NBA power rankings: Spurs soar into top 13 with impressive six-spot jump

These aren't your same ol' Spurs, and the NBA has started to take notice. Every week, power rankings are posted on NBA.com, evaluating all 30 teams. San Antonio has been flirting in the 20-28 range for a long time, but recently things changed. Last week, they broke through the 20s, landing at 19, and this week, they were elevated to 13 after their three-game win streak.

The only other teams with larger leaps than SA are the Milwaukee Bucks (+13) and the LA Clippers (+8). San Antonio's offense was still slightly below average (16th), but they played top-five defense (4th) last week, and it's because of that defense that they held the Warriors to their lowest point total of the season, and the Thunder to their third-lowest.

Spurs' depth and maturity are winning games and recognition

Harrison Barnes was named Western Conference Player of the Week after a stellar stretch of performances. He averaged 22.3 points by shooting 61.8% from the field and 60% from deep. His 8.7 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game were all instrumental in helping the Silver and Black get on this winning streak. This is the first time Barnes has won a Player of the Week award in his career.

It's a testament to the culture the Spurs culture that's been around for decades. On any given night, someone steps up, and if they have the hot hand, the players will feed him. Barnes played with energy, and the ball found him. He's been better than advertised when Brian Wright traded for him.

This team trusts each other, and they're invested in doing what it takes to win. They've beaten some of the best teams the league has to offer and have done so in a convincing fashion. Overcoming double-digit deficits is not something the Spurs would have done last year, but they've turned a corner, and Julian Champagnie commented on that evolution at practice on Monday.

"Last year, we didn't talk enough. We didn't move enough...I think that's the biggest difference between this year and last year. We've just matured, and we are approaching it with a little more professionalism." - Julian Champagnie

You can't always control whether the ball will go in the basket, but you can determine your level of effort on a possession-to-possession basis. Part of maturing is realizing that—the Spurs have and it's manifesting into a strong defense. When you look deeper into the numbers, the Silver and Black ranked number one in opponent's field goal percentage over these last three games.

They're first in the league in opponent's free throw attempts while taking 28 per game, themselves—good for third in the NBA. Some of those free throws are due to holding the lead at the end of games, forcing the other team to play the fouling game. Fortunately for the Spurs, they shoot 80% from the line as a team, so that isn't a problem either.

As with any young team, consistency will be the most challenging aspect of success, but if they can play with consistency, they'll keep gaining notoriety. The Spurs' next game is Tuesday night on the road in Utah for the final game in the season series vs. the Jazz. San Antonio is currently up 2-1 in the series and will look to put this team in their rearview with another Emirates NBA Cup win.