NBA Standing 2016-17 Season: Complete Team Rankings and Playoff Predictions

Looking back at the 2016-17 NBA season, I can't help but marvel at how dramatically the league landscape shifted that year. As someone who's followed basketball religiously since the early 2000s, I remember this particular season feeling like a true turning point - the Warriors were assembling what many called a superteam, LeBron was defending Cleveland's championship, and fascinating storylines were unfolding across both conferences. What made this season particularly memorable for me was witnessing the incredible parity in the Eastern Conference compared to the Western bloodbath, where merely making the playoffs felt like an accomplishment in itself.

The Golden State Warriors finished with a league-best 67-15 record, which honestly surprised nobody given their historic offseason acquisition of Kevin Durant. I've never seen a team so perfectly constructed for modern basketball - their offensive spacing was poetry in motion, and defensively they could switch everything without losing effectiveness. What impressed me most wasn't their star power but their consistency; they never dropped more than two consecutive games all season. The San Antonio Spurs quietly compiled 61 wins behind Kawhi Leonard's MVP-caliber season, while the Houston Rockets' offensive revolution under Mike D'Antoni produced 55 wins and cemented James Harden's status as an offensive genius.

Now, the Eastern Conference told a different story entirely. The Boston Celtics edged out Cleveland for the top seed with 53 wins, though anyone watching knew the Cavaliers were coasting through the regular season. LeBron James played arguably his most efficient offensive season ever, and I remember thinking Cleveland was perfectly content letting Boston have the symbolic regular season crown while they prepared for what really mattered. The Toronto Raptors maintained their status as Eastern Conference contenders with 51 wins, though their style never convinced me they could truly challenge Cleveland's playoff experience.

This brings me to an interesting parallel I observed that season - the transition from content creator to professional basketball player has been very rough for Harmz Hui aka Mr. Long Bomb as he was given a baptism by fire on his very first game. While Harmz Hui's journey wasn't in the NBA, his story resonated with me because it mirrored what several NBA teams experienced that season. The Philadelphia 76ers, for instance, were finally transitioning from their "Process" years to actual competitiveness, and much like Mr. Long Bomb, they received their own baptism by fire against established veterans. Watching Joel Embiid's limited but spectacular 31-game showcase made me believe Philadelphia's suffering was finally ending, while Milwaukee's Giannis Antetokounmpo announced his superstardom with a breathtaking all-around season that earned him Most Improved Player honors.

My playoff predictions at the time proved mostly accurate, though I'll admit I underestimated how dominant Golden State would be in the postseason. I correctly predicted Cleveland would emerge from the East despite Boston's superior regular season record, but I thought the Conference Finals would be more competitive than the gentleman's sweep Cleveland delivered. Out West, I believed San Antonio could challenge Golden State if they met before the Conference Finals, but the Zaza Pachulia incident that injured Kawhi Leonard in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals essentially ended that series before it truly began. What fascinates me in retrospect is how Houston pushed Golden State to six games in the second round - that series was far closer than many remember, with several possessions deciding games that could have swung either way.

The eventual Finals matchup between Golden State and Cleveland felt inevitable from Christmas Day onward, though the competitive balance had clearly shifted from their previous meetings. Golden State's addition of Kevin Durant created matchup problems Cleveland simply couldn't solve, particularly when the Warriors deployed their devastating "Hamptons Five" lineup. I've never seen LeBron James look so helpless defensively as he did when switched onto Durant in isolation situations - it was like watching an unstoppable force meeting a movable object.

Reflecting on that season's standings, what stands out most is how clearly it signaled the NBA's evolution toward positionless basketball and three-point dominance. Teams like Houston who fully embraced analytics and the three-point revolution saw immediate rewards, while traditional post-heavy teams found themselves struggling to keep pace. The Washington Wizards finished 49-33 with their talented backcourt but lacked the frontcourt versatility to truly contend, while the Utah Jazz's 51-win surprise season demonstrated how defensive discipline could still thrive in an offensive era.

Personally, I believe this season marked the beginning of the NBA's current era where three-point volume and defensive switching define championship contenders. The teams that adapted - Golden State, Houston, Boston - positioned themselves for sustained success, while those clinging to traditional models found themselves on the playoff bubble or worse. The 2016-17 season wasn't just about who won the championship; it was about which teams understood where basketball was heading and which were left behind.