How each team stacks up with All-Star break looming

In honor of the upcoming All-Star Weekend, we present a special midseason edition of Power Rankings. Never mind how teams are playing as of right now. This week, we take a look at how the league's 30 teams have fared over the first half of the season and assess their prospects heading into the second half. We've also included each team's preseason ranking (PR), just to show how far off we've been thus far in our predictions.

This season's high riser: Raptors (No. 15 from No. 28)
This season's big drop: Nets (No. 22 from No. 6)

NBA Power Rankings Rank PR Team 1 2 Dallas Mavericks No Finals hangover here. Well, maybe a little at the beginning. But after starting 0-4, Dirk Nowitzki & Co. have played like a group intent on getting back to the championship round. With their superior balance and depth, as well as a 4-1 combined record vs. the Suns and Spurs, they have to be considered front-runners to win it all. All-Stars: Nowitzki, Josh Howard. 2 4 Phoenix Suns Like the Mavs, they too overcame a slow start (1-5) to stamp themselves as a top contender. With Steve Nash gunning for a third straight MVP and Amaré Stoudemire rounding into his old All-Star form, they reeled off win streaks of 15 and 17 games. The big question is whether Nash will have enough gas left in the tank come the postseason. All-Stars: Nash, Stoudemire, Shawn Marion, Mike D'Antoni (coach). 3 5 Detroit Pistons No Ben Wallace, no big problem so far. Buoyed by the January signing of veteran big man Chris Webber, who had been waived by the Sixers, the Pistons lead a crowded Eastern Conference. Their starting unit and experience make them dangerous, but will they miss Big Ben's D come playoff time? All-Stars: Chauncey Billups, Richard Hamilton. 4 8 Houston Rockets Not even the loss of early MVP candidate Yao Ming to a broken leg has slowed Jeff Van Gundy's troops. Thanks to Tracy McGrady and a stingy defense that ranks No. 1 in field goal percentage allowed, they have stayed near the top of the West. With Yao expected to return after the break, Houston could be a sleeper if it can stay healthy. All-Stars: Yao (injured, will not play), McGrady. 5 1 San Antonio Spurs Despite Tim Duncan's return to full health, our preseason favorites have looked a step slow much of the season. At week's end they were 33-18; last season they didn't suffer their 18th loss until April 7. Still, with Duncan leading a veteran core that also includes Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili, they can't be counted out. All-Stars: Duncan, Parker. 6 7 Cleveland Cavaliers With LeBron James having a subpar first half (at least by his standards) and the James Gang failing to hit shots, the Cavs just can't score enough to win consistently. Still, they will head into the second half with roughly the same record as a year ago when they finished 50-32. If they catch fire like that again, they should be right in the mix in the East at the end. All-Stars: James. 7 12 Washington Wizards Led by Gilbert Arenas' scoring exploits and Caron Butler's excellent overall play, they actually laid claim to the best record in the East for much of the first half. But Antawn Jamison's knee injury has slowed them down, and it remains to be seen whether their D will hold up in the playoffs. All-Stars: Arenas, Butler, Eddie Jordan (coach). 8 3 Miami Heat Shaquille O'Neal's knee injury and an atmosphere of complacency caused them to get off to a slow start, perhaps contributing to coach Pat Riley's decision to take a temporary leave for hip and knee surgeries. With Shaq healthy again and Dwyane Wade playing at an MVP level, the defending champs will make another late-season run. But will it be too little, too late? All-Stars: O'Neal, Wade. 9 15 Los Angeles Lakers Despite a slew of injuries that knocked out Lamar Odom, Chris Mihm and Kwame Brown, among others, Phil Jackson's team has managed to be one of the big surprises. With Kobe Bryant looking to share the ball more, Odom slowly regaining his form and a young team that seems to be finding its way, nobody is going to want to face them in the playoffs. All-Stars: Bryant. 10 11 Utah Jazz Many expected the Jazz to have a bounce-back season, but few believed they would be near the top of the West. But that's what has happened thanks to Carlos Boozer, Deron Williams and that old Jerry Sloan system. But Boozer's broken leg renews concerns whether the Jazz can stay healthy. All-Stars: Boozer (injured, will not play).