After an NBA season for the ages, that concluded with the Lakers bringing home the title, the league will kick off a 72 game sprints as opposed to 82 games, beginning on December 22nd.
The postseason will feature two extra spots, and “Play-in round”. Each conference’s 7 and 8 seeds, would battle it out for the right to the higher seed, with the loser facing the winner 0f the 9 vs 10 game, in a win or go-home battle.
After taking a break from posting, we're back, and are here to preview the upcoming season, along with some reflection on the previous one. Today, our Eastern Conference power rankings.
1.NETS 52-20:
Don't be fooled by how last season ended, although their are some bright spots you can take away from it. Brooklyn had a season full of injuries, with Kevin Durant already out due to an ACL tear, and Kyrie Irving only playing 20 games, due to injuries to his knee, and shoulder. The Nets, had to be led by Spencer Dinwidee, for a 24-34 record, before the season was paused due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
When the season resumed in Orlando this past July, Brooklyn was led by interim head coach Jacque Vaughn, and had a roster mostly made up of G-league players like Tyler Jhoson, , and declining veterean players like Jamal Crawford. This was due to the fact Dinwiddie, Deandre Jordan, and an abundance of other players couldn’t make the trip due to precautionary reasons.
However, what you can takeaway from this past season is the why this Nets team performed, as they went 5-3 in the bubble regular season, with stunning wins over league heavyweights in the Bucks,and Clippers. Brooklyn,almost racked up win #6 against Portland, in a game the Blazers needed to win in order to keep their season alive. But a potential-winner from Caris Levert(Who already had 42 points on the day), clanked off the rim giving Portland the 134-133 victory. The postseason went by in a hurry for the severely undermanned Nets, as they were swept away by two seeded the Toronto Raptors in round 1(134-110, 104-99,117-92,150-122). However, if Brooklyn could put a scare into elite teams without their stars,imagine what a coaching staff led by Steve Nash and Mike D'antoni, as well as a big three led by KD,Kyrie, and Levert could do. I have Brooklyn, at number 1.
2. Bucks 50-22: This was disappointing. The league-best Milwaukee Bucks (56-17, 3-5 in seeding games) saw another MVP season from Giannis Antetokounmpo, and although they took care of the 8 seeded Orlando Magic in five games, they were outclassed, and outplayed by the eventual Eastern Conference champion Miami Heat in round two(115-104,116-114,115-100,115-118 (ot), 103-94). This past offseason, Milwaukee put forth an effort to support Giannis by adding young guards in DJ Augustin, and Jrue Holiday to their team. But while the true test will come in the 2021 playoffs, this Bucks team is a dangerous one, andi expect that to be the case in this shortened 72 game season.
3. Celtics 49-23: Led by Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and Kemba Walker, Boston put together a 48-24 2020 campaign(5-3 in the seeding games), and entered the postseason as the third seed in the East. IN round 1, they established their dominance over the 76ers with a 4 game sweep, before outlasting the defending champion Raptors in a classic seven game series in round 2. But unfortunately for Boston, their inability to solve the Miami zone defense hurt them, in a tightly-contested Eastern Conference Finals series, that saw the Heat move on in six games (117-114(ot),106-101,106-117,112-109,108-121,125-113). Despite the disappointment, and the loss of a reliable role player in Gordon Hayward to the Hornets, Boston looks poised to run it back with their young core, and chase that elusive title, which would be their first since 2008.
4. Raptors 47-25: Despite the loss of star Kwahi Leanord, the reigning champs led by Pascal Siakam and Kyle Lowry went 53-19(7-1 in the seeding games), for the two seed in the East, and after bullying their way past the Nets in round 1, were dethroned by the Boston Celtics in 7 games (112-94, 102-99,103-104(Obi knocked down a buzzer beating 3), 93-100,111-89,122-125(ot),92-87). Although their stay atop the league has come to an end, even more so with this past offseason’s loss of keystone Serge Ibaka to the Clippers, the Raptors are still poised to thrive with their young core, (As they play host at Tampa Bay for the season due to the pandemic), and one of the elite coaches in basketball, in Nick Nurse.
5. Heat 46-26; ah yes, the reigning Eastern Conference Champions, in the Miami Heat. Honestly, what more can you say about this fantastic run they went on this past Summer? First they went 44-29(3-5 in the seeding games) during the regular season to lock up the four seed, before flipping the switch come playoff time. Led by emerging stars, like JImmy Butler (Superstar), Tyler herro, and Bam Adabyo, the Heat swept the Pacers, shocked the world in their ruthless defeat of the BUcks, before upending boston, to set up an improbable NBA finals date, with the Lakers. These past finals saw the stardom of JImmy Butler take center stage, as he single-handedly kept Miami, in this series with a couple of 40+ performances in games three, and five, striking fear into the superduo that is Anthony Davis, and Lebron James. But in the end, LA was the better team, and routed the Heat in game 6(106-93) for the clincher. Despite the end result(116-98,124-114,104-115,102-96,108-111, 106-93), it’s still a season to be proud of if your the heat. The next step is to do it again, but that won’t be easy in a revamped Eastern Conference, which is why they’re ranked a bit low. However, backed by coach Erik spolstra, you never know what this Miami team can do next.
6. 76ers 42-30: For years, it was “Trust the process. Our time will come”. That’s over now, and despite the fact it seemed to be working, as Philly did make some noise in the postseason the last couple of years, and may have gone to last years ECF, if not for the iconic Kawhi shot; the team completely regressed this past season. With Joel Emblid struggling to stay on the floor due to injuries, and Ben Simmons underperforming, Philadelphia limped to a 43-30 record(4-4 in seeding games),and a playoff date with the Celtics,which didn’t end well, as they were promptly discarded in four games(109-101,128-101,102-94,110-106). The 76ers are hoping, that along with the coaching switch of Doc Rivers for Brett Brown, comes a new way of winning basketball.
7. Pacers 36-36: Their season hinges on how healthy, and productive Victor Oladipo can be. Despite a 45-28 campaign,(6-2 in seeding games), Indiana was no match for the fourth seeded Heat come playoff time in a four game sweep(113-101,109-100,124-115,99-870. This team is in the midst of a retool, which puts them in the middle of the pack for me.
8. Magic 34-28: Aaron Gordon,and Orlando blasted off to a playoff berth despite a 33-40 record(3-5 in seeding games), and led by coach Steve Clifford, likewise took a game from the Bucks(122-110) same as they did from Toronto in 2019, before losing four straight (111-96,121-107,121-106,118-104), and being bounced from the postseason yet again. This team will likely be back again, but are lacking that star to play alongside Gordon. Meanwhile, their state of Florida has been taken over by the Hest, and Raptors. These guys have their work cut out for them.
9. Hornets 29-43: Watch out Eastern Conference because here come the Charlotte Hornets! After drafting Lamelo Ball with the 3rd overall pick in this years draft, and signing Gordon Hayward to a 4 year, $120 million deal, it seems like Charlotte is ready to erase the stink of their 23-42 campaign, from last season. It may take a while for role pliers such as, Devonte Graham, cody Martin, Cody Zeller, and Terry Rozier to get up to speed, having not played some NBA basketball since the shutdown;however watch out for the Hornets to be a sneaky bunch this year, and maybe squeeze into one of the ‘play-in” spots in the East.
10. Hawks 27-45: A 23-49 campaign plus the loss of future hall of famer VInce Carter to retirement may hurt, this Hawks squad. However, led by young star Trae Young, and free agency acquisitions in Rajon Rondo, Kriss Dunn, Danilo Galanari, and young star Boddan Bogdonovic, Atlanta has playoff aspirations for the upcoming season, and i expect them to contend for a wild-card spot this Spring.
11. Magic 26-46: Aaron Gordon,and Orlando blasted off to a playoff berth despite a 33-40 record(3-5 in seeding games), and led by coach Steve Clifford, likewise took a game from the Bucks(122-110) same as they did from Toronto in 2019, before losing four straight (111-96,121-107,121-106,118-104), and being bounced from the postseason yet again. This team is looking to be back again, but are lacking that star to play alongside Gordon. The losses of young stars Jonothan Isaac(ACL tear), and DJ Augastin (Picked up by Bucks) has hit this team hard on the depth chart. Meanwhile, their state of Florida has been taken over by the Heat, and Raptors. These guys have their work cut out for them.
12. Bulls 23-49: Zach Levin, and Coby White are fun to watch, and it will be interesting what the fourth overall pick in this past years draft Patrick Robinsion will do. But that’s all i have to say about you guys for right now. The future is bright though.
13. Knicks 22-50: The draft selections of small but athletic players, in Obi Toppin, and Immanuel Quickly, coupled with the fact that New York has stocked up on draft picks for the 2023 draft ,which is the year players can be drafted straight out of highschool, has me impressed with the way new GM Leon Rose has handled things thus far. But, i still see this team as one of the worst in basketball,and i don’t expect this 72 game-season to change that. The hope is, you manage and develop well over the next few years, and we may be able to say “The Knicks are back” in five-seven years. But until then, this team isn’t going to give you so much to smile about. IN my household, although they’re our favorite basketball team, the Knicks are currently an afterthought when it comes to the “What game should we watch tonight?” debate.
14. Pistons 20-52: They need to figure this thing out, i don’t see light at the end of tunnel for them right now, however i do like how the veterean Blake Griffin is there, to mentor young guys like incoming rookie Killian Hayes.
15. Cavs 18-54: I’m excited about your draft pick Isaac Okoro, and for year three of Collin Sexton, but that’s it. Expect the cavaliers to contend for the lottery this upcoming season.
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