{"id":88539,"date":"2025-11-26T12:03:32","date_gmt":"2025-11-26T16:03:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alofokedeportes.com\/en\/sin-categoria\/pistons-vs-raptors-showdown-at-the-top-of-the-eastern-conference-and-nba-cup\/"},"modified":"2025-11-26T12:03:32","modified_gmt":"2025-11-26T16:03:32","slug":"pistons-vs-raptors-showdown-at-the-top-of-the-eastern-conference-and-nba-cup","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alofokedeportes.com\/en\/nba\/pistons-vs-raptors-showdown-at-the-top-of-the-eastern-conference-and-nba-cup\/","title":{"rendered":"Pistons vs Raptors: Showdown at the top of the Eastern Conference and NBA Cup"},"content":{"rendered":"We are one month away from the start of the 2025-26 NBA regular season and finishing the group stage of the third edition of the NBA Cup this week.\n\nThe [Detroit Pistons](\/nba\/team\/_\/name\/det\/detroit-pistons) continue to dominate in the early weeks, leading the Eastern Conference with a 2.5-game lead over the [Toronto Raptors](\/nba\/team\/_\/name\/tor\/toronto-raptors), two teams that have gained momentum after less favorable seasons.\n\nWhile the East is shaping up to be a very competitive conference, the West remains a battle, except for the [Oklahoma City Thunder](\/nba\/team\/_\/name\/okc\/oklahoma-city-thunder), the only team with a single loss this season. The [Los Angeles Lakers](\/nba\/team\/_\/name\/lal\/los-angeles-lakers) have also climbed positions, winning their last four games and celebrating the return of superstar LeBron James.\n\nOur NBA experts analyze this week&#8217;s rankings, including the status of star injuries and which teams are already thinking about the 2026 draft.\n\nNote: Team rankings are based on the opinion of our panel members.\n\n<p><strong>Previous Rankings:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Preseason<\/li><li>October 29th<\/li><li>November 5th<\/li><li>November 12th<\/li><li>November 19th<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Team Ranking:<\/h2>\n\n\n<p><strong>1. [Oklahoma City Thunder](\/nba\/team\/_\/name\/okc\/oklahoma-city-thunder)<\/strong><\/p>\n\nRecord 2025-26: 17-1\n\nThe Thunder have had an impressive start to the season, highlighting their dominance with a point differential of +16.9. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, averaging 32.2 points, has been key to their success.\n\n<strong>2. [Detroit Pistons](\/nba\/team\/_\/name\/det\/detroit-pistons)<\/strong>\n\nRecord 2025-26: 15-2\n\nThe Pistons have shown significant improvement on both sides of the court, establishing themselves as a high-level team. The return of Jaden Ivey and the good performance of Cade Cunningham are key factors.\n\n<strong>3. [Denver Nuggets](\/nba\/team\/_\/name\/den\/denver-nuggets)<\/strong>\n\nRecord 2025-26: 13-4\n\nPeyton Watson will have the opportunity to prove his worth as a starter due to the injuries of other players. His performance, especially his 3-point shooting ability, could be crucial for his future.\n\n<p><strong>4. [Houston Rockets](\/nba\/team\/_\/name\/hou\/houston-rockets)<\/strong><\/p>\n\nRecord 2025-26: 11-4\n\nAmen Thompson has tied his season-high, while Alperen Sengun has maintained a consistent streak of points, rebounds, and assists. The Rockets are facing a series of away games.\n\n<strong>5. [Los Angeles Lakers](\/nba\/team\/_\/name\/lal\/los-angeles-lakers)<\/strong>\n\nRecord 2025-26: 13-4\n\n<p>Despite their struggles with 3-point shots, LeBron James is optimistic about the Lakers&#8217; ability to improve in this area.<\/p>\n\n<p><strong>6. [Cleveland Cavaliers](\/nba\/team\/_\/name\/cle\/cleveland-cavaliers)<\/strong><\/p>\n\nRecord 2025-26: 12-7\n\nDonovan Mitchell, named Player of the Week, is leading the Cavaliers, while Darius Garland recovers from an injury. Mitchell is focused on winning a championship.\n\n<p><strong>7. [Toronto Raptors](\/nba\/team\/_\/name\/tor\/toronto-raptors)<\/strong><\/p>\n\nRecord 2025-26: 13-5\n\nThe Raptors have had a winning streak, including important victories against the Cavaliers.\n\n<strong>8. [Miami Heat](\/nba\/team\/_\/name\/mia\/miami-heat)<\/strong>\n\nRecord 2025-26: 12-6\n\nThe return of Tyler Herro has boosted the Heat, who have won several consecutive games.\n\n<p><strong>9. [New York Knicks](\/nba\/team\/_\/name\/ny\/new-york-knicks)<\/strong><\/p>\n\nRecord 2025-26: 10-6\n\nThe Knicks have received a reprieve with the quick recovery of Jalen Brunson and the good performance of Karl-Anthony Towns.\n\n<p><strong>10. [Minnesota Timberwolves](\/nba\/team\/_\/name\/min\/minnesota-timberwolves)<\/strong><\/p>\n\nRecord 2025-26: 10-7\n\nThe Timberwolves have suffered some unexpected losses, which could affect their position in the conference.\n\n<p><strong>11. [Atlanta Hawks](\/nba\/team\/_\/name\/atl\/atlanta-hawks)<\/strong><\/p>\n\nRecord 2025-26: 11-8\n\nThe Hawks have exceeded expectations, but face significant challenges in the coming weeks.\n\n<strong>12. [San Antonio Spurs](\/nba\/team\/_\/name\/sa\/san-antonio-spurs)<\/strong>\n\nRecord 2025-26: 11-5\n\nThe Spurs, without Victor Wembanyama, have achieved home victories. Wembanyama and Stephon Castle are expected to be reevaluated soon.\n\n<p><strong>13. [Phoenix Suns](\/nba\/team\/_\/name\/phx\/phoenix-suns)<\/strong><\/p>\n\nRecord 2025-26: 11-7\n\nThe Suns have performed well, partly thanks to Dillon Brooks, who is having an outstanding season.\n\n<p><strong>14. [Orlando Magic](\/nba\/team\/_\/name\/orl\/orlando-magic)<\/strong><\/p>\n\nRecord 2025-26: 11-8\n\nOrlando showed potential despite the absences of key players, and Jett Howard and Jase Richardson stood out in a recent game.\n\n<strong>15. [Golden State Warriors](\/nba\/team\/_\/name\/gs\/golden-state-warriors)<\/strong>\n\nRecord 2025-26: 10-9\n\nThe Warriors face a complicated week with injuries in their squad. Al Horford and Jonathan Kuminga are out due to injury and Draymond Green is dealing with a foot injury.\n\n<strong>16. [Boston Celtics](\/nba\/team\/_\/name\/bos\/boston-celtics)<\/strong>\n\nRecord 2025-26: 9-8\n\nThe Celtics are competing and Jaylen Brown is having a season with high numbers.\n\n<p><strong>17. [Philadelphia 76ers](\/nba\/team\/_\/name\/phi\/philadelphia-76ers)<\/strong><\/p>\n\nRecord 2025-26: 9-8\n\nJoel Embiid has been out with a knee injury, but is expected to return soon.\n\n<p><strong>18. [Chicago Bulls](\/nba\/team\/_\/name\/chi\/chicago-bulls)<\/strong><\/p>\n\nRecord 2025-26: 9-8\n\nThe Bulls have performed inconsistently after a good start, with defensive problems in recent games.\n\n<p><strong>19. [Portland Trail Blazers](\/nba\/team\/_\/name\/por\/portland-trail-blazers)<\/strong><\/p>\n\nRecord 2025-26: 8-10\n\nDespite the absences due to injury, the Blazers are close to advancing in the NBA Cup, driven by Caleb Love&#8217;s performance.\n\n<p><strong>20. [Milwaukee Bucks](\/nba\/team\/_\/name\/mil\/milwaukee-bucks)<\/strong><\/p>\n\nRecord 2025-26: 8-10\n\nThe Bucks have lost several consecutive games, including games without Giannis Antetokounmpo, who could return soon. Antetokounmpo was listed as questionable for Wednesday&#8217;s game in Miami.","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>We are one month away from the start of the 2025-26 NBA regular season and finishing the group stage of the third edition of the NBA Cup this week. The [Detroit Pistons](\/nba\/team\/_\/name\/det\/detroit-pistons) continue to dominate in the early weeks, leading the Eastern Conference with a 2.5-game lead over the [Toronto Raptors](\/nba\/team\/_\/name\/tor\/toronto-raptors), two teams that have [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":88540,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[5159,121,103,785],"class_list":{"0":"post-88539","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nba","8":"tag-detroit-pistons","9":"tag-lebron-james","10":"tag-nba","11":"tag-power-rankings"},"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alofokedeportes.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88539","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alofokedeportes.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alofokedeportes.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alofokedeportes.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alofokedeportes.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=88539"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/alofokedeportes.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88539\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alofokedeportes.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/88540"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alofokedeportes.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=88539"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alofokedeportes.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=88539"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alofokedeportes.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=88539"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}