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Earl's NBA power ranking · Week 1, 2026

The Lakers rank 8th with a +5.405 neutral-field rating, up sharply from a 2.064 prior-season mark, but that 3-0 record comes against a soft -3.589 strength of schedule, so the win column overstates how good this team actually is. The market is already pricing them 3.09 points better than my rating, which makes them a clear sell at current spreads until they prove it against real competition.