NBA Eastern Conference Standings Prediction

 Sorry I didn't do an NFL week 3 reaction, I am so busy at work which I probably should be focusing on. Honestly though, this is my blog I can post whenever I want and whatever I want no need to put pressure on myself right? Enough rambling, this is a big one! We're at the end of September and I'm starting to see NBA training camp photos come out. The excitement of a new season is upon us and it's time to make a post that makes me seem foolish in April. I think I have a pretty decent handle on the NBA and players on every team so I feel pretty comfortable predicting the standings here, that being said I will 100% be wrong and I can't wait to see how. Without further ado, here's how the Eastern conference is going to shake out. 

15. Brooklyn Nets

If the Nets aren't last or second last in the entire NBA I will be absolutely shocked. They are going the traditional rebuild route though which a lot of fans really clamor for, and I don't mind how they're executing that strategy. The Nets drafted 5 players in the first round last year, guys I know literally nothing about, but with 5 shots at it at least one of them has to be a solid NBA player right? They also traded Cam Johnson for Michael Porter Jr, a slight downgrade on a bad contract but maybe a guy they can dangle to a contender eventually. Lets be real here though, the Nets own their first next year in what people are saying is an even better draft than this year's. They have a ton of young players and their vets are MPJ and Nic Claxton, not exactly the best examples of locker room leadership. This team is going to tank and I refuse to spend any more time on them.  

14. Washington Wizards

It's not controversial to have the Wizards second last in the division until they prove they can be anything but terrible. But I kind of like what they have brewing in Washington right now. Alex Sarr is an interesting big man with the ability to stretch the floor and switch a bit on the perimeter. Fits the mold of a modern big man pretty well. Kyshawn George has his issues as a driver but he's a big body who is at least willing to shoot 5 threes per game, and he's also Canadian so we like him here. They acquired Cam Whitmore from the Rockets, a guy who definitely can score in the NBA just hasn't had a chance to shine buried on the depth chart in Houston. They have another Canadian in Will Riley who they just drafted, a guy I don't know much about but again will always route for the Canadians. Bilal Coulibali isn't the most proficient on offense, but his length and speed make him a really interesting option on defense and if he ever gets consistent with his jump shot he'll be in the NBA for years. They also have good solid vets in Khris Middleton and CJ McCollum who have been on winning teams almost their entire careers and at least in CJ's case aren't completely washed yet. I could see the Wizards making a jump to like 30 wins this year, but until I see it I won't believe it. 

13. Charlotte Hornets 

On paper, I don't hate the Hornets roster actually. Brandon Miller is entering year 3 after improving every one of his counting stats last season before going down with an injury and playing just 27 games. They went out and got Collin Sexton basically for free, a guy who I think is actually underrated after being banished to Utah for a few years. He averaged 18ppg on nearly 60% true shooting on a miserable Jazz team last year and I don't see why he can't be a solid scoring option for this Hornets team. Their first round pick Kon Knueppel is a guy lots of analysts say plays the right way and adds some seriousness to their approach on the court. We'll see though, that's a big task for a rookie. Of course all of this depends on LaMelo Ball staying healthy, and playing an actual winning style of basketball when he is. LaMelo is one of the most talented young guards in the NBA and if he locks in he can genuinely become a top 10 player on the planet. The problem is he's played just 105 games the last 3 seasons and has increasingly been seemingly playing for highlights rather than wins. The Hornets also have a pretty poor front court rotation with Mason Plumlee likely starting off as their 5. This team has upward mobility for sure if things go right, but when do they ever go right for Charlotte? 13 seed for you. 

12. Boston Celtics

Maybe you think this is controversial, they were the title favorites last year and the champions in 2024! If you think that though I implore you to go look at their roster for the upcoming season. They still have some good players. Jaylen Brown had a bit of a down season last year, but he's still a finals MVP and all NBA level player who will now be thrust into a number 1 option role for the first time in his career with Tatum set to miss the whole season. Derrick White is as ideal a role player you can get at the guard position, he can do everything on the basketball court and is an elite defender. They got Anfernee Simons from the Trailblazers, but I'd honestly call his contributions a net neutral. He's one of the better offensive guards in the league but he gives it all back on defense, and is a big big change from Jrue Holiday who they had at that position last year. Payton Pritchard is awesome and probably should be a starting PG, but he's still smaller and more of a role player who now will have to shoulder a bigger load. Beyond those 4 guys, seriously look at their roster. Their options in the front court are: Chris Boucher, Xavier Tillman, Neemias Queta and Luka Garza. Look I love Chris Boucher as much as any Toronto fan should but we've all seen what happens if he's your starting center. The Celtics have a sneaky opportunity to just tank this season away, get a great pick in an awesome draft and then reload up again next year when Tatum is healthy. People are going to have them in the playoffs just out of respect, and Brown and White aren't just going to roll over, but with their lack of anyone reliable in the front court makes me weary to pick them as a playoff team. I also relish the opportunity to predict the Celtics being bad and this season I don't think it's crazy. 

11.  Indiana Pacers

Another bold prediction if you look at the outcome of last year vs where I project them this year, but hear me out. The Pacers were everyone's favorite story in the playoffs last year, not predicted to win any series they played but making it all the way to game 7 of the finals anyway. Unfortunately in game 7, their star PG Tyrese Haliburton tore his Achilles putting them in a similar situation to the Boston Celtics with Jayson Tatum. Right after the series the Pacers lost Myles Turner to the Bucks for nothing and will be going into this season without their starting PG and center from their finals run. They still have some good players, Pascal Siakam is an all-star level guy as us Toronto fans know, and we've seen him play well as the primary playmaker on a team. Andrew Nembhard is one of my favorite players in the league and is going to get more responsibility as the starting PG now without Hali. TJ McConnell is still the best backup PG in the world in my opinion and can replicate at least a little bit of Hali's playmaking this season. They've still got a bunch of role players who play defense and know their job like Aaron Nesmith, Benedict Mathurin and Obi Toppin. They also signed Jay Huff who put up strikingly similar stats to Myles Turner per 36 minutes, although in a reduced role off the bench for the Grizzlies last season. All of this is decent, not a 20 win team or anything, but I still think it's just not enough to get into the play-in this season. People forget Tyrese Haliburton was injured to start last season and not playing at the high level we saw in the playoffs. During that stretch, the Pacers started off 10-15. They turned it on after Haliburton started going on a tear making their offense what we saw in the playoffs, but this season they don't have Haliburton coming to save them. They also traded to get their pick back for 2026 and with no path to contention without their starting PG, I think there's a decent chance we see them tank away the second half of the year. Sad fall for one of my favorite teams but I have them at 11. 

10. Miami Heat

There isn't a team in the league this year that I feel more meh about than the Miami Heat. They do have some good but flawed players who will grind them to wins for sure. Bam Adebayo is one of the best big men in the league, especially on defense with his ability to switch on the perimeter better than any other center. Tyler Herro is a really good shooter and scorer as a guard and a sneaky good rebounder, although he has his major shortcomings on the defensive end. They went out and got Norman Powell for free who's another good scoring guard who can get downhill and also nail 3s. They retained Davion Mitchell who I love on Miami as a defender who also can run some solid backup point for them. They still have Andrew Wiggins, Kel'el Ware and Nikola Jovic who are all proven solid rotation players at minimum. You also have to account for the fact that Eric Spoelstra is the best coach in basketball and he always seems to pull a new role player out of thin air every season. Still though, I think this team just doesn't have enough on offense. They have a ton of players that would compliment a star really well, a lot of shooting, guys who play defense and a big who doesn't need to dominate the ball to make a major impact on games, but they don't have that star. The Heat never tank and I expect them to be at or around .500. I would have them anywhere from 10-7 but would be pretty surprised if they were better than a play-in team this year.  

9. Chicago Bulls

They should rename the play-in tournament the "Chicago Bulls Invitational." That being said, I like the mid Chicago Bulls I think they are going to play fun basketball this year I just don't think they're going to end up a very far above .500 team.  They have a starting lineup of some good players in Josh Giddey, Coby White, Patrick Williams, Matas Buzelis and Nikola Vucevic. You wouldn't call any of those guys stars, but they all play a role and actually fit nicely together on offense. Off the bench they're bringing a good mix of vets and young players that should help maintain their efficiency when the starters sit. The issue I see here is I can't see a path to the Bulls having an above average defense, especially with Vucevic being their starting center and Giddey and Coby White handling the back court. The Bulls have the guys to score with any team, and shooters all over the floor. Their games are going to be fast paced and fun to watch, but I don't think they can get stops against the best teams and I think that's what is going to kick them into the play-in tournament once again.  

8. Atlanta Hawks

For some reason the media is much higher on the Hawks than I am. I'll start by giving them some credit, they've built a much more suitable team for Trae Young this season than they ever had in the past. I've always thought of Trae as James Harden in Steph Curry's body in that he needs the ball to succeed, and is very successful with it, but is essentially useless when he doesn't have it. The Hawks tried pairing him with another ball dominant guard and it ended up failing spectacularly when Trae and DeJounte Murray had no synergies on the court. This season, they built a team almost like those James Harden Rockets teams where Trae Young can cook with the ball on offense while his teammates play their tails off on defense, catch lobs and hit spot up 3s. The big improvement the Hawks made this year is going and getting Kristaps Porzingis. When healthy, that's an awesome addition for the Hawks. A stretch big who can also protect the rim is something Trae has never had in his career, and I like his ability to play on the floor with their other big Onyeka Okongwu at the same time. The problem is Porzingis gets hurt every year, and usually at the worst possible time for his team. You'd be foolish to rely on him as a consistent contributor. Their second best player and a guy everyone is super high on is Jalen Johnson, a super athletic forward who can do a little bit of everything. He's another guy who compliments Trae perfectly, but also has had his own injury issues throughout his short career. Dyson Daniels emerged on the scene last year as one of the best defensive playmakers in the NBA leading the league in steals and finishing as the DPOY runner up. They also get points for adding Canadian Nikeil Alexander-Walker who should be a really good bench piece for them this season. Here's the thing, I don't think Trae plays efficient enough basketball on a night to night basis to have a James Harden type of team. I also don't think that he plays off ball well enough to have a Steph Curry type of team. What that leaves you with is a team that is going to look awesome when he's on and is going to struggle when he's off. Take that with the injury risk that exists in some of their best players and I think you have a .500 team, similar to most Trae lead teams. I am not buying the media hype, but wouldn't be super surprised to be proven wrong if everything goes right. 

7. Philadelphia 76ers

You could place Philly anywhere from 1-15 in the East and I would believe your argument. The only reason I have them 7th is because it's right in the middle and I have literally no clue how this season will go for them. If you could turn off injuries for a season, the 76ers probably have a case for best team in the East! Joel Embiid is an unstoppable scoring machine when healthy. Just 2 seasons ago he lead the league in scoring at 33.1 PPG taking home the MVP while also being a dominant force as a rim protector. Tyrese Maxey is one of the most fun young guards in the league as a lights out 3 point shooter and lightning quick driver. He's a guy that consistently torches the Raptors which probably warps my perception of him a bit, but he's probably just awesome in general. Paul George had injury issues and showed signs of decline after signing a massive contract with the 76ers last off season, but at his peak he was in the MVP conversation as well and I wouldn't rule out a bounce back year from him. Jared McCain was a lock for rookie of the year before he went down with injury around 30 games into last season. They also have the 3rd pick in the draft VJ Edgecombe, a guy people are pretty excited about. On paper all of this sounds great! An MVP candidate, 2 all star side kicks, a couple young really good players and some role players to fill out the roster. The thing is you can't count on the health of pretty much any of these guys and especially Embiid. If Embiid goes down with an injury, which he probably will, the Sixers go from an awesome team to an OK team. If Paul George continues his downward trajectory that takes them from OK to bad. The season already started off on the wrong foot with Jarred McCain suffering a torn thumb ligament before training camp even begins. This is me conservatively averaging all possible outcomes for the 76ers, but as a hater I'd love for the worst case scenarios to play out. 

6. Toronto Raptors

My beloved! I fought really hard against myself to not have the Raptors as the 4 seed. In my heart of hearts I don't think the Bucks or Pistons are better than the Raptors, but I know that's just because I am extremely biased. Or maybe I am overcorrecting the media's summer hate tour of the Raptors, either way I think they have a great shot to be top 6 in the East this season and I don't think that's crazy controversial. First things first, last season was one of the weirdest ones you can imagine. The Raptors got off to a horrid start, Quickley got injured 10 minutes into the first game and Scottie Barnes went down for a couple weeks 4 games in. With injuries to key players, the Raptors turned to RJ Barrett and Gradey Dick as the primary options. They lost a lot of games, yes, but people forget how close all those games were. It didn't help that to start the season the Raptors had the toughest schedule in the NBA. They got themselves into a pretty deep hole, but the second half of the season the Raptors actually had a comically easy schedule. Instead of trying to dig out of the hole, the Raptors opted to purposefully lose as many games as possible down the stretch. This team I just described had 30 wins. They are bringing back essentially everyone from last year, but also adding Brandon Ingram who offers a skillset as a scorer who can create his own looks that the Raptors haven't had since Kawhi Leonard. They're shifting Scottie Barnes away from the number 1 option on offense where he struggled with his efficiency and making him more of a playmaker and jack of all trades defender. RJ Barrett can slide to the 2 guard spot instead of playing the 3 and use his size and strength to bully his way to the rim, what he does best. Hopefully they get a more healthy season from IQ which would mean actual good guard play on offense for once. They have a ton of young guys with Gradey Dick, Jamal Shead, Ja'Kobe Walter, Scottie Barnes, RJ Barrett, Jonathan Mogbo, Jamison Battle, Ochai Agbagi and 9th overall pick Collin Murray-Boyles all figuring to be in the rotation in some capacity and all being 25 years of age or younger. You're telling me at least a couple of those guys aren't going to take a step this season? I don't think the Raptors are winning the championship this year, but I watched the team last season. If they had a closer early in the year last season they would've won a lot more games and when the schedule softened we might've been talking about a team that went on a run. This section does contain a sliver of hopium though because even I know that if it doesn't work out this year with how expensive this team is, they likely are looking in a very different direction for next season. Here's hoping that won't be the case and the Raptors will be as good as I think. 

5. Milwaukee Bucks 

Man I don't know why I have the Bucks ahead of the Raptors. I am seriously just fighting the urge to be a mega homer, even though in my NFL preview I picked the Steelers to win the Superbowl lol. Anyway, the Bucks aren't really a good team. They might have the worst guard rotation in NBA history coming into this year featuring: Kevin Porter Jr, an absolute nut case, Gary Trent Jr, a shooting guard who can get hot as a shooter but doesn't play make at all and is suspect on defense, AJ Green who is basically the same thing as Gary, Gary Harris who couldn't crack the Magic rotation, a team desperate for guard play last year, Cole Anthony who got jumped in the rotation by 100 year old Cory Joseph in Orland, and Andre Jackson Jr who's listed as a guard but is really a forward who can't shoot. There are maybe 2 guys there that should be coming off the bench on a good team, but they're going to be starters. They did go out and get Myles Turner this off season for essentially $50m per year considering they're paying Dame $20m to not be on the team in order to afford him. Turner is a good player, a 3&D center is hard to find in the NBA and he fills the Brook Lopez role pretty perfectly on this team. So why do I have them as the 5 seed? Giannis Antetokounmpo still has an argument as the best player on the planet. When he's playing, he's unstoppable going to the rim while still being one of the most imposing presences on the defensive end in all of basketball. Giannis is going to basically be the point guard of this team which is going to be interesting. I don't think point Giannis plus a bunch of scrubs is going to win a round in the playoffs, but in the regular season he is good enough to drag this team to 45 wins. In a subpar East, 45 wins is probably good enough for the 5 seed so against my better judgement I have them here. 

4. Detroit Pistons

I really wanna hate the Pistons just because they were talked about last season as some kind of crazy revelation even though they won 44 games and lost in the first round. But in an Eastern conference full of unproven teams, it's hard to see Detroit falling lower than 6 this year and I would say they have a more balanced team than the Bucks coming into the season. Cade Cunningham proved he is one of the better point guards in basketball last season, especially with how he played against the Knicks in that first round series. If he's healthy and rolling, the Pistons should have a reasonably good offense and at his size he takes nothing away on defense. Ausar Thompson is a freak athlete and one of the best defensive wings in the NBA, though he does really struggle with shooting the ball on offense, he still contributes to winning with how well he can do everything else. Jaden Ivey was playing well last season before having to miss the entire second half after breaking his leg, he should be back and taking over the Dennis Schroeder role from last year's team. Jalen Duren is a solid big, especially on offense as a rim runner and pairs really well with a playmaker like Cade. Beyond that the Pistons just have a ton of reliable role players. Tobias Harris is a solid starter when not asked to be a star, Duncan Robinson is a shooter with size who should replace some of what Malik Beasley did for them, Caris LeVert is one of my favorite sneaky 6th man of the year candidates every year, Javonte Green is such an ideal hustle guy off the bench on any team, Paul Reed and Isaiah Stewart are both solid backup bigs who can mix and match in at the 4 in a pinch as well. This team is deep and has a really good head of the snake in Cade, they won a full 30 more games in 2024/2025 from their 2023/2024 total, that kind of jump shouldn't be ignored even if you're a hater like me and I expect they will keep the momentum going this year. 

3. New York Knicks

We're finally in the tier of teams I could see going to the finals in the Eastern Conference. It's kind of a sad state, unless we see some kind of crazy jump I don't think any of the top 3 teams in the east have the juice to compete with probably the top 5 seeds out West in a finals series, but I'd have said that about the Pacers last season too and look how wrong I was there. The Knicks starting lineup is awesome lead by one of my favorite players in Jalen Brunson. At just 6' tall, Brunson is somehow one of the best scorers in the NBA and he always finds a way to kick it up another level when the team needs him most. Karl Anthony-Towns is a force on offense as a shooter, passer and scorer in the post, although he does come with his deficiencies on defense especially as a rim protector. OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges are 2 of the best 3&D wings in the NBA when they're engaged, OG totally should have an all NBA defense first team at least if not a DPOY but unfortunately the voters don't watch the Raptors. They can either go with Josh Hart who's an awesome glue guy and amazing rebounder for his size or Mitchell Robinson who covers KAT's weaknesses on defense and can clean the glass as well as anyone for the 5th spot in the starting lineup and I think either option is great. Off the bench they have Deuce McBride, a streaky shooter but dogged defender at the guard, Jordan Clarkson, who will do his best Lou Will impression on this team, Guerschon Yabusele who's just a wrecking ball at power forward and can also knock down 3s and Malcom Brogdon who's one of the more responsible players in the league when healthy. The Knicks had a really good team last year with just that starting 5 carrying the load, this year they have an actual respectable bench and a new coach to hopefully get more out of everybody. I could see the Knicks being the 1 seed if all goes well, I'm just really high on the other 2 teams for the regular season at least. 

2. Orlando Magic

Can't stop won't stop loving the Magic! Last season was a really weird injury riddled year for Orlando. They got off to a really good start and then Paolo strained his oblique and had to miss a couple months. Franz Wagner in that time emerged as a really good number 1 option averaging 26/6/6 with Paolo out over 20 games, but then he strained his oblique in a weird exact same injury to Paolo and had to miss a couple months himself. They still kept winning because Jalen Suggs is just an energizer bunny who does all the little things a team needs to win a game, similar to Kyle Lowry in his Raptors days, but then even he went down with a back injury and missed the entire second half of the year and the playoffs. After Suggs went down, the Magic fell off a cliff and were never able to recover. This year they're all healthy and they've addressed their biggest weakness, shooting, by adding Desmond Bane, one of the best shooters in the NBA. They still have a long list of role players that I really like with Goga Bitadze, Mo Wagner, Wendell Carter Jr, Tristan Da Silva, Anthony Black, and new addition Tyus Jones. They might still lack shooting, but the addition of Bane should open things up every so slightly for Paolo and Franz who are simply one of the best wing duos in basketball and should only be getting better. The Magic's defense is going to be awesome, it always is, I think adding a scoring guard like Bane should help improve their offense to at least average and that should be enough for 50+ wins and the 2 seed in the East. 

1. Cleveland Cavaliers 

Man I don't even like the Cavs they're such a fake good team. That being said, they won 64 games last season and probably got better for the regular season this year so it's hard not to pick them as the 1 seed. Donovan Mitchell is one of the most fun players to watch in the NBA, he can get to the rim at will, shoot the laces off the ball and straight up take over a game when his team needs it. He can get tunnel vision as a scorer sometimes, but when you're one of the best scorers in the league that can be forgiven. Darius Garland is one of the most underrated point guards in the NBA and might have claim as the best PG in the East with Hali out all season. He can shoot from anywhere and always gets his team involved, as a good floor general should. Evan Mobley just won DPOY, and even though that was only because Victor Wembanyama got injured, he is still one of the most imposing defensive players in the league as a help defender especially. He's paired in the front court with Jarrett Allen, one of the best rim protectors in basketball. All of this is tied together with some shooters in Max Struss, De'Andre Hunter, Dean Wade and Sam Merrill who can all mix and match in with this strong starting 4 throughout the season. They lost Ty Jerome who in the regular season was a massive contributor for them, seemingly hitting every shot he took no matter from where, but they replaced him with Lonzo Ball who's a better playmaker and defender when healthy and I think a better winning player than Jerome anyway. When the playoffs hit, I fully expect this team to shrink from the moment, they have the 2 small guards and 2 bigs who won't shoot in the starting lineup, teams exploit that every year. In the regular season though they're going to be a nightmare to play against once again and probably will win another 60 games. This is your 1 seed Eastern conference, deal with it. 

And that's that! Woosh big one, can you tell I wrote it over multiple days? Hit me up if you disagree! Go Raptors