Good news, Chicago Bulls fans – Derrick Rose and crew are headed back to the Eastern Conference finals.

Oh, there’ll be plenty of drama and excitement en route, but there’s little doubt that the Bulls and Miami Heat will repeat as the East’s top dogs. It’s as sure a thing as there can be: The two teams will once again meet in the conference finals, mano-a-mano, with the winner going on to win the NBA title.

And so, with nothing further ado, here are your eight Eastern Conference playoff teams – two genuine contenders and the rest of the crowd.

#1 – Chicago Bulls (62-20): The Bulls upgraded their offense by adding veteran Rip Hamilton, and with youth, athleticism and depth, appear well-equipped for the season’s compressed schedule. While Hamilton was added primarily to take pressure off Derrick Rose, he’ll make everyone’s offense better. Team chemistry will also benefit the Bulls – it’s basically the same group of guys coming back more focused and determined than ever; some teams are still making trades and juggling rosters. If the Bulls play D, rebound and stay healthy, they’ll repeat as the East’s top regular season team.

#2 – Miami Heat (58-24): The Heat added Shane Battier and Eddy Curry but otherwise return their core, which includes, obviously, the best 1-2-3 punch in the league. If LeBron James and Dwayne Wade figure out a way to compliment one another rather than taking turns running the offense, look out NBA. Like last year, the Heat still lack depth and are weak in the middle and at the point, but those deficiencies didn’t much matter come playoff time; just ask the Celtics or Bulls.

#3 – New York Knicks (42-40): In an effort to build their own big three, the Knicks signed defensive stalwart Tyson Chandler to play alongside Carmello Anthony and Amare Stoudemire; if ‘Mello or Amare knew how to play D, it’d be a frightening lineup. As it is, it’ll free Amare up from having to play center. One problem for Mike D’Antoni is who to play at quarterback – he has three point guards to choose from, and none are great choices. Look for Landry Fields to follow up on a solid rookie year with improved numbers.

#4 – Boston Celtics (56-26): Can the Celtics make one final run? Simple answer: No. They just aren’t built for such a grueling schedule – Doc Rivers will need to rest his aging starters, but doesn’t have the depth to safely do so. Two starters – Rajon Rondo (sprained ankle) and Paul Pierce (heel) – have already suffered potentially nagging injuries, and backup Jeff Green (13 ppg on 23 mpg last season) is out for the season. I actually wanted to put the Celts lower, but kept them in the No. 4 slot out of respect for my elders.

#5 – Indiana Pacers (37-45): Yup, that’s right – the Pacers will jump from an 8-seed to a 5-seed. Then-interim coach Frank Vogel turned the team around last season, and the addition of All-Star forward David West gives the Pacers a formidable front line that includes Roy Hibbert, Danny Granger and Tyler “Crazy Eyes” Hansbrough. If point guard Darren Collison can hit 40 percent of his threes, like he did as a rookie, and improve his turnover-to-assist ratio, the Pacers will be tough. With loads of young talent and $15 million in cap space, the Pacers have a very bright future.

#6 – Orlando Magic (52-30): The Magic are such a mess with so many unknowns that it’s difficult to predict how well they’ll do. The big question, of course, is whether Dwight Howard stays or goes; the saga will generate more headlines than anything the team does on the court, and will inevitably become a major distraction. Off-season moves include trading Brandon Bass for Glen Davis (a wash), adding an aging Jason Richardson (yawn) and dumping Gilbert Arenas (a no-brainer). I’d be surprised to see the Magic finish much north of the .500 mark.

#7 – Philadelphia 76ers (41-41): The Sixers return all nine members from last year’s rotation, which played surprisingly well at times despite a down year by Andre Iguodala (14.1 ppg average, the lowest since his rookie year). Keep an eye on Jrue Holiday; he had blossomed last season as a full time starter and appears poised to take the next step. One thing the Sixers can do to improve is win close games; they were 7-18 in contests decided by five points or less.

#8 – Atlanta Hawks (44-38): The Hawks didn’t do anything to improve their lineup during the offseason, and it’s difficult to imagine them holding serve with last season’s record. Point guard Jeff Teague is a rising star, but can Tracy McGrady replace Jamal Crawford’s instant offense off the bench? Crawford’s departure will put more pressure on Joe Johnson, who is about 47 years old and making $16 million this season; if the Hawks don’t find a reliable second scoring option, they might miss the playoffs.

Sources: Yahoo! Sports team and player profiles; BasketballReference.com team and player profiles; Eastern Conference Team Previews, NBA.com; Bulls, Heat no surprise as East’s best, ESPN Insider; East Forecast: Ranking worst to first, ESPN Insider.

Other articles by this contributor:

Top 10 Moments of Chicago Bulls’ 2010-11 Season (December 22)

Despite 62-Win Season, Chicago Bulls Drop in Preseason Power Polls (December 22)

YCN featured sports contributor Steve Merritt is – for better or worse – a lifelong Chicago Bulls, Bears and Cubs fan. Follow the Bulls’ 2011-12 season from a die-hard fan’s perspective on his blog, A Fan’s Take: The 2011-12 Chicago Bulls.

Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content.

Following the devastating NBA Finals defeat to the Dallas Mavericks, Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra had a lot of time during the lockout to re-think Miami’s offensive attack, and drew inspiration from the college football powerhouse Oregon Ducks’ innovative playbook. ESPN has a terrific feature on the new Heat offense (which Pat Riley recently claimed resembles the one his “Showtime” Lakers ran in the 1980′s): “Explosive. Fast. Unpredictable. These are the words that [Chip] Kelly used to describe the principles behind his signature spread offense that he rode to the BCS National Championship Game in 2011 to Spoelstra. They’re also the same ones often used to describe a Heat team led by LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh. At least, that’s what the team is supposed to be. By most accounts, the Heat underachieved both competitively and aesthetically in the Big Three’s debut season. Miami didn’t smash the record books and they played at one of the slowest paces in the NBA in 2010-11. As the one calling the shots, Spoelstra received much of the blame. But rather than deflect the responsibility, the third-year Heat coach went back to the drawing board to find a better model. So he bought a plane ticket to go see Kelly and ask him a simple, yet vexing question: How exactly do you turn a collection of world-class athletes into a merciless scoring machine? Kelly’s answer made all the sense in the world to Spoelstra. To leverage the team’s blinding athleticism, Kelly told him, one must spread the floor, turn up the pace and let it fly. Pace and space are essential. And so the mantra for the new Heat was born. Under the watch of Pat Riley, the steward of the ‘Showtime’ Lakers in the 1980s, Spoelstra set out to design his very own attack built on speed, versatility and athleticism … What happens when the Heat lose three games in a row this winter? What happens when the Chicago Bulls go on a 8-0 run down the stretch of a crucial game? What happens when Spoelstra needs to take advantage of a hole in the opposing defense with sharp X’s-and-O’s? It remains to be seen, but the potential benefits are hard to ignore, and the players seem happy with the tweaks. LeBron says he loves where the Heat’s offense is right now. Wade believes Spoelstra has done ‘a great job.’ And Bosh? He’s gushing about Spoelstra’s new groove for a different reason: You can’t really scout it. This is perhaps the greatest potential benefit of all. Everyone knows where LeBron, Wade and Bosh would be at all times last season because everyone memorized Spoelstra’s playbook. The Heat were predictable and that’s what made them beatable at times too, especially in the playoffs. Armed with a unique roster, Spoelstra is thinking outside the box and the plan seems to be working for now. With his own spin on Showtime in place, Spoelstra is hoping his moment of clarity in Oregon will lead to a moment of triumph for Miami.”

Read More: Miami Heat, Oklahoma City Thunder, Portland Trail Blazers, Los Angeles Lakers

The 2011-2012 NBA schedule was released on Tuesday, despite the NBA lockout currently in its third week. Opening week of the (fingers crossed) ’11-12 campaign includes four national TV double-headers, with three teams — the Los Angeles Lakers, Miami Heat and, somewhat oddly, Portland Trail Blazers – featured twice each.

The Dallas Mavericks and Chicago Bulls begin the schedule on Tuesday, November 1, meeting up at the American Airlines Center in Big D. The Los Angeles Lakers and Oklahoma City Thunder will match up in the second game of TNT’s double-header that day.

On Wednesday, ESPN takes over TV duties as the Miami Heat visit the New York Knicks and Lakers visit the Golden State Warriors, starring former ESPN analyst Mark Jackson. (Let’s make sure Mike Breen and Jeff Van Gundy work the late game, OK?)

TNT has its regular Thursday double-header, and it gets a couple of division rivalries: the Orlando Magic visit the Miami Heat, and the Portland Trail Blazers take on the Denver Nuggets. (NBA.com’s schedule currently lists Magic-Heat as a League Pass game and Utah Jazz-Memphis Grizzlies as a 9 p.m. TNT game, but that has to be wrong.)

ESPN’s Friday double-header features the Boston Celtics visiting the Atlanta Hawks, and Blazers visiting Blake Griffin and the Los Angeles Clippers.

The NBA has no national TV games (except for a couple of NBA TV games) on opening weekend.

Read More: nba schedule, 2011-12 cavs schedule, J.J. Hickson (F – SAC), Dallas Mavericks, New York Knicks, Chicago Bulls, Miami Heat, Boston Celtics, Los Angeles Clippers, Oklahoma City Thunder, Toronto Raptors, Cleveland Cavaliers, Denver Nuggets, Sacramento Kings, Los Angeles Lakers

The NBA released the 2011-12 schedule on Tuesday afternoon with a triple-header of action on opening night – November 1 – that includes the World Champion Dallas Mavericks hosting the Chicago Bulls and the Oklahoma City Thunder traveling to Los Angeles to face the Lakers.

One team NOT included in the opening night festivities are the Miami Heat.  They open the season on Wednesday, November 2 with a trip to Madison Square Garden to face the New York Knicks.

The Cleveland Cavaliers also open their 2011-12 season on the road, heading to Boston to face the Celtics.  Cleveland will take on the Toronto Raptors in the Home Opener at The Q on Friday, November 4.  Cleveland won’t spend long at home, however, taking their first trip to the West Coast starting November 6.  The Wine and Gold will play 3 games in 4 nights against the Los Angeles Clippers(11/6), Denver Nuggets(11/7) and Sacramento Kings(11/9) in the first meeting between the Cavaliers and J.J. Hickson.

What about the Miami Heat, you ask?  

The Cavaliers and Heat will play four times next season, with the Heat coming to Cleveland on Friday, November 18, a game that will be televised on ESPN.  The Heat will also be at The Q on February 17, 2012 while the Cavaliers will head to South Beach on March 7 and April 6.

The Novemeber 18th matchup is the only time the Cavaliers are scheduled to be on ESPN/ABC or TNT all season.  Cleveland will play 13 games in November, with 6 at home and 7 on the road.

Check out the complete 2011-12 NBA Schedule;  Cavaliers site Fear The Sword talk about the Cavs schedule as well!

MIAMI—

This time it was for real.

“Full contact. Full pads. Mouthpiece,” Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said.

Monday was about show by the time the Heat arrived to the main bowl for the public portion of their practice at AmericanAirlines Arena.

But before that, on the practice court one level above, away from the NBA Finals media-day crowd, it was about blow-for-blow.

For the first time since eliminating the Chicago Bulls on Thursday night in five games in the Eastern Conference finals, the Heat hit. And hit hard.

The session turned so rugged that Spoelstra said he deviated from his practice script.

“I actually had to cut it short again,” Spoelstra said, “actually, after about however long. Guys were hitting a little too hard, and a little too amped up.”

Guard Dwyane Wade said it was refreshing to finally be allowed to get back to speed in anticipation of Tuesday’s 9 p.m. Game 1 of the Finals against the Dallas Mavericks.

“It was great energy-wise,” he said of the session. “It was the Finals. You can tell. Everyone is giddy, excited.

“Needless to say, this was one of the most anticipated practices for all of us since training camp, probably.”

Motivation, Wade said, clearly is not at issue at this point.

“This is the opportunity, this is a time, where probably not a lot of people on our team have been,” he said.

Even before he took his first question, Wade tried to put one particular lingering concern aside.

“I’m not hurt,” he said. “Get that out of the way. Move on.”

Wade had an uneven Eastern Conference finals, after diving into the crowd on the final play of the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Boston Celtics. He then took treatment on his left shoulder during the Bulls series.

Spoelstra said all of his players are healthy and took part in Monday’s practice.