NBA Playoffs 2012: Re-Seeding the Postseason Following Latest Injuries

While injuries have dramatically altered the balance of power in the Eastern Conference, the West has remained relatively unscathed.

In fact, it's almost exactly where we expected it to be.

The East, on the other hand, has been turned upside-down by injuries of superstar proportions—most notably to Derrick Rose and Iman Shumpert, who both suffered torn ACLs in their respective Game 1s. Baron Davis' dislocated patella makes him the latest casualty of this treacherous first round, and there is almost certainly more bad news to come.

For now, though, here's how the two conferences stack up at the moment. Throw out the original seeding—a few things have changed.

Western Conference

1. San Antonio Spurs

Coach of the Year Gregg Popovich has led San Antonio to 13 straight wins, and it doesn't look as if the Spurs are slowing down any time soon. They've won their first three games against the Utah Jazz by a combined 58 points.

More importantly, this team remains healthy and poised for a deep playoff run. They could be in store for a week's worth of rest with a sweep of the Jazz and a protracted series between the Memphis Grizzlies and Los Angeles Clippers.

2. Oklahoma City Thunder

The Thunder made short work of the Dallas Mavericks, but the series was closer than it looked. Oklahoma City only won its two home games by a combined four points. Still, this young Thunder team will be hard to stop—even by the Lakers.

3. Los Angeles Lakers

Despite a loss in Game 3 to the Denver Nuggets, the Lakers find themselves rolling against a pretty formidable sixth seed. Whether Los Angeles will be able to keep that up against the Thunder remains to be seen, but they should have Metta World Peace for the series and an even more-recovered version of Matt Barnes.

4. Los Angeles Clippers

The Clippers looked to be in some trouble when Caron Butler fractured his left hand in Game 1, but he returned earlier than expected for Game 4. He won't return to form right away—especially on the offensive end—but Los Angeles will need him in order to have a chance in the Western Conference Semifinals.

They might even need him to survive the first round. Vinny Del Negro's team might have a 2-1 series lead at the moment, but that could change quickly against the Grizzlies. Butler gives Los Angeles its best chance of defending Rudy Gay.

5. Memphis Grizzlies

If Memphis wins Game 4 in Los Angeles, they very well may deserve to be ranked the fourth-best team in the West. This is a deep team with a lot of talent at every position. They're ever so close to putting it all together and taking that next step into "contender" territory.

6. Denver Nuggets

The Nuggets came into the series a little wounded after Wilson Chandler had season-ending hip surgery. He might not have changed the odds much against the Lakers, but there's no question Denver could use every able body it can find.

George Karl's young team has its back to the wall down 3-1, but this club is headed in the right direction and could find itself a few seeds higher this time next year.

7. Utah Jazz

Even Al Jefferson is conceding that San Antonio is the better team at the moment, and this series could well be over by the time you read this. Like the Nuggets, Utah is a promising young team. They're just not anywhere near ready to hang with the big boys out West...yet.

Eliminated: Dallas Mavericks

If didn't take long for the reigning NBA Champions to bow out of the postseason, and most of us aren't the least bit surprised. Rick Carlisle just didn't have the same tools at his disposal this season, and it probably didn't help that half of the roster was wondering where it would be playing next season.

This could be the end of the line for Dallas, or perhaps the beginning of something new and improved. The coming offseason will have everything to do with that.

Eastern Conference

1. Miami Heat

While it always seems like Dwyane Wade is on the verge of catastrophic injury, everything is just fine in Miami at the moment. Unless a surprising Game 4 upset by the Knicks spirals into the unthinkable, the Heat are on cruise control at least until the Celtics show up.

2. Boston Celtics

Boston's series against the Hawks hasn't exactly been a thing of beauty, but Doc Rivers probably wouldn't have it any other way. The Celtics have certainly been effective—Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett look like much younger versions of themselves.

With Ray Allen back in the mix, Boston will remain the East's only team with a real chance of beating the Heat so long as everyone remains healthy.

3. Indiana Pacers

Despite some uncertainty about how ready Darren Collison would be, but he's gotten better as the series goes on and scored 10 and 11 points off the bench in Games 3 and 4, respectively. It's still hard to tell exactly how good the Pacers are—Orlando hasn't been much of a test.

4. Atlanta Hawks

The Atlanta Hawks have been hit hard by injuries this year, and it may cost them the first round. Josh Smith missed Game 3, and Al Horford returned to the floor in Game 4 for his first game since January. If the Hawks can somehow stay alive against Boston, anything is possible.

5. Philadelphia 76ers

Doug Collins' team is young, deep and deceptively good. And with the Bulls hobbling to the finish line, these guys might just find themselves in the Semifinals.

6. New York Knicks

Outside of the Chicago Bulls, no team has been more impacted by injuries in these playoffs than the Knicks. Amar'e Stoudemire's infamous hand laceration kept him out of Game 3, and Jeremy Lin remains sidelined after knee surgery and is status for Game 5 isn't certain. Iman Shumpert's torn ACL (suffered in Game 1) made life even worse for New York and probably dashed the already slim chances of a first-round upset.

7. Chicago Bulls

The Bulls suffer the steepest drop due to injury. This isn't even close to the same team without Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah. Chicago was easily the first- or second-best team in the East to start the postseason, but it didn't take long for a torn ACL to change all that.

8. Orlando Magic

Dwight Howard might not have made this team a contender, but they're barely a playoff team without him. It's surprising they managed to take a game from the Pacers, but these guys should be out of their misery soon enough.