On December 26, 2023, Beijing time, the rankings of Western teams have changed again after today's NBA game, let's take a look.
The latest game in the West today is the Nuggets vs Warriors, the Nuggets started 6-0, led by 10 points in the first quarter, and the Warriors chased the difference to 3 points at the end of the first quarter. In the second quarter, the Warriors led by six points at one point, and the Nuggets chased the difference to one point at halftime. In the third quarter, the Nuggets had the advantage, leading by eight points at one point, and the Warriors chased the difference to three points at the end of the third quarter. In the fourth quarter, the Warriors once overtook the score by 3 points, but the Nuggets quickly overtook the score, Murray and Jokic teamed up at the last moment, and the Nuggets finally defeated the Warriors by 6 points.
Curry finished with 18 points, 2 rebounds and 4 assists on 7-of-21 shooting, while Jokic scored 26 points, 14 rebounds and 8 assists on 4-of-12 shooting and 18-of-18 free throws. After the win, the Nuggets are still in second place in the West with 22 wins and 10 losses. After the Warriors lost, 15-15 went from 10th in the West to 11th, but they didn't think that the Suns would also lose later, and the Warriors were able to overtake the Suns and become 10th in the West again. In addition, the Lakers also lost today, so that the gap between the Warriors and the Lakers did not widen, and for the Warriors, the loss of the Lakers and the Suns is a great gift.
The Lakers played against the Celtics today, and the Celtics took the lead quickly after the game, leading by 18 points at one point, but the Lakers relied on defensive counterattacks to tie the gap in the second quarter, and the Celtics led by one point at halftime. In the third quarter, the Lakers once led by 2 points, but the Celtics blossomed more and soon took the lead again, leading by 13 points at one point and leading by 9 points at the end of the third quarter. In the fourth quarter, the Celtics firmly held the lead, and the Lakers were powerless to recover, and finally the Celtics defeated the Lakers by 11 points.
The Celtics' Pozin scored 28 points, 11 boards and 2 blocks on 11-of-19 shooting, Tatum made 6-of-15 and 12-of-13 free throws to score 25 points, 8 rebounds and 7 assists, the Lakers scored 40 points, 13 rebounds and 4 assists on 15-of-26, James scored 16 points, 9 rebounds and 8 assists on 5-of-14, the Celtics continued to rank first in the league with 23 wins and 6 losses after winning, and the Lakers still ranked ninth in the West with 16 wins and 15 losses after losing.
The Suns played against the Mavericks today, and the Mavericks once led by 15 points under the leadership of Doncic, but the Suns' Allen and Metu both broke out, helping the Suns overtake the score for a while, but the Mavericks quickly regained the lead under Doncic, and finally defeated the Suns by 14 points. Doncic was 15-of-25 (8-of-16 from three-point range) and finished with 50 points, 14 assists, 6 rebounds, 4 steals and 3 blocks. Durant had 16 points, 8 rebounds and 7 assists on 4-of-11 shooting, Booker had 20 points, 3 rebounds and 10 assists on 6-of-14 shooting, Allen had 32 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists, and Metu had 23 points and 19 boards.
After the Mavericks won the game, they went 18-12 and overtook the Clippers to move to fifth place in the West, and the Clippers became sixth. The Suns are 14-15 and 11th in the West after the loss, and the Suns have had a very poor record lately, losing nine of their last 12 games, and they are in danger.
Here's how the Western Conference standings have changed since today's game.