Up until about a month ago, the Orlando Magic was the biggest story to come out of the Eastern Conference thanks to its off-season acquisitions of Patrick Ewing, Horace Grant and the return of Grant Hill. However, a certain superman-like fellow has shifted the talk to a team that has not seen this much attention since they were called the Bullets.
The media eye will most definitely be on the Washington Wizards this season. The return of the greatest basketball player of all time, Michael Jeffrey Jordan has suddenly made the Wizards a contender for the playoffs. Jordan may drop 30 points a game, but if the rest of the squad were to play a top-25 NCAA team, they would probably lose. Chances are the Jordan effect will not help the lowly Wizards into postseason glory.
Now, getting back to the team I predict to finish No. 1 in the East: the Orlando Magic. Without a doubt, Orlando has the best starting lineup in the East, and maybe the best in the entire league. The key to this team’s success is the health of aging veterans Ewing and Grant. Hill will be taking on the point guard role and he will surely pick up a lot of assists passing to Tracy McGrady.
The Philadelphia 76ers bring a new look to this years’ squad. Allen Iverson is still the MVP of the NBA, but unless he wants to take the same beating he did last year, he will need to share some of the offensive duties. The defending Eastern Conference champions recently acquired troubled forward Derrick Coleman from the Charlotte Hornets to help with scoring duties. This squad is still tough defensively and will definitely still be playing in late May.
Can you recount which team the 76ers beat in the Conference Finals last year? Not too many people can. The Milwaukee Bucks have the best team in the league that never gets noticed. Ray Allen has turned into a superstar and with Glenn Robinson, they make a dynamic duo. A player that may put them over the edge is Anthony Mason. The recently signed forward will give the Bucks much-needed rebounding help.
In the late 90’s, three teams (other than the Jordan’s Bulls), dominated the eastern conference – the Indiana Pacers, the New York Knicks and the Miami Heat. However, their days of domination may have come to an end. The Heat still have a solid nucleus around Alonzo Mourning, but if he is not healthy another first-round knockout will be in the cards for Miami. The Pacers are a young team – except for Reggie Miller – and they will be fighting to make the playoffs. For the first time in a long time the Knicks are falling down the ladder. Their off-season plan to get Chris Webber or Terrell Brandon failed miserably. Now they have to rely on having a healthy Marcus Camby, an inconsistent Allan Houston and very unhappy Latrell Sprewell.
While some teams are dropping in the ranks, there are others that are on the rise. For starters, the hometown team, the Boston Celtics, have a good outlook for this season. Now that there has been a smooth transition from the Rick Pitino era to the Jim O’Brien era, this team is more of a solid unit. The focus has been shifted to the players such as Antoine Walker and Paul Pierce, rather than onto the sidelines. Other than the two big stars, their rotation is pretty weak. However, the exquisite play of Walker and Pierce may help the Celts squeak into the eighth spot of the East.
Vince Carter showed the basketball world last year that he has the ability to lead his team through a playoff run. That is why the Toronto Raptors will be one of the top teams in the East this year. With the addition of Hakeem Olajuwon, the Raptor lineup will be more balanced and their team defense will most likely improve. They will miss Charles Oakley’s leadership and hustle now that he is playing for the Chicago Bulls, but Antonio Davis will make up all the blue-collar duties that Oakley left behind and the Raptors will enjoy another winning season.
There are two teams that may turn some heads this year – the New Jersey Nets and the Atlanta Hawks. The Nets made a blockbuster deal over the summer, trading away its franchise player, Stephan Marbury, to the Suns for Jason Kidd. They did this in order to improve the chemistry of the squad. The risky deal will pay off. With a bulked-up high-flying Kenyon Martin and an older but wiser Keith Van Horn, Kidd will have a lot of fun leading the break.
The Hawks picked-up Shareef Abdur-Rahim and he is the best-kept secret in the NBA. They have a triple-threat with him, Toni Kukoc and Theo Ratliff on the frontline and the Hawks will be a big surprise this year.
Predictions:
1) Orlando Magic
2) Philadelphia 76ers
3) Milwaukee Bucks
4) Toronto Raptors
5) Miami Heat
6) New York Knicks
7) Charlotte Hornets
8) New Jersey Nets
9) Indiana Pacers
10) Boston Celtics
11) Atlanta Hawks
12) Washington Wizards
13) Detroit Pistons
14) Cleveland Cavaliers
15) Chicago Bulls