Mavs, Suns, Nuggets surging after sluggish starts

Talk about coming home for the holidays. It took the Mavs, Suns and Nuggets a little while to get going this season, but there they were last week, carving up foes again like so many Thanksgiving turkeys. Dallas actually has been at it now for two weeks, while Phoenix and Denver seemed to find a groove over the holiday week.

Phoenix gets this week's high-riser spot for consecutive victories over the Warriors, Hornets, Nets and Blazers. Denver, meanwhile, came up with wins over the Bulls, Warriors (twice) and Clippers. Suddenly, the Western race is starting to look a lot more crowded -- and more like most thought it would before the season.

This week's high riser: Suns (No. 12 from No. 21)
This week's big drop: Clippers (No. 14 from No. 3)

NBA Power Rankings Rank LW Team 1 1 Utah Jazz (12-2) They lost at Golden State on Saturday to end an eight-game win streak. They will try to regroup against the Spurs on Wednesday night at the newly named Energy Solutions Center (or as the locals have dubbed it, "Radium Stadium.") 2 9 Dallas Mavericks (9-4) Josh Howard is back in the lineup, and they registered victories over the Spurs and Hornets to run their win streak to an NBA season-high nine games. Yeah, we'd say that 0-4 start is officially a distant memory. 3 2 San Antonio Spurs (11-3) They didn't need Manu Ginobili (back bruise) Sunday at Seattle to stay perfect on the road at 7-0. But can they keep it going this week at Golden State (Mon.) and Utah (Wed.)? 4 8 Houston Rockets (9-4) Kobe Bryant isn't the only superstar looking to pass more this season: Thanks in part to Tracy McGrady's willingness to dish (and Yao Ming's continued strong play), they had won three straight and eight of 10 entering the week. 5 7 Orlando Magic (10-4) Saturday's win over the Hawks made it nine of 11 and pushed them ahead of Cleveland for the East's best record. With a six-game road trip ahead, starting Monday in Utah, we'll soon find out if they're for real 6 14 Denver Nuggets (8-4) They beat the Clippers on Sunday to make it five straight victories, including two in a row over the Warriors. Maybe J.R. Smith is their long-sought answer at shooting guard after all. 7 10 Detroit Pistons (9-5) Saturday's win at Washington was their sixth straight and moved them into a tie with the Cavs atop the Central Division. Meanwhile, they've got to be loving the Ben Wallace headband controversy in Chicago. 8 6 Golden State Warriors (8-6) Even without Baron Davis (sore rib) and Mickael Pietrus (flu), they toppled the Jazz on Saturday to snap a three-game losing skid. 9 4 New Orleans Hornets (8-6) They missed Peja Stojakovic (back) and David West (elbow) in Saturday's loss to the Mavs, their third straight defeat. But with both starting forwards back by the end of the week, they should bounce back soon. 10 11 Los Angeles Lakers (9-4) Kobe is sharing the rock (10 assists in Sunday's win over the Nets), but they're also taking advantage of a home-friendly schedule. They're 8-1 at home so far (1-3 on the road), with the next seven at Staples (including one against the "home" Clippers).