Power Ranking the Biggest Threats to Heat and Lakers in 2012-13

With the Miami Heat coming off a title and the Los Angeles Lakers beefing up this offseason by adding the likes of Dwight Howard and Steve Nash, the two teams are considered the two prohibitive favorites to represent their respective conferences in the 2013 NBA Finals.

Still, that matchup is obviously not set in stone, as there are several teams that pose legitimate threats to both the Heat and the Lakers.

Which teams are they, and who should both ball clubs be worried about the most?

I'll give you the top five.

No. 5: New York Knicks

Before you burst into laughter, let me explain why I am giving the Knicks a shot.

New York had a very fine offseason, picking up the likes of Marcus Camby, Raymond Felton, Jason Kidd, Kurt Thomas and Ronnie Brewer. Both Camby and Brewer should significantly improve what was already a decent defense, and Kidd and Thomas, though old, add some depth and toughness to the bench.

The signing of Camby is a big selling point here for me. New York already has the reigning Defensive Player of the Year in Tyson Chandler, and now when Chandler goes to the bench, the Knicks defense won't miss much of a beat with Camby stepping in.

I also expect to see both of them on the floor simultaneously at times, and that is just too good of an interior D to ignore.

For those of you who think Camby is done, he averaged nine rebounds in just 22.9 minutes per game in 2012.

Brewer was also one of the more under-the-radar pickups of the offseason. Well-known for being a good perimeter defender, he should be able to hold down the fort until Iman Shumpert returns from ACL surgery. You can't expect Shumpert to come back at 100 percent right off the bat, either, so Brewer should provide a great cushion for New York.

As far as the rest of the Knicks go, a lot obviously hinges on the well-being of Amar'e Stoudemire. We all know he has the talent to score in bunches, but does he have the legs anymore? If he does, then New York is going to be a dangerous team. If not, then Carmelo Anthony is going to have to shoulder the load, and I don't think that will be enough.

No. 4: Memphis Grizzlies

I am still fairly stunned at how the Memphis Grizzlies failed to make it out of the first round of the playoffs this past season.

With the ability they have in the low post with Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol plus the scoring prowess of Rudy Gay, I thought for sure they'd have a shot at the finals. However, things just didn't materialize, and the Grizzlies were bounced by the Los Angeles Clippers.

Now Memphis really hasn't done anything to improve itself this offseason, and as a matter of fact, the team actually lost one of its better scorers in O.J. Mayo.

Still, with the depth the Grizz have up front (they have Marreese Speights to back up either Randolph or Gasol, and let's not forget that Darrell Arthur is returning from injury this year), not to mention their great perimeter defenders in Tony Allen and Quincy Pondexter, they will be right there this season.

The Lakers will simply be able to use their sheer size to beat many teams, but that won't work against the Grizzlies. As far as the Heat go, they would undoubtedly have trouble dealing with Memphis' frontcourt should the two teams end up meeting in June.

Don't laugh. The Grizz have the ingredients to beat both Los Angeles and Miami.

No. 3: San Antonio Spurs

The Spurs looked invincible heading into Game 3 of their Western Conference Finals series with the Oklahoma City Thunder, as they were riding a 20-game win streak, and it looked like the Thunder had absolutely no answer for them.

Unfortunately for San Antonio, Oklahoma City stormed back to win four straight and the series in six games, leaving Gregg Popovich and Co. to ponder what went wrong.

Make no mistake: The Spurs are still very dangerous, as they still have extraordinary depth and a very good Big Three in Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili. Offensively, they are stacked, as they can kill you in multiple ways on that side of the floor.

Where San Antonio struggles at times is defensively, and that is odd considering that the Spurs were always known for being a defensive juggernaut.

I also don't like the fact that San Antonio has done absolutely nothing this offseason to better itself. Despite the fact that the Spurs are a very good team, they are clearly missing something; and the normally shrewd front office didn't even attempt to try and find an answer this summer.

All of that said, San Antonio can still give any team in the league significant problems in a seven-game series. Let's not forget that Popovich is still the head coach.

No. 2: Oklahoma City Thunder

The Thunder looked poised to win the NBA title this past season, back-door sweeping the Spurs in the Western Conference Finals and then took Game 1 in the finals over the Heat. Oklahoma City then proceeded to lose four straight, falling to Miami in five games.

Now, the Thunder have an extra year of experience under their belts, and the trio of Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and James Harden should be better than ever.

However, what prevented me from ranking them No. 1 on this list is the fact that they did virtually nothing to improve themselves this offseason. When you lose to a team in five games, you should know that you have some areas that need patching up. For example, Oklahoma City still lacks a true low-post scorer, and its bench is nothing to write home about.

Regardless, one cannot deny the Thunder's talent, and despite the fact that the Lakers have reloaded in a big way, the Thunder are the defending Western Conference champions.

That, and they still have Durant.

No. 1: Boston Celtics

Up until the Lakers went out and pried Howard from the Orlando Magic, the Celtics were the team that had improved themselves the most in the offseason.

The Celtics will be getting the likes of Avery Bradley, Jeff Green (assuming his contract is eventually finalized) and Chris Wilcox (the latter two of whom were actually free agents whom Boston re-signed) back from injury.

Also, the Cs added Jason Terry, Courtney Lee and Jason Collins to the mix, not to mention the fact that they picked up Jared Sullinger, Fab Melo and Kris Joseph in the draft.

The Celtics are going to look very different from the team that took Miami to seven games in this past Eastern Conference Finals, and not only will they be different, but they should be much better.

Boston has the deepest backcourt in the league with Rajon Rondo, Bradley, Terry and Lee; and with the addition of Collins, the Cs will have an impenetrable wall on the interior defensively with Collins and Kevin Garnett.

No, Collins is not a stats guy, but he is one of the game's best low-post defenders, and former Magic coach Stan Van Gundy once said he defended Dwight better than anyone else in the league.

What makes the Celtics so dangerous is their depth and their ability to beat you in essentially any way possible. They have loads of versatility offensively, and we already know how good of a defensive team they are.

If anyone can dethrone the Heat in the East, it's Boston.