NBA Standings shake-up: LeBron’s Lakers, Tatum’s Celtics and Curry’s Warriors ignite playoff race
23.02.2026 - 20:58:10 | ad-hoc-news.de
The NBA standings tightened again after a wild slate of games last night, with LeBron James and the Lakers grinding out a needed win, Jayson Tatum keeping the Celtics steady at the top of the East and Stephen Curry dragging the Warriors deeper into the Western Conference Play-In chase. With every result now twisting the playoff picture, fans are getting something that feels a lot like April basketball in late February.
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LeBron powers Lakers through another must-win grind
Every night now feels like a referendum on the Lakers’ season, and LeBron James answered the bell again. In a tight, physical battle, he controlled the tempo, picked apart mismatches and turned the fourth quarter into his personal chessboard. The box score told the story: a near triple-double line with north of 25 points, plus elite playmaking and efficient shooting from the field. In crunchtime, he repeatedly hunted switches, got downhill and either finished through contact or kicked to shooters in the corners.
The result was another crucial W that nudged the Lakers upward in the Western Conference NBA standings and kept them away from slipping deeper into the dangerous Play-In range. Anthony Davis added a bruising double-double, anchoring the rim protection and vacuuming up rebounds. Their combined two-way effort turned what could have been a trap game into a statement of intent.
After the game, LeBron noted that at this stage of the year “every possession matters,” a clear nod to how tight the West has become. The Lakers’ defense still has stretches where it leaks open threes, but when James and Davis are locked in, they look like a team no contender wants to see in a seven-game series.
Tatum keeps the Celtics in cruise control at the top
On the other coast, Jayson Tatum and the Boston Celtics looked every bit like the team sitting comfortably atop the Eastern Conference standings. Tatum delivered another smooth scoring night, pouring in over 25 points, getting to his spots from midrange and from downtown, and repeatedly punishing single coverage. Boston’s offense hummed around him: quick decisions, clean spacing, and the kind of balance that has made them a regular-season juggernaut.
Jaylen Brown added secondary scoring punch, while the Celtics’ defense switched, walled off the paint and turned live-ball turnovers into easy transition buckets. The win did more than pad their record; it maintained a multi-game cushion over the chasing pack in the East and reinforced the sense that, right now, everyone else is playing catch-up.
Head coach Joe Mazzulla praised the team’s composure afterward, pointing to their late-game execution and the way they “kept stacking good possessions” instead of chasing hero-ball shots. For a group with title-or-bust expectations, nights like this are about habits as much as highlights.
Curry’s Warriors refuse to fade from the playoff picture
Out West, Stephen Curry lit up the night again, and the Warriors desperately needed it. Golden State’s margin for error in the NBA standings is razor thin, and Curry responded with another explosive shooting performance, knocking down a barrage of threes and bending the opposing defense beyond recognition. Every time the defense tried to trap him above the arc, he either split the coverage or pulled defenders into no-man’s-land before slinging the ball to waiting teammates.
His final line was vintage Curry: well over 30 points, high-volume three-point shooting and an offensive gravity that simply warps the floor. A hot stretch in the third quarter blew the game open, turning a one-possession nail-biter into a comfortable cushion. The Warriors’ supporting cast, including Klay Thompson off-ball and Draymond Green as a defensive quarterback and short-roll playmaker, finally looked synced with their superstar again.
Golden State’s win tightened the pack from seeds 7 through 11, where just a handful of games separate relative comfort from an early vacation. Head coach Steve Kerr called Curry “our lifeline” and acknowledged that every win at this point feels like stealing air back into a season that flirted with disaster.
How the top of the NBA standings looks now
With the latest results logged, the top of both conferences still features familiar faces, but the pressure below them is building. The Celtics remain out front in the East, while the Western Conference continues to be a nightly gauntlet where one slip can send a team tumbling down multiple spots.
Here is a snapshot of the current top tier in each conference, based on the latest official updates from NBA.com and ESPN:
| East Rank | Team | Record |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Boston Celtics | Best-in-East, comfortably ahead |
| 2 | Milwaukee Bucks | Firmly top-4, chasing Boston |
| 3 | Cleveland Cavaliers | Surging into home-court range |
| 4 | New York Knicks | Fighting to lock in top 4 |
| 5 | Orlando Magic | Young group pushing upward |
And in the West:
| West Rank | Team | Record |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oklahoma City Thunder | Neck-and-neck in the 1 seed race |
| 2 | Denver Nuggets | Within a game or so of the top |
| 3 | Minnesota Timberwolves | Locked in as a top-4 team |
| 4 | Los Angeles Clippers | Staying close behind the leaders |
| 5 | Phoenix Suns | In the battle for home court |
Those brief descriptions barely capture how volatile the middle class is. The Lakers, Warriors, Pelicans, Mavericks and Kings are all shuffling around the Play-In and lower playoff rungs on an almost nightly basis. One hot week can mean jumping three spots; one losing skid can have a team staring at single-elimination danger.
Play-In tension and bubble pressure
The Play-In race in both conferences is where the real drama lives right now. In the West, the Lakers and Warriors sit in that 7-to-10 window, where every possession down the stretch of a random Tuesday suddenly feels like Game 5 energy. LeBron has openly admitted that managing minutes is a balancing act when every game matters. Curry, meanwhile, is logging heavy usage again because Golden State cannot afford to punt any winnable night.
In the East, established playoff teams have less immediate panic, but the Brooklyn Nets, Atlanta Hawks and Chicago Bulls are hovering in that gray zone where they are good enough to punch back on any given night but inconsistent enough that a three-game skid would be catastrophic. Injuries and short-term slumps are swinging tiebreakers and seeding scenarios every 48 hours.
Coaches know it. You can hear it in the postgame comments: a lot more talk about "details," "physicality" and "Playoff intensity" even in late February. The NBA standings may look settled at the very top, but underneath, it is chaos in slow motion.
MVP race: Jokic steady, Tatum and others chasing
Zoom out from the nightly grind and the MVP race has its own rhythm. Nikola Jokic remains the center of gravity. The Denver Nuggets star continues to stack absurd stat lines, flirting with triple-doubles on efficient shooting almost every game. His Player Stats over the last several weeks have been almost comically consistent: 25-plus points, double-digit rebounds, seven or more assists, all while orchestrating one of the league’s most efficient offenses.
Jayson Tatum is firmly in the mix, powered by Boston’s elite record and his two-way impact. His scoring averages, three-point volume and playmaking growth give him a strong narrative: best player, best team, big numbers. Luka Doncic remains a box-score monster as well, putting up video-game lines with 30-plus points, near double-digit assists and a steady dose of step-back threes from downtown. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has pushed his way toward the top tier of the MVP race too, thanks to Oklahoma City’s rise near the number one seed and his relentless three-level scoring.
The margin between these guys is thin. Team success, clutch-time efficiency and late-season statement games are likely to decide it. With Jokic and SGA headlining the West and Tatum and Doncic shouldering massive loads night after night, the MVP debate is moving from theoretical arguments to a real-time courtroom, with every big game as fresh evidence.
Star performances and disappointments from the latest slate
Last night’s top box scores added new wrinkles to those narratives. LeBron’s near triple-double, Curry’s long-range barrage and Tatum’s steady scoring all fueled wins that directly impacted the playoff picture. Role players also mattered: several wings stepped up with efficient shooting, and a couple of bigs logged rugged double-doubles that swung the rebounding battle and second-chance points.
On the flip side, a few notable names struggled. One high-usage guard shot well below 40 percent from the field and coughed up key turnovers in crunchtime, turning what could have been a signature win into a frustrating loss. A veteran big man, normally automatic around the rim, missed a pair of bunnies late and looked a step slow defensively, something his coach hinted at postgame when he mentioned the group needing to "find our legs" again.
These swings matter. Over 82 games, slumps are inevitable, but when the standings are this congested, three bad nights can topple a team from sixth to ninth in a blink.
Injury updates and what they mean for the stretch run
Injuries, as always, lurk behind the pure numbers. Several playoff hopefuls are navigating key absences. One Western contender is still managing a star’s lower leg issue, carefully limiting back-to-backs. Another East team has a starting guard in concussion protocol, forcing a shakeup in the rotation and putting more ball-handling on a young reserve who is still learning how to balance aggression and control.
Coaches are tiptoeing the line between chasing seeding and protecting their cores for April and May. A minor tweak now could snowball if mishandled. That risk feeds directly into the NBA standings: resting one star on the second night of a back-to-back might mean dropping a winnable game and losing a tiebreaker, but pushing him too hard could have far bigger consequences.
Front offices are watching closely as well. With the trade deadline behind us, the focus has shifted to 10-day contracts, buyout market additions and internal development. Any extra wing defender or backup big who can give 10 competent minutes might be the difference between collapsing in the Play-In or surviving to see a full series.
What to watch next: upcoming clashes with playoff stakes
The next few days offer a slate of matchups that will echo through the playoff picture. The Lakers have another measuring-stick game against a fellow West contender that will test whether their recent surge is sustainable against elite competition. The Warriors face a sneaky trap against a young, athletic squad that loves to run; if Golden State’s defense does not lock in early, Curry could be forced into another 40-minute, high-usage grind.
In the East, the Celtics have a potential preview-type showdown with another top-4 team, a game that could reshape the conversation around who really threatens Boston’s grip on the conference. Further down, a duel between two Play-In hopefuls could quietly decide future tiebreakers and set the tone for the final month.
Every one of these games will tug at the fabric of the NBA standings. Seeds will shift, narratives will pivot and the MVP race will gain or lose momentum with every big night from Jokic, Tatum, Doncic, SGA and the rest of the league’s elite.
If the intensity we just saw is any indication, the league is already in playoff mode. Fans should circle the marquee matchups on their calendars, keep an eye on live scores and box scores, and be ready for the next round of heart-stopping finishes. The margins are thin, the stars are locked in, and the race to secure seeding, avoid the Play-In and chase the Larry O’Brien trophy is officially on full blast.
Stay locked in, because the NBA standings will not look the same a week from now.
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