Rankings of Every NBA Team by Homecourt Advantage

Any NBA team can be defined by its fans.  These are people who will move heaven and earth to get to as many home and road games as possible, even if it means selling all of their possessions. 

Both team management and players alike should appreciate these gestures because, without fans in the seats, there is no team to enjoy.  If a certain team is a perennial playoff contender, then having the fans roaring for them during the postseason adds a little extra bounce into everyone's step so that the win may be sealed.

Yet, for some teams, keeping the fans' attention is tough.  The squads that belong to this group are usually victims of either a small market or just poor team management, as every game is a borderline chore. 

I mean, come on.  Do you really think the Charlotte Bobcats enjoyed playing in front of their home crowd en route to the worst NBA season ever in 2011-12?

Needless to say, each NBA arena has its own set of fans who bring something unique to the table.  Accordingly, each one is even harder to crack for the visiting team.

That said, I've taken a look at each NBA venue and placed them into one of six groups: Road Trip From Hell, Must Want the Win, Better Have a Plan, Stick to the Guns, Strolling the Bumpy Road and Reel in the Win.

Reel in the Win: Charlotte Bobcats

You know that when the fans at Time Warner Cable Arena are putting paper bags over their heads, things are bad in Charlotte. 

The team is coming off of the worst season by any squad in NBA history, having won just seven games in 2011-12.  Unfortunately, things aren't looking up this year as the roster's best option for veteran leadership is overrated shooter Ben Gordon.  That said, why fans keep coming to watch this model of horrible team management is an absolute mystery.

If there are any cheers for the Bobcats, they're patronizing at best.  In all honesty, the sad truth is that North Carolina is and always will be a college ball state first as long as Duke, UNC and NC State keep contending for national titles.

That said, whenever any playoff-caliber team comes to Charlotte, it's not too hard to leave town with the victory.  All they need to do is establish dominance from the get-go and the rest is all gravy.

Reel in the Win: Detroit Pistons

Even though the Pistons have improved each of the last three seasons, they are still a long way from being out of the woods.  Like the Bobcats, the team's greatest problem is its youth, but they at least have a good veteran leader in Tayshaun Prince. 

Unfortunately, Pistons fans are used to seeing their team in playoff contention.  They saw their team win a championship less than 10 years ago and are getting impatient.  Recent attendance issues have made it so that the Pistons may have to leave the Palace at Auburn Hills, which can't help team morale at all.

Thus, with a dwindling home crowd, it isn't too hard to come away with a win in the Motor City.

Reel in the Win: Washington Wizards

The Verizon Center is a very nice venue, and it's even nicer for an elite team visiting the Wizards.  Washington isn't the worst team in the NBA by any means, but they are still young and inexperienced enough that the fans don't show much interest.

I actually went to a Wizards game last season when the Philadelphia 76ers were in town.  My friends and I got to the arena and everyone sitting in our section was wearing Sixers gear.  The rest of the stands featured pockets of Wizards fans.  In spite of all this, the Wizards came away with the win.

Still, based on the Wizards team as a whole, it isn't hard to beat them.  Their veterans are average at best, with the exception of Nene, and the rest of the players are just outmatched whenever challenged by the opposition.  All a team has to do is come out strong, and the youngsters crumble.

Reel in the Win: Sacramento Kings

Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson (right) may be smiling in this picture, but the Kings have had little to smile about in recent years.  Team ownership's inability to secure a deal for a new arena has created the ever-looming possibility that the Kings will move to a new city, which must be a dagger in the heart of fan morale.

That isn't to say that the Kings don't have loyal fans.  There are still a select few who come out to watch the games and cheer the team on.  Still, as a young and inexperienced team in the mother of all small market cities, the sadness tends to loom in Sleep Train Arena no matter how hard guys like DeMarcus Cousins and Tyreke Evans play.

Naturally, this serves as fodder for contenders that come to town.

Reel in the Win: Houston Rockets

Even with Linsanity having come to town on a three-year deal, Rockets fans have precious little to cheer about.  Ever since winning their second consecutive championship under Rudy Tomjanovich back in 1995, the team has struggled in the playoffs.  Of the nine trips Houston has made to the postseason, six have ended in the first round.

Much of the team's struggles in recent years can be attributed to former center Yao Ming's constant injury problems, but that isn't an excuse for not playing hard.  The Thunder have slowly gone from a contender to a team that has potential, but not the experience necessary to make the fireworks go off.

Even though James Harden and his playoff experience could very well help the team, he is the sole lock to put up good numbers.  Jeremy Lin has yet to play a full season and the rest of the team is young and inconsistent. 

Barring a miracle, opposing teams should have a field day in Houston this season.

Strolling the Bumpy Road

Here we have some teams who will pose a challenge thanks to some rowdy fans in the stands, but lack the overall talent on the court to keep up with the NBA's best.  These teams may pull off a big win a few times a season, but it's not much to get excited about.  Though they have the crowd's support, it can only do so much to stop an onslaught.

Milwaukee Bucks

As a team of offensive players being coached by the defense-minded Scott Skiles, the Bucks are between a rock and a hard place.  The players want some freedom with the ball, but their coach demands toughness and discipline from them.  Needless to say, this clashing of styles on the court doesn't make for some good basketball.

Still, the fans have two top-notch scorers in guards Brandon Jennings and Monta Ellis, both of whom are a lock to put on a hell of a show on offense.  Even if the rest of the team is playing badly, fans will cheer for these two.  Thus, all the opposition has to do is contain everyone else and hope that neither Ellis nor Jennings has a freakish scoring night.

Cleveland Cavaliers

The Cavs are headed back in the right direction thanks to the emergence of Kyrie Irving as the first star of the post-LeBron era, but his fine play can only do so much for the fans.  These people are still hurting from the after-effects of "The Decision" and given how James just won his first championship ring, it's going to take a while for them to make a full recovery.  Irving has been a big help to them thus far, but he is far from the sole cure.

Thus, whenever teams come to play the Cavaliers, it's usually pretty easy to take the crowd out of the game.  The fans love their team, but if Irving is contained, there isn't much else to watch.

Toronto Raptors

Like the Cavaliers, the Raptors are searching for their identity in the post-Chris Bosh era.  They are a young team with some talented players, but said talent comes and goes and consistency is practically a myth to this crew.  The only lock for a good game is Andrea Bargnani, who is all scoring and no defense.

Still, even when the Raptors are getting thrashed, the rowdy Canadian crowd stays fired up from start to finish.

New Orleans Hornets

The Hornets may have missed the playoffs last year, but that can be attributed to it being their first season without Chris Paul and Eric Gordon, the main piece they got back in the trade that sent Paul to the Clippers, was limited to nine games. 

The team looks better this year with the additions of Austin Rivers, Anthony Davis and Ryan Anderson, but youth could still hold the Hornets back.  Even with a small handful of passionate fans cheering them on, it's not going to be enough to beat elite teams.

That said, beating New Orleans isn't going to be at all hard this year so long as opposing teams don't let the fans get to them.  When the sole effective veteran on a team is Ryan Anderson, then it's not going to be hard to slowly make mince meat out of this young squad.

Portland Trail Blazers

Although only two years removed from a postseason berth, the Blazers are in rebuilding mode and one of the youngest teams in the league.  In fact, the only player on the roster not in their 20s is forward Jared Jeffries.  Still, fans like the team and will come out to give it their full support.

Thus, to beat Portland, opposing teams only have one thing to do: capitalize on the youth.  Damian Lillard, though talented, is prone to turning the ball over so just have someone play really tight defense on him.  After that, put a bigger guy on LaMarcus Aldridge and an absolute pest on Nicolas Batum.  This immediately takes out the primary offensive threats and forces them to play even tougher defense, which they definitely can't do.

All in all, the key is to just move past the cheering crowd and stroll across the bumps in the road as best you can.

Stick to the Guns

Every so often, a team will play another squad that comes out guns blazing from the opening tip and just appears to be running on all cylinders.  Seeing as how this team is normally on the mediocre side, it's surprising to see them do so well against a contender. 

However, they can be beat, and simply too.  Just stick to the initial game plan and eventually, the speedy play will tire out this seemingly upstart team, not to mention their fans.

Golden State Warriors

For the past five years, the Warriors have been a team defined by fast offense and long-range shooting.  Stephen Curry is perfect for this team as he has one of the best three-point shots in the league, as is second-year man Klay Thompson.  However, as is the case with most offense-oriented teams, this approach comes at the expense of defense.

Thus, all teams have to do is contain the shooters.  If they can't get open, then points can be scored and the crowd falls silent.  Since the defense is borderline nonexistent, the win eventually comes, albeit with a great effort.

Minnesota Timberwolves

Minnesota is a team that can attack from anywhere on the floor as they have many players who can shoot well from long range, namely Kevin Love, Andrei Kirilenko and Brandon Roy.  Still, the team is young and up until last year was a perennial lottery team.  More importantly, Minnesota crumbled after rookie guard Ricky Rubio tore his ACL.  Had he stayed healthy, they could very well have made the playoffs as a low-seed team.

Still, the team is coming back hungry for success and will make life hard for any team that crosses their path.  However, veteran squads can easily beat them.  Just let them have their fun, then turn on the afterburners and completely outmatch them on defense.  By sticking to that approach, the wind will be taken out of Minnesota's sails, and their fans.

Phoenix Suns

Mike D'Antoni may be gone, but his offense has stayed in Phoenix.  The fans love watching a fast-paced game and coach Alvin Gentry lets his players give the fans what they want.  The only problem is that while this offense is fun to watch, the overall defense barely exists and often hurts the team.

Thus, to take the Suns and their fans out of the game, the solution is simple.  Sacrifice trying to outscore them in favor of making them take bad shots.  Even if their shots are falling, sticking to this plan is bound to work.  After all, not all of the shots can go in, right?

Utah Jazz

Utah isn't a run-and-gun team, but they are young and enthusiastic and aren't afraid to assert themselves with a frontcourt tandem of Al Jefferson and Paul Millsap.  Yet, besides these two, the rest of the starters are young and inconsistent. 

Thus, to make sure the fans aren't involved and cheering the Jazz on, all the opposition needs to do is put its two biggest guys on Utah's big men.  By matching size-on-size, it forces coach Tyrone Corbin to rely on guys who haven't yet had to be great and are all of a sudden thrust into the spotlight.

Orlando Magic

It's safe to say that the Magic aren't going to make the playoffs in 2012-13, but their fans are still passionate about the team which represented the Eastern Conference in the 2009 NBA Finals.  Yet, despite their being in rebuilding mode, Orlando's best players are all shooters: J.J. Redick, Arron Afflalo and Al Harrington.  Besides them, the only solid player is Glen "Big Baby" Davis and even he can be unpredictable.

That said, all a team has to do to beat Orlando at home is to have a plan and not stray from it.  The fans are passionate, but tend to quiet down once cornered.  Just contain the shooters and the job will be easy.

Better Have a Plan

Here we have some teams that may seem like easy wins on the road, but are in fact anything but that.  Thus, if teams want to beat them, they'd better have a plan.

Philadelphia 76ers

The Sixers may not look like much on paper, but they proved last year that they are not to be messed with.  Their team-first style of play confused the hell out of some opponents and even though they collapsed towards the end of the season and just barely made the playoffs, they still managed to get to the second round (thanks to Derrick Rose blowing out his knee) and take the Boston Celtics to Game 7 of the Conference Semis.

That said, thinking a win in Philly is easy is a grave mistake.  Not only is the team talented, but the rowdy Philadelphia fans will stop at nothing to psyche out the team that dare try to beat their beloved Sixers.

Los Angeles Clippers

The Clippers came out of nowhere last year to become the surprise of the NBA, as Chris Paul and Blake Griffin helped turn Lob City into the toast of the league.  Fans fell in love with the hot shooting and sick dunks and left the season hungry for more.

However, as fun as Lob City was to watch, it's very predictable and there is indeed a key to stopping both it and the Clippers fans.  In fact, the San Antonio Spurs got it right during the playoffs.  With pesky defense, it's harder to make lob passes or take long-range shots.  This means no dunks or three-point shooting.  Simply put, take out the distribution, and you take out the Clippers.

Dallas Mavericks

Despite winning a championship in 2011, the Mavs were a disappointment last year.  They were weak at center and overly reliant on Dirk Nowitzki, which led to them finishing No. 7 in the West and swept out of the playoffs in the first round.  Still, they are a team not far removed from a title and thus cannot be taken lightly.

Long story short, the key to beating Dallas and their fans is to tire out Dirk Nowitzki.  Play tough defense on him, but also make him take a majority of the shots by defending his teammates harder.  By making their game one-sided, it creates a greater chance for victory and lessens the odds of the Mavs' fans and owner Mark Cuban laughing the other team out of Big D.

Atlanta Hawks

The Hawks are talented, but their isolation system and lack of frontcourt depth makes their flaws stick out.  In fact, ever since becoming regular contenders again, the Hawks have yet to get past the second round.  That said, it's actually quite easy to beat Atlanta and its isolation game: just phase out the go-to guys and the rest is gravy.

Denver Nuggets

The Nuggets are one of the deepest team in the league, and their fans are about to get a lot more rabid than ever before.  Point guard Ty Lawson just got extended and Andre Iguodala could very well become the new face of the franchise after coming over in the Dwight Howard trade.  On top of that, Kenneth Faried and Javale McGee are going to make Denver's frontcourt nearly impenetrable.

Thus, if a team is going to the Mile High City for a game against the Nuggets, there's really only one way to beat them and the fans.  Have a plan and hope to all hell that it works!

Must Want the Win

These teams are slowly becoming the best of the best, but they tend to get cocky and make mistakes every so often.  When they get beat, it stuns fans and experts alike.  These squads enter a game ready to win, but sometimes their ambition gets the best of them.  Thus, the formula for victory here is simple: just want the win more.

Chicago Bulls

This team has been the best in the NBA two years running for a reason.  Coach Tom Thibodeau has them responding to his style well and, before long, the Bulls are going to be back in the NBA Finals.  However, as evidenced by the last two postseasons, they can be gotten to.

You see, Chicago tends to rely on point guard and former MVP Derrick Rose to run the offense in every way possible, be it scoring or distribution.  As evidenced in an overtime loss to the New York Knicks last season, the Bulls crumble when Rose is having a bad game.  He scored 29 points, but also shot 8 of 26 from the field and dished out just four dimes, not to mention committed eight turnovers.

Granted, that game was in New York, but it provided the formula for beating Chicago at home as well.  Just make Rose make mistakes and want the road win that badly.  And speaking of New York...

New York Knicks

Five years ago, the Knicks would have been an easy win for anyone.  Yet, they look great going into the new season and may have more depth than any other team in the NBA.

However, as is the case with the Atlanta Hawks, the Knicks play an isolation game that can be gotten to.  As the Miami Heat showed in the postseason, all that needs to happen to take the crowd out of the game and unleash the Boo-Birds is for one of the stars to have a bad game.  This means playing full-court press from the get-go and while the Knicks do have depth, it's not enough to carry everyone else in lieu of the superstars having a bad game.

Yet, to do that, the opposing team must want to beat the Knicks more than any other opponent.

Indiana Pacers

This team is young and scrappy and has a group of absolutely rabid fans.  They came out of nowhere to be the No. 3 team in the East last season and, at one point, had the Miami Heat trailing 2-1 in the Conference Semis.  They have a tough center in Roy Hibbert and equally pesky options in Danny Granger and Paul George.

That said, there really is no method to defeat the madness that is the Pacers.  All a team can really do to take them and the fans out of the game is to be hungrier for the win.

Memphis Grizzlies

This team has continued to improve in recent years, and they're not done yet.  Rudy Gay and Marc Gasol are proving to be a solid 1-2 punch and Zach Randolph can be something of a silent assassin.  Getting the ball to these men is Mike Conley, whose defense ranks among the best in the league.

Simply put, there is no way to make these players have a bad game.  They're too athletic and talented to make mistakes regularly.  Any game on their home turf is going to be a dogfight and to come out the winner, just make sure that your dog (metaphorically speaking) fights harder.

Brooklyn Nets

The Nets have yet to play one game in Brooklyn, but their starting lineup alone is intimidating.  On top of that, Marshon Brooks is a fine bench player and Mirza Teletovic could become a deadly shooter.  The fact that the team has a new city, new arena and new identity is going to make beating them at home all the more tough.

That said, while their attack may seem overwhelming at times, opposing teams shouldn't fear it.  Just have a move ready for every one of Brooklyn's and their inexperience amongst the elite will be exposed.  Let them know that while they want to win, this team wants it more.

Road Trip from Hell: Boston Celtics

Now, we come to the teams for whom there is only one recipe for defeat: pure luck.  Teams in this group often finish at or near the top of their conference year after year and as a result are the toughest defeat.  That said, let's talk about the Celtics.

Simply put, this team has a great deal of experience on the floor in the form of Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce.  Both are at the top of their game despite getting up there in years and can still keep up with the best players in the league.

Adding insult to injury for the opposition is the fact that cutting these two out simply isn't enough.  Point guard Rajon Rondo is a pest on both ends of the floor and both Courtney Lee and Jason Terry can shoot the lights out on command.

Throw in some intense Boston fans, and no win against the Celtics is an easy one.

Road Trip from Hell: San Antonio Spurs

No team is tougher to defeat than one whose core has been playing together for a long time and has accomplished a lot as a unit.  The San Antonio Spurs practically wrote the book on this as the trio of Tony Parker, Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili has won three championships together and could easily win another.  On top of that, Duncan won his first ring with coach Gregg Popovich back in 1999.

The Spurs are all the more dangerous because, even though they're an older team, their younger players' role in the system is growing.  Trying to outmatch this team may just as well be a game of chess against Garry Kasparov.

That said, beating the Spurs at home only requires one thing: a lot of hope that the older players get tired towards the end of the game and that the crowd doesn't get to the other team too much.

Road Trip from Hell: Los Angeles Lakers

Lakers fans are some of the most intense in the NBA, with Jack Nicholson as their fearless leader, patrolling the sidelines every home game.  It's only natural that the fanbase be intense, as the team is so used to winning and coming close to championship year after year after year.  All in all, the Lakers have been crowned champions a total of 17 times.

On top of that, the Lakers and their fans don't make anything easy for the other team.  Kobe Bryant is the unquestioned team leader and, more often than not, his teammates work well with him.  With his tremendous athleticism and clutch scoring ability, he makes any game a nightmare for the opposition.  Even if he's off his game, he's going to keep shooting until he makes a shot, no matter how hard people defend him.

As a result, other teams get worn out by the Lakers.  To beat them and their fans, there really isn't any method.  Just hope that everyone has a bad game.

Road Trip from Hell: Miami Heat

Most NBA teams have one or two players who account for most of the scoring.  In Miami's case, they have a Big Three that gives rival teams, coaches and executives nightmares aplenty. 

Last season, the trio of MVP LeBron James, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade combined for two-thirds of the Heat's total offense and made life miserable for every team in the league.

Miami can be beaten like any other team, but beating them at home is no picnic.  They went an astounding 28-5 in South Beach last year and hold down their fort with authority.  To beat them at home, the only way is to be better than them.

Given how they're the defending NBA champions, that's borderline impossible.

Road Trip from Hell: Oklahoma City Thunder

The Thunder may be a young team, but they play with the tenacity of a veteran squad and their home base, Chesapeake Energy Arena, is one of the loudest venues in the NBA.  The fans love the team and the players love the fans.

They have improved each of the last three seasons and made the NBA Finals last year.  This season, they'll be even hungrier to get back to the Finals and walk away the victors.

This is a team that went 26-7 at home last year and has a raucous crowd behind it.  Even if the '96 Chicago Bulls came into the future to play the Thunder, they would have a tough time and could easily lose.  The fact is that even the best of the NBA have problems with Oklahoma City and there is truly no way to get past the home crowd.

It's a classic metaphorical fight to the death and in the end, only one can emerge victorious.