Every NBA team’s home-court advantage, ranked

Some NBA teams have a built-in home-court advantage that makes things difficult on opposing teams, while some clubs don't have much of an advantage at all.

Here's a ranking of home-court advantages around the league from weakest to strongest, using a combination of the league's (extremely flawed) attendance data, feel from watching at home and in-person analysis.

NBAE/Getty ImagesLayne Murdoch

Barclays Center is a fine place to watch a basketball game, but a Nets game is one of the more sterile environments in the league, completely devoid of any passion from the fans in attendance.

The Timberwolves rank 29th in the league in terms of home arena seats sold. No one is scared of playing in Minnesota.

APJim Mone/Associated Press

Maybe when the Pistons make their move to downtown Detroit, things will change. But in Auburn Hills, Stan Van Gundy's squad ranks dead last in the league in attendance this season.

Orlando is middle-of-the-pack in attendance figures, which means the real number is much lower than that. This is a market that needs star power to bring the fans out, and the team doesn't have one at the moment, and hasn't made the playoffs for four years straight.

Suns fans exist, but don't seem to attend the home games regularly in person. An inconsistent roster, lack of a true star player and a six-year (going on seven) playoff drought aren't helping matters in Phoenix.

You can come out to see Anthony Davis if you live in New Orleans, but the team is dreadful and has yet to build a tradition of any kind beyond its franchise player.

Jerome MironUSA TODAY Sports

You've all seen the photos of an empty Philips Arena at tip-off. Atlanta may have had a pretty good team the past few seasons, but for whatever reason, the fans are conspicuously absent more often than not.

No one cares about the Bucks in Milwaukee, but Giannis Antetokounmpo may change that before too long.

Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY SportsJeff Hanisch

The Wizards rank 27th in the league in terms of percentage of home arena seats sold, and if you watch one of their games on League Pass, you'd be surprised that they weren't dead last. 

NBAE/Getty ImagesNathaniel S. Butler

There is certainly a group of passionate fans in Sacramento, though it's unclear as to the reason why. The team hasn't made the playoffs in a decade, the front office is a disaster, and its All-Star big man is a cranky mess who's incapable of leading the team all by himself.

Charlotte's style of basketball isn't necessarily aesthetically pleasing, and Kemba Walker, while emerging as a potential All-Star this season, isn't exactly a household name outside of New York City.

All of that combines to have the Hornets ranked 22nd in percentage of home arena seats sold, despite the team's standing as a legitimate playoff team in the East.

Bill Streicher-USA TODAY SportsBill Streicher

There is almost no home-court advantage for the Clippers at Staples Center, and the players know it. L.A. is a Lakers town no matter the disparate state of the two teams, and fair or not, it'll take a small miracle for the fans in Los Angeles to truly start caring about the Clippers.

Thanks to Joel Embiid finally being healthy, the fans in Philly have something to chant about, which is creating the beginnings of a home-court advantage for the Sixers.

Heat fans get a bad rap, but how much can you really care about attending a basketball game when you live that close to South Beach?

It feels like basketball at the high school and college level is a bigger deal in Indiana than whatever's happening with the Pacers, but when the team is good, the fans will certainly be there to represent.

Trevor RuszkowskiTrevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Spor

The Mavs have become one of the worst teams in the league, but the fans still show out in hopes of catching Dirk Nowitzki play in one of the final games of his Hall of Fame career.

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Houston ranks 21st in the league this season in terms of percentage of home arena seats sold, which seems silly when James Harden plays there every single night.

Getty ImagesBob Levey

Lakers fans at Staples Center get a bad rap, because many sitting in those lower-level seats are there simply to be seen. But the fans in the upper deck are as passionate as they come, and when things start going the Lakers' way, the entire building tends to simultaneously come to life.

Jimmy Butler has emerged as one of the league's best players, and Dwyane Wade is a future Hall of Famer. The United Center might be the largest building in the league in terms of square footage inside, but Bulls fans still find a way to make it loud enough to cause problems for the opposing team.

The Garden gives back only as much energy as the Knicks provide to the fans in attendance, but when they're rolling, it can become one of the more intimidating places in the league for visiting teams to play.

The Spurs have a better fan base than you might expect. San Antonio fans are loud and into the game from the opening tip, and seem to be truly appreciative of the team's sustained history of success.

Jazz fans are passionate, almost to a fault. But Utah isn't exactly a hotbed for national news, and the Jazz are pretty much the only game in town.

The fans in Memphis embraced the team's Grit-N-Grind identity, even though it ultimately didn't result in anything of substance. Nevertheless, the Grizzlies have one of the league's more passionate fan bases.

Boston fans truly care about their hometown team, and show up consistently to cheer the Celtics on no matter their place in the league-wide standings.

Getty ImagesMaddie Meyer

The Nuggets' home-court advantage is more about their location than the fans in attendance. Opposing team coaches have complained about the distance from the airport to the city center (45 minutes or more), and the combination of altitude and time zone makes Denver consistently one of the more difficult places to play, no matter the state of the home team's roster.

Raptors fans will stand outside for hours to pack Maple Leaf Square during the playoffs, but it remains unclear whether they do that simply because the weather has finally turned to an enjoyable temperature. Either way, the Toronto faithful consistently provide a ton of support for their home-town Raptors.

The fans in Portland have consistently made Rip City one of the tougher places to play, and Damian Lillard's consistent heroics make sure that'll continue for the foreseeable future. 

Cleveland is a town full of loyal sports fans, and it's easy to come out in full force when the game's best player (and a product of Akron, Ohio) returns to the roster.

Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY SportsJeff Hanisch

Oracle Arena was a tough place to play well before the Warriors were the world-beaters they are now. With the league's best offense and two of its top-five players in Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant, it doesn't take much to turn this place into a madhouse.

The fans in OKC consistently show up for their hometown Thunder, and make for the toughest environment in the league for opposing teams to deal with. The zombie O-K-C! chant notwithstanding, the fans in the league's smallest market bring it on a nightly basis.

Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY SportsMark D. Smith