Coming into the 2018-19 season, the Boston Celtics, Toronto Raptors, Milwaukee Bucks, Philadelphia 76ers and Indiana Pacers were all projected to dominate the top five seeds of the Eastern Conference. Fortunately for all those that bet on that projection, these teams have all held their end of the bargain...in one way or another.
When the trade deadline hit, these teams all looked to put their best foot forward by either acquiring players that both fit their roster and addressed a need, or even stay pat and rely on the continuity of their roster.
Trades at the deadline:
The Toronto Raptors acquired former Defensive Player of the Year Marc Gasol at the center position from the Memphis Grizzlies.
The Milwaukee Bucks acquired power forward Nikola Mirotic from the New Orleans Pelicans.
The Philadelphia 76ers acquired perennial all-star forward Tobias Harris from the Los Angeles Clippers.
Both the Boston Celtics and Indiana Pacers remained the same at the deadline.
All these teams are officially set, with only the buyout market left to acquire new players and less than 30 games to make a playoff push. The rest of this season is all about match-ups and seeding.
I feel like each team has potential to come out of this season en route to a NBA Finals birth. Now, unfortunately, I will not be including the Pacers, due to star point guard Victor Oladipo's season-ending injury causing the Pacers' championship aspiration to significantly dwindle.
With that, here is why each of the top four teams in the East could make it to the NBA Finals.
1. Boston Celtics
The Boston Celtics are the favorites because out of the four teams, the Celtics have the best coach. Brad Stevens emphasizes defensive presence and putting his players in a system where even role players can provide a significant contribution on a night-in and night-out basis.
The Celtics play with structure rather than relying on talent and athleticism, in a way that actually adapts to the slower pace of the NBA playoffs. I know with the addition of Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward to this playoff squad after missing last season means the team has to make minor adjustments, but not enough that it undermines their chances.
My biggest concern for the Celtics is their inconsistency when Kyrie Irving is in the lineup, due to his ball-dominant play style. This team is going to have to come out of the All-Star break with each player having a defined role in order to make the most of this opportunity.
The Celtics may have been a lock to come out of the East at the beginning of the year, but I do think they can be had if the role players take themselves out of the game just to let Kyrie do what he does.
2. Toronto Raptors
Out of all four teams, the Raptors may have made the most significant acquisition this past off-season by trading for Kawhi Leonard. After swapping Demar DeRozan out for Leonard and adding Danny Green, the Raptors added two battle-tested players to a playoff-experienced team, which makes them lethal in the final minutes of games.
Kawhi Leonard is averaging 27 points, nearly eight rebounds and three assists per game as the primary option on a team that in the past was able to hold their own against anybody outside of a Lebron James-led team. With James now in the Western Conference and an improved lineup of Green, Leonard, Kyle Lowry, Pascal Siakam and now Marc Gasol, the Raptors definitely will be a strong defensive team.
My one and only concern for the Raptors is their bench play now that Gasol has been added to the roster. A big thing in the playoffs is the ability to regulate players' minutes and have your best players on the floor for as long as possible. With players like OG Anunoby, Fred VanVleet, and Serge Ibaka in the seven- to eight-man rotation, the Raptors' ability to come off the bench or mesh in small ball lineups with the starters is critical.
3. Philadelphia 76ers
The 76ers have the most talented starting five of these four teams. After the trade deadline, they are now trotting out a starting lineup of J.J. Redick, Jimmy Butler, Tobias Harris, Ben Simmons, and Joel Embiid. All five players average double-digit points and definitely do not lack the ability to score points at a high clip. Realistically, they only have two shooters in Redick and Harris, but their paint presence is very significant as Butler, Simmons, and Embiid all excel at driving and scoring in the paint.
This team, to me, has the biggest challenge when it comes to the playoffs since they do not match up well with the Celtics, who have Al Horford. Now that the Raptors have Gasol, when or if those teams are able to slow down Embiid in their one-on-one matchups, the 76ers become very limited. Simmons won't shoot threes and Embiid refuses to stop shooting threes despite shooting less than 30 percent from behind the arc. This lack of shooting from their two best players might be what bites them in the butt in crunch time.
4. Milwaukee Bucks
I believe that this team is the wild card of the four teams, as they have the best player in Giannis Antetokounmpo and have significantly improved at the coaching spot with Mike Budenholzer taking the helm.
I believe Giannis is better than Kyrie Irving, Kawhi Leonard, and Joel Embiid, who are all the best players on their specific team. He is averaging 27 points, 13 rebounds and six assists on nearly 60 percent shooting from the floor. Giannis is having an MVP season and I do not see him slowing down once the stakes are raised. Pairing him with Kris Middleton and now Nikola Mirotic creates a relatively strong big three that can shoot, drive to the basket, and rebound at a high level.
To me, the biggest struggle this team will have is providing significant scoring if Giannis is having an off night. I highly doubt that a 6'11" big man with freakish athletic ability could be put in check when he is as aggressive as he tends to be, but it does have to be accounted for. This team generally could give anybody in the East a run for their money, but with their lack of past playoff success, the jury will definitely be out on this team.
As things come down the wire, these Eastern Conference powerhouses cannot afford to relax coming out of the All-Star break. The race to the number one seed goes on and the fight for conference supremacy is only going to get more interesting.
