In Power Rankings, Brooklyn Nets inching up...

After this week's three-game winning streak, and particularly the win over Oklahoma City, the writers who compile the weekly power rankings have cut the Nets some slack and ever so slightly moved them up. David Aldridge of TNT and NBA.com has them all the way up at No. 9, while Marc Stein still has them outside the playoffs, but three spots higher than last week.

The themes are often repeated: P.J. Carlesimo has breathed some life into the Nets offense, the OKC win was a signature game for the team and the contributions of Mirza Teletovic and MarShon Brooks this week have given the Nets hope going forward.

John Schuhmann, NBA.com (13)

The Nets are in the midst of a soft stretch of schedule that should pad their record, but Wednesday's win in Oklahoma City was what they really needed. Their offense has been much improved under P.J. Carlesimo, scoring 108.3 points per 100 possessions in his six games as head coach. The additions of MarShon Brooks and Mirza Teletovic to the rotation could help sustain that.

David Aldridge, TNT/NBA.com (9)

With a 5-1 record since taking over for Avery Johnson, P.J. Carlesimo is on the short list for Eastern Conference Coach of the Month honors for January. Perhaps he should consider dropping a few more games instead, considering how that worked out for the last guy.

Marc Stein, ESPN (15)

Four of the five victims are lottery-bound, so it's way too soon to say interim coach P.J. Carlesimo's 5-1 start has legitimately stabilized things in Brooklyn. But a win in Oklahoma City, under any circumstances, holds some promise. Deron Williams has a looked a touch sharper, too.

Seth Rosenthal, SB Nation (13)

The Wizards game got too scary, but the P.J. Carlesimo era's been fine so far. The playbook, replete with even more pickin' and rollin', has been among the best in the league since Carlesimo took over. Some bench resources left relatively untapped by Avery Johnson -- MarShon Brooks, Mirza Teletovic -- are starting to percolate as well.

Matt Dollinger, Sports Illustrated (14), published Friday

The Nets are finding out you can't build a contender overnight. Brooklyn's firing of Avery Johnson reeked of the same desperation that surrounded the team's acquisition of Joe Johnson and his albatross contract this summer. The Nets are significantly improved this year, in part thanks to Joe Johnson -- the team is 3-1 under interim coach P.J. Carlesimo -- but they still fall short of the league's top tier.

Mitch Lawrence, New York Daily News (14), published Friday

If they do get this thing turned around, they’ll look back at their shocking win in Oklahoma City as a season-changer.