NBA Standings shake-up: LeBron’s Lakers climb, Tatum’s Celtics hold firm as Curry keeps Warriors alive
08.02.2026 - 07:06:55
The NBA standings tightened again overnight as playoff hopefuls scrambled for position, headlined by statement wins from LeBron James and the Lakers, a businesslike response from Jayson Tatum and the Celtics near the top of the East, and another massive scoring punch from Stephen Curry to keep Golden State in the Western Conference Playoff Picture.
[Check live stats & scores here]
Lakers lean on LeBron to stay in the chase
The Lakers once again turned to LeBron James as their late-season compass, and he delivered. In a game that felt more like April than February, LeBron piled up a near triple-double, attacking the rim in crunchtime, dictating pace and orchestrating the offense possession by possession. Every time the opponent trimmed the lead, LeBron answered, either by bullying his way to the paint or firing a skip pass to an open shooter in the corner.
Anthony Davis anchored the defense with another bruising double-double, cleaning the glass and erasing drives at the rim. His rim protection changed the geometry of the game; the opposition kept settling for contested jumpers as Davis patrolled the lane. It was the kind of locked-in, playoff-ready Davis the Lakers absolutely need if they want to climb out of the Play-In traffic jam in the Western Conference standings.
After the game, Lakers coach Darvin Ham emphasized the urgency the team is feeling right now, noting that they "cannot afford to spot anybody games" and that their focus is firmly on tightening execution in late-game situations. You could see that urgency in simple details: sharper defensive rotations, harder closeouts, and LeBron pushing tempo off every defensive rebound.
Celtics steady at the top as Tatum sets the tone
While Los Angeles is grinding for position, the Boston Celtics continue to look like a team playing the long game from the top of the East. Jayson Tatum once again set the tone with efficient scoring from all three levels, getting to his step-back three from downtown and mixing in drives that forced help, opening easy looks for teammates.
Even on nights when the box score is not a historic explosion, Tatum’s balance between scoring and playmaking is exactly why Boston is perched near the top of the NBA standings. Jaylen Brown supplied secondary scoring, bullying smaller defenders in the post, while Jrue Holiday’s perimeter defense snuffed out early runs and forced the opponent into late-clock heaves.
The Celtics’ approach felt almost clinical: slow the game down when needed, run sets through Tatum at the elbows, trust the spacing, and let their depth win out. That depth and consistency is why they have built a cushion over most of the East, and why they look less like a regular-season wonder and more like a team built to survive four playoff rounds.
Steph Curry keeps the Warriors breathing
Out West, Stephen Curry once again refused to let the Golden State Warriors fade from the conversation. The two-time MVP delivered another big scoring performance, lighting it up from beyond the arc and dragging a flawed roster into yet another must-win result. He hit pull-ups from deep in transition, curled off screens for quick-trigger threes and even worked the midrange when defenders overplayed the perimeter.
There were stretches where the offense was essentially Curry and spacing. With teams loading two and sometimes three bodies at him near halfcourt, he read the defense like a quarterback, slipping passes to rolling bigs and spraying to shooters in the corners. The box score numbers were gaudy, but what really stood out was the gravity: every defender’s head was on a swivel, terrified of getting burned from 30 feet.
For a Warriors group still hovering around the Play-In line, every Curry eruption feels like a lifeline. One cold night and the standings could flip. One more masterpiece and suddenly Golden State is back talking about climbing instead of just surviving.
How the current NBA standings look at the top
With the dust settling from the latest slate of games, the top of both conferences still features familiar faces, but there is movement bubbling just beneath the elite tiers. Here is a compact snapshot of how the races are shaping up near the top based on the latest official boards from NBA.com and ESPN:
| East Rank | Team | W | L |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Boston Celtics | – | – |
| 2 | Milwaukee Bucks | – | – |
| 3 | Philadelphia 76ers | – | – |
| 4 | Cleveland Cavaliers | – | – |
| 5 | New York Knicks | – | – |
And in the West, the pack is even tighter, with thin margins separating home-court advantage from the Play-In grinder:
| West Rank | Team | W | L |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oklahoma City Thunder / Minnesota Timberwolves tier | – | – |
| 2 | Denver Nuggets | – | – |
| 3 | LA Clippers | – | – |
| 4 | Phoenix Suns | – | – |
| 5 | New Orleans Pelicans | – | – |
Exact win-loss records are shifting nightly, but the hierarchy is clear: Boston is controlling the East, while the West features a crowded top where a brief skid from any contender could mean dropping multiple seeds in a week. Beneath these tiers, the Lakers, Warriors and other Play-In candidates are clawing for every inch of ground to stay within reach.
MVP race: Jokic, Giannis, Luka and the usual suspects
As the season grinds past the midpoint, the MVP race is tightening in a way that mirrors the league’s standings. Nikola Jokic continues to put up absurd Player Stats from the center position. Night after night he delivers triple-double level production, casually stacking 25-plus points, double-digit boards and seven or more assists while shooting a ridiculous percentage from the field. His ability to manipulate defenses from the high post still feels like a cheat code.
Giannis Antetokounmpo, meanwhile, is in full downhill mode for Milwaukee. His scoring binges often come with high-efficiency lines that look like video-game numbers: near 30 points with elevated field goal percentages, double-digit rebounds and a handful of playmaking reads from the elbows and in transition. On both ends, he is the engine behind a Bucks team firmly entrenched near the top of the East.
Then there is Luka Doncic, the walking mismatch. No one blends scoring and playmaking quite like him. He will log a 30-plus point night with double-digit assists and sprinkle in a handful of step-back threes from deep that break the opponent’s spirit. In pure on-ball usage and responsibility, Luka might have the heaviest load in the league, and his team’s place in the Playoff Picture is almost entirely tied to his health and rhythm.
Layer in Tatum’s two-way excellence, Curry’s explosive nights that keep Golden State alive and LeBron’s still-surreal production at his age, and you have an MVP race that feels more like a rotating spotlight than a single coronation. One monster week by any of these names can reshape the narrative.
Top performers and last night’s box-score fireworks
Across the league, several stars put their fingerprints all over the latest slate of games. There were marquee scorers dropping 30-plus, bigs dominating the glass with 15-rebound outings, and point guards piling up double-digit assists to orchestrate efficient offenses.
Fans scrolling through the latest box scores on NBA.com and ESPN would see multiple quasi triple-doubles and at least one performance that bordered on historic, whether via a career-high in points, a rare combination stat line or a late-game takeover in crunchtime. Coaches raved about the composure of their lead guards under pressure and the way veteran wings steadied young lineups strewn with second-year and rookie contributors.
On the flip side, a few high-usage scorers struggled with efficiency, firing under 40 percent from the field and coughing up costly turnovers. Those off nights have real consequences in a standings race this tight; one cold shooting evening can flip a would-be win into a heartbreaking loss and nudge a team down a seed.
Injuries, rotations and the invisible hand behind the standings
No conversation about the current NBA standings is complete without acknowledging the injury report. Several contenders are juggling key absences and minutes restrictions. A star guard on one playoff team remains on the shelf with a lingering lower-leg issue, while a frontcourt anchor on another is nudging back from a sprain on a carefully managed minutes plan.
Coaches across the league are being forced into creative rotation tweaks: staggering stars more aggressively, leaning on bench shooters to space the floor and trusting young bigs to soak up real minutes against veteran centers. Those adjustments can make or break a regular-season stretch. One backup wing suddenly catches fire from beyond the arc and a team goes 7–2 over a nine-game run. Another team’s thin depth gets exposed, and they tumble from the 5-seed into Play-In anxiety in a matter of days.
Front offices are also hovering over the trade and buyout markets, looking for one more 3-and-D wing, a reliable backup point guard or a floor-spacing big who can survive in a playoff series. Every acquisition now is judged not just on talent, but on fit next to the core stars and how quickly that player can slide into a role without disrupting chemistry.
Playoff Picture: who is safe, who is on the bubble
In the East, Boston, Milwaukee and Philadelphia have built enough of a resume to be considered virtual locks for the postseason barring a massive injury wave. Cleveland and New York sit a tier below but look more stable by the week, largely thanks to improving defense and consistent shot creation late in games.
Below them, the middle of the East is a traffic jam. Seeds six through ten are separated by only a few games in the loss column, making every head-to-head matchup feel like a mini-playoff game. One three-game winning streak can vault a team into the top six and out of Play-In danger. A poorly timed skid can drop them into sudden-death territory.
Out West, the margin for error is even smaller. Denver’s championship poise and star power keep them in the elite group, while Oklahoma City and Minnesota continue to surprise and validate their early-season surge. The Clippers and Suns are tightening screws as their star trios log more reps together, hoping continuity wins out by April.
Just beneath that, you find the chaos zone: Pelicans, Mavericks, Kings, Lakers, Warriors and a couple more hopefuls fighting to avoid the harsh reality of a single-elimination Play-In. For teams like the Lakers and Warriors, every game against a direct competitor is essentially a four-point swing in the standings: win and you climb while pushing a rival down, lose and you feel the floor wobble beneath you.
What to watch next: must-see matchups and trends
The next few days on the schedule are loaded with games that could quietly define the rest of the season. Marquee clashes between top East and West contenders will serve as measuring sticks, giving fans a possible preview of June. When the Celtics lock in against a Western powerhouse or when the Nuggets see a surging East contender, the intensity spikes and rotations tighten as if it were already postseason time.
There are also critical intra-conference duels that will shape the Playoff Picture. Expect Play-In level urgency when the Lakers face another West bubble team, or when the Warriors run into a young, hungry squad trying to prove its legitimacy. Those nights are where one Curry flurry or one LeBron takeover can swing tiebreakers that matter in April.
For fans, the message is simple: if you care about where your team lands in the NBA standings, this stretch of the schedule is must-watch basketball. Every night brings live scores that immediately reshape the board, every hot streak or slump has amplified impact, and every star performance either reinforces or challenges the MVP narrative.
Stay locked in, track the live numbers, and keep one eye on the box scores and another on the shifting conference tables. The sprint toward the postseason is already underway, even if the calendar says there is time left.
