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Power Rankings: A NoMelo Bump

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Winning two out of three games since Mikhail Prokhorov pulled the plug on Carmelo Anthony trade talks does get you some bump in power rankings...not much but some.  In both John Schuhmann's and Marc Stein's rankings, the Nets are now #26, up from #28 and #29 respectively. 

Schuhmann notes, "They clearly have responded to Mikhail Prokhorov's declaration that they're moving on. After an ugly stretch, they're finally back to playing solid defense." Stein,  says, "It is a fact: New Jersey played its best ball of the season -- with wins over Utah and Detroit and a one-point L to Dallas -- after pulling out of the Melo talks."

Of the Nets' opponents Monday, Stein has this devastating assessment: the Cavs "are on course to become the first team in history to go from the league's-best record to the worst in one season."  Stats guys John Hollinger still has the Nets at #28, but Jeff Sagarin puts them at #26 and notes they've had the fourth toughest schedule so far.