1. Los Angeles Lakers
Carmen Mandato/Associated Press
Last Week’s Ranking: 1
The Lakers have yet to play their best basketball or even come close to it. At this point they are just playing with their food. Frank Vogel is willing to live with a few losses here and there like the one against the Spurs. The reason why? They are second in net rating, fourth in offensive rating and third in defensive rating
L.A. is very selective right now with its effort and urgency. The Grizzlies and Bulls played the Lakers down to the wire. But when they played the Rockets, it was clear they came to play from the jump. They put up 65 points and held Houston to 46 points in the first half.
The urgency is not there yet, but L.A. stayed No. 1 because the teams below them have not done enough to take the throne.
Source: bleacherreport.com
