NBA Playoffs 2012: 5 Teams Destined for Postseason Disappointment

Think your favorite team is due for a championship?

Not so fast.

For every team set to be a contender this month, there's another that doesn't have a chance. To be fair, this is a tough year to be any team other than the Chicago Bulls, San Antonio Spurs, Miami Heat, Oklahoma City Thunder, Boston Celtics or Los Angeles Lakers.

Those six teams form an elite club, and the notion that anyone else will slip into the NBA Finals shocks our conventional wisdom.

On the other end of the spectrum, there's a slightly less elite club of five teams that really don't stand a chance this time around. 

Los Angeles Clippers

After such significant improvement coming the heels of the Chris Paul acquisition, Clippers' fans will understandably have high hopes for the postseason. Los Angeles' problem isn't talent—besides Paul, the addition of small forward Caron Butler and midseason acquisition of shooting guard Nick Young have given the Clippers a solid core to surround bigs Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan.

However, talent may not be enough to compensate for the difficult matchups this club will face in the first and second rounds—series against the red hot Memphis Grizzlies and San Antonio Spurs.  

Denver Nuggets

The Nuggets are an exciting young team to watch, but their fate should resemble the last go-around in which Denver succumbed to the Oklahoma City Thunder. This is a team that can put up a lot of points, but it's also one that plays unevenly and has yet to prove it belongs in the same conversation as teams like the Spurs, Thunder or Lakers.

Orlando Magic

You can't really say Magic fans will be disappointed by the outcome of these playoffs—that would imply they had high hopes to begin with.

That's unlikely to be the case with Dwight Howard shut down after a successful back surgery. But hey, who can stay sad for that long in Disney World?

Magic fans might just find out...

Atlanta Hawks

With Al Horford out of the postseason picture, the Hawks' chances to once again reach conference semifinals look increasingly dim. With Josh Smith and Joe Johnson leading the way, there's always a chance this club can pull an upset, but it will be hard to get past the Boston Celtics and even harder to best the Miami Heat should Atlanta be lucky enough to get that far. 

Indiana Pacers

If you haven't noticed that Indiana is the third seed in the Eastern Conference, you aren't alone. Frank Vogel has done a masterful job with a young ensemble cast that shares the ball and plays solid defense. 

The Pacers shouldn't have too much trouble getting past the Orlando Magic in the first round, but the dream could come to a sad ending soon thereafter with a second-round whopper against the Miami Heat. It would be a compelling clash of styles to be sure—a deep team without a superstar against a flashy crew front-loaded with three superstars.

"Compelling" might be as good as it gets for Indiana, though. Challenging the Heat will be a tall task.