NBA Conferences

The forerunner of the NBA was the Basketball Association of America (BAA), which was a professional league which was founded in 1946. In 1947, for the second season of the NBA, the league split into two divisions, the East Division and the West Division. This created the split that is recognised today with East and West.  The NBA takes the history of the BAA as being part of is own and the league should be viewed as a continuation of this original league.

NBA Eastern Conference

The NBA’s Eastern Conference has 15 teams in it and there are three divisions, each with five teams in it.

The top eight teams of the Eastern Conference make their way through to the play-off round. The three divisional winners and the team with the best record out of all the non-winning teams are seeded 1 to 4 for the playoffs.  The remaining non-divisional winners are seeded 5 through to 8.

The three divisions in the Eastern Conference are the:

• Atlantic Division
• Southeast Division and
• Central Division

The teams in the Atlantic Division are:

Atlantic Division

Logo	City	Team Name	Official Website
	Boston	Celtics	nba.com/celtics/
	Brooklyn, New York	Nets	nba.com/nets/
	New York	Knicks	nba.com/knicks/
	Philadelphia	76ers	nba.com/sixers/
	Toronto (Canada)	Raptors	nba.com/raptors/

The teams in the Southeast Division are:

Southeast Division

Logo	City	Team Name	Official Website
	Atlanta	Hawks	nba.com/hawks/
	Charlotte	Hornets	nba.com/hornets/
	Miami	Heat	nba.com/heat/
	Orlando	Magic	nba.com/magic/
	Washington	Wizards	nba.com/wizards/

The teams in the Central Division are:

Central Division

Logo	City	Team Name	Official Website
	Chicago	Bulls	nba.com/bulls/
	Cleveland	Cavaliers	nba.com/cavaliers/
	Detroit	Pistons	nba.com/pistons/
	Indiana	Pacers	nba.com/pacers/
	Milwaukee	Bucks	nba.com/bucks/

Teams who were previously in the Eastern Conference but are now defunct are:

• Providence Steamrollers
• Toronto Huskies
• Washington Capitols

The most successful team in the Eastern Conference is easily the Boston Celtics who as of 2012-13 had won the NBA Eastern Conference Championships 21 times. At this point, their nearest rivals in the Eastern Conference would be the Philadelphia 76ers who have 9 wins in total.

NBA Western Conference

The NBA’s Western Conference has 15 teams in it and there are three divisions, each with five teams in it.

The top eight teams of the Western Conference make their way through to the play-off round. The three divisional winners and the team with the best record out of all the non-winning teams are seeded 1 to 4 for the playoffs.  The remaining non-divisional winners are seeded 5 through to 8.

The three divisions in the Western Conference are the:

• Northwest Division
• Southwest Division and
• Pacific Division

The teams in the Northwest Division are:

Northwest Division

Logo	City	Team Name	Official Website
	Denver	Nuggets	nba.com/nuggets/
	Minnesota	Timberwolves	nba.com/timberwolves/
	Oklahoma City	Thunder	nba.com/thunder/
	Portland	Trail Blazers	nba.com/blazers/
	Utah	Jazz	nba.com/jazz/

The teams in the Southwest Division are:

Southwest Division

Logo	City	Team Name	Official Website
	Dallas	Mavericks	mavs.com
	Houston	Rockets	nba.com/rockets/
	Memphis	Grizzlies	nba.com/grizzlies/
	New Orleans	Pelicans	nba.com/pelicans/
	San Antonio	Spurs	nba.com/spurs/

The teams in the Pacific Division are:

Pacific Division

Logo	City	Team Name	Official Website
	Golden State	Warriors	nba.com/warriors/
	Los Angeles	Clippers	nba.com/clippers/
	Los Angeles	Lakers	nba.com/lakers/
	Phoenix	Suns	nba.com/suns/
	Sacramento	Kings	nba.com/kings/

Teams who were previously in the Western Conference but are now defunct are:

• Anderson Packers
• Baltimore Bullets
• Chicago Stags
• Cleveland Rebels
• Detroit Falcons
• Indianapolis Jets
• Indianapolis Olympians
• Pittsburgh Ironmen
• Sheboygan Red Skins
• St. Louis Bombers
• Washington Capitols
• Waterloo Hawks

The most successful team in the Western Conference is easily the Los Angeles Lakers who as of 2012-13 had won the NBA Western Conference Championships 31 times. At this point, their nearest rivals in the Western Conference would be the San Antonio Spurs who have 5 wins in total.