For the last few seasons, the Eastern Conference has been objectively worse than the west. While the discussion rages on about the necessity of conferences and how they affect playoff implications, we are still resigned to talking about the NBA in terms of conferences. Many of the east’s major players and best teams made significant moves to improve their teams this offseason. Did any of them succeed? Let’s take a look at the hierarchy of the eastern conference after free agency, and see who rose and fell in the NBA’s “second season”.
1. Cleveland Cavaliers
Cleveland finished the season as the best team in the East after falling just short of an NBA title. This offseason, they did nothing to prove that they deserve any less than the top spot here. LeBron James, Kevin Love, and several other key cogs return for next season, and that’s basically enough to vault these guys to the top. A healthy Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love could have changed the outcome of last year’s NBA Finals, but regardless, they ensure this team is the best in the eastern conference.
2. Miami Heat
Miami had some bad injury luck last season and was actually on pace to make the playoffs again on the backs of Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade. Now, the addition of Goran Dragic and the return of Bosh and Wade gives Miami one of the most dangerous starting lineups in the NBA. Dragic, Wade, Bosh, Luol Deng, and Hassan Whiteside are a very impressive starting five. Add in the fact that Justise Winslow fell in their laps with the 10th pick and Miami was a clear-cut winner of the summer.
3. Washington Wizards
The Wizards might have leapt into the second slot behind Cleveland if they were able to hang on to Paul Pierce, but alas he bolted for Los Angeles and Washington has to settle for third. They still have a growing and rapidly improving John Wall and Bradley Beal, and Otto Porter started to show some signs of life last season. If Porter can develop further, then those three are an exciting, young core of a rising team. Washington addressed some of the wing depth by adding Jared Dudley and Alan Anderson, and they can provide some of the value that Pierce left behind.
4. Milwaukee Bucks
Milwaukee would top the list of best young teams in the NBA, and are rising fast in the east as well. To be perfectly honest, the fourth spot in the east is kind of conservative for a team with a stellar head coach and an excellent young core. Throw in the return of Jabari Parker and the addition of Greg Monroe, and Milwaukee is now escaping the role of underdog. Michael Carter-Williams and Giannis Antetokounmpo will need to continue to improve, and Khris Middleton has to live up to his new contract, but the future is certainly bright in Milwaukee.
5. Atlanta Hawks
Atlanta is set to take a step back this season after a few free agency moves worked against them. Yes, Paul Millsap re-signed, but the team lost DeMarre Carroll to Toronto and Pero Antic to Europe. Kyle Korver is recovering from his ankle injury, and it seemed that everything came together for the Hawks last season before they fell apart against the Cavaliers. Will that happen again? It’s hard to imagine them going on such a tear again, but then again in a weaker conference anything is possible. The Hawks are too good not to be in the top half of the east, but they’ll have to prove that last season wasn’t a fluke first.
6. Toronto Raptors
Speaking of wheels falling off, the Raptors were downright abysmal in the playoffs. To address those concerns, they added Carroll and other plus defenders like Bismack Biyombo and Cory Joseph. The problems still remain with their offense and how often the flow bogs down to a DeMar DeRozan one-on-one show, but an improved defense is necessary. If Kyle Lowry stays healthy, this could be a different story, but for now this team is largely an unknown entity given how unpredictable they were last year. The talent is there, they just need to put the pieces back together again.
7. Chicago Bulls
Chicago is another intriguing team with talent that underwhelmed last season. A once-great defensive team was in the middle of the pack, and it seemed that Tom Thibodeau couldn’t effectively manage the plethora of frontcourt options. This year, new coach Fred Hoiberg takes over a roster that remains virtually untouched, save the addition of Bobby Portis. He’ll have to better manage their offense and the minutes between Pau Gasol, Joakim Noah, Nikola Mirotic, and Taj Gibson, but the backcourt and wing spots seem pretty solid. Derrick Rose and Jimmy Butler are both MVP-level talents, so health is the biggest factor here. If this team puts it together, they could easily jump most of the teams on this list. That is a pretty big if, however.
8. Indiana Pacers
Indiana might be the biggest mystery in the entire NBA, let alone the eastern conference. The Pacers went from being a powerful, forward-dominant team to a quick, guard-oriented squad. Indy added Monta Ellis, but lost David West, Luis Scola, and their big center Roy Hibbert. This team now is supremely small, and while their offense should be more potent, it leaves Paul George in an awkward position and compromises their defense. The addition of Jordan Hill should help, but the keys here will be integrating Ellis and developing rookie Myles Turner to becoming a competent forward/center. A weak east means Indiana might jump back into the playoff picture, especially with a healthy Paul George back in the mix.
9. Boston Celtics
Boston made some questionable free agency moves this summer, and it’s difficult to see if they actually improved as a result. The frontcourt is as crowded as a rush hour subway in NYC, and they actually added more pieces there than they cut. David Lee, Amir Johnson, Jordan Mickey, Tyler Zeller, Jared Sullinger, and Kelly Olynyk will all battle for playing time. Boston was able to add some shooting in the draft, but the consensus is they reached for Terry Rozier and didn’t address their need for a true pass-first point guard. Brad Stevens is a genius, but even he has his work cut out for him in figuring out this rotation.
10. Charlotte Hornets
The Hornets have had a widely discussed free agency period, but all things considered they actually had a few solid moves. The problem is that they were already on thin ice as it was, and it doesn’t seem like their moves will provide a huge improvement. Nicolas Batum is an upgrade on the wing, but there are still problems at the guard spots and the frontcourt. Al Jefferson can’t handle the load himself, and the defense now somehow got worse over the offseason. If their outside shooting improves, this team has an outside shot at sneaking into the playoffs, but it seems that several other teams passed them by this summer.
11. Orlando Magic
Orlando is a team that is still building for the future, and is probably still a year or two away from being serious contenders. They took a step forward by drafting Mario Hezonja and improving their outside shooting – which they desperately needed – but some of the other spots at the roster are still negatives. This team will continue to gel, but there are still questions about who will emerge as clear-cut starters at the shooting guard and power forward positions. New head coach Scott Skiles has his work cut out for him, but the bar should still be pretty low.
12. Brooklyn Nets
The Nets were an underachieving team last season that only got worse in free agency. Yes, they re-signed Brook Lopez and Thaddeus Young, but were forced to waive Deron Williams due to his displeasure. While the move helps the Nets out financially, Williams was above and beyond their best point guard. The team made a serious move towards youth, and now has to deal without Williams, Alan Anderson, Mirza Teletovic, and Mason Plumlee. A bevy of youngsters could develop over the course of the year, but this season seems to be playing out as a wash, a disappointing end to a once promising era.
13. Detroit Pistons
Detroit had a somewhat shaky offseason as well, having spent a lot of money to keep their new point guard happy, and losing their starting power forward to free agency. Greg Monroe was a solid forward, but Detroit is betting on Andre Drummond developing as a star center. Grabbing Marcus Morris was a solid move, but Monroe was clearly the best player out of the ones heading in or out of Detroit. This is still a team in flux, and they might not be done making moves this offseason. The added depth could help, but it remains to be seen how much better they really can be next year.
14. Philadelphia 76ers
Ah, yes, we reach the chemistry lab experiment known as the Philadelphia 76ers. Philly has been ignoring most of the traditional basketball moves over the last few seasons, gambling on their future by stockpiling draft picks. Taking Jahlil Okafor was a good move, especially now that Joel Embiid is going to miss another season. However, this team is still devoid of quality at most positions, and the point guard spot is still a massive concern. It’s news that Philadelphia fans don’t want to hear, but this team is still at least a year or two away.
15. New York Knicks
Last but not least are the Knicks, who were among the worst teams in the NBA for all of last season. They did make a few moves to improve, but the question of whether these improvements will make much of a difference still remains. This was a team last season that was routinely getting blown out, and still lacks depth and quality at all five starting positions. A full season in the triangle should help some of the younger players, but the problem is that much of the team last year is gone now. A healthy Carmelo Anthony helps, of course, but if he wants out then this year could get ugly. It probably will anyway, but that remains to be seen as well.