NBA Power Rankings - The Warriors hold on to play-in hopes as the Magic ascend in the East - ESPN

With less than a month remaining in the regular season, teams are beginning to punch their tickets to the postseason while simultaneously fighting fatigue to prepare for a potential deep playoff run.

The dominant Boston Celtics became the first team to clinch a playoff spot last week. Meanwhile, the race behind them in the Eastern Conference is full of questions. The Milwaukee Bucks, led by the dangerous duo of Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard, currently have the edge. And the Philadelphia 76ers, who have been without reigning MVP Joel Embiid since Jan. 30, are in danger of dropping into the play-in tournament.

There is no clear-cut favorite in the West, and seed Nos. 4 to 8 are continuously shuffling, fighting to stay out of the play-in. After a couple of losses this month, the LA Clippers' lead for the 4-seed has shrunk to one game ahead of the New Orleans Pelicans. And despite a rocky season, the Houston Rockets are on a late-season charge, riding a six-game winning streak to potentially throw a wrench into the race.

With fewer than 20 games left in the regular season, it's crunch time for everyone. Let's take a look at this week's Power Rankings to see where all 30 teams stand as we enter this stretch.

Note: Throughout the regular season, our panel (Kendra Andrews, Tim Bontemps, Jamal Collier, Andrew Lopez, Tim MacMahon, Dave McMenamin and Ohm Youngmisuk) is ranking all 30 teams from top to bottom, taking stock of which teams are playing the best basketball and which teams are looking most like title contenders.

Previous rankings: Post-Finals | Nov. 1 | Nov. 8 | Nov. 15 | Nov. 22 | Nov. 29 | Dec. 6 | Dec. 13 | Dec. 20 | Dec. 27 | Jan. 3 | Jan. 10 | Jan. 17 | Jan. 24 | Jan. 31 | Feb. 7 | Feb. 14 | Feb. 28 |