The Mavs only had 2 games this week, but those 2 wins moved them up to be tied for 8th place in the Western Conference.  Sitting at .500 and in the thick of the playoff race the Mavs season has been reborn after a disappointing start to the season had many fans panicking.

The Mavs now sit tied for 2nd in the Division, tied for 8th in the Conference, and are 7-3 in our last 10 games including wins against Oklahoma City, Golden State, and Boston.  I think the Mavs goal should still be to win the Southwest Division and guarantee their playoff spot.  In order to do that Carlisle and company need to start winning those division matchups, currently 0-2 with losses to the Spurs and Grizzlies on the road.  Their opportunity to turn this around comes quickly as they have 3 divisional games over their next 6.

Southwest Division Standings:

Team	W	L	W/L%	GB
Memphis Grizzlies	12	8	0.6	—
Dallas Mavericks	9	9	0.5	2
San Antonio Spurs	10	10	0.5	2
New Orleans Pelicans	10	11	0.476	2.5
Houston Rockets	9	10	0.474	2.5

Western Conference Standings:

Western Conference	W	L	W/L%	GB
Los Angeles Clippers (1)	13	6	0.68	—
Golden State Warriors (2)	15	7	0.68	-1
Denver Nuggets (3)	14	7	0.67	—
Oklahoma City Thunder (4)	12	7	0.63	1
Portland Trail Blazers (5)	12	8	0.60	1.5
Memphis Grizzlies (5)	12	8	0.60	1.5
Los Angeles Lakers (7)	11	9	0.55	2.5
San Antonio Spurs (8)	10	10	0.50	3.5
Sacramento Kings (8)	10	10	0.50	3.5
Dallas Mavericks (8)	9	9	0.50	3.5
New Orleans Pelicans (11)	10	11	0.48	4
Minnesota Timberwolves (11)	10	11	0.48	4
Houston Rockets (13)	9	10	0.47	4
Utah Jazz (14)	9	12	0.43	5
Phoenix Suns (15)	4	16	0.20	9.5

Western Conference Power Rankings:

This is where I overreact and rank all teams based on recent performance, news, and injuries.

Biggest Gainer:  Denver ↑5.

Biggest Losers:  Memphis ↓5

1. Golden State Warriors (15-7 overall, 2^nd in West) (3-1 this week) ↑3 – Next Week: @TOR, @DET, @ATL.
2. LA Clippers (13-6, 1^st) (2-0 this week) ↑1 – Next week: PHO, @SAC, @DAL, @NOP.
3. Denver Nuggets (14-7, 3^rd) (4-0 this week) ↑5– Next Week: @POR, @TOR.
4. Portland Trailblazers (12-8, T-5^th) (0-3 this week) ↓3 – Next Week: ORL, DEN, @SAS, @DAL.
5. OKC Thunder (12-7, 4^th) (2-1 this week) ↔ – Next Week: CLE, ATL, @DET.
6. Los Angeles Lakers (11-9, 7^th) (2-2 this week) ↑1 – Next week: IND, DAL, PHO.
7. Memphis Grizzlies (12-8, T-5^th) (1-3 this week) ↓5 – Next Week: @BKN, @PHI.
8. Dallas Mavericks (9-9, T-8^th) (2-0 this week) ↑2 – Next Week: @HOU, @LAL, LAC, POR.
9. San Antonio (10-10, T-8^th) (2-2 this week) ↑2 – Next Week: @MIN, HOU, POR, @UTA.
10. New Orleans Pelicans (10-11, T-11^th) (0-4 this week) ↑1 – Next Week: WSH, @MIA, @CHA, LAC.
11. Sacramento Kings (10-10, T-8^th) (1-2 this week) ↓1 – Next week: LAC, IND, @PHO.
12. Minnesota Timberwolves (10-11, 11^th) (3-1 this week) ↑5 – Next week: SAS, BOS, HOU.
13. Houston Rockets (9-10, 13^th) (1-3 this week) ↓4 – Next Week: DAL, @SAS, CHI, @MIN.
14. Utah Jazz (9-12, 14^th) (1-3 this week) ↓1 – Next Week: @BKN, @CHA, @MIA, SAS.
15. Phoenix Suns (4-16, 15^th) (1-3 this week) ↔ – Next week: @LAC, ORL, @LAL, SAC.

 

Western Conference Heat Map:

The following heat map shows which teams excel in which statistical categories and where teams are under performing.  The darker the green the more they outperform in that category and the darker the red the worse they are in that category.

The Mavs are still near the bottom of the West when it comes to turnovers, but other than that, they are very close to league average in every category.