Spurs rising in nearly every power ranking with playoffs approaching

The Spurs’ recent four-game winning streak has caught the attention of the basketball pundits across the blogosphere.

San Antonio moved up in the weekly power rankings of every poll we surveyed except one.

But in all cases, the Spurs are ranked behind the Chicago Bulls, who are the unanimous choice in every poll this week as the league’s No. 1 team.

Here’s a sampling of what our pollsters had to say about the Silver and Black this week:

, NBA.com

3. San Antonio (last week No. 4): How ridiculous was the San Antonio offense last week? Over their three games, only one Spur didn’t make at least half his shots. That was Matt Bonner, who shot 5-for-18. Richard Jefferson’s resurgance (21-for-36 from 3-point range over the last nine games) has made up for Bonner’s slump.

Teams ahead (in order): Chicago, Miami

, Fox Sports.com

4. San Antonio (last week No. 7): The Spurs have the league’s best record, seem to be healthy and have created a bit of momentum for themselves. But when you start looking at the next couple of months and start asking about LeBron, Kobe, D-Rose, Durant and such, do you actually think the Spurs can survive? They can, but only if they get some bounces and get excellent play from Richard Jefferson and George Hill.

Teams ahead: Chicago, Oklahoma City,  Los Angeles

, ESPN.com

4. San Antonio (last week No. 6): Should the Spurs, holders of the league’s best record since mid-November, lay down Tuesday night in L.A. to make sure the Lakers don’t fall all the way to the No. 4 seed and right into their bracket? You tell me.

Teams ahead:  Chicago, L.A. Lakers, Miami

, ESPN.com

5. San Antonio (last week No.7): Also pegged at an 18.0 percent chance of making the NBA Finals and an 8.7 percent chance of winning the championship (behind Chicago at 27.8 percent, Miami at 14.8 percent, Denver at 11.4 percent and the Lakers at 11.2 percent.)

Teams ahead:  Chicago, Denver, Miami, L.A. Lakers.

, Hoops World.com

4. San Antonio (last week No. 5): The Spurs have gotten through their injury woes and at 61 wins, and are tied with Chicago for best-overall record.

Teams ahead: Chicago, Oklahoma City, Miami.

, CBS Sports.com

3. San Antonio (last week No. 5): Season’s biggest surprise: George Hill. If the Spurs win the title, he’ll be the reason. His 30 minutes a night have helped keep Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili fresh.

Teams ahead: Chicago, Miami.

, SI.com

No numeric rankings this week (last week No. 7) Grade for season: A (trailing only Chicago’s A+. Memphis and Oklahoma City also received A marks): Whatever concerns exist about their lack of frontcourt size and depth or the advanced age of their stars, the Spurs have earned the No. 1 seed in the West while winning at least 60 games for the first time since 2005-06. Gregg Popovich deserves Coach of the Year votes for tinkering with the offense to emphasize the transition skills of a healthy Manu Ginobili (who has set a career high for minutes) and perpetually underrated Tony Parker (the NBA’s best finisher at point guard over the last five seasons), along with spreading the floor for spot-up three-pointers by Ginobili, Matt Bonner, Richard Jefferson and Gary Neal before defenses could get set. The result is the NBA’s second-most-efficient offense (behind Denver’s). Like Boston, San Antonio knows its championship window is closing and that it will need more minutes and vintage defensive excellence from Tim Duncan in the weeks ahead. But give this team its due for an outstanding regular season.

Teams ahead: Chicago.

, Pro Basketball Talk

4. San Antonio (last week No. 7): The Spurs offense is back in its groove, but Tuesday night in Los Angeles look for Gregg Popovich to sit his stars. He does not want the Lakers falling to the four seed, which could still happen.

Teams ahead: Chicago, Miami, Oklahoma City.

, Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel

2. San Antonio (last week No. 2): Can veterans last in playoffs?

Teams ahead: Chicago.

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