Yesterday, I talked about what the craziness of this offseason has meant for a few of the big movers in the Western Conference. Now, it’s time for the East. In my opinion, the East is where most of the exciting things have happened. There are a few power teams in this conference now.

Last season, the West was clearly the better conference (no matter how the season ended) and the East was weak. But that might have flipped. Things feel pretty balanced, but the East is no longer an easy waltz to the finals for the power teams in that conference. It’s wide open. And you gotta love it.

Brooklyn Nets

This is the team that everyone is going to be talking about, the team that everyone is waiting to see what they can do. In my opinion, this is the blockbuster team of next season. Sure, the Lakers are making a run for it, but they’re the Lakers. They are historic. They’ve had superstars before. Their rebuild was like two years. The Nets are a different animal.

This is the culmination of years of rebuilding for the Nets. There’s so much restless energy around the organization to just get out and do the thing.

Of course, all of this depends on when KD can get healthy. There are legitimate reasons to believe he won’t be healthy until the end of the season. But he’s on a several-year deal, so they have a few chances to win something. And Kyrie’s ability as a basketball player is often obscured by the cloud of drama that seems to follow his every move. But he’s great. He’s a superstar. He’s capable of guiding this team to, at least, a playoff appearance without KD. If KC comes back just in time for the playoffs…look out.

I really like Deandre Jordan down low. This might be a shooters league, but you need some sort of low-post presence to free up the wing. Jordan provides that. The combination of sheer star power in Kyrie and KD with some solid role players means we all need to watch the Nets.

The Heat

It’s easy to forget that Miami is still a team that cares about winning. Last season was all about Wade’s retirement, and rightfully so. They didn’t seem to care that much about winning, they wanted to send Wade off well. And they did that. Now it’s back to business.

I forget about this team a lot. Since the big three days, they haven’t done much. I was surprised to learn Spoelstra was still the coach. This is a team that has not had much recently.

But now they have Jimmy Butler. What does that mean for them? I’m guessing not a lot. Who is the best player on that team besides Jimmy Butler? Dragic? That’s not the best place to be in. Jimmy Butler might be a superstar (maybe), but he’s a very low-tier one. With all of the other stars pairing up to make stacked teams, does Jimmy Butler expect to be able to do it himself in Miami? Battling through a tough Eastern Conference? It seems like a long shot and I don’t know if Butler even wants to do that. Maybe he wants to make millions of dollars and live like a King in Miami? Maybe he doesn’t want to win? Let’s be honest here, if given the option, we would all choose to be Miami millionaires. Why deal with the pressure of fighting against the KD’s and the Lebrons and the Kawhis to try and win a championship? Go somewhere warm with pretty beaches and pretty women and make your millions to play some basketball every once in a while. That sounds like the dream.

But that dream may be crushed very soon. Every rumor I’ve seen has Westbrook heading to Miami. With Westbrook AND Butler, suddenly Miami might be a contender. With Butler, they might barely scrape out the 8 seed. With Butler and Westbrook together, I could see them getting maybe the sixth or fifth. Either way, they are clearly a few pieces away from a Finals appearance.

The 76ers

Philly was an already good team that got better. They did have to get rid of Jimmy Butler in the process, which isn’t ideal since he is a great player, but they brought on Al Horford, the unsung hero of the NBA. Nobody talks much about big Al, but they really should.

Al and Embiid make Philly probably the top defense in the league. It’ll be a race between them, the Clippers, and the Jazz for that title, but my money is on Philly. They have more depth now and some playoff experience under their belt. After, frankly, underachieving last season, they’re coming back with a chip on their shoulder and an improved roster. Don’t overlook them.

They didn’t lose Butler for nothing, they managed to get Josh Richardson in the deal. He’s not Butler and never will be, but he’s definitely better than nothing. He was the Heat’s most dominant player and he’ll get to take a more support-focused role in Philly, which is the role he’s made for. He’s not meant to be the star and he’ll now be in a place where he doesn’t have to be. I’m expecting his game to elevate in Philly.

This team’s season rests on the health of Embiid, the second best center in the league (fight me, Jokic haters) and Ben Simmons consistency. They are an incredibly big and athletic team now. They didn’t get a marquee signing, but I wouldn’t overlook the Sixers.

New Orleans Pelicans

The Pelicans are probably in the most interesting spot at the start of this season. They aren’t contenders. In fact, they just lost their biggest star. But now they are set up for the long haul. They brought in a few lower-tier signings, stole the entire depth chart from the Lakers, and have the NBA’s most exciting prospect since Lebron on the team. They are full of valuable role players that could be key to future trades. They have a very young team that could be free to leisurely develop. It’s a good time to be a Pelicans fan if you just stay patient.

The Pelicans picked up JJ Redick and Derrick  Favors. Neither of those is super exciting, but I think they were both fantastic decisions from the Pelicans FO. Hear me out. It fills them out so they can actually be competitive this year, but they were also cheap. They are not beholden to any expensive player contracts long-term, meaning they can move in free agency and trades. J.J.’s ability to shoot means that Zion doesn’t have to, which is good news for him. It’ll take a defender’s focus and allow him more room.

They have Lonzo and Ingram from the Lakers for depth and support. This is a team that is clearly prepared to build around Zion and they are in a good position to do so.

Now if Zion is a bust, then we’ll need to talk.

Celtics

The Celtics haven’t done enough to warrant their own call-out, honestly, but I couldn’t resist it. They made my favorite signing of the offseason, honestly.

I love Kemba Walker. Last season I gave practically my hottest take of the year: Kemba Walker is the best PG in the NBA. Think about it: the man was insane last season. 24 points per game. 6 APG. And who did he have on his team? No one. Give Kemba someone to take a bit of the defensive heat off of himself and something to pass to, the man is going to be a machine. Now that he’s on the Celtics, he can prove me right or wrong. This season will be the make or break of my hot take.

They lost their best player, Kyrie, but, in my opinion, salvaged it by getting the best PG available. They need Jaylen Brown and Jaysen Tatum to be better. They need a proven center and then I’ll be truly afraid of them.

Plus, who doesn’t want to see Tacko Fall be successful in the NBA?

The Knicks

Lol.

Way Too Early Playoff Picture

It’s hard for me to pick any one team that I think has the best shot this season. Next season, it will be the Nets, but with KD’s injury, I can’t put them there yet. I think the Heat, the Pelicans, and the Raptors will scape out low-level seeds in the playoffs. Celtics should be around the middle. I think the top will be a fight between the Bucks (who didn’t lose anyone major and retained their phenomenal team), the Sixers, and the Nets.

I’m going to give the number one seed to the Sixers. I love what they’ve done and I think it works. However, I think the Bucks are the team to make it to the Finals out of the East this year. The window is closing. They have to do it now or risk KD coming back and ruining everything for them.