Conspiracy theories. Can't avoid them. When the Lakers are on top, theorists come out of the woodwork to tell ESPN.com that we are part of the vast conspiracy to keep the Kings and Spurs down in the Power Rankings. So it was interesting to see, with the Spurs atop our rankings this week, all the hubbub about the "conspiracy" to keep the Lakers down.

	Tim Duncan has fans in San Antonio chanting MVP! MVP!

What were you thinking?
Lakers team page
Once again, the conspiracy. You guys want the Spurs to win. What makes you believe that the Spurs are better than the Lakers and/or Kings? The Lakers swept the Spurs last year and haven't even played them once this year. ... L.A. doesn't care. Come playoff time, the broom will come out again as we sweep San Antonio back to their role as the Lakers toy. ... It just proves that you guys hate the Lakers. ... And don't worry. The Kings with Webber will take care of the Spurs.

Amar Amin
Cerritos, Calif.

I don't care how many games they lose, the Lakers should be a permanent No. 1 in your rankings. You should forget about No. 1 and just update rankings 2-28. The Lakers can turn it on when they want, where they want. There is both wisdom and power in knowing you're good enough to coast through a stretch of games and incur a few losses, and the Lakers can do this without getting complacent - they're just "pacing." When they turn it on, no one can beat them. No one will beat them. Not in the playoffs. Not when they want to win.

Joe Ableidinger
Princeton, NJ

I understand that the folks at ESPN.com are desperatly trying to raise some interest in an NBA season which is a forgone conclusion by switching up the No. 1 spot with San Antonio over the Lakers. But what they are doing is making themselves look foolish. Anyone who watches a lot, or for that matter, any basketball fan knows that the Lakers are the class of the league. They are head and shoulders above all the other teams, even though they haven't been playing to their potential. These rankings are more laughable when considering the Wizards crack the top 10. Please!!! The voters are about as rational as Juwan Howard's contract.

Matthew Stone
Los Angeles, Calif.

Is there any better commentary on how much better the Lakers are than the rest of the league than the expectations on them? They lose just three of their first 21, including one on the road in the toughest arena in the NBA to the No. 2 team on your power poll and one on the road in the second of back-to-back games -- without their starting point guard, and they actually drop in the poll! Man, tough room. And for all you in San Antonio, "Remember the Playoffs!"

Matt Penny
Austin, TX

Does Tim Duncan ever not get a double-double? Yes how about when the pressure is on, like in Game 3 of last year's Western Conference finals? Putting the Spurs above the Lakers is a joke. Don't let your urge to create some gossip override your common sense. No one in their right mind would say that the Lakers are not the number one team in the league, apart from you guys of course.

Mark
Sittingbourne, UK

Finally, justice served
Spurs team page
Right on with your Power Rankings. The Spurs are playing excellent ball. Everyone is contributing, from the starting five to the reserves. They are an unselfish team, even with a superstar. People are knocking their toughness because of the opponents they have played. ... To paraphrase an old saying, "You play with the cards dealt to you. That's what the Spurs are doing. They are taking care of the so-called patsies and preparing for the guts of their schedule.

John Kellman
San Antonio, TX

As big a Lakers fan as I am (I went to Portland to root for my Lakers during the Conference Finals two years ago), I applaud your ranking of the Spurs as the top team. While the Lakers seem to be slogging through their games, doing just enough to win, the Spurs have been hitting on all cylinders. Steve Smith for Derek Anderson has been the trade of the season (for the Spurs anyways), and when the time comes for the Western Conference Finals, the real Finals between the Lakers and Spurs will live up to the billing that failed to materialize last season.

Matt
Corona, Calif.

As a big-time Laker fan, it was hard to see the Lakers drop. But as a true basketball fan I can say that making the Spurs No. 1 for now was the right choice. However, everyone knows the only team to actually beat the Lakers this year is the Lakers themselves. They have not played dominant ball yet unless you consider beating sub-.500 teams easily and coming from behind on good teams like the Kings dominant ball. Master Phil is doing the same thing he did last year. He is giving his bench a lot of playing time while pacing the stars. See you in June !

Martin
Los Angeles, Calif.

A bold choice by the 'Power Rankings' crew. Tim Duncan is playing explosive basketball every night! The defense is making stops when needed with the help of althletic wings alongside Tim and Dave. Let's just hope they can continue to oil the machine as we roll toward the Lakers in the playoffs.

Marc Salazar
San Antonio, TX

Stop with the MJ hype!
Wizards team page
The Wizards at No. 10? Give me a break, sure they have won seven in a row, but who have they beaten? When they start playing some of the better teams from the Western Conference we will see how "good" they are!

Rick Gilbertson
Sioux City, SD

Are you kidding me? Putting Washington at No. 10 is a travesty to the entire league. Sure MJ and Rip Hamilton have done some great work, but it certainly isn't deserving of a 10 slot in the Power Rankings. They still have a lot of work to do and they've only played 25 games thus far. Maybe you guys are blind or something, but you can't honestly say that the Bucks are only one spot better than them either. C'mon guys, wake up and smell the leather!

Derek Hsu
Milwaukee, Wisc.

Good to see that a sub-.500 team can make the top ten in your poll. It just begs the question, would any sub-.500 team without MJ at the helm get that kind of respect? I think not! Get real! If the Clippers had an identical record you'd have them ranked 20 something despite playing in a tougher conference.

Nate Robetson.
Gilford, NH

Buck the trend, please
Bucks team page
You have got to be kidding me. The Bucks go on a five-game skid, dropping them in the rankings as expected. They turn it around, start playing some good basketball for the first time all season, so they drop three more spots? I'm starting to have flashbacks of last year's Power Rankings. The better the Bucks do, the further they fall. The good news is that none of this will matter when the Bucks are Eastern Conference Champions and ranked 10th in the Power Rankings just because they are the Bucks.

Jason W.
Johnson Creek, Wisc.

The boys are crying Wolves
Wolves team page
As I've said before and will continue to say until you number-crunching, bean counters get it right, "WHAT ABOUT THE WOLVES?". They've beaten both the Spurs and the Kings so why can't you give credit where credit is due. Keep them in fourth if you have to but change your titles and count them as one of the BIG FOUR.

Carl Lockrem
St. Paul, Minn.

Good ranking, bad comment
Celtics team page
Can you try to give the Celts a little credit. What is with the "That's right, Boston. No, we don't get it either" comment. This is the type of comment I'd expect last year when they were under .500 and ranked No. 20-something in the Power Rankings. You have them ranked No. 8, give them some respect. These types of comments are why "The Truth" is sixth in guard vote getting for the All-Star team and 'Twan is behind Grant "Back in Surgery" Hill.

Eli
Millis, Mass.

Mavs ready to move up
Mavericks team page
Mavs beat T-Wolves in a home-and-home and yet they are ranked below them. By the way, that makes four straight fellas. Not only that but THE big three are scoring at will, Juwan Howard has started to play a little again, and with Timmy Hardaway looking like instant offense again and Najera adding a little Tejano toughnes this team is deep and explosive. We're better than Minnesota and that's all there is to it.

Graham Dyer
Austin, TX