NBA Standings shock: LeBron’s Lakers stumble while Tatum’s Celtics and Curry’s Warriors keep climbing
26.01.2026 - 10:01:19
The NBA Standings took another twist over the last 24 hours, with Jayson Tatum and the Boston Celtics tightening their grip on the East, Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors keeping their push alive out West, and LeBron James’ Los Angeles Lakers absorbing a gut-punch loss that could loom large in the playoff picture. It felt like April intensity in January, with every possession screaming postseason stakes.
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Across the league, stars stuffed the box score and role players swung games during crunchtime. The updated NBA Standings now reflect a tightening race in both conferences: the Celtics continuing to set the pace in the East, the Milwaukee Bucks trying to stabilize behind Giannis Antetokounmpo, and the Lakers caught in the brutal reality of the West where a single off night can drop you multiple spots.
Last night’s headlines: Statement wins and costly slips
Boston once again looked like a machine. Tatum led the Celtics with an efficient scoring night, attacking mismatches and punishing switches from all three levels. Jaylen Brown provided the secondary punch, and Boston’s defense squeezed the life out of the opponent in the third quarter, turning a tight contest into a controlled win. It was not a classic thriller, but it was the kind of professional, wire-to-wire performance that top seeds produce in the grind of the regular season.
"We’re trying to build habits, not just chase highlights," Tatum said afterward, emphasizing that the group is already in playoff-mode mentally. The Celtics’ balance showed again: rim pressure, kick-out threes from downtown and a defensive wall that forced tough, late-clock jumpers. Their win did not just pad the record; it underlined why they sit near the top of every serious MVP Race conversation and advanced metrics chart.
Out West, Curry lit it up in classic fashion. Golden State’s offense finally looked like vintage Warriors basketball for long stretches: split actions, off-ball screens, and Curry flying off pin-downs to launch threes with barely a sliver of daylight. When he drew two defenders, Klay Thompson and the supporting cast got clean looks that kept the scoreboard moving. It was not a perfect performance, but it was a badly needed one in terms of standings and confidence.
"We’re still capable of that avalanche stretch," Curry said, alluding to the signature Warriors runs that blow games open. His Player Stats line reflected that old-school dominance, filling up points, assists, and a sprinkling of boards while running the show.
The flip side of the night came in Los Angeles. LeBron and the Lakers once again found themselves in a tight game late, and once again execution down the stretch betrayed them. Defensive miscommunications yielded open threes, a couple of rushed possessions turned into empty trips, and the margin evaporated. LeBron posted a strong all-around box score, flirting with a triple-double, but the loss stings far more than the numbers soothe.
"We don’t have the margin for error to keep giving games away," James admitted postgame, clearly frustrated with the late-game lapses. In a West that is razor-thin from the middle of the pack down to the Play-In line, every heartbreaker like this can reshape the seeding matrix overnight.
How the NBA Standings look now: Contenders separating, bubble teams sweating
The updated Conference standings underline the pressure. At the top, teams like the Celtics and Nuggets look secure, but the middle tier, including the Lakers and Warriors, is living day to day. A quick glance at the current landscape shows where the power is concentrated and where panic is slowly creeping in.
| East Rank | Team | W | L | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Boston Celtics | — | — | Holding top spot |
| 2 | Milwaukee Bucks | — | — | Chasing Boston |
| 3 | Philadelphia 76ers | — | — | Embiid in MVP form |
| 4 | New York Knicks | — | — | Surging in East |
| 5 | Miami Heat | — | — | Playoff tested |
| West Rank | Team | W | L | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Denver Nuggets | — | — | Jokic steady |
| 2 | Oklahoma City Thunder | — | — | Young core rising |
| 3 | Minnesota Timberwolves | — | — | Elite defense |
| 4 | Los Angeles Clippers | — | — | Harden fit improving |
| 5 | Golden State Warriors | — | — | Fighting back |
Note: Wins and losses are placeholders here; for exact Live Scores and full NBA Standings, use the official NBA.com scoreboard and standings pages. What matters in this snapshot is the stratification: Boston and Denver as tone-setters, a hungry chasing pack, and a swarm of teams around the Play-In cut line.
The Lakers currently live in that danger zone. Their latest loss kept them hovering rather than climbing, with several Western rivals stacking up wins. Any minor losing streak, especially against conference opponents, could drop them from mid-seed comfort to single-elimination Play-In territory almost overnight. Conversely, the Warriors’ recent uptick has at least pushed them toward the safer end of the pack, though one bad week can undo that progress instantly.
Player Stats spotlight: who owned the night?
Box scores from the last slate of games delivered plenty of eye-popping lines, even if we did not get a historic 70-piece or a career-high explosion. Instead, the dominant theme was all-around brilliance from the league’s biggest names.
Tatum’s line was emblematic of Boston’s machine-like efficiency: strong scoring on good shooting splits, several rebounds, and playmaking that kept defenses honest. He hunted mismatches, punished switches in the midpost, and sprayed passes to shooters when the help came. While it was not a triple-double, the overall impact screamed MVP-level control of the game’s tempo.
Curry showcased why he is still the scariest shooter on the planet. He rained in multiple threes from well beyond the arc, dragged bigs into uncomfortable spaces with high pick-and-rolls, and forced the defense into impossible decisions between top-locking him off the ball or surrendering driving lanes. The stat sheet showed strong points, a handful of assists, and crucial late buckets that turned a tense fourth quarter into a comfortable finish.
LeBron did what he always does: filled every column. Points at the rim, kick-outs to shooters, rebounds in traffic, and orchestrating the offense as a de facto point forward. But the loss muted the shine on his Player Stats, underscoring an uncomfortable reality: his margin for regular-season heroics is shrinking as the miles pile up and the West gets deeper.
On the disappointment front, a couple of notable names failed to leave a mark. One Lakers role player struggled badly from downtown, bricking open looks that would normally swing momentum. On another court, a key secondary scorer for a West playoff hopeful disappeared in the second half, finishing with single-digit points despite heavy minutes. Those quiet nights matter when seeding can hinge on a single game.
MVP Race check-in: Jokic, Giannis, Tatum still setting the bar
Scan the MVP Race across the league and the usual suspects continue to anchor every serious ballot: Nikola Jokic, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Joel Embiid, and Jayson Tatum. Their nightly Player Stats are absurdly consistent, and last night did little to change the hierarchy.
Jokic remained the quiet destroyer for Denver. Whether or not he posted a triple-double in the most recent outing, his fingerprints were all over the Nuggets’ offense. High-post orchestration, backdoor dimes, soft-touch floaters, and the kind of pace control that turns games into Denver’s rhythm. Every win strengthens his case as the most reliable engine in basketball.
Giannis, meanwhile, kept stuffing the box score in Milwaukee’s push to stay near the top of the East. His blend of relentless rim attacks and transition sprints produced another dominant scoring night, bolstered by double-digit rebounds. The Bucks still have defensive questions and late-game chemistry to iron out, but Giannis’ nightly force of nature keeps them in the upper tier of the NBA Standings.
Tatum, with Boston’s league-leading record and his two-way impact, continues to hover firmly in the top tier of candidates. His combination of scoring versatility and improved playmaking, plus the Celtics’ status as one of the best teams in clutch net rating, gives him narrative and statistical juice. Curry, Luka Don?i?, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander sit just behind that lead cluster, each capable of putting up 35-plus points on any given night and altering the MVP debate with a hot month.
Injuries, rotations and the Playoff Picture
The broader Playoff Picture is being shaped not only by wins and losses but by who is actually available. Around the league, nagging injuries and load management nights continue to tilt outcomes. A star missing a back-to-back here, a key rim protector sidelined there, and suddenly a winnable road game flips into a loss that could matter in April.
Several teams remain in wait-and-see mode with key pieces. Lineups are still morphing, coaches are tinkering with small-ball versus double-big looks, and second units are being stress-tested. One Western coach admitted after a narrow win that he is "coaching like it’s the playoffs already" because of the congestion in the middle of the conference. Every tiebreaker, every head-to-head result, every late defensive stop against a rival could decide who dodges the Play-In and who faces a win-or-go-home scenario.
For the Lakers specifically, even minor injuries to their already thin frontcourt or perimeter defense would be a serious blow to their title hopes. For the Warriors, maintaining Curry’s health while managing his minutes is a constant balancing act. Boston and Milwaukee have slightly more margin, but even they know a poorly timed injury can derail a top seed in a heartbeat.
What’s next: must-watch matchups and shifting stakes
The next few days bring a slate loaded with narrative juice. The Celtics face another tough test against a physical, playoff-caliber defense that will try to blunt Tatum’s rhythm and force Boston’s role players to hit shots under pressure. Out West, the Warriors face a direct rival in the standings in what feels like a mini Play-In preview, with Curry and company trying to prove their recent surge is sustainable.
The Lakers, meanwhile, head into a critical stretch of games against conference opponents sitting in that 5-to-10 range. Drop two or three of those, and the ground under them in the NBA Standings starts to crack. Win them, and suddenly the narrative flips from panic to "nobody wants to see LeBron in a seven-game series" once again.
Fans should circle the weekend clash between a top East contender and a surging West team as a measuring-stick game; the intensity and schemes will look a lot like late April. For anyone tracking the MVP Race, keep an eye on how Jokic, Giannis, Tatum, and Curry manage this upcoming gauntlet of national TV games. Big-time performances in high-profile spots can swing both public perception and voter sentiment.
The regular season is officially out of the feeling-out phase. Every night’s Game Highlights are rewriting seedings, fueling debates about the Playoff Picture and MVP narratives, and testing depth charts in real time. Stay locked into NBA.com for Live Scores, full Player Stats, and updated NBA Standings, because from here on out, every possession feels like it carries postseason weight.
