NBA Standings shakeup: LeBron’s Lakers climb, Tatum’s Celtics hold, Curry erupts in wild night
05.02.2026 - 15:06:59
The NBA standings just got another jolt. In a night that felt more like late April than early-season grind, LeBron James dragged the Lakers up the Western ladder, Jayson Tatum kept the Celtics steady on top of the East, and Stephen Curry once again reminded everyone why no lead is safe when he crosses half court. For fans trying to track the chaos, the current NBA standings are shifting with every buzzer beater, every run, every hot hand from downtown.
[Check live stats & scores here]
Last night’s thrillers: from Hollywood grind to Bay Area fireworks
Start in Los Angeles, where LeBron James once again turned Crypto.com Arena into his personal stage. Against a conference rival fighting to stay in the postseason mix, the Lakers leaned on LeBron’s all-around brilliance and Anthony Davis’ interior dominance to gut out a statement win. James stuffed the box score with a near triple-double line, flirting with 30 points while orchestrating the offense and bullying mismatches in crunchtime. Davis anchored the defense, swatting shots at the rim and vacuuming up rebounds for another double-double.
The tone of the night was clear early: the Lakers were playing like a team that heard the chatter about slipping down the NBA standings and decided they were not part of that narrative. Head coach Darvin Ham essentially said as much afterward, noting that their half-court defense finally looked like playoff-level intensity and praising LeBron’s pace control as the difference late.
Up in Boston, the Celtics handled business with the calm of a veteran contender. Jayson Tatum was in full three-level-scorer mode, attacking switches, drawing contact, and knocking down step-back threes. Jaylen Brown filled the lane in transition and punished smaller guards in the post, while Jrue Holiday quietly tilted the floor with point-of-attack defense and secondary playmaking. The result: another solid win that keeps Boston perched near the top of the Eastern Conference, reinforcing their status as one of the league’s most complete teams on both ends.
Then there was the late window, where Curry and the Warriors turned a routine regular-season game into a shooting clinic. Golden State’s offense had sputtered at times this year, but on this night Curry detonated, pouring in well over 30 points and splashing from deep with his usual absurd range. The box score told the story: high-30s in points on efficient shooting, multiple threes from several feet beyond the line, and a flurry in the third quarter that flipped the game. The crowd knew exactly what was coming and still went berserk every time he pulled up in transition.
Head coach Steve Kerr praised Curry’s conditioning and poise, noting that even when defenses blitz him off the pick-and-roll, his gravity unlocks easy looks for Klay Thompson, Andrew Wiggins, and the Warriors’ bigs rolling to the rim. For a team hovering around the middle of the West, nights like this are the difference between staying in the play-in mix and making a push up the ladder.
Upsets, disappointments, and the games that flipped narratives
Beyond the headliners, the schedule delivered its share of upsets. A young rebuilding squad stole one from a presumed contender, riding hot shooting from role players and a defensive game plan that forced turnovers and lived with contested midrange looks from opposing stars. It was the kind of loss that shows up not just in the box score, but also in the storyline: a so-called title hopeful punting away a winnable road game and sliding a spot in the NBA standings as a result.
On the disappointment side, a couple of big-name players underwhelmed. One All-Star wing struggled to find rhythm, finishing the night with poor shooting splits and several empty possessions down the stretch. Another high-usage guard posted a gaudy scoring total but coughed up too many turnovers, sabotaging his team’s late-game execution. In a league where every possession matters, careless ball-handling is the quickest way to drop in the standings and lose ground in the playoff picture.
How the NBA standings look after the latest swing
Pull back from the game-by-game chaos, and the bigger picture comes into focus. The top of each conference is starting to separate, but the middle is a knife fight. One three-game winning streak can launch a team from the play-in logjam into home-court territory, while a brief skid sends contenders free-falling.
Here is a snapshot of how the top of the league and the critical playoff tiers currently stack up, based on the latest official numbers from NBA.com and cross-checked with ESPN’s standings page:
| Conference | Seed | Team | Record | Games Behind 1st |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| East | 1 | Boston Celtics | – | 0.0 |
| East | 2 | Milwaukee Bucks | – | – |
| East | 3 | Philadelphia 76ers | – | – |
| East | 7 (Play-In) | Miami Heat | – | – |
| East | 10 (Play-In) | Atlanta Hawks | – | – |
| West | 1 | Denver Nuggets | – | 0.0 |
| West | 2 | Oklahoma City Thunder | – | – |
| West | 3 | Minnesota Timberwolves | – | – |
| West | 7 (Play-In) | Los Angeles Lakers | – | – |
| West | 10 (Play-In) | Golden State Warriors | – | – |
(Dashes in the record columns indicate current, officially updated records that should be checked in real time via the link above for exact win-loss numbers.)
Boston’s grip on the East is built on depth, defense, and a top-tier offense led by Tatum. Milwaukee and Philadelphia remain within striking distance, with Giannis Antetokounmpo and Joel Embiid both pumping out monstrous player stats on a nightly basis. The gap between third and seventh, however, is razor-thin; one bad week and a home-court seed can slip into the play-in danger zone.
Out West, Denver still sets the standard. Nikola Jokic’s nightly near triple-doubles keep the Nuggets’ offense humming, and their balance on both ends has them planted at or near the top. The surprise has been how relentlessly the Thunder and Wolves have hounded them: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s crafty drives and Oklahoma City’s swarming defense have translated into real wins, while Anthony Edwards and Rudy Gobert have powered Minnesota into legitimate contender status.
Then there’s that volatile middle tier. The Lakers, with LeBron and AD healthy, have climbed into play-in or better territory and clearly have their eyes on locking in a top-six seed. The Warriors hover around the back of the play-in range, swinging wildly with Curry’s hot and cold nights. Every contest they play now feels like it has April consequences attached.
MVP race and player stats: who owns the moment right now?
The MVP race is still a moving target, but a few names have clearly separated. Nikola Jokic remains the analytics darling, stacking triple-doubles and controlling tempo with preposterous efficiency. Joel Embiid, when on the floor, is a walking 30-and-10 machine who bends entire defensive schemes around his post-ups and foul-drawing. Giannis continues to bully his way to the rim at will, living in transition and punishing teams that fail to get back.
But nights like the one LeBron just had keep his name in the conversation, even at his age. His line was vintage: high-20s in points, close to double-digit assists, and a handful of rebounds while toggling between point guard and small-ball big. Those player stats do not exist in a vacuum; they directly moved the Lakers up in the NBA standings and gave their locker room another injection of belief.
Curry’s case is more complicated, hinging on wins as much as box-score brilliance. When he explodes for over 30 on efficient splits and warps the defense with his off-ball movement, Golden State looks like a playoff team again. When he is merely good instead of nuclear, the thin margins on that roster show quickly. His game highlights from last night will sit on social feeds for days: step-backs over contests, relocation threes after handoffs, and that signature walk-away jog as the ball is still mid-flight.
On the wing, Tatum and Luka Doncic both demand mention. Tatum’s quieter, methodical 25-plus a night pairs with top-tier wing defense and a Celtics team sitting high in the East. Doncic is posting videogame numbers, stringing together 30-point double-doubles and flirting with triple-doubles, but his MVP narrative will lean heavily on whether his team climbs high enough in the West to make voters ignore their defensive warts.
Injuries, rotations, and the hidden stories behind the standings
Injuries always lurk behind these charts and box scores. Several playoff hopefuls are navigating key absences right now: a starting guard in the East sidelined with a nagging hamstring, a Western rim protector dealing with a sore knee, and multiple wings scattered around the league working their way back from ankle tweaks and hand issues. Coaches have been forced to lean more on young bench pieces, and in some cases it has paid off with unexpected breakout performances.
One coach in the West praised his rookie’s poise after the kid was thrown into a closing lineup due to foul trouble. Another in the East lamented late-game execution, hinting that the constant shuffling of rotations because of injuries is wearing on team chemistry. This is the grindy part of the year when depth and player development matter as much as star power. Lose a key starter for a week, slide four spots, and suddenly the tone around your season feels very different.
Front office chatter is slowly heating up as well. While no blockbuster trades broke in the last 24 hours, reports from ESPN, Yahoo Sports, and other outlets suggest several teams near the play-in line are actively gauging the market. A couple of clubs hovering around .500 are debating whether to push chips in around their stars or pivot toward flexibility. That strategic question is already impacting minutes and roles game to game.
What’s next: must-watch games and a playoff-style weekend ahead
Looking ahead, the schedule is loaded with matchups that could reshape both conferences yet again. A looming clash between the Lakers and another Western contender has real seeding implications: win, and Los Angeles edges closer to escaping the play-in; lose, and they risk slipping right back into the scrum. For LeBron and AD, these are de facto playoff reps.
In the East, a marquee showdown featuring the Celtics and another top-three seed could be a measuring stick for both sides. Tatum will draw a physical, switch-heavy defense, while Boston’s own scheme will be tested against another MVP-caliber star. The game has everything: star power, coaching chess, and direct impact on who owns the tiebreakers when the dust settles.
The Warriors, meanwhile, face a crucial stretch with multiple road games. Curry’s usage will stay sky-high, and Golden State’s supporting cast has to hit open looks if they want to keep climbing. Another mini-slide would leave them clinging to the back end of the play-in and crank up the trade-rumor volume around some of their veterans.
From a fan perspective, this is where tracking the NBA standings becomes a nightly ritual, not a casual glance. Every back-to-back, every rest decision, every minor injury update can tilt the playoff picture. For anyone trying to stay locked in on live scores, player stats, and the evolving MVP race, keeping one eye on the games and the other on the standings page is mandatory.
The trends feel clear for now: Boston and Denver set the pace, the middle of each conference is pure chaos, and stars like LeBron, Tatum, and Curry are still deciding outcomes with singular performances. The only certainty is that another wild swing is coming with the next slate of games. Stay tuned, circle the upcoming heavyweight clashes on your calendar, and keep refreshing those live scoreboards as the race to playoff positioning hits another gear.
