2015-16 NBA Standings: Complete Team Rankings and Playoff Results Breakdown

I still remember poring over the 2015-16 NBA standings like they were ancient scrolls revealing basketball's deepest secrets. That season wasn't just about numbers on a page—it was about stories unfolding across 30 cities, about teams fighting for every inch of court space, about players like the one mentioned battling giants in the paint without committing a single foul in nearly 38 minutes of play. When I look back at that incredible 73-9 Warriors season, what strikes me most isn't just their record-breaking performance but how every team in the league was responding to this basketball revolution happening in Golden State.

The Western Conference standings told a story of absolute dominance and heartbreaking near-misses. Golden State's 73 wins weren't just a number—they represented a fundamental shift in how basketball could be played. I've never seen a team so thoroughly dismantle opponents night after night while making it look effortless. Meanwhile, San Antonio quietly put together what would have been a historic 67-win season in any other year, yet found themselves overshadowed in their own conference. What amazed me was how Oklahoma City managed to secure the third seed with 55 wins despite playing in what felt like a conference of giants. The Clippers and Trail Blazers rounding out the top five showed how depth mattered almost as much as star power.

Over in the East, Cleveland's 57-win season felt different—more calculated, more about pacing themselves for what really mattered. I remember thinking at the time that Toronto's 56 wins signaled something special brewing north of the border, though nobody could have predicted just how far they'd go. The conference had this interesting mix of established powers and rising teams like Atlanta and Boston that played with a cohesion that often made up for any talent gaps. Miami's 48-win season felt like Pat Riley working his magic again, while Charlotte and Indiana sneaking into the playoffs showed how every single game mattered in that final stretch.

When the playoffs arrived, the standings suddenly became living documents that determined matchups and potential paths to the championship. I'll never forget watching that Warriors-Thunder Western Conference Finals—it felt like basketball at its absolute peak, with both teams pushing each other to limits we rarely see. The Cavaliers' path through the East had its own drama, with Toronto pushing them to six games in what became a coming-out party for Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan.

The Finals themselves became the ultimate validation of why regular season standings matter but don't always tell the full story. Cleveland's comeback from 3-1 down against a team that had won 73 games remains the most stunning sports moment I've ever witnessed. It proved that matchups and resilience often matter more than regular season records. The Warriors' historic season suddenly became a footnote to LeBron's legacy-defining moment, and I still get chills thinking about that block in Game 7.

What fascinates me about studying these standings years later is how they capture moments in time while hiding so many underlying stories. That player battling Erram, Williams, and Oftana without fouling for 38 minutes represents hundreds of similar battles happening across the league every night—the kind of efforts that don't always show up in win-loss columns but ultimately determine who rises and who falls. Teams like the Spurs winning 67 games yet getting eliminated before the Finals shows how cruel the NBA postseason can be.

The 2015-16 season taught me that standings are like photographs—they capture truth but not the whole truth. They show us who won but not how they won, not the countless individual battles in the paint, not the coaching adjustments, not the emotional rollercoaster of an 82-game marathon. When I look at those final rankings today, I don't just see numbers—I see Steph Curry's unanimous MVP season, I see Kobe's farewell tour, I see Tim Duncan's quiet exit, and I see the beginning of what would become the Warriors' dynasty, even in their Finals defeat.

There's something beautiful about how each team's journey through those six months created a tapestry of narratives that would define the NBA for years to come. The standings from that season aren't just historical records—they're reminders of why we love this game, why we obsess over every possession, and why sometimes the most memorable seasons aren't about who finished first but about how they got there and what happened when it mattered most.