Celtics No. 1 in final Rankings

With the regular season ending Wednesday, it's time to take one more look at how the 30 teams stack up in our final Power Rankings.

Keep in mind, the preseason rankings included below weren't predictions for the season -- only a snapshot of how things looked going into the first week. The same goes for their final rankings here. But it is still interesting to see how some teams compare to their place in the NBA hierarchy when the season tipped off those six long months ago.

This year's biggest surprises: Hornets (No. 3 from 18) and Sixers (No. 14 from 29)
This year's biggest flops: Heat (No. 30 from 14) and Bulls (No. 23 from 8)

NBA Power Rankings

1 Preseason: 7	Boston Celtics They came together faster than anybody could have hoped, engineering the biggest turnaround in NBA history while notching the best record in the league by far. Now the Big Three has its sights set on a 17th championship banner for Boston.
2 Preseason: 15	Los Angeles Lakers A season that began with turmoil surrounding Kobe Bryant's future with the team has become something out of a Hollywood movie. Bryant's MVP-type season -- and a blockbuster trade for Pau Gasol -- has the Lakers back atop the West and a prime title contender.
3 Preseason: 18	New Orleans Hornets After an injury-plagued campaign a year ago, many felt New Orleans would be better in 2007-08. But few would have predicted that third-year point guard Chris Paul would emerge as an MVP candidate and that the Hornets would rack up one of the best records in the West.
4 Preseason: 6	Detroit Pistons The NBA's stealth contender, they have been overshadowed by Boston's rise in the East and their own tendency to play down to the competition. But Chauncey Billups and Co. still are on track to finish with the second-best record in the league, and they know what it takes to win a title.
5 Preseason: 1	San Antonio Spurs Manu Ginobili helped them get off to their best start in franchise history (17-3), but it has been a mostly uneventful season otherwise for the defending champs. Of course, everybody knows Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Ginobili will turn it up when it counts.
6 Preseason: 5	Utah Jazz With Deron Williams and Carlos Boozer running coach Jerry Sloan's system to near perfection, the Jazz have carved up foes while winning another Northwest Division title. Utah has been especially tough at EnergySolutions Arena, compiling an NBA-best 36-4 home record.
7 Preseason: 3	Phoenix Suns In one of the boldest trades in NBA history, first-year general manager Steve Kerr traded Shawn Marion for Shaquille O'Neal at midseason. After a slow start with the Diesel, the Suns have begun to come together and show signs that maybe Kerr wasn't so crazy after all.
8 Preseason: 2	Dallas Mavericks Like the Suns, they took a bold gamble in hopes of getting over the top in the West. But even Jason Kidd (acquired for Devin Harris) hasn't been able to lift Dallas past the top teams, and it looks as if Dirk Nowitzki will have to play better than ever if the Mavs are to go far in the playoffs.
9 Preseason: 4	Houston Rockets Their 22-game winning streak in February and March was the second longest in NBA history, and a testament to Tracy McGrady's skills and their stifling team defense. But the loss of Yao Ming (foot) leaves them vulnerable in the middle and facing a tough task to advance in the playoffs for the first time since 1997.
10 Preseason: 9	Denver Nuggets Allen Iverson has had another outstanding season, and Carmelo Anthony continues his emergence as a superstar. But with its defensive struggles, Denver has needed a late surge to get into position to clinch a playoff spot.
11 Preseason: 22	Orlando Magic Dwight Howard officially became the NBA's new Superman, donning a red cape in a memorable performance at the All-Star Slam Dunk contest. More important, he joined with Rashard Lewis and Hedo Turkoglu to lead the Magic to the third-best record in the East.
12 Preseason: 12	Washington Wizards A knee injury to Gilbert Arenas slowed them down, but they survived behind All-Star seasons from Antawn Jamison and Caron Butler, along with some surprisingly good team defense. With Arenas now back, they could be a sleeper in the East.
13 Preseason: 16	Golden State Warriors Despite the best efforts of Baron Davis, Stephen Jackson and Monta Ellis, they appear destined to go down as the best team in NBA history not to make the playoffs. If only Jackson had not been suspended for the first six games, in which the Warriors went 0-6.
14 Preseason: 29	Philadelphia 76ers They are the NBA's biggest surprise considering the depths to which they had fallen in the aftermath of the Iverson trade. Andre Miller proved the perfect setup man for this young, athletic bunch, and coach Maurice Cheeks has them feeling confident going into the postseason.
15 Preseason: 13	Cleveland Cavaliers Another MVP-like season from LeBron James hasn't been enough to overcome the injuries and holdouts that have plagued them all year. A blockbuster trade for Ben Wallace and Wally Szczerbiak didn't spark them, either, meaning LeBron is likely going to have to carry them again throughout the playoffs.
16 Preseason: 23	Atlanta Hawks A midseason trade for Mike Bibby and the development of rookie Al Horford provided the help Joe Johnson needed to put the Hawks on the brink of ending their NBA-long eight-year playoff drought. But will another sub.-500 record save the jobs of GM Billy Knight and coach Mike Woodson?
17 Preseason: 11	Toronto Raptors Jose Calderon's emergence as a top-flight point guard has been a bright spot in an otherwise disappointing season. Injuries to T.J. Ford and Jorge Garbajosa disrupted their progress from a year ago, and Andrea Bargnani didn't build on his promising rookie campaign.
18 Preseason: 27	Portland Trail Blazers The loss of No. 1 pick Greg Oden to a knee injury before the season didn't stop their impressive rebuilding program. Brandon Roy emerged as an All-Star while leading them to a 13-game winning streak that served notice they will be a team to reckon with next season.
19 Preseason: 26	Sacramento Kings Injuries to Kevin Martin and Ron Artest, as well as the midseason trade of Bibby, made it tough for new coach Reggie Theus. But Beno Udrih proved to be a steal at point guard, and Sacramento at least got pointed in the right direction again after a dismal 2006-07 season.
20 Preseason: 25	Indiana Pacers They are set to miss the playoffs for the second year in a row, as injuries (Jermaine O'Neal and Jamaal Tinsley) and off-court troubles (Tinsley, et al.) derailed their season and left fans angry and bitter. The departure of longtime CEO Donnie Walsh only adds to the gloom in Hoosierland.
21 Preseason: 21	Charlotte Bobcats Emeka Okafor has been good again in the middle, and Jason Richardson joined with Gerald Wallace in forming one of the more athletic perimeter tandems. But the Bobcats didn't take a step forward under new coach Sam Vincent, and it appears as if a change there might be in the offing.
22 Preseason: 10	New Jersey Nets The Kidd era came to an end, along with their streak of six postseason appearances. Now the question is whether the Nets will continue the retooling by dealing either Vince Carter or Richard Jefferson to add young talent to new cornerstone Harris.
23 Preseason: 8	Chicago Bulls A season filled with promise turned into a nightmare as Kobe trade rumors, unsettled contract situations and player revolts rocked the Baby Bulls. Scott Skiles became the first coach fired, getting the ax on Christmas Eve, and Big Ben was traded at midseason.
24 Preseason: 24	Los Angeles Clippers The loss of Elton Brand to an Achilles heel injury proved fatal for a club that was already without injured point guard Shaun Livingston. Chris Kaman stepped up to fill some of the void, but the team's other vets played poorly and L.A. returned to its old doormat status.
25 Preseason: 30	Minnesota Timberwolves Life after Kevin Garnett proved plenty painful, especially early as they stumbled to a 5-34 record. But Al Jefferson showed why he was the centerpiece of the trade from Minnesota's end. He's one of four players averaging at least 20 points and 10 rebounds.
26 Preseason: 17	Milwaukee Bucks Larry Krystkowiak's first full season as coach failed to produce results. The Bucks didn't play defense once again en route to another appearance in the draft lottery. GM Larry Harris took the fall, with former Pistons exec John Hammond imported to clean up the mess.
27 Preseason: 20	Memphis Grizzlies The trade of Gasol to the Lakers for peanuts in an apparent money-saving move ended any optimism brought on by new coach Marc Iavaroni. Still, the development of Rudy Gay and rookie Mike Conley leaves hope that a return to respectability might be achieved in the near future.
28 Preseason: 19	New York Knicks From a highly publicized sexual harassment lawsuit to a feud with guard Stephon Marbury, it's been a disastrous season for president/coach Isiah Thomas. The net result will be one of the worst records in Knicks history, and the end of Thomas' reign (as president at least) in New York.
29 Preseason: 28	Seattle SuperSonics Rookie of the Year favorite Kevin Durant showed signs of being a great scorer, but there was little else to get excited about for new coach P.J. Carlesimo. Meanwhile, Sunday's home finale might have been the the Sonics' last game in Seattle as the team prepares for a possible franchise shift to Oklahoma City.
30 Preseason: 14	Miami Heat Shaq's breakdown -- and eventual trade to Phoenix -- was the lowlight of an utterly dismal season as Pat Riley finally paid the bill for that 2005 championship. But with Dwyane Wade, Shawn Marion and the possible No. 1 pick, there is reason for hope on South Beach.