NBA Power Rankings: Blake Griffin back, Ibaka, Ginobili down

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Feb 15, 2014; New Orleans, LA, USA; A view NBA logo during the NBA All Star Jam Session at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports /

The Los Angeles Clippers got Blake Griffin back, but the Oklahoma City Thunder lost Serge Ibaka and the San Antonio Spurs will be missing Manu Ginobili

Injuries continue to take a major toll on the NBA landscape as we head into the final four weeks of the season. Oklahoma City continues to get MVP-worthy play from Russell Westbrook, but now Serge Ibaka will require knee surgery to clean out whatever is making his knee sore. Ibaka is expected to be back for the playoffs, but in what capacity?

San Antonio has continued to play great basketball, despite having their six-game winning streak snapped in OT by Cleveland, courtesy of Kyrie Irving absurd, 57-point performance. Meanwhile, in San Antonio, the Spurs will be without Manu Ginobili for 7-10 days after the guard sprained right ankle.

Elsewhere, LeBron James tweaked his knee Sunday and will have it examined, but should be fine. Joakim Noah did not play down the stretch on Sunday due to a Bulls management minutes limit. Ultimately, there are a lot of players injuries that factor into this week’s power rankings.

Feb 25, 2015; Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Jeremy Lin (17) reacts during the second half against the Utah Jazz at EnergySolutions Arena. The Lakers won 100-97. Mandatory Credit: Russ Isabella-USA TODAY Sports /

30 Los Angeles Lakers

They don’t have the worst record in the league, but they lost at home to the New York Knicks. Instances like this will drop better teams further than this loss cost the Lakers, only one spot down, from the past two weeks. The Lakers did get a win at home over Detroit, but come on. That is not enough to off-set a loss to the Knicks. Plus, the Lakers lost at home to Atlanta who rested three starters – Paul Millsap, DeMarre Carroll Jeff Teague – and also lost Kyle Korver in the second quarter to a broken nose. Welcome to the basement.

Mar 10, 2015; Salt Lake City, UT, USA; New York Knicks guard Alexey Shved (1) dribbles the ball in front of Utah Jazz guard Dante Exum (11) during the first quarter at EnergySolutions Arena. Mandatory Credit: Russ Isabella-USA TODAY Sports /

29 New York Knicks

The Knicks played five games this week and lost four of them. Normally that wouldn’t be enough to lift your rankings a spot, but these feisty Knicks did beat the Los Angeles Lakers, the team that was directly in front of them. Congrats James Dolan, we have bumped your beloved Knicks from our NBA basement.

Now officially eliminated from the playoff race after getting blown out buy Golden State, difficult to do this early in the Eastern Conference, the conversation has already started, when will Phil Jackson call it quits in New York? Jackson just celebrated his one-year anniversary back in NYC. Probably wasn’t much of a party. Building an NBA champion takes a lot of work and there are too many signs that Dolan has made a poor, albeit splashy hire. Congrats on that win over the Lakers, though.

Mar 7, 2015; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves forward Andrew Wiggins (22) looks on during the second half against the Portland Trail Blazers at Target Center. The Timberwolves won 121-113. Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-USA TODAY Sports /

28 Minnesota Timberwolves

A winless, 0-4 week for Minnesota. Closest the T’Wolves came to pulling off a miraculous win was a nine-point loss to the Phoenix Suns. Andrew Wiggins was in double figures in all four, but has only scored 20 once this month. Kevin Garnett’s body won’t let him play, the latest a sore left knee. Ricky Rubio missed the Spurs game with a sore right ankle. Zach LaVine did have 18/6/6 in the Spurs loss. The schedule has been tough lately with games versus San Antonio, Oklahoma City and Los Angeles Clippers. This week should be easier. Upcoming @NewYork and home games with Brooklyn and Charlotte.

Mar 13, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers center Nerlens Noel (4) celebrates his score with guard Ish Smith (5) during the second half at Wells Fargo Center. The 76ers won 114-107. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports /

27 Philadelphia 76ers

Glenn Robinson III come on down, you’re the 25th player to suit up for the 76ers in their worst season ever, lately. There was one win this week, 15th on the season, a comeback from 18-down somewhat impressive performance against Sacramento. 76er head coach – quick trivia who is it??? – Brett Brown torched his under-manned group at halftime and they responded. Robert Covington led the Sixers with 24. Covington was a shrewd pick-up back in November, the D-League rookie of the year last season. Another bright spot is Nerlens Noel, grabbing double-digits in points and rebounds in seven of his last 9 games.

Feb 24, 2015; Auburn Hills, MI, USA; Detroit Pistons guard Reggie Jackson (1) hold his hand out during the second quarter against the Cleveland Cavaliers at The Palace of Auburn Hills. Mandatory Credit: Raj Mehta-USA TODAY Sports /

26 Detroit Pistons

Ten losses in a row for the heading towards history Pistons. Stan Van Gundy can’t blame it on the schedule when the losses include the Lakers, Knicks, Wizards and Hornets. Seven of the 10 games have been on the road, but the Hornets and Knicks were at home. The Pistons are closing in on franchise record territory here, they lost 14 in a row in both 1979-80 and 1993-94. The next four games are Memphis, @Philadelphia, Chicago, @Boston. Wins will be harder to come by with center Andre Drummond out indefinitely after suffering a concussion Sunday night versus Utah. The losing streak is about the only thing worth paying attention to in Detroit.

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NBA Power Rankings, March Madness edition: Blake Griffin back, Serge Ibaka, Manu Ginobili down

By Mark Carman | Mar 17, 2015