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A road loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Christmas Day after 19 consecutive victories can be rationalized.

A fall-from-ahead road loss to the injury-plagued, drama-ridden Golden State Warriors cannot.

The Boston Celtics would have stayed at No. 1 in ESPN.com's NBA Power Rankings had they rebounded from their first defeat since a Nov. 14 home setback to Denver by turning a 14-point lead over the Warriors one night later into the expected victory. But Boston's seven straight weeks as our top-ranked team make it tough to buy the claims that the absence of Kendrick Perkins or the hangover from mourning the end of their franchise-record win streak prevented the Celts from finishing off an 8-22 team that didn't have Monta Ellis, Corey Maggette or Jamal Crawford.

The Lakers, then, return to the top spot in our weekly pulse take for the first time since the first regular-season edition of the rankings, thanks to a nice win in New Orleans and a steely fourth-quarter performance to take down the defending champs, offsetting (at least temporarily) L.A.'s concern over losing key reserve Jordan Farmar to a knee injury.

The combination of L.A.'s statement victory and a couple of scares at home for Cleveland unavoidably dropped the Cavs to No. 3, with Orlando threatening to move up, too, in a top five that suddenly is very fluid.

You can click here to rank the teams yourself or click here to comment.

Also, check out John Hollinger's daily Power Rankings.

Tune in Tuesdays to "NBA Fastbreak" on ESPN to see this week's U.S. Army Power Rankings. Four wins and the Lakers' long-awaited return to the No. 1 slot earn them U.S. Army Team of the Week status.

2008-09 Power Rankings: Week 9
RANK (LAST WK)		TEAM	REC.	COMMENT
	1 (3)	Lakers	25-5	You know Adande's theory about the Lakers slipping in December after such a killer November because they couldn't get excited about anything other than the Boston game? They sure made him look good, huh?
	2 (1)	Celtics	28-4	Sorry. Don't want to hear how dangerous that game in Oaktown supposedly was. Even the previously irresistible Celts can't avoid a drop after blowing a big lead to a team at the top of the Disarray Rankings.
	3 (2)	Cavaliers	26-4	You know how we say that sometimes teams drop a spot or two because they've been leapfrogged, not because they did much wrong? For the Cavs, with two losses in their past 27 games, this is one of those times.
	4 (4)	Magic	24-6	We're asked all the time: When will the ever-improving Magic, now 24-4 since an 0-2 start, be seen as an elite team? Realistic answer: It'll probably take playoff success against Cleveland or Boston, like it or not.
	5 (6)	Spurs	20-10	Clutch as they've been in double-overtime games -- up to 3-0 after another escape Saturday night against Memphis -- you can safely assume that the oldest team in the league would rather avoid the extra court time.
	6 (8)	Nuggets	20-11	Very kind of Chauncey to respond to some of the nice things we've been saying about him by leading the Nuggets to a decent split with Portland and a big comeback win over Philly while Melo rested that bad elbow.
	7 (5)	Hornets	18-9	On second thought? We're worried about the Hornets again after they got bullied at home by the Lakers for the second time and then looked as if they didn't even want to be out there on Christmas Day in Orlando.
	8 (7)	Rockets	20-11	Trust me: I don't want to write about Houston's injury problems here as much as I do. Problem is, I don't know how you avoid the subject when the Rockets aren't sure night-to-night who'll be healthy enough to dress.
	9 (9)	Hawks	19-10	Getting fans in the building to punch All-Star ballots for Joe Johnson (11th among East guards) remains an issue. The important thing, though, is that the Hawks are a win over Denver away from a tidy 7-1 homestand.
	10 (13)	Mavericks	18-12	The Cowboys are winless in the playoffs (when they reach them) since the committee (of one) hit Dallas in 1997. So we wonder: How much do you think Jerry Jones would pay us to leave what we like to call Mavsland?
	11 (11)	Suns	16-12	Teams heal quickly from NBA heartbreak because there's another game tomorrow. Right? Try telling the Suns, whose latest Spurs-inflicted torture is one of just four games they have in a strange stretch of 18 days.
	12 (10)	Trail Blazers	19-12	Two questions on our mind: Anyone else think that the other Blazers are getting a little too reliant on Brandon Roy? And does anyone else find it newsworthy that Mr. Oden has played in 24 consecutive games?
	13 (14)	Heat	16-13	Wade's renaissance and Spoelstra's fast start as a coach younger than 40 remain two of the season's better stories. We wanted to mention both today because the Heat's schedule is about to turn super tough.
	14 (15)	Nets	15-15	Explain this, please: New Jersey is the first team ever, according to Elias, to be more than five games over .500 on the road (10-4) and more than five games under .500 at home (5-11) at any point in any season.
	15 (12)	Jazz	18-14	Don't know whether anyone's clamoring to see another Jazz-Rockets matchup in the first round. But the teams seem to belong together more than ever, given Utah's ever-growing, Houston-like collection of injuries.
	16 (17)	Pistons	17-11	Stuckey just posted his first 40-point game as a pro, then Iverson spared the Pistons from an unsightly home defeat to the Thunder with a game-winning bucket in the final second. Again, we say: Baby steps.
	17 (18)	Bucks	14-17	You expect teams to win when they hold the opposition to 90 points or fewer, so the surprise isn't Milwaukee's 10-1 mark when that happens. The surprise: It already has happened 11 times in Skiles' first 31 games.
	18 (16)	Bulls	13-17	If you claim to have seen this coming, you're fibbing: Chicago's only three road wins were on the dreaded annual Circus Trip. The Bulls went 3-4 in those games and are 0-10 in their other road games. Imagine that.
	19 (22)	Grizzlies	10-20	Kudos to Iavaroni, who hasn't complained once about the constant speculation regarding his job security and who has a team full of kids playing .500 ball at home (8-8) amid a leaguewide firing frenzy.
	20 (26)	Warriors	9-23	A win over Boston?!? In which they held the champs to 89 points? After which Captain Jack makes the claim that Baron wants to be traded back to the Bay Area? The world's most entertaining bad team, hands down.
	21 (23)	Bobcats	11-20	Don't want to be so simplistic, but the Bobcats are a passable 10-5 when they score more than 90 points. It doesn't seem like a lot to ask, except that they've scored 90 or fewer 16 times ... and lost 15 of those 16 games.
	22 (24)	Raptors	12-18	Jose Calderon has quietly drained his first 66 free throws without a miss this season. Quietly is a nice way of saying that you can't blame anyone for missing that development given the December decline of Bosh & Co.
	23 (21)	76ers	12-17	When the Sixers stumbled out of the gate, their fans could still lose themselves in Phillies Euphoria. Perhaps the Eagles' unlikely rally into the NFL playoffs will further extend the Elton-less Sixers' grace period.
	24 (19)	Pacers	10-20	Being the only team in the league to have beaten the Celts and Lakers isn't much comfort when you can't stay healthy or hold a double-digit lead. Indy blew its league-leading ninth such lead Sunday against New Orleans.
	25 (20)	Knicks	11-18	Even with all our calendars about to be flipped to 2009, that ballyhooed summer of 2010 must still feel a long, long way away for a beat-up Knicks team that has looked increasingly tired and short-handed.
	26 (25)	Clippers	8-21	I know they didn't have the injured Zach Randolph, but the Clips had five days off before the Mavs showed up Sunday and ripped them by 22. So we wonder: How much would Dallas have won by if Nowitzki had played?
	27 (30)	Timberwolves	5-24	Coach McHale indeed needed nine games to finally win one, but we should point out that it wasn't the friendliest stretch of schedule, with games against the Jazz, Nuggets, Spurs (two), Lakers, Cavs and Rockets.
	28 (28)	Wizards	5-23	After Caron Butler joined Arenas on the shelf and the tease of a near upset in Cleveland, Tapscott's only consolation is that every replacement coach except Tony DiLeo in Philly is way worse than .500, just as he is.
	29 (27)	Kings	7-24	The Kings' loyal subjects haven't even been able to enjoy the one thing they were promised this season -- Kevin Martin's gunning for an All-Star slot -- because an ankle injury has cost him 22 games and counting.
	30 (29)	Thunder	3-28	The coaching change is working for Durant, Green and Westbrook. And signing Krstic was good business. But let's be real: Who's gonna focus on any of that until the Thunder move away from their current 8-74 pace?