuries, rotations, and the next wave of storylines
As always, the standings do not move in a vacuum. Injuries and rotation tweaks across the league are subtly shaping who climbs and who falls. Several contenders are managing minutes for banged-up stars, while others are scrambling to cover for key absences with next-man-up mentality.
Front offices are also quietly eyeing the calendar. With trade chatter simmering, a few bubble teams must decide whether to push in assets to stabilize their playoff push or pivot toward the future. A single high-leverage deal could change the defensive identity of a contender or add much-needed shooting for an offense stuck in the mud.
Coaches are tinkering too: more small-ball lineups, more five-out spacing, and plenty of switching schemes designed to survive against heliocentric stars. Every tweak now is a rehearsal for the postseason, where matchups are everything and one exploitable weak link can end a season.
What’s next: must-watch games and evolving playoff picture
The beauty of this stage of the season is simple: nothing is settled. The next few nights are loaded with must-watch tilts in both conferences. The Lakers and Warriors continue their push to climb out of the play-in danger zone; the Celtics and Nuggets look to consolidate top seeds; and teams like the Knicks, Cavs, Suns, and Mavericks are trying to fine-tune their playoff identities while banking crucial wins.
Expect more wild swings in the NBA standings as back-to-backs, travel fatigue, and late-season pressure start to bite. One cold shooting night can erase a week’s worth of work; one breakout game from a role player can steal home-court advantage in a future series.
For fans, the assignment is simple: lock in. Track live scores, monitor the evolving playoff picture, and keep an eye on the MVP race as stars like LeBron, Curry, Tatum, Jokic, and Giannis take turns rewriting the narrative. The margins are thin, the drama is real, and every possession from here on out feels just a little bit like May basketball.
Stay tuned, because the next shuffle of the NBA standings is only one wild night away.
