The NBA season is here! Here’s what to expect from each team coming into this season in the Eastern Conference.
Atlanta Hawks
This year, the East is up for grabs! Because the West is so stacked, and because two of the front-running teams in the East are out with big injuries (the Celtics with Jayson Tatum and the Pacers with Tyrese Haliburton), we are seeing a power grab happening in the East. The Hawks are one of these teams trying to fight for a contending spot. With Trae Young — an unproven, high-volume point guard, looking to prove himself — manning the wheel, the Hawks acquired big man Kristaps Porziņģis and Timberwolves alum Nickeil Alexander- Walker to make the next jump.
Although the signing of Porziņģis is prudent with Young never really having a center by his side, it’s definitely a gambit, as this injury and ailment-prone big man has underperformed in his past seasons when the lights have been brightest. Luckily, they have a strong cast with the defensive menace that is Dyson Daniels, 2024 first-round draft pick Zaccharie Risacher, Onyeka Okongwu, and Jalen Johnson. I see this team making the playoffs but not making it to the Eastern Conference Finals.
New York Knicks
There was a lot of talk last year about the Knicks’ old coach Tom Thibodeau’s methodology of playing his starters into the ground. When we got to the postseason, you could see the impact this had on their players. There was little to no chemistry between starters and bench players, and the Knicks’ offense devolved into only giving Jalen Brunson the ball and hoping he got to the line. Hiring Mike Brown in replacement was a great solution for this. This team has star players, but those players have to be used more effectively with the bench for both longevity and winning’s sake. I’m hoping for a lot more Brunson and Towns’ two-man game, and utilizing the offensive weapon that Bridges is. If this team is coached well, they could be the number one seed in the East.
Cleveland Cavaliers
The Cavaliers, on paper, should be a contender. They arguably had the best offense in the league last year and were the top seed in the East. They have a really good core in Evan Mobley (last year’s defensive player of the year), Jarrett Allen, Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland, with a few good bench players as well. There’s no question that this team will be good, but the question is how good? Mitchell and Garland are undersized guards in a league that is pushing that archetype further and further to the side, and I am still wary after last year’s ending to the season. Injuries are everything for this team. If one of their starters is out, the best-case scenario is they make it to the Eastern Conference Finals…but that’s best-case.
Detroit Pistons
The Pistons looked great last year, especially compared to their 2023-24 season, where they had the longest losing streak in NBA history. They have a great leader in Cade Cunningham, and promising players in Ausar Thompson, Jaden Ivey, and Ron Holland. The team was solid last year, making it to the playoffs and pushing the Knicks to six games. Some people are really big on the Cade Cunningham hype train, and he’s a really promising player. Big point guards are becoming increasingly important, but he does have room to improve. He makes a lot of good assists, but he also has his fair share of turnovers. Realistically, he needs a number two that the team just doesn’t have right now, and you can’t ask a young point guard to carry a team in this league. They’ll make it to the playoffs, but that’s about it. This year should be treated as a further development year; a good team taking their talent as far as they can.
Indiana Pacers Tyrese Haliburton…my star, my perfect silence. Your fits are too clean, your game is effortless; most doubted to the clutchest player of all time — all in one year. He was too perfect, he was too great, and so he had to fall. Down down down. God ruins those closest to his glory in cowardly malevolence. Placing not the sheep but the goat to his left. He saw Haliburton eye-to-eye — a peer — and could not hold his jealousy.
But that’s okay! While the Pacers will be nowhere near what they were last year without the sexiest floor general the game has ever seen, his fits from the sidelines will still pull the Pacers to above .500. The Pacers made it to the finals because they are a winning team. They have a strong core with members who play their role and go above and beyond when expected. And yes, while Myles Turner’s leaving does again bring down their ceiling and morale, these new Pacers have always been able to make something out of nothing. Andrew Nembhard will make a leap this year and Pascal Siakam is still one of the most underrated players in the league. When my future husband returns next season, this team will still be competing. Will they even see the lights of the Finals again? I don’t know. But this team embodies what it means to play winning basketball in the modern era: basketball is a team sport.
Miami Heat
What is the Miami Heat’s next move? Bam Adebayo is incredible but cannot be the first option on a championship team. Tyler Herro can’t fulfill this role and new acquisition Norman Powell can’t either. I’ve never been particularly enamored by Heat culture, but I do want Adebayo to be on a winning team. They seem like a team that has no interest in rebuilding, which is okay for now, but the longer they push it back, the longer the bite will be.
Milwaukee Bucks
Can the Milwaukee Bucks make the playoffs? Giannis Antetokounmpo is the second-most talented player in the league and they have to keep him happy to keep him in Milwaukee. They may be able to do that for now, but with dead salary from Damian Lillard and no picks left to trade with, they have to make use of what they’ve got. Miles Turner is a great addition to the team. He provides the same value Brook Lopez brought in spacing, three-point efficiency and allows Giannis to be the power forward he was meant to be. I just hope the supporting cast is enough for a player who is dedicated to the franchise that made him– and who deserves to win again.
Orlando Magic
The Orlando Magic are another team in the East looking to take control now that the Celtics and Pacers are out of the equation. They traded away multiple first-round draft picks for Desmond Bane, who, on the surface, looks to be the perfect solution to a lot of the Magic’s problems. Led by Franz Wagner and Paolo Banchero, this team is all set on slashing bigs and is in desperate need of some three-pointers. Desmond Bane fulfills that role while adding playmaking to a team that won’t say no to it. I’m a big fan of Jalen Suggs, and having brothers on your team (Franz and Moritz Wagner) adds at least 10 chemistry points. Winning starts with Wagner and Banchero leaning into the pressure with a well-built team following suit.
Philadelphia 76ers
The 76ers are both cursed and look to have a bright future. Both Joel Embiid and Paul George’s contracts are some of the worst in the league; one losing complete autonomy of his knee and the other caring more about his podcast than the league, respectively. These super-maxers got their bag and have dipped. That was the end of the discussion for the 76ers for a while, and in many ways still is. However, with a promising front court of Tyrese Maxey, Jared McCain and V. J. Edgecombe, this team could actually be something. Although their ceiling is low, there is a world in which these young guards carry two old leeches to a playoff run they’ll be forced to contribute to, and I’m happy that competitive basketball is staying in Philly for the time being.
Washington Wizards
The Wizards are a losing team, and while it’s fun to watch individual players, nothing will come out of this team. I do believe in second-year Alex Sarr, but it will take a few more years for him to develop. Best of luck in the draft!
Toronto Raptors
The Raptors are testing the salary cap without much to show for it. I’m a big fan of Scottie Barnes, but he cannot be the number one option on this team, and the Raptors are putting too many eggs in too many different baskets for that number one. Brandon Ingram and RJ Barrett have potential, but they’re not superstar players. It feels difficult to justify them being far over the salary cap for how little I see this team performing.
Boston Celtics
Is this a rebuild year for the Boston Celtics? That’s what one may think. With Jayson Tatum out for probably the entire season with an Achilles tear and a massive roster salary, something had to change. The Celtics shipped out Porziņģis and Jrue Holiday to the Hawks and Trailblazers, respectively, and did not renew Al Horford’s contract. Porziņģis was too injury-prone for the contract he was given, and an aged Holiday could no longer pull his weight compared to the bag under his belt. In lieu, they picked up multiple players on short ‘prove it or lose it’ contracts. But although it may look like the Celtics are looking at a short rebuild year, I wouldn’t be so certain. Jaylen Brown, Derrick White, and Payton Pritchard are still ballers, and Coach Joe Mazzulla isn’t the type of coach to be excited for a rebuild. There have been rumors of Tatum returning late in the season, but I don’t see value in that either. That’s asking for a quick re-injury, and he wouldn’t provide anything of value to a team that will have formed a lot of chemistry without him over the season. It’s best to just wait it out. I expect this team to make the play-in, but not anything further than a first-round exit. And Celtics fans, that’s okay!
Brooklyn Nets
The Nets are one of the many teams tanking and praying for the next Victor Wembanyama. They have the lowest salary in the league, and that reflects their talent. Michael Porter Jr. is their most exciting acquisition, which isn’t saying much. Cam Thomas can score, but not efficiently. Sorry, Nets fans, best of luck in the draft.
Charlotte Hornets
Who do the Hornets have? LaMelo Ball! Although they do have promise in the second year, Brandon Miller, this team is not good, and probably won’t win many games. I always see all this hate about LaMelo Ball surrounding his not particularly stellar team, and I’d like to take a second to defend him. Ball is an exciting player; he’s flashy, fun, has great vision, and a great personality. However, he doesn’t have the chops to be a generational player or to be the best player on a winning team. He hasn’t been given the greatest team to prove that, but at the same time, is winning all there is in basketball? Someone has to lose, and at least Ball does it in style. So stop hating my boy and take him for what he is: an unserious but much-needed presence in the modern league.
Chicago Bulls
Who has the worst front office in the league? It’s the Chicago Bulls, and it’s not particularly close. They have absolutely failed in every trade they have done in the past 5 years, sometimes even giving great teams great deals for no good reason. The biggest example of this was a 1-1 trade, kicking out Alex Caruso, one of the best three-and-D players in the league, for an underperforming prospect in Josh Giddey. This was not a good trade, and that precedent was continued with them signing him over the summer on a fully guaranteed $100 million 4-year contract extension. Their only promising player is potential White Boy of the Year in Matas Buzelis, who is looking better than expected coming into his second year.
