Power rankings often reflect not just a team’s record the week previous —the Nets were 2-1— but also transactions, injuries, etc. And so the acquisition of Jahlil Okafor was cited by a number of pundits in moving the Nets up a few places.
There are a couple of noteworthy stats in the rankings this week, as there always are. John Schuhmann of NBA.com (and the founder of ND) is not a fan of the trade and notes that the Nets “were at their best when Trevor Booker was on the floor.”
Sean Deveney of Sporting News provides an even more eye-opening stat: In the month of December —four games— the Nets are first in “defensive efficiency, 99.