NBA Power Rankings: Week 15

Week 15 in the NBA was a busy one with games that delivered sheer excitement, players delivering legendary performances and a day in the honor of Martin Luther King Jr. which saw 22 teams in action.

With the season progressing closer towards the All-Star weekend, fatigue and injuries are already taking their toll. Some players are back from injuries while some are struggling to stay away from them.

This week saw a much-anticipated return in the league- DeMarcus Cousins to the Warriors line-up which is now a team with 5-All-Star starters. Victor Oladipo of the Indiana Pacers suffered a ruptured quad tendon in his right knee off a fall during a game against Toronto Raptors on Wednesday. The LA Lakers who are already short of LeBron James from the last 13 games, lost Lonzo Ball to an ankle injury and is expected to be out for 4 to 6 weeks.

For the Houston Rockets, with James Harden putting the best numbers off his entire career another good news came with Eric Gordon back in action but they lost Clint Capela to a thumb injury- who is set to miss next 4 to 6 weeks.

Anthony Davis of the New Orleans Pelicans suffered a sprained finger in Portland on Friday. Davis will only miss 1-2 weeks, but, sitting four games out of a playoff spot the Pelicans need every game they can get.

Let's have a look at the Conference power rankings, MVP and Rookie of the Year talks for Week 15 of the 2018-19 NBA season.

NBA Eastern Conference Power Rankings

Milwaukee Bucks: First in the Eastern Conference (35-13)

Milwaukee Bucks Philadelphia 76ers v Indiana Pacers

Last week: 2-1 (win vs. Mavericks, win vs. Hornets, loss at Thunder)

Coming Week: at Pistons, at Raptors, at Wizards

The Bucks have not lost back-to-back games this entire season. Their MVP-candidate Giannis Antetokounmpo is dominating on a nightly basis with an average of 26.6 points, 12.6 rebounds, 5.9 assists, 1.5 blocks and 1.4 steals - the only player in the NBA to average over 25 points, 10 rebounds and five assists per game.

The Bucks supporting cast is playing an important role in this success with Khris Middleton, Malcolm Brogdon and Eric Bledsoe all average over 15 points a game. They are the only team in the league to top in both offensive and defensive rating.

Philadelphia 76ers: Fourth in the Eastern Conference (32-18)

Last week:

2-1 (win vs. Rockets, win vs. Spurs, loss at Nuggets)

Coming Week: at Lakers, at Warriors, at Kings

The 76ers have been a team to track since the beginning of season. With the team putting differences aside, gelling well with each other and their roles on the team put a solid performance despite missing Jimmy Butler. He sat out all week with a wrist injury.

Joel Embiid posted a strong double-double in a win against Rockets with 32 points and 14 rebounds. In a win against the Spurs, he posted 33 points and 19 rebounds. In the same game, reigning ROTY Ben Simmons recorded a triple-double 21 points , 10 rebounds and 15 assists.

Boston Celtics: Fifth in the Eastern Conference (30-19)

Last week: 2-1 (win vs. Heat, win vs. Cavaliers, loss vs. Warriors)

Coming Week: vs. Nets, vs. Hornets, at Knicks, vs. Thunder

In their last match-up of the week, Celtics put a brilliant fight against the reigning champions. They fell a little short in the closing minutes in this valient effort. Kyrie Irving scored 32 points with 10 assists and Al Horford had 22 points and 13 rebounds for Boston, which had won five straight and 10 in a row at home.

Irving has been a play-master in Celtics' recent success while averaging 31 points and 10.8 assists.He has gone for over 30 points and 10 assists in four of those five contests. With their healthy brigade of both youngsters and veterans Celtics are looking to surge up in the conference.

NBA Western Conference Power Rankings

Golden State Warriors: First in the Western Conference (35-14)

Last week: 3-0 (win at Lakers, win at Wizards, win at Celtics)

Coming Week: at Pacers, vs. 76ers, vs. Lakers

DeMarcus Cousins boasted of the Warriors being "the most hated team" in sports. It is next to true when their All-Star lineup steps on the court and demolishes the opponents. They are now on a 10-game winning streak and will look on to extend is as far as possible. With Boogie fitting into the Warriors' offense and defense schemes, they've outscored their opponents by a total of 160 points over their 10 games.

Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant are playing their usual MVP-level basketball and the offensive boost they get from Klay Thompson and Draymond Green is unmatched.

Oklahoma City Thunder: Third in the Western Conference (31-18)

Last week: 4-0 (win at Knicks, win vs. Blazers, win vs. Pelicans, win vs. Bucks)

Coming Week: at Magic, at Heat, at Cetlics

The Thunder are on a five-game winning streak and with their stars- Paul George, Steven Adams and former MVP Russell Westbrook playing major roles to finding ways to ride their team with W, they look like a serious contender to the Warriors in the West.

George is posting while shooting, 48.0 percent from the field and a jaw-dropping 54.3 percent from 3-point range. He's gone for 30 points in four of the five wins and is making huge plays coming up clutch for OKC left and right.

George has averaged 31.4 points, 8.4 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 2.6 steals in the last 5 games. His counterpart Russell Westbrook is struggling with his outside shooting but is leading the league in assists and making impact for his team.

The OKC support cast- Jerami Grant, Nerlens Noel, Terrance Ferguson and Dennis Schroder are putting big numbers at big situations in helping the squad.

Houston Rockets: Fifth in the Western Conference (29-20)

Last week: 3-1 (loss at 76ers, win at Knicks, win vs. Raptors, win vs. Magic)

Coming Week: vs. Pelicans, at Nuggets, at Jazz

The prolific scoring of James Harden has become a norm when the Rockets take the floor. James scored 37, 61, 35 and 40 last week in which they won 3 times.

Kenneth Faried who just joined the Rockets recently has got the chance in the lineup amidst injuries. He scored back-to-back double-doubles to end the week.

Chris Paul is back from a 17-game absence, scored 12 points and 6 assists in the win against Magic.

Rockets' depth as a team has been a challenge all season. With Faried added to the squad, Chris Paul and Eric Gordon returning back to action, Rockets can dream their contendership to the West title.

NBA MVP Power Rankings

#1 James Harden, Houston Rockets

Last Week Stats: 44.2 points, 5.2 assists, 8.4 rebounds, 2.2 steals, 5 3PG

James Harden's hunt for consecutive MVP titles can be a reality and he has been proving this night-after-night. In the last week, Harden scored at a prolific 44.2 points average. There is no stopping him now that his streak of consecutive games scoring 30 or more points is at 21 (and counting).

His supporting crew including Chris Paul and Eric Gordon are back after break from injuries and continue to aid the scorer and taking Rockets to a respectable playoff seed after staying as low as the 14th seed in December.

#2 Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks

#34, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks

Last Week Stats: 30.6 points, 15.6 rebounds, 4 assists, 51.3 FG%

His case for the MVP is strongest among the last two campaigns. Giannis has also been named the East All-Star team captain and will be playing his 3rd All-Star game. Leading a team which holds the best record in the league doesn't come easy and Giannis acknowledges this and is putting up huge numbers on a nightly basis to shoulder his team.

#3 Paul George, Oklahoma City Thunder

Last Week Stats: 31.5 points, 2.5 steals, 9 rebounds, 4.5 assists, 49.7 FG%

Paul George has led the OKC Thunder to a 4-game clean sweep last week and is performing proficiently on both the offensive and the defensive ends. Now named an All-Star game starter, George is on a terrific run with convincing numbers.

George is slowly making his way to the head of the pack in the race to the Most Valuable Player laurel. With the OKC Thunder residing at the 3rd place in the West, the team will need him to step up post-season if they want to challenge the Warriors for the NBA championship.

NBA Rookie of the Year Power Rankings

#1 Luka Doncic, Dallas Mavericks

He is indeed the best prospect for ROTY this year and he has been proving this sincerely. He has averaged 25.5 points, 8.5 assists, 9.5 rebounds in the last 4 games that the Mavs played this week.

Dallas stand at a shabby 12th position in the Western Conference but Doncic is a silver lining for them and will be looking to aim for a playoff spot in the season that remains.

#2 Trae Young, Atlanta Hawks

Trae Young has put up numbers worth noticing but he lacks the consistency in scoring which he will definitely gain as he matures as a player.

For a guard, 29% 3-pointer conversion percentage is troublesome, Young leads the NBA rookies in assists with 7.3 assists per game.

#3 Marvin Bagley III, Sacramento Kings

#35, Marvin Bagley III, Sacramento Kings

Bagley returned after injury in early January after missing 11 games. Since his return, the No. 2 pick has scored in double digits in six of the eight games, averaging 12.8 points and 7.4 rebounds while shooting 50 percent from the floor.

The youngster is making his case and it will be interesting to see how he steps up at playing even bigger roles for their teams in the near future.