2012 NBA Playoffs Power Rankings, Conference Finals Edition

We're one game into the Western Conference finals with the Eastern equivalent set to begin later today. How do the four teams left stack up against each other? 

The Boston Celtics overcame a tenacious Philadelphia 76ers in the seven-game semifinals, while the Miami Heat dominated the second half of their own series, even if they were missing Chris Bosh. Out in the other conference, neither the Oklahoma City Thunder nor San Antonio Spurs had much trouble eliminating their opponents, losing a combined one game. 

Will the Spurs continue to set in their perch at the top, or has someone else taken over the throne?

Read on to find out. 

4. Boston Celtics

The Boston Celtics go into the Eastern Conference finals almost as an afterthought. After all, when you hear discussions about who could win this year's NBA title, the San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder are brought up first, almost as if the Western Conference finals are actually the de facto NBA finals. 

Boston will be facing the Miami Heat in the penultimate series of the playoffs, and their opponents are much more respected than they are, which just finished off a nail-biting—albeit ugly—series against the Philadelphia 76ers. 

While the struggles against the Sixers may have exposed some of the flaws of this veteran team—they struggle to create points, miss many easy shots and have the weakest bench since Doc Rivers took over—it also highlighted some of the strengths. 

The C's, as always, are a tough team comprised of a bunch of supremely talented players who have all been here before. Experience is most assuredly not an issue. 

However, we're no longer talking about a matchup with the superstar-less Philadelphia squad. An entirely different animal is awaiting them in the next round. 

Until the Celtics can prove themselves against a truly elite team, they're doomed to remain at No. 4 in the rankings here. 

3. Miami Heat

Even though LeBron James was named the 2011-2012 league MVP, his exploits during the regular season still didn't receive enough credit in-season. We tended to focus on the other storylines and then homed in on his rare shortcomings when they occurred. 

A similar scenario is playing out these playoffs. When Chris Bosh went down, and the Indiana Pacers started to look like they could be the second team to benefit immensely from the absence of an opposing superstar (see: Derrick Rose and the Philadelphia 76ers), doom and gloom reigned supreme. 

That's when the truly extraordinary happened: LeBron and Dwyane Wade just took the series over and became the one-two punch that so many thought they could be. Their performances during the last three games of the EC semis were simply sensational. 

Despite the statistical prowess and consecutive wins, though, the San Antonio Spurs started to steal the headlines as the wins started piling up, and people began to realize just how dominant the No. 1 seed out West was. 

Overlook them if you will, even though it's hard to believe that's even possible with the media hype they generate, but the Heat are truly an elite team, even without Bosh. 

2. Oklahoma City Thunder

While the Oklahoma City Thunder may have lost the Western Conference finals opener, losing for just the second time since the end of the regular season, there were quite a few positives to take away from the defeat.

First of all, the Thunder proved that they can indeed hang with the veteran San Antonio Spurs, even building up a nine-point lead in the second half before slipping away at the end.

The speed and athleticism on defense is something the Spurs haven't seen in a while after facing the Utah Jazz and the hobbled Los Angeles Clippers in the first two rounds of the playoffs. Every member of the Thunder (with the exception of the seemingly immobile Kendrick Perkins) was flying to the ball, especially when the Spurs swung it around the perimeter.

Secondly, Kevin Durant is going to have the ability to carry this team on offense. The league's regular-season scoring champ is going to be left guarding someone not named Tony Parker, Tim Duncan or Manu Ginobili for much of the game, which allows him to focus his energy more on the end of the court, where he most excels.

The Thunder may have lost Game 1 to the Spurs, but they showed a lot while playing in enemy territory. A loss obviously doesn't allow them to jump up to No. 1 in the rankings, but it certainly doesn't bump them below the Miami Heat, either. 

1. San Antonio Spurs

Were you honestly expecting someone else at No. 1?

That was a rhetorical spot, but if you found yourself either answering "Yes" out loud or typing a similar response in the comment section, then I have a follow-up question for you: Have we been watching the same postseason? 

The San Antonio Spurs, thanks to their ninth-straight win in the playoffs, are now tied for the longest winning streak kept alive during the postseason. 

There is zero chance of me moving a team that has gone 19 games in a row without a loss out of the No. 1 spot. 

No more justification is necessary.