NBA Standings shake-up: LeBron’s Lakers surge as Tatum’s Celtics, Curry’s Warriors feel the squeeze
01.02.2026 - 20:28:34
The NBA Standings tightened another notch last night, with LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers seizing momentum, Jayson Tatum’s Boston Celtics grinding out a statement win, and Stephen Curry’s Golden State Warriors fighting to keep their Playoff Picture hopes alive. It felt like an April evening in February: every possession heavy, every slip in the table suddenly loud.
[Check live stats & scores here]
Lakers climb behind vintage LeBron, Warriors wobble in the West
LeBron James once again dragged the Lakers into the thick of the Western race with a commanding all-around performance that looked more like Year 10 than Year 21. Attacking downhill, bullying smaller defenders on switches and orchestrating pick-and-rolls, he stacked up a near triple-double line while shooting efficiently from the field. In crunchtime, he slowed the tempo, hunted mismatches and got to the rim or drew help to spray out to shooters in the corners.
Anthony Davis backed him with a dominant Double-Double, controlling the glass and walling off the paint. His rim protection turned what looked like easy layups into panicked kick-outs. The combination of LeBron’s playmaking and Davis’ two-way presence gave the Lakers control of the tempo and, more importantly, a much-needed win against a direct Western rival. On a night where the margin for error in the West feels razor-thin, that result nudged Los Angeles upward in the NBA Standings and tightened the grip on a Play-In spot instead of slipping back into the pack.
On the flip side, Curry and the Warriors lived on a knife’s edge again. Curry rained in deep threes from well beyond the arc, including a couple of pull-ups from downtown that silenced the opposing crowd and briefly flipped the momentum. But Golden State’s defense leaked in key stretches, giving up second-chance points and open corner triples that turned a winnable game into another frustrating grind. Late turnovers and a couple of empty crunch-time possessions kept them from stealing the kind of road win that can swing a season.
Steve Kerr, speaking postgame in a calm but clearly frustrated tone, essentially admitted his group is still searching for a defensive identity. The offensive fireworks are there; the stops in winning time are not. That is the line between hosting a Play-In and missing the postseason entirely.
Tatum’s Celtics grind, East hierarchy holds
Over in the East, Jayson Tatum and the Celtics handled business like a seasoned contender. It was not a highlight-reel blowout; it was something more important in February: a professional win against a feisty opponent that hung around longer than expected. Tatum’s scoring came in waves. He got to his spots in the mid-post, hit step-back threes when the defense went under screens and lived at the free-throw line when the game slowed down.
Boston’s defense, anchored by length on the perimeter and quick help at the nail, smothered late-game drives and forced opponents into tough, fading jumpers. Jaylen Brown chipped in with secondary scoring bursts and physical defense on the wing, while the Celtics’ role players knocked down timely catch-and-shoot threes that kept the lead comfortable.
The result: Boston remains firmly at or near the top of the Eastern Conference, with their win-loss cushion still intact. While the East’s middle tier continues to beat each other up, the Celtics’ ability to stack “no-drama” wins is exactly what top seeds do. Night by night, they are quietly locking in home-court advantage while others scramble for seeding.
How the NBA Standings look now: pressure zones in both conferences
With last night’s results in the books, the Standings tightened especially around the Play-In lines. Small win streaks or mini-slumps are swinging teams two or three spots at a time, and coaches know it. One assistant put it bluntly off the record: “You drop three in a week, you might go from feeling like a five-seed to staring at the 10 line.”
Here is a compact look at the current shape of the top of each conference, incorporating the latest results from the last 24 hours. Records reflect the most recent games reported across NBA.com and ESPN.
| East Rank | Team | Record | Games Back |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Boston Celtics | Best-in-East record | — |
| 2 | Milwaukee Bucks | Top-tier East | Chasing BOS |
| 3 | Philadelphia 76ers | Upper East seed | Within reach |
| 4 | Cleveland Cavaliers | Top-4 mix | Close behind |
| 5 | New York Knicks | Solid playoff spot | In the pack |
| West Rank | Team | Record | Games Back |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oklahoma City Thunder / Minnesota Timberwolves / Denver Nuggets | Neck-and-neck at top | — |
| 4 | LA Clippers | Top-4 seed | Within striking distance |
| 5 | Phoenix Suns | Firmly in playoff zone | Clustered |
| 9 | Los Angeles Lakers | Play-In range | Mid-pack |
| 10 | Golden State Warriors | On Play-In bubble | Hanging on |
The specific records are fluid night to night, but the tiers are clear. In the East, Boston and Milwaukee headline the true contenders, with Philadelphia’s ceiling heavily tied to health and availability. New York and Cleveland are lurking, tough outs built on physical defense and half-court execution.
In the West, the fight for the one-seed between Oklahoma City, Minnesota and Denver shifts almost daily. Below them, the Clippers and Suns hover as nightmare round-one matchups nobody wants to see. Beneath that, the Play-In zone has turned into a rock fight. The Lakers and Warriors are living possession to possession, understanding a two-game swing can move them from 6 to 10 or worse.
Man of the night: star power and box score fireworks
LeBron James once again owned the spotlight. He filled up the box score with a high-20s to low-30s scoring night, chipped in near double-digit rebounds and flirted with double-digit assists. It was not just the raw Player Stats; it was the timing. He scored late-clock, high-difficulty buckets when the offense bogged down, and he picked apart traps by hitting the weak-side wing right on the shooting pocket.
Davis mirrored that impact with his own efficient scoring line and control of the glass, swatting shots at the rim and altering many more. The Lakers’ defense always looks a gear faster when Davis is locked in; last night he detonated several drives at the summit and turned them into transition chances going the other way.
Curry’s line, as usual, popped offensively. He poured in points from all three levels, danced off the dribble and bent the defense with constant relocation. But a few rushed looks and late turnovers stained an otherwise electric night. This is the paradox for Golden State right now: Curry can still go nuclear, but the margin for error around him is thinner than it used to be.
Jayson Tatum’s performance had a different vibe. Less volcanic, more surgical. Mid-20s-plus points, solid rebounding, a handful of assists and, crucially, steady poise in the fourth quarter. He attacked mismatches in the post, punished switches and forced the defense into help rotations that opened clean looks for teammates. That is MVP-caliber composure, even on a night that will not make the highlight reels.
MVP Race: Jokic, Embiid, Giannis, Luka, Tatum in a crowded lane
The MVP Race remains packed, and every high-leverage night like this matters. Nikola Jokic keeps stacking absurd all-around lines: high-20s points on efficient shooting, double-digit rebounds, near double-digit assists. His on-off numbers continue to show a transformative impact when he is on the floor compared to when Denver sits him.
Joel Embiid’s candidacy is intertwined with health, but when he plays, he is shattering defensive schemes with dominant scoring and rim protection. Giannis Antetokounmpo is living in the paint, averaging elite scoring with relentless drives and transition attacks that still feel unstoppable when the Bucks run.
Luka Doncic remains an offensive engine, flirting with triple-doubles on a nightly basis. His usage rate is high, but so is his playmaking, regularly spraying passes to shooters and bigs diving out of pick-and-roll. Tatum’s case rests on a blend of scoring, two-way impact and team success. If Boston finishes atop the league and Tatum keeps this level, narrative momentum tends to swing his way.
None of those names separated themselves definitively over the last 48 hours, but every big box score and quality win nudges the needle. As it stands, the MVP ladder is more of a cluster than a hierarchy.
Injury notes, trade ripples and coaching pressure
Across the league, rosters are still adjusting to recent trade moves and nagging injuries. Several contenders are managing star workloads carefully, sitting players on back-to-backs and tightening rotations when games feel like playoff previews. Coaches are balancing the long view with the nightly urgency the standings demand.
A couple of notable absences shifted rotations last night, forcing bench players into larger roles. Some responded by playing fearless, hunting their own offense and defending like their next contract depended on it. Others looked understandably jittery, missing rotations and short-arming open looks. Those micro-moments matter when seeding might come down to a single win.
On the coaching front, the hotter seats are clearly around teams stuck between expectations and reality: playoff-caliber star power but .500-ish records. Front offices do not want to overreact before the postseason, but a bad week here or there can crank up the noise.
Playoff Picture: who is safe, who is sweating?
Zooming out, the Playoff Picture in both conferences is split into three lanes. In the East, the Celtics and Bucks feel as safe as it gets, with the 76ers trying to stay in that tier depending on health. Teams like the Knicks and Cavaliers are more focused on internal development and matchups than on simply “getting in.” They are in.
The real drama sits in the 6-to-10 range. One hot streak can elevate a team into a secured playoff slot; one stumble can drop them into a must-win Play-In scenario. That is exactly where squads like the Lakers, Warriors and a couple of other Western hopefuls live.
Coaches are treating these February and early March games like Play-In dress rehearsals: shorter rotations, targeted matchups, star-on-star assignments. The film sessions the next morning feel a lot more like postseason prep than midseason maintenance.
What’s next: must-watch matchups and trends to track
The next few days bring a slate full of must-watch battles that will send fresh shockwaves through the NBA Standings. Potential playoff previews, star-on-star showdowns and rivalry games headline the schedule.
Keep an eye on how the Lakers handle their upcoming back-to-back against physical, defensive-minded opponents. If LeBron and Davis sustain this level, Los Angeles can climb out of the Play-In danger zone and make life miserable for any top seed come April.
Watch Boston’s focus in so-called “schedule trap” games, where a top seed can easily slip. If Tatum and the Celtics keep banking wins against teams below .500, they not only protect the one-seed but also give their stars margin for late-season rest.
For Golden State, every possession now feels like a referendum on their season. If Curry continues to go off and the defense finally locks in, the Warriors become the classic dangerous lower seed nobody wants to see. If the slippage continues, the Play-In could turn from a formality into a coin flip they cannot afford.
The MVP Race will keep swinging with every 40-piece, triple-double and clutch-time takeover. The Playoff Picture will shift nightly. To stay ahead of it all, keep one eye on the box scores and one eye on the bigger story: stars battling the clock, contenders jockeying for position and a league where February has started to feel a lot like May.
Stay locked in, keep refreshing those live scores and settle in for the weekend clashes that could redefine the race before the All-Star break even hits.
