How the major power rankings view the Miami Heat: January 7th

With another week in the books across the NBA, it’s time to check in on the major power rankings to get a pulse on their perception of the Miami Heat.

It wasn’t quite as exciting a week for the Miami Heat this time around. The Heat checked in at 2-2 with home wins over the Toronto Raptors and Portland Trail Blazers and road losses against the Washington Wizards and Orlando Magic.

In our newest weekly feature, we’ll take stock of those outlets and their evaluation of the Heat. We’ll also take their total rankings and produce an average, just to give a clearer idea of how the group at large estimates them.

If there’s an outlet that we miss that you read regularly and would like to see it included, let us know on Twitter at @AllUCanHeat1.

Let’s get started.

NBA.com: 4th (previously 2nd)

The Los Angeles Lakers move up to third and the Boston Celtics to second, while the Milwaukee Bucks remain firmly entrenched in the number one spot. We may see this as a trend throughout all the rankings.

An excerpt from John Schuhmann:

"In the span of 27 hours, the Heat were on opposite ends of a pair of ugly fourth quarters. On Thursday. they held the Raptors to 16 points on 21 fourth-quarter possessions to improve to 6-2 in games between the top six teams in the East. And one night later, the Heat had *the least efficient quarter for any team in more than two years, scoring six points on 21 fourth-quarter possessions in Orlando to drop to 11-5 against the rest of the conference. The offense recovered without Jimmy Butler on Sunday and the Heat improved to 17-1 at home behind 29 points and 13 assists from Goran Dragic, who’s having himself a nice bounce-back season after struggling through injuries last year."

ESPN: 5th (previously 2nd)

Once again the Bucks are at one, while the Los Angeles Lakers, Boston Celtics and LA Clippers fill in between them and the fifth place Miami Heat.

An excerpt from ESPN staff:

"Here’s what’s so impressive about the Heat: Their starting lineup Sunday against Portland was Meyers Leonard, Bam Adebayo, Duncan Robinson, Derrick Jones Jr. and Kendrick Nunn. Didn’t matter. They played to their identity, ran their system and still scored points. They’ve had a few ugly losses lately — and an ugly win in which they scored only 84 points — but their depth and systematic structure is spectacular."

CBS Sports: 7th (previously 2nd)

The Miami Heat slid significantly in the CBS Sports power ranking, but going 2-2 against a fairly weak slate of opponents can have that effect. In this case, the Bucks, Lakers, Celtics, Houston Rockets, Clippers and Utah Jazz all place ahead of the Heat.

An excerpt from Colin Ward-Henninger:

"Goran Dragic turned back the clock with a 29-point, 13-assist performance in the win over Portland without Jimmy Butler, a good sign as he continues to work his way back into the mix after missing two weeks of December with a groin injury."

Yahoo Sports: 5th

A familiar group places ahead of the Heat on Yahoo’s power ranking. Once again, it’s the Bucks, Lakers, Celtics and Clippers in that order.

An excerpt from Tommy Beer:

"Despite playing without Jimmy Butler, who was ruled out due to back soreness, the Heat still beat the Blazers on Sunday. With Jimmy Buckets sidelined, Derrick Jones Jr. stepped into the starting lineup and stepped up, finishing with 19 points (8-of-17 FGs, 2-of-2 FTs), six boards, two assists, two blocks and one steal."

Bleacher Report: 8th (previously 5th)

Bleacher Report was by far the lowest on the Heat a week ago as the only power ranking to place them below second. After placing them fifth last week, this four-game stretch has dropped them to eighth, as you’d imagine from a rough period like that.

An excerpt from Grant Hughes:

"Weird stat: The Heat are 6-0 in overtime, which, depending on your analytical bent, you could spin as an indicator of good luck or a sign of Miami’s gumption in tough situations. Without choosing a side, it’s worth noting that success in close games sometimes comes easier for teams with clampdown defenses and an ability to get to the foul line when other tactics fail.Miami has both.That said, you can’t lose to the Wizards and Magic in the same week and expect to stick in the top five of our rankings."

Make sure to check back next week for our power rankings breakdown.