In our first predictions into the Eastern Conference, I feel like I should take some time to explain what makes the Eastern Conference so different from the West. One, it is a little more lopsided. I mean for crying out loud the Milwaukee Bucks locked up the eighth seed while being six games under .500 last season and then you had Miami who had an insane record of 66-16. That should tell you enough about this conference and how stacked the West really is. You could be six games OVER .500 and still not make the playoffs.

Anyway, let us start off in the Atlantic division, which proves to have a heated rivalry this season and some drastic changes for a team that has been a powerhouse in that division for a while.

First Place—Brooklyn Nets

If I was in New York, I might get shot for this prediction, but let me explain. Brooklyn added yet more players and big contracts to their already expensive arsenal. They added Andrei Kirilenko, Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, and Jason Terry and also added new coach and beloved player Jason Kidd for his first job as a head coach. This team has always puzzled me as they look better on paper, but last year they fizzled out in the first round of the playoffs against a depleted Chicago team. I am not sure if they are going to be steamrolling teams, but I think with these new additions, their depth is insane. Like the Clippers, when you have KG, Jason Terry, Livingston, and Blatche coming off your bench, those are some very, very nice weapons to use. I have read that Garnett is going to get the Tim Duncan treatment now. He will not be playing both games in a back-to-back and his minutes will be reduced and I think Garnett is probably okay with this. I think the last couple of years in Boston he was being used too much and he ran out of gas in the playoffs and you could definitely see that in the first round last year.

It will be interesting to see the new starting line-up for this team. Obviously, you have Deron Williams at the 1, Joe Johnson at the 2, Brook Lopez at the 5, but do you have AK-47 start at the 3? Or, Paul Pierce? Do you have Kevin Garnett start at the 4? Or, Reggie Evans. I think the answer to that last question is Evans. I think Garnett’s starting days are over, but I think Garnett is still going to be extremely effective. I would not actually be surprised if he plays back-up center to Lopez as well. He reinvented himself in Boston and showed that he can be quite effective at the 5. I think the answer to who starts at SF is a little bit harder. I think Pierce can still start in this league and Kirilenko, to me, was never an automatic starter. We shall see who they pick.

All-in-all, I think they will be able to nudge the New York Knicks aside to secure the first place spot. I just think they have more depth than the Knicks at this point and I think they have more effective shooters on their squad who do not feel the need to jack up 30 shots a game to score 20 *cough* J.R. Smith *cough*.  I will explain more down below, but I also want to mention how this is not a lock by any means. I could see the Knicks getting first place and keeping it. We all saw Brooklyn make a face plant last year and I am still skeptical about this team, but I think with the added experience of Brooklyn’s players and with the Knicks losing some key players off of their bench, I think Brooklyn has a better shot at challenging and keeping that first place slot. Either way, this rivalry just got big and already words have been thrown out from both teams. It shall be interesting to see what happens this coming season as the New York rivalry is on.

Second Place—New York Knicks

The Knicks have been that team in the past couple of years who talk a big game, but never seem to shock or frighten anybody. They got knocked out in the first round against Miami a couple of seasons ago, which was a pass because that team was just starting to get the players they needed to really contend, but last year was an underperformance. You have the second seed, have an excellent regular season, and win thirteen games in a row with resurgences from some aging vets. Yet, you guys couldn’t at least get to the Eastern Conference Finals? All right, maybe I’ll give New York a little bit of slack in the Indiana series. They did take a team, who was built for the playoffs last year, to six games, but I think losing game one in MSG was a big mistake.

It just felt like both of their series last year were sloppy and didn’t seem that fluid. You had J.R. Smith and Carmelo Anthony jacking up a combined total of 40 to 50 shots a game and you had a Tyson Chandler, who I thought did not make his presence known, struggle throughout the playoffs. Yeah, they won a series and made it interesting against Indiana, but it just felt like this team could do a lot more.

This year is not going to be much better. They added Andrea Bargnani from Toronto, Metta World Peace, who was amnestied from the Lakers, and Beno Udrih to bolster the backcourt. The question I have, again, is where is the defense going to come from? Besides Tyson Chandler, it seems like there is not a lot of defensive prowess on this team. Metta World Peace is a shadow of his former self and Bargnani was basically run out of Toronto because he couldn’t play defense.

I think the Knicks overpaid for J.R. Smith, who is going to be missing five games on violating the league’s anti-drug policy, by the way. I am not saying he doesn’t have skill, but he reminds me of Monta Ellis, with more off nights. I remember watching a Blazers vs Knicks games last season and it seemed like the guy was shooting every three seconds. I would have signed this guy to a two-year deal rather than the three-year deal that the Knicks signed. It just seems like this guy is more toxic than he is positive. His attitude off the court leaves something to be desired and the same can be said for his on-court performance.

I am also skeptical about their depth. They added some players to plug the hole that Chris Copeland left, but I honestly do not see how this is better. Last year, New York’s bench was a lot of old guys aside from Copeland who himself is in his late 20’s. Is it going to change? You have Kenyon Martin coming back, you have Amar’e Stoudemire, who is walking injury waiting to happen, you have Beno Udrih who is 31, but, in my opinion, nothing super special, and you have Pablo Prigioni coming back on a three-year deal, but he is only three years younger than Steve Nash. Outside of the rookies that they drafted in Tim Hardaway Jr. and C.J. Leslie, their bench is OLD. They may play great early in the season, but call me in April.

I think because this division is so weak near the bottom I am predicting that they, at least, land in the second place slot in this division. I am not going to rule out that they might end up settling into first place on account of a Brooklyn flop late in the season, but realistically I think they will end up securing that second place slot.

Third Place—Toronto Raptors

This is where things start getting weird. Having the Raptors above fourth and fifth place, are you mad? Take a deep breath everyone let’s take a look at this team. There are a couple of reasons as to why I think this team is going to jump a little from last year. One, they got former Denver Nuggets GM Masai Ujiri who won the 2012-2013 NBA Executive of the Year. This finally gives the Raptors some direction as it has seemed in recent years that they have been horribly lost. Two, they finally got rid of Bargnani, who I think was holding them back. If you noticed last season, once Bargnani was injured the Raptors actually got better. They had a 4-17 record at one point and ended the season at 34-48. Not too shabby. The biggest move they pulled last season was getting Rudy Gay from the Grizzlies. This seemed like a great move for either side as Gay was becoming the odd man out in Memphis and Toronto desperately needed some scoring punch. Having Gay for a full season should help a lot. I think the biggest factor that people might not notice or talk about is the emergence of Jonas Valanciunas. He was named the MVP for the 2013 NBA Summer League as he was averaging 18.8 points and 10 rebounds a game and shooting 56% for FG. Now, Summer League is what it is, but you cannot deny the skill and potential of this kid. He gained some weight and he buffed up, which makes him frightening now.I mean he was only 20 last season. He wasn’t even done growing yet. I think he has the possibility to dramatically change the dynamic and feel of this Raptors team in a big way this coming season.

They also added Tyler Hansbrough, D.J. Augustin, and Steve Novak to the roster over the off-season to add some nice bench players. This team is going to sneak up on some people. As you can probably tell just from the additions and the roster, this team is no longer a bumbling mess or an easy victory. This team is going to be formidable and even more so in the coming years. They have nice pieces in Rudy Gay, DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry to build around.

I think that Toronto will indeed be better than Boston and hold that third place spot. I think a lot of people probably have Toronto still low on the totem pole, but honestly, you cannot ignore this team for much longer. If they went 34-48 last season without a lot of these pieces, how are they going to play next season? We shall see.

Fourth Place—Boston Celtics

It just feels weird to put the Celtics this low in the standings, but alas the rebuilding era has officially started. Danny Ainge finally traded away fan favorite Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce who had played for the Celtics for 15 seasons. The Celtics got a bunch of small or expiring contracts from Brooklyn while also securing a three first-round draft picks in 2014, 2016, and 2018. I say that was a successful trade. This has been a long time coming and honestly I thought Ainge should have pulled the trigger on a Garnett and Pierce trade last season. However, he may not have gotten the kind of deal he wanted and looking back, I think it was good of him to wait. They also witnessed the departure of beloved coach Doc Rivers, who went to coach the Clippers this off-season. This seemed logical as Doc did not want to be involved in a rebuilding project and with the heavy possibility of Garnett and Pierce leaving, it would seem right to signal the end of an era and start anew. They ended up hiring the young, young coach Brad Stevens who previously coached the basketball team at Butler University. At age 36, he is the perfect fit to restart this Celtic roster and to help grow and lead these young players into a formidable group. I was glad they picked a coach that a lot of people probably did not know. Think about it, George Karl and Lionel Hollins were available at the time, yet the management did not want them. I think it is good to grab a coach who can build his name and have time to really craft this team into something competitive.

Kelly Olynyk will be making his NBA debut this season and he has certainly wowed NBA fans with what he did in Summer League. This is a perfect situation for him. He is going to get a lot of minutes and he is going to be able to grow with everyone else.  There are also going to be some nice vets on the team for him to learn from and to grow as an NBA player. This kid has skill and he reminds me a little bit of LaMarcus Aldridge or Dirk Nowitzki in the way he plays and his build. Celtic fans should be excited about this pickup, just don’t get lost in his hair.

The only other thing I can say is that I am interested to watch the Rajon Rondo storyline play out. He will just be coming off of an ACL injury and to a completely new team. Will he want to be a part of the rebuilding process? Or, will he be on his way out as well? Rondo could technically be a part of the rebuilding process as he is young enough, but will he want to? Ever since he came into the NBA, the Celtics have been really competitive and have always been in the mix. It will be interesting to see how Rondo adapts over the coming season.

I think Boston will end up in fourth place in this division. If everything goes according to plan, maybe third place, but I highly doubt it. This is a season that is aimed at the future and honestly Boston fans should be excited. This team is set up nicely and with all the draft picks and assets they acquired over the off-season, the rebuild process should not be long and painful. Also, with the new rookies coming in, it should provide with a taste of what is to come and officially move on from the KG/Pierce era.

Fifth Place—Philadelphia 76ers.

Take about a reboot. Wow. You go from almost going to the Eastern Conference Finals just a couple of seasons ago to full reboot mode. The Andrew Bynum trade really screwed them over and has completely turned over their plans. Losing Andre Iguodala to the Nuggets and Nikola Vucevic to the Magic for essentially nothing will do that to a team. After hoping and praying that Bynum would come back at some point next season and play in a 76ers uniform, the fans did not get their wish and watched a team crumble before their eyes. Now, just as they start thinking that Jrue Holiday and Evan Turner are going to rebuild and lead this team back, you hear that Holiday has been traded to the Pelicans for Nerlens Noel. Gusty, gusty move, but I think a good one. Yeah, you could have probably made it work with Holiday, but it is a lot harder to find shot blockers and forces in the paint. With losing Vucevic, they needed a young budding player who could maybe fill some of that hole. They also ended up drafting Michael Carter-Williams from Syracuse who will be a nice solid pairing with Nerlens Noel for the future.

They were also the team that took the longest to replace their former coach Doug Collins who resigned last season. They eventually ended up hiring Brett Brown who was an assistant coach for the Spurs. It seems like this is the year of the Spurs assistant coaches finally getting some jobs and spreading that Popovich mindset. I think the 76ers really took their time to make sure they had the roster they wanted and so they could get the right coach that they wanted and I think it will pay off in the end.

To be honest, when I first heard about this trade I about died. I did not get it at all. Why would they trade an all-star who was just now sprouting for a player who might be injury prone and has some offensive problems to work out? The more and more I thought about it, the more I think it was the right call and instead of trying to ride a sinking ship, why not just blow it up right now and get back to prominence faster?  This team will also have a great position to possibly grab one of the most-coveted players since LeBron James in Andrew Wiggins in next year’s draft.

This was a pretty easy prediction to make and unfortunately teams have to go through seasons like this to get back to the top. I feel really sorry for the fans there as they were just starting to get a taste of a good team who would be competing for a while to having it be taken away from them. I feel for them as a Blazer fan, but I think they are in good shape considering all that has happened in the past couple of years. Time to grow!