The Eastern Conference has already started to shuffle, with the Heat landing Klay Thompson and the Cavaliers bringing in Peyton Watson. Those moves come amid a wider wave of change in the East, where big names like Giannis, Jaylen Brown and LeBron James have been tied to other teams in the conference.
Boston, meanwhile, has stayed quiet since free agency opened. Even so, there’s still reason to believe the Celtics can be right in the mix next season.
Right now, the most realistic landing spot for Boston looks like the No. 4 seed.
That’s not a shot at the Celtics so much as a reflection of how crowded the top of the East appears. Boston has gone through some major offseason changes, but plenty of the key pieces already know how to play together.
That matters. So does the fact that many of those players have already won at the highest level.
Joe Mazzulla also gives the group a steady hand, and that should keep the floor from dropping too far.
There’s also a lot to like about what could happen with Payton Pritchard and Derrick White taking on bigger roles alongside Jayson Tatum, the team’s No. 1 option. On paper, that’s a setup that can carry Boston through a strong regular season.
If the Celtics are No. 4, then three teams would be ahead of them. In order, that would be the 76ers, Knicks and Cavaliers.
The 76ers and Knicks feel like the safest bets to finish above Boston, while Cleveland looks like the team closest to the Celtics. The Cavs still have some questions to answer, but their ceiling looks strong, and a bounce-back regular season feels likely.
Just behind Boston, the middle of the East looks crowded and messy in the best possible way. I’d slot the Heat at No. 5, followed by the Raptors at No. 6 and the Pistons at No. 7.
That group could easily be rearranged once the games start. The East is competitive enough that those spots may be interchangeable. There are still questions on each roster, and there’s uncertainty around Kawhi Leonard and Jalen Duren, even if the expectation is that both remain with their teams.
Detroit may not take a step back, but I don’t see the Pistons matching what they did last year. Miami’s addition of Klay Thompson doesn’t move the needle in a huge way, especially with his decline over the last couple of seasons, but the Heat still look good enough to land around the No. 5 seed. The one concern there is Giannis Antetokounmpo’s health, since that has been an issue at times and could create problems for Miami if it lingers this season.
After the top seven, the rest of the East, as I see it, would go:
- Wizards
- Hornets
- Pacers
- Magic
- Hawks
- Bulls
- Bucks
- Nets
In Other News...
Mitchell Robinson Just Changed Bostons Biggest Title Question
The Celtics have spent much of their offseason trying to answer one of the leagues most important questions: whether they have enough size and reliability in the middle to hold up when the games get tighter. Signing Mitchell Robinson to a three-year, $47.3 million contract is their latest move to shore up that spot, and it fits with a broader roster approach that has emphasized depth as much as star power. For a team with championship expectations, center play is less a luxury than a requirement.
Robinson is expected to give Boston quality minutes alongside Neemias Queta, giving the coaching staff another option when matchups demand rim protection, rebounding and physical play inside. The appeal is obvious when you look at recent NBA champions, which have generally leaned on stronger frontcourt depth than the Celtics have been able to count on in stretches. Boston still has bigger questions to answer over the course of a long season, but its biggest one in the paint just got a lot more interesting. [Read more 🡒]
Celtics Suddenly Have A Real Path To A Dream Upgrade
The Celtics already made one sweeping move by swapping Jaylen Brown for Paul George, and that alone changed the shape of their future. Now the conversation is drifting even farther, toward a possibility that would have sounded almost absurd not long ago: whether Boston could ever put itself in position to chase Nikola Joki if the Denver situation turns uneasy.
Joki has said he wants to stay in Denver, but he has also put off extension talks, which leaves just enough uncertainty for the rumor mill to keep spinning. The Nuggets recent roster moves have only added to that feeling, even if nothing definitive has happened yet, and for Boston the appeal is obvious, a dream-level upgrade that would transform the ceiling of the roster if the door ever opened. [Read more 🡒]
Payton Pritchards Breakout Created A Celtics Lineup Dilemma
Payton Pritchards rise last season gave the Celtics something they did not exactly expect when the year began: a real lineup question. He started 50 games and posted career highs in points, assists and rebounds, making himself a more prominent part of Bostons nightly equation and forcing the staff to think beyond his old role as a spark off the bench.
Now, with the Jaylen Brown trade reshaping the roster, the discussion around Pritchard has shifted from whether he can help to how Boston should use him. There are reasons to imagine him in either spot, but the clearest case is still for him to supply scoring and energy in a reserve role, even if the door stays open for a larger opportunity if the Celtics need his all-around game in the starting five. [Read more 🡒]