NBA TOP TO BOTTOM

Team (Record) Comment (last week’s position)

1. Portland (27-11) Trail Blazers thought they had problems ‘til they saw Lakers square off. (1)

2. Philadelphia (27-9) That 17-4 road record means 76ers will be hard to overhaul in the East. (3)

3. San Antonio (23-12) Firming up: Spurs won five in row after loss to Bulls when Popovich called them soft. (4)

4. Lakers (24-12) Houses divided not only cannot stand, they really get tiresome after while. (2)

5. Sacramento (24-10) Nine of next 14 on road, so we’ll see how long Kings can stay up here. (5)

6. Phoenix (22-12) After Lakers trashed them by 37, Suns started thinking about Mutombo again. (6)

7. Utah (23-13) Mailman revives with 82 in three games, but Jazz is down to No. 6 in West. (7)

8. New York (23-13) Rice roots against Lakers. Pretty soon he’ll be rooting against Knicks too. (8)

9. Dallas (24-15) Nowitzki averaged 18 in November, 23 in December and is at 26 this month. (10)

10. Miami (21-17) Players say they’re ready to join East elite--before losing at Boston. (11)

11. Charlotte (23-15) Mashburn hurt, Coleman back--Silas wonders why it can’t be other way around. (9)

12. Milwaukee (21-15) Tell Karl to chill: 45 wins may be enough to win Central Division. (13)

13. Denver (21-16) Who called McDyess, averaging 23 and 11.6 rebounds, McBust? Oh, me. (15)

14. Minnesota (21-17) Gritty little Timberwolves started 15-9 but have been taking on water since. (12)

15. Seattle (20-18) Good news: Ackerley, who chased off Whitsitt and Karl, goes too. (14)

16. Houston (18-18) They may not have even noticed: Rockets are 4-3 since Olajuwon went out. (18)

17. Toronto (18-18) Have gun, will travel: This makes it six teams for Tracy Murray. (17)

18. Cleveland (17-18) Holding off announcement but looks like Ilgauskas is gone for another season. (16)

19. Indiana (17-21) Miller averaged 27 until Rose took over at point. Since, he’s at 15. (19)

20. Orlando (16-20) Last season’s surprise, this season’s bust: Amaechi goes to bench. (20)

21. Atlanta (14-22) Too bad he’s not still around: Ex-Clipper Wright pulls game back together. (22)

22. Detroit (14-22) Smith talks wistfully of Minnesota as new team loses seven of eight. (21)

23. Clippers (13-26) It’s nice to have one team where the guys like one another, anyway. (24)

24. Boston (13-24) Watch bottom fall out now: 27 of Celtics’ last 45 are on road. (23)

25. Golden State (11-25) Backcourt on ice: Sura 42%, Blaylock 40%, Hughes 38%, Cummings 36%. (25)

26. New Jersey (11-26) Good news is Keith Van Horn’s back. Bad news is everything else. (26)

27. Vancouver (11-25) Abdur-Rahim likes sound of trade rumors, but he better not hold his breath. (27)

28. Chicago (6-29) After slow start, Brand averaging 23 points, 10.6 rebounds this month. (28)

29. Washington (7-31) Pack it in by Thanksgiving and avoid the rush: Started 2-3, then this. (29)

GAME OF THE WEEK

SACRAMENTO KINGS at PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS

When--Saturday. Time--2:40 p.m. PST. TV--Ch. 4.

* Story line--The Kings have been one of the surprises of the season, which was supposed to be all about Chris Webber’s free agency and Rick Adelman’s dangling future. Peja Stojakovic’s emergence has pushed them to a new level, but they still must prove they can hang with the elite.