Eastern Conference Predicted Finish

By Broderick Covington Friday, October 23rd, 2009 | No Comments

heat-dancers

Playoff Teams
1. Orlando Magic – We’ve picked the Magic to finish at the top of the Eastern Conference. The loss of Hedo Turkoglu will not slow the Magic this season. Vince Carter will be the best offseason addition by any NBA team this year. Carter has never played with a team this good, playing with Howard, Nelson and Lewis, Carter won’t be asked to do everything but there will be some nights where he does.

2. Cleveland Cavaliers – LeBron James will have Shaq riding shotgun with him as he carries the Cavs through the season. I like Shaq but you have to wonder how he will handle the number 2 role. His weight is also a concern. Even if Shaq is a total bust, LeBron is talented enough to secure the number 2 spot in the east. But really the Cavs success won’t be measured until the post season.

3. Boston Celtics – This is the best Celtics team of the Kevin Garnett era but you have to wonder how much KG has left in the tank. Big men don’t usually come back well from knee surgery that’s why the Celtics spent a ton of money signing Rasheed Wallace and re-signing Big Baby Glen Davis. We could see the Celtic finish in the top two if father time doesn’t catch up with them first.

4. Atlanta Hawks – The Hawks were able to keep their young core together, they won’t challenge the top three but are at no risk of dropping into the bottom four. Look for Joe Johnson to have a huge year as he is in the final year of his contract. Jamal Crawford can shoot the lights out but you have to wonder how many shots he will be stealing from Johnson.

5. Toronto Raptors – Speaking of contract years, the man everyone figures will be on another team in 2010 is Chris Bosh. Bosh will lead the new look, extremely new look (13 new players) this season aiming to prove he is the ext great power forward. The addition of Turkoglu gives the Raptors the biggest frontcourt in the east along with Bosh and Andrea Bargnani. If they gel, the Raptors could win 45, good enough for 5th.

6. Washington Wizards – After the train wreck of a season last season the Wizards have a new coach in Flip Saunders, Saunders will come up with a game plan that will make the most of Gilbert Arenas, Caron Butler and Antwan Jamison. If they can fight of the injury bug, they are easily in the playoffs, if not it will be another long losing season for the Wiz.

7. Chicago Bulls – The hot pick to do something this season after they took the Celtics to 7 games last season but they lost some scoring letting Ben Gordon go and the front court of Noah and Thomas is far from polished. Derick Rose will be brilliant but he won’t be enough to get the Bulls any higher than 7th in the east.

8. Miami Heat – Not a lot of people are talking about Dywane Wade leaving after the season is over but if the Heat don’t show improvement this season, Wade is the first of the 2010 free agents to jump. Wade will have an MVP season and if Michael Beasley can keep his head on straight the Heat will make the playoffs.

The Rest
9. Philadelphia 76ers – Elton Brand is back and healthy but for how long? I’m not sold on Lou Williams being a better PG than Andre Miller.

10. Detroit Pistons – They signed Ben Gordon and Charlie Villanueva but lost the experience of Rasheed Wallace. The Pistons will miss the playoffs for the first time since 2001.

11. Indiana Pacers – They will be a tough team to beat every night but they will be beat often, they don’t have the depth to compete with the increasingly tough Eastern Conference.

12. New York Knicks – The Knicks aren’t focused on 2009, they are looking to the summer of 2010 in hopes of finding a savior. It will be another long season for the New York faithful.

13. Charlotte Bobcats – Michael Jordan needs to take the same killer attitude he had on the court and carry it over to building a team. Larry Brown will lose the rest of his hair this season.

14. Milwaukee Bucks - They lost Villanueva, Ramon Sessions and Richard Jefferson and didn’t do anything to replace them. Coach Scott Skiles will get the most out of a limited lineup but the most the Bucks can give isn’t very good.

15. New Jersey Nets – As soon as the Russian Billionaire buys the Nets, Lawrence Frank is gone. Don’t expect much from the Nets but the future will be bright when the Russian Mark Cuban takes over.