Power Ranking Every NBA Division Heading into 2012-13

You may have already made up your mind about how teams stack up against each other going into this season, but how will their divisions fair in general?

As it turns out, some of the very best teams play in the very worst divisions. The Miami Heat stand a pretty good chance of being the only team from the Southeast Division qualifying for this season's playoffs, while the Lakers and Clippers could be the only two teams coming out of the Pacific.

Meanwhile, the Atlantic and Southwest Divisions could be host to some epic races as the season winds on.

Here's a look at how each division stacks up.

Which one do you think deserves the top spot?

6. Southeast Division

Projected 2012-13 Division Standings

1. Miami Heat

2. Atlanta Hawks

3. Washington Wizards

4. Orlando Magic

5. Charlotte Bobcats

The NBA's best team just happens to play in its worst division. Outside of the Miami Heat, every team in the Southeast finds itself in some stage of rebuilding. The Atlanta Hawks may be best equipped for that process given the ensemble approach it will take to replacing Joe Johnson. However, the Washington Wizards will be hot on their heels thanks to veteran acquisitions Emeka Okafor and Trevor Ariza and first-round draft pick Bradley Beal.

Both teams should struggle to make the playoffs, though.

Meanwhile, it goes without saying that the Orlando Magic and Charlotte Bobcats will be among the league's worst teams barring some improbable heroism. 

That means there's a very real possibility that seven of the eight Eastern Conference playoff teams will come from the Atlantic and Central Divisions.

5. Central Division

Projected 2012-13 Division Standings

1. Indiana Pacers

2. Chicago Bulls

3. Milwaukee Bucks

4. Detroit Pistons

5. Cleveland Cavaliers

This division would be more competitive were Derrick Rose starting the season healthy, but expect the Indiana Pacers to get out to a nice head start. The Chicago Bulls won't lose out on a postseason berth, but they could struggle to stay in front of Milwaukee if the young Bucks start hitting their groove this season.

The Pistons and Cavaliers will remain stuck at the bottom of the pack for now. Though both clubs have a young nucleus to build upon, there's still a lot of building to be done.

Either team could leapfrog the Bucks and contend for a playoff spot in another year or two given the right moves, but that's not happening just quite yet. For now, they'll continue to serve as target practice for the rest of the league.

4. Pacific Division

Projected 2012-13 Division Standings

1. Los Angeles Lakers

2. Los Angeles Clippers

3. Golden State Warriors

4. Phoenix Suns

5. Sacramento Kings

The only real question about this top-heavy division is who will end up finishing third.

Both the Warriors and Suns are borderline playoff teams, and they'll be integrating new pieces into their lineups in the hopes of reclaiming a spot in the postseason. Golden State may be a bit closer to doing so, but the Suns shouldn't be far behind.

There are few doubts about how good the two teams from Los Angeles will be. The Lakers' edge over their local rivals grew significantly this summer, but the Clippers still have a very good chance of remaining a top-four seed thanks to the additions of Jamal Crawford, Grant Hill and Lamar Odom.

Kings fans will just have to remain patient. They may have the last laugh when this club's young talent begins to truly blossom in a few years. Until then, there will be more of the same horrible defense and mistake-prone basketball.

3. Northwest Division

Projected 2012-13 Division Standings

1. Oklahoma City Thunder

2. Denver Nuggets

3. Minnesota Timberwolves

4. Utah jazz

5. Portland Trail Blazers

This division shares much in common with the Pacific, but it's probably a bit deeper. Both divisions include a couple of locks for the playoffs (in this case, Oklahoma City and Denver), and both divisions have a couple of teams with a decent chance of claiming the seventh or eighth seed.

The Timberwolves fell out of playoff contention when Ricky Rubio went down for the count with a torn ACL, but they could return to the race with their roster intact. Adding Brandon Roy and Andrei Kirilenko should help. Derrick WIlliams successfully transitioning to life as a small forward would really help.

The Utah Jazz, however, should be just as good as they were last season when they sneaked into the playoffs at the last minute.

Even the Trail Blazers could threaten for a spot if rookie Damian Lillard has a big coming-out party.

Some will contend that the Pacific is a stronger division simply because the Lakers and Clippers will be better than the Thunder and Nuggets. Tabling discussion about the rest of the teams in the divisions, there's still a strong case to be made for the Northwest.

After all, we haven't seen the new Lakers in action, but we know exactly what to expect from the Thunder. Unless Dwight Howard plans on guarding Durant's jumpshots, OKC will remain a dangerous threat to L.A.'s title hopes.

And, the Nuggets could very well pass up the Clippers as the fourth-best team in the conference behind the Thunder, Spurs and Lakers (in no particular order). Denver has a young roster that just keeps getting better, and its roster hasn't changed much since pushing the Lakers to a seventh game in last season's first round.

2. Southwest Division

Projected 2012-13 Division Standings

1. San Antonio Spurs

2. Dallas Mavericks

3. Memphis Grizzlies

4. New Orleans Hornets

5. Houston Rockets

Forget about the San Antonio Spurs going anywhere this season. They came within two wins of replacing the Oklahoma City Thunder as the Western Conference's representative to the NBA Finals, and they'll look to finish the job this year.

But, it's the next two teams that make this the best division in the West.

The Mavericks improved rather significantly this summer, replacing a platoon of underwhelming centers with Chris Kaman and grabbing Elton Brand on the cheap for some depth in the post. Guards Darren Collison and O.J. Mayo should also be an improvement over Jason Kidd and Jason Terry.

And, head coach Rick Carlisle will still have veterans Shawn Marion, Vince Carter and Delonte West rounding out a rotation that all of the sudden looks pretty deep once again.

Despite losing Mayo, the Grizzlies should once again be in the hunt, and they could very well hold on to the second spot in the division. Memphis came ever so close to returning to the Conference Semifinals last season, and it's hard to imagine the young club taking a huge step backward.

There may be a fairly steep drop-off after Memphis, but the Southwest may be the only division in the Western Conference with three teams that could all make it to the Conference Finals (or at least the Semifinals).

There's also a good chance the New Orleans Hornets emerge as one of the league's surprisingly good teams. Anthony Davis' defensive presence will be felt immediately, and the combination of a healthy Eric Gordon, Ryan Anderson and rookie Austin Rivers should give the club a solid core of perimeter shooters.

The Houston Rockets took a step back, but keep an eye on the organization. It still has a number of young assets that could be used to acquire a big name when no one is looking.

1. Atlantic Division

Projected 2012-13 Division Standings

1. Boston Celtics

2. New York Knicks

3. Philadelphia 76ers

4. Brooklyn Nets

5. Toronto Raptors

Forget about what this division looked like a year ago. Things changed this summer, and no other division saw across-the-board improvement like the Atlantic did.

From top to bottom, each organization took a big step forward.

Fresh off of pushing the Miami Heat to seven games in the Eastern Conference Finals, the Boston Celtics got better by replacing Ray Allen with a younger tandem of Jason Terry and Courtney Lee. They also got deeper by drafting Jared Sullinger and Fab Melo while re-signing Jeff Green after a year away from the game due to a heart problem. 

The Knicks were already beginning to show what they could do toward the end of last season, but a combination of injuries and the Miami Heat cut that dream short in the playoffs. Despite losing Jeremy Lin, NYC also got better thanks to key defensive additions like Marcus Camby and Ronnie Brewer. The continued integration of Iman Shumpert and J.R. Smith should ensure a solid supporting cast for Carmelo Anthony, Amar'e Stoudemire and Tyson Chandler.

It's anyone's guess whether the 76ers or Nets end up having the better year. The Nets have the star power, but the 76ers have the advantage in terms of depth and youth. This should be one of the most exciting postseason races to watch in March and April.

Even the Toronto Raptors have an outside shot (a really outside shot) at the postseason given the team's flurry of offseason improvements. 

But, the bottom line is this: four teams in this division have a legitimate shot at the Conference Semifinals, and at least two of them have a decent chance of going even further.