NBA Power Rankings: Thunder stay on top as playoff jockeying intensifies
nba-power-rankings-march-11-2026
With a little more than four weeks remaining before the NBA play-in tournament, the Oklahoma City Thunder still control the No. 1 position in ESPN’s weekly power rankings, edging the surging San Antonio Spurs and a revitalized Boston Celtics squad.
How the rankings were set
The list is compiled by a nine-member ESPN panel—Anthony Slater, Dave McMenamin, Jamal Collier, Michael C. Wright, Bobby Marks, Tim Bontemps, Tim MacMahon, Vincent Goodwill and Zach Kram—who evaluate all 30 clubs. Records and games listed are through the morning of March 11, 2026.
Top tier
1. Oklahoma City Thunder (51-15)
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s 20-point streak reached Wilt Chamberlain territory in Monday’s win over Denver, but the more significant development was guard Ajay Mitchell’s return after missing 20 games. Mitchell delivered 24 points off the bench and eases the workload on Jalen Williams, who is coming back slowly from a nagging hamstring.
2. San Antonio Spurs (48-17)
San Antonio capped a standout homestand with victories over Detroit, the LA Clippers and Houston, all by at least 25 points. Upcoming tests include Denver on Thursday and Charlotte on Saturday.
3. Boston Celtics (43-22)
Jayson Tatum’s two-game re-entry produced consecutive wins over Dallas and Cleveland, even though his shot was rusty (12-for-32 combined). Boston again looks like the East favorite.
4. Detroit Pistons (48-18)
Detroit split a home-and-home with Brooklyn and is monitoring Ausar Thompson’s sprained right ankle. The wing is expected to miss roughly a week.
5. New York Knicks (41-25)
New York followed a statement win in Denver with road losses to the Lakers and Clippers. Mikal Bridges endured nearly six quarters without scoring during the California swing, a concern for a club that relies on his two-way consistency.
Key storylines around the league
Adebayo’s historic night: Miami center Bam Adebayo erupted for 83 points on Tuesday, the second-highest single-game total in league history. The Heat are 8-2 since the All-Star break and now share sixth place in the East.
Western race remains volatile: After Oklahoma City and San Antonio, the next eight Western Conference seeds continue to change daily. Houston, Minnesota, the Lakers, Clippers and Warriors are all separated by only a handful of games.
Injury watch: Philadelphia has slipped to eighth in the East while playing without Joel Embiid (oblique), Tyrese Maxey (finger) and rookie VJ Edgecombe (back). Denver is awaiting Peyton Watson’s return from a hamstring strain, and Utah still has no timetable for Lauri Markkanen’s hip issue.
Notable individual trends
- Luke Kennard is shooting 50 percent from three for the Lakers, putting him on pace to become the seventh player ever to finish a season at that mark.
- Alperen Şengün remains Houston’s No. 2 scorer (20.4 PPG) but his average has dipped almost six points since February.
- Kawhi Leonard, 34, is averaging a career-best 27.9 points while lifting the Clippers back to .500.
- In Portland, Scoot Henderson is hitting 39 percent overall and 25 percent from deep in 13 games since returning from a severe hamstring injury.
Bottom of the board
The Sacramento Kings (16-50) remain last but continue to develop rookie center Maxime Raynaud, who has seven double-doubles in his past 11 outings. Indiana (15-50) has dropped nine straight despite a healthier starting unit, while Brooklyn (15-46) snapped a 10-game skid by rallying past Detroit.
Teams have roughly 16 to 18 games left to solidify seeding, with the play-in round set for mid-April.
Source: ESPN
