NBA power rankings for start of January

By Rick Morris

Mid-December rankings in parentheses.

TOP TIER
1 Cleveland (5)
2 LA Lakers (1)
3 Orlando (3)
4 Boston (2)
5 Atlanta (4)
6 Dallas (6)
7 Phoenix (8)
8 Denver (7)
9 San Antonio (11)
10 Portland (10)
11 Houston (12)
12 Utah (9)
13 Oklahoma City (13)

SECOND TIER
14 Miami (14)
15 Toronto (17)
16 Memphis (19)
17 New Orleans (18)
18 LA Clippers (21)
19 Sacramento (20)
20 Chicago (23)
21 Charlotte (22)
22 Milwaukee (15)
23 New York (26)
24 Detroit (16)
25 Washington (25)
26 Indiana (24)
27 Golden State (27)
28 Philadelphia (28)
29 Minnesota (29)
THIRD TIER
30 New Jersey (30)

BIGGEST RISERS: Cleveland (4 spots), Chicago, Memphis and New York (3 spots)
BIGGEST FALLERS: Detroit (8 spots), Milwaukee (7 spots), LA Clippers, Utah (3 spots)