Another year in the books. Another year of patience,heartbreak,revenge,buzzer-beaters,blowouts,comebacks,wins,and losses is in the books. But at the end,one team had to reign supreme. And it was the team that most thought would come home with the Larry O’Brien. After being denied a record 16-0 postseason,the Golden State Warriors won Game 5 of the NBA Finals 129-120 against the Cleveland Cavaliers and got the win which really mattered: a championship. Former MVP Kevin Durant, who joined the Warriors in the offseason after a heartbreaking loss to the same team when he was with the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Conference Finals after holding a 3-1 series lead, won Finals MVP after scoring 39 in the clincher.The Warriors,who finished a record 73-9 last year with MVP Steph Curry and then added Durant,had the league’s best record at 67-15.The second-best team,the San Antonio Spurs,who finished 61-21,lost to the Warriors in the Conference Finals in a clean sweep.And then the 51-31 Cavaliers were the last to fall.The defending champs no less(who defeated these Warriors in the Finals after the Dubs led 3-1,becoming the first team to overcome such a deficit in the Finals)!And now,without further ado,the Power Rankings(along with each team’s playoff finish).

1.Golden State Warriors(67-15;NBA Champions;GSW def CLE 4-1)

2.Cleveland Cavaliers(51-31;Finals runner-up; GSW def CLE 4-1)

3.San Antonio Spurs(61-21;WCF;GSW def SAS 4-0)

4.Houston Rockets(55-27;WCSF;SAS def HOU 4-2)

5.Boston Celtics(53-29;ECF;CLE def BOS 4-1)

6.Washington Wizards(49-33;ECSF;BOS def WAS 4-3)

7.Utah Jazz(51-31;WCSF;GSW def UTA 4-0)

8.Los Angeles Clippers(51-31;WCQF;UTA def LAC 4-3)

9.Toronto Raptors(51-31;ECQF;CLE def TOR 4-0)

10.Oklahoma City Thunder(47-35;WCQF;HOU def OKC 4-1)

11.Memphis Grizzlies(43-39;WCQF;SAS def MEM 4-2)

12.Atlanta Hawks(43-39;ECQF;WAS def ATL 4-2)

13.Milwaukee Bucks(42-40;ECQF;TOR def MIL 4-2)

14.Portland Trail Blazers(41-41;ECQF;GSW def POR 4-0)

15. Indiana Pacers(42-40;ECQF;CLE def IND 4-0)

16.Chicago Bulls(41-41;ECQF;BOS def CHI 4-2)

17.Miami Heat(41-41;missed playoffs)

18.Denver Nuggets(40-42;missed playoffs)

19.Detroit Pistons(37-45;missed playoffs)

20.Charlotte Hornets(36-46;missed playoffs)

21.Dallas Mavericks(33-49;missed playoffs)

22.New Orleans Pelicans(34-48;missed playoffs)

23.Minnesota Timberwolves(31-51;missed playoffs)

24.New York Knicks(31-51;missed playoffs)

25.Sacramento Kings(32-50;missed playoffs)

26.Philadelphia 76ers(28-54;missed playoffs)

27.Orlando Magic(29-53;missed playoffs)

28.Los Angeles Lakers(26-56;missed playoffs)

29.Phoenix Suns(24-58;missed playoffs)

30.Brooklyn Nets(20-62;missed playoffs)