The Times’ NBA rankings

Title Contender

1. Miami (9-3) – No such thing as a lingering Larry O’Brien Trophy hangover around South Beach. (1)

2. Memphis (9-2) – Randolph’s (printable) money quote, via ESPN Radio: “I’m good with these hands, man.” (3)

3. Oklahoma City (9-4) – Subplot of loss at Boston. Kendrick Perkins: The Return. (4)

4. Clippers (8-4) – Something about six. Longest winning streak last season also six games. (5)

5. San Antonio (10-3) – Lone road loss this season came in L.A.… to the Clippers. (2)

Climbing Up The Charts

6. New York (8-3) – Linsanity 1, Gotham 0. (7)

7. Brooklyn (7-4) – DWill versus CP3. Sounds like a fun video game. But Williams takes Round 1. (11)

8. Dallas (7-6) – Win one, lose one. Search for consistency continues. (8)

9. Boston (7-6) – Jeff Green’s wish list: More games on schedule versus Thunder. (6)

10. Lakers (6-7) Bickerstaff Era to be known as that Week with Bernie. (13)

11. Denver (7-6) – Deficit reduction. Comeback at Minny largest on road since March ’09. (9)

12. Houston (6-7) – Lin’s swagger returns just in time for Knicks game. (10)

13. Golden State (7-6) – True test of Warriors’ progress will come away from safe confines of Oracle.

14. Chicago (5-6) – What happened to the defense? (12)

Stuck in the Middle (Without You)

15. Milwaukee (6-4) – Brandon Jennings held under 10 points only once this season. (16)

16. Atlanta (7-4) – Looking for stock in (restricted) free market in 2013? #buyjeffteague (20)

17. Charlotte (6-5) – One victory removed from matching last season’s entire win total. (26)

18. Minnesota (5-6) – Love returns early. Pre-Thanksgiving gift for giddy fantasy owners. (14)

19. Philadelphia (7-5) – More setbacks for Bynum. No more Bowling With Andrew. (17)

20. Indiana (6-8) – Losing streak against Spurs extended to 11 games. (15)

21. Utah (7-6) – Former Clipper Mo Williams suffers sprained ankle versus Kings. (19)

B-SIDERS

22. Phoenix (6-7) Tweaks to starting lineup paid off against Blazers and Hornets. (22)

23. Portland (6-6) – Blazers beat Minnesota, winning the meeting between Brandon Roy’s last two teams. (24)

24. Orlando (5-7) – Cautionary note. Three of the wins happened to be over Pistons and Cavs. (21)

25. Cleveland (3-9) – Cavs versus LeBron. This time it’s no longer personal. #wishfulthinking (25)

26. New Orleans (3-8) – Beware the 19-point lead against the Suns. (23)

27. Toronto (3-10) – Struggles proving Toronto still a hockey town. Even without hockey.(27)

REMAINDER BIN

28. Detroit (3-10) – Wondering about the shelf life of Coach Lawrence Frank. (29)

29. Sacramento (3-9) – Momentum from Lakers win seemed to last about 24 seconds. (28)

30. Washington (0-10) – May need to change nickname again. Is Generals taken? (30)