If you ask people "which team is going to win the title?" you can't treat the results as a ranking.
This doesn't say that the Heat have a higher chance of winning the title. Normally both the Lakers and Heat would have 0 votes, but one person decided to make a long shot pick
I was rooting for the Nuggets and I really didn't feel like the Suns were much more threatening than the Lakers. The only reason that the Suns were able to keep it somewhat close in the beginning was Bookers historic hot streak were it was absolutely clear that it was not sustainable. After that they quickly folded
Despite not getting swept the Suns really didn't look better than the Lakers against the Nuggets. In the games the Suns lost they were absolutely dominated. It is not a given that they would have won the title
They should give the winner + 5 wins if they finish in the top 10 in their conference. That way nothing is guaranteed so teams can't stop trying, but it's still a significant reward