The Los Angeles Lakers are sliding around in the 2012 NBA Power Rankings. The Lakers are still adjusting to life without Derek Fisher and life with Ramon Sessions. The Lakers lost to the Rockets and the Grizzlies and beat the Blazers and the Mavericks, so it was an uneven week for the team.
Tom Ziller of SB Nation has his latest power rankings up, and the Lakers slide all the way from 4th to 7th.
The Lakers are still much better than they were before the trade deadline. Even if they have thrown themselves into crisis mode. I am so excited about this development.
The Lakers are performing better than their counterparts on the Clippers, who have been slipping lately. The Clips dropped all three games to the Pacers, Thunder, and the lowly Hornets. They whipped the Grizzlies to conclude the week, but they're still looking very vulnerable and they're in danger of missing the playoffs altogether. The Clippers have fallen all the way to 12th.
That win over Memphis was solid, but it doesn't answer any questions about L.A.'s porous defense or unimaginative scheme. Is there a West team you'd definitely favor the Clippers over in a playoff series? I'm struggling to pick one.
To talk about the Lakers, head on over to Silver Screen and Roll. To discuss the Clippers, check out Clips Nation.