Jazz Claim Top Spot in Latest NBA Power Rankings

The Utah Jazz are a force to be reckoned with.

The Utah Jazz sit at 10-3 and currently straddle the top of the Western Conference standings. Next up, the Jazz are on the road to take on the Washington Wizards on Saturday afternoon. 

As the basketball-loving world continues to marvel at Utah, it's worth looking around to see how the national media views the Jazz. What better way to take a team's temperature than NBA power rankings? 

As it stands, the Jazz check in at No. 1 in CBS Sports' NBA power rankings. Utah moved up three places since the outlet's previous power ranking. Here's what Colin Ward-Henninger said by way of explanation. 

A couple good weeks could have been written off as a fluke, but the Jazz have ensured that we take them seriously by rattling off four straight wins and moving into first (!) place in the Western Conference. They truly are one of the most remarkable stories so far this season, as many had written them off as a tank candidate whose parts, while interesting, weren't exactly a fit. Yeah, we were all wrong. The league's second-best offense was paced this week by Lauri Markkanen, who put up 25 points and 8.3 rebounds per game on 56/46/96 shooting splits. Collin Sexton has only bolstered their attack as he's gotten healthier and received more minutes. At 34 years old, Will Hardy is the early favorite for Coach of the Year.

Indeed, Hardy is a Coach of the Year candidate, and if we're talking power rankings for that accolade, he'd be No. 1, too. Just like his team. 

Lauri Markkanen and Jordan Clarkson are All-Star candidates, while Collin Sexton — if he stays on the same trajectory — could take home Sixth Man of the Year honors when it's all said and done. Who says the Jazz don't have a bonafide superstar? All will be known in due time on that front. 

The job Hardy has done is unbelievable. It defies explanation. Hats off to him.

But while the national perspective gives Utah its props, remember this: at the first sign of any chink in the armor, these same analysts will jump over each other in a rush to torpedo the Jazz and say, 'We always knew it wasn't meant to last.' 

Trust me. They already have the shells for those stories written up. 

And it's possible that the music stops in Salt Lake City at some point this season because nobody, including the Jazz's architect Danny Ainge, saw this coming. It's inexplicable how Utah continues to put log after log on a fire that started off as a modest flame but has since burst into a wild conflagration. 

Obstacles and adversity await. Only time will tell how Hardy's squad navigates it. 

In the meantime, Jazz Nation should sit back and enjoy a brand of basketball that has the NBA eating its heart out. When you're whistling past the graveyard, who has the time for existential questions? 

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