Eastern Conference Pre-Season Power Rankings
Here are my Eastern Conference Pre-Season Power Rankings. I will get out the Western Conference tomorrow! Let me know what you think:
Eastern Conference:
Brooklyn Nets: If the big 3 can stay healthy, it's hard not to pin these guys to the top of the rankings ahead of the defending champs to start the season.
Milwaukee Bucks: Defending Champs, most dominant player in the game, and with the change in rules on non-basketball moves for shooters, I think Giannis has a good chance at another MVP trophy to further improve his legacy
Philadelphia 76ers: Tons of talent, but also some drama. What happens with Ben Simmons? Either way I expect a monster year from Joel Embiid after basically blaming the playoff exit on Simmons
Miami Heat: Do they have another run in them? Jimmy Butler competes with the best of them, and young talent in Bam and Herro could make this a very enticing team if they can find their stride.
Atlanta Hawks: The playoff experience will definitely benefit this young team. Trae has proven to be an elite player in this league, we will need to see how he, and the rest of the league, adjust to the new officiating rules. I think Trae will be one of the most impacted by the change.
Chicago Bulls: The winners of the off-season, they have by far the most improved team on paper, but will it translate to the court? I think this is a make it or break it year for Lavine, he's got the pieces around him now it's time to show what he can do. As a fan, I had to temper my optimism, we still need to see what this team is capable of before getting too ahead of ourselves.
Boston Celtics: Tatum and company are dealing with turnover at the coaching position with Brad Stevens movin’ on up, and were never really able to find their rhythm last year. They have had trouble shoring up the PG position these last few years and just shipped out Kemba, if they can come together, look for this team to climb the rankings quickly.
New York Knicks: This Knicks team definitely caught some fire last year and were performing well, I don't think we will see that same production again this year, I feel like they were playing above their potential. Role players are another year older, and will need the young guys to step up and carry a little more weight for them to see the same success.
Washington Wizards: Russ is in LA, and they will be relying on Beal to run the show on his own. I expect big numbers from Beal this year, similar to last year, but will that translate to wins? We will need to wait and see.
Indiana Pacers: This Pacers team is flying under the radar, and low key kind of fun. Sabonis is a young star, look for him to continue to shine and develop his game, making the players around him better. Watch out for this Pacers team.
Toronto Raptors: The Raptors seem to be in a bit of a whirlwind. Spicy P isn't happy, Lowry is gone, the outlook of this team is up in the air. I really thought Suggs was the perfect fit to come in and replace Lowry, but they went with Scottie Barnes, who seems more like a replacement for Siakam. Hard to gauge what this team will look like down the stretch.
Charlotte Hornets: This is the team with probably the most upside, Lamelo Ball proved to be worthy of his draft capital and will hopefully have the opportunity to contribute to a full season. I love the addition of Bouknight, I would not be surprised to see this team in the play in tournament next spring.
Cleveland Cavaliers: There is a lot of potential on this team, but also a lot of question marks. Until they establish a direction, I don't see them racking up a whole lot of W's, but they definitely are not a team to take lightly.
Detroit Pistons: Adding Cade Cunningham could absolutely change the trajectory of this team. Jerami Grant and Cade could make a great 1, 2 punch. I think Cade is going to be an all star in this league but it is going to take time to turn this team around.
Orlando Magic: After trading away any and all of their major assets this past season, the Magic are looking to rebuild and are probably content being at the bottom of the conference competing for the number 1 overall pick this year.
Well, there you have it. We are a little over a month and a half away from the regular season tipping off, I will be updating my rankings weekly, on Fridays during the regular season. Be sure to subscribe to keep up with those, and other NBA content that I will be putting out, it’s free so what do you have to lose? The Western Conference rankings will be out tomorrow some time.
Thanks for reading, and until next time, this is ALL NET.