NBA power rankings roundup: Jazz rise in national rankings thanks to 8-game win streak

Joe Ingles broke John Stockton’s all-time franchise record for 3s made last season, but Ingles is probably just keeping the spot warm for Donovan Mitchell. Ingles has made 1,045 3s in his career, all in a Jazz uniform, only 237 more than Mitchell. Mitchell (82 3s this season) also is on pace to shatter Utah’s single-season record for 3s, a mark set by Jordan Clarkson (208) last season. — Tim MacMahon

The Jazz are seemingly in the portion of their schedule where they just destroy everything in sight. They’ve won seven straight games, with five of the seven wins having come by 22 points or more. The Jazz are the only team to have scored more than 130 points per 100 possessions three times this season, and all three instances have come in the last two weeks. Two of the three came against teams — Boston and Minnesota — that ranked fifth and eighth defensively prior to their meeting with the Jazz.

Over the course of the winning streak, the Jazz have scored an amazing 136.4 points per 100 possessions (shooting 66% on 2s and 48% on 3s) after halftime. Overall, they’ve scored 4.5 more points per 100 possessions than any other team this season. They continue to rain 3s on their opponents, but, as noted on Thursday, the real improvement has come in the paint, where they’ve shot 61.1% (best in the league), up from 56.8% (14th) last season. Rudy Gobert has shot 80% in the restricted area and the Jazz have four of the 33 players who’ve shot 45% or better on at least 50 non-restricted-area shots in the paint.

The Jazz have two six-game homestands this season, and the first of the two begins Wednesday (after a three-day break). The toughest defense they’ll face between now and their Jan. 1 meeting with the Warriors is that of the fourth-ranked Clippers.— John Schuhmann

Any early-season anxiety surrounding the Jazz has dissipated in recent weeks. Utah enters Monday night winners of seven straight, including four straight road victories. Rudy Gobert is in the midst of his most efficient offensive season (73.8% on two-pointers!). The Jazz are rebounding 30% of their own misses. There are still questions to be had about this offense in the playoffs, though this is still a regular-season juggernaut. The Western Conference could still run through Salt Lake City when the postseason begins. — Michael Shapiro

There is no hotter NBA team than the Jazz, whose winning streak now sits at eight games after three more blowout victories this week over the 76ers, Wizards and Clippers. The offense has been nearly unstoppable, putting up 124.1 points per 100 possessions this week behind 25.7 points per game from Donovan Mitchell on 52/42/83 shooting splits. Rudy Gobert is doing it on both ends, averaging 19 points, 16.3 rebounds and 1.7 blocks per game this week on 74 percent shooting. Utah has rightfully earned the No. 1 spot. — Colin Ward-Henninger

Utah has found its groove: Winners of seven in a row, best offense in the NBA, best net rating in the league once you filter out garbage time (stat via Cleaning the Glass), and they play their next six tames at home. Even if everyone has a wait and see approach to the Jazz in the postseason, they are contenders. We can also wait and see if Danny Ainge taking on a new title with the Jazz and heading basketball operations changes much of anything. Utah has been one of the more stable organizations in the league. — Kurt Helin