| W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Div | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| y-Miami Heat | 61 | 21 | .744 | – | 29–12 | 32–9 | 16–8 |
| x-New York Knicks | 57 | 25 | .695 | 4 | 31–10 | 26–15 | 19–6 |
| x-Orlando Magic | 45 | 37 | .549 | 16 | 26–15 | 19–22 | 13–11 |
| x-Washington Bullets | 44 | 38 | .537 | 17 | 25–16 | 19–22 | 14–10 |
| New Jersey Nets | 26 | 56 | .317 | 35 | 16–25 | 10–31 | 11–13 |
| Philadelphia 76ers | 22 | 60 | .268 | 39 | 11–30 | 11–30 | 11–14 |
| Boston Celtics | 15 | 67 | .183 | 46 | 11–30 | 4–37 | 1–23 |
This is a template that was created to easily update every article with the 1996–97 NBA Atlantic Division standings. To use the update on any article, insert:
{{1996–97 NBA Atlantic standings}}
To highlight the Orlando Magic, insert:
{{1996–97 NBA Atlantic standings|team=ORL}}
For the other teams, use:
- Boston Celtics – BOS
- Miami Heat – MIA
- New York Knicks – NYK
- New Jersey Nets – NJN
- Philadelphia 76ers – PHI
- Washington Bullets – WSB