Having already dissected, the reigning two-time Eastern Conference/defending NBA champion Cleveland Cavaliers, we had to tackle the next logical question: Can we find a team that can actually dethrone King James and the Cavs? Was Ludacris still a relevant rapper the last time somebody other that LeBron represented the East in the Finals? Sure. It’s difficult to see anyone knocking off LBJ after six straight trips to the championship round…but that’s not going to stop us from trying!
In part 2 of our Eastern Conference preview, here are the teams (in reverse order) with the best shot at being this year’s Cassius Clay.
Washington Wizards
Offseason Moves: Acquired Ian Mahinmi, Trey Burke and Andrew Nicholson. Drafted nobody (literally nobody). Lost Nenê, Jared Dudley, Drew Gooden, Ramon Sessions and J.J. Hickson. Fired head coach Randy Wittman, replaced by Scott Brooks.
Outlook: It’s difficult to describe the Wizards summer without using the words “massive” or “disappointment”. The Wiz had been plotting on Kevin Durant’s free agency for years. Remember when they hired KD’s high school coach? They then conveniently hired his long time NBA coach, Scotty Brooks, to lead the team just as his contract with the Thunder was expiring. Washington insisted that none of this was done in a veiled attempt to lure Durant back home. But they mistakenly assumed the rest of the basketball world were idiots. Aside from that, they brought in Ian Mahinmi, who is already on the shelf for 4-6 weeks with a knee injury, and they gave Bradley Beal $128 million.
Massive disappointment.
If you can’t tell, this team is pretty much all in on Brad Beal. After whiffing on KD, the most significant move they made in free agency was retaining Beal’s services. And though his game meshes beautifully with John Wall’s, Beal has yet to play an 82-game season, has never played more than 73, and played less than 60 twice in four years. To make matters more concerning, his best season was two years ago when he averaged 17 points, four rebounds, three assists, while shooting .402 from three and .419 from the floor. Does that sound like a $128 million player to you?
If Beal can’t stay on the court, it’ll be up to Otto Porter and Kelly Oubre to make significant strides to aid this team on the perimeter.
Scenario Where They Beat The Cavs: The only reason the Wizards are in this section of our NBA preview is the brilliance of John Wall. There’s no real scenario where this team could beat the Cavs…UNLESS they package Beal and some other picks and spare parts to the Kings for Wall’s college teammate DeMarcus Cousins. A Wall/Cousins reunion could test the Wine & Gold.
Detroit Pistons
Offseason Moves: Acquired nobody that matters. Drafted Henry Ellenson. Lost Jodie Meeks and Anthony Tolliver.
Outlook: Alright, maybe “nobody that matters” is harsh. Ish Smith is a decent player; Jon Leuer is okay. But Jeff Bower made no significant moves to upgrade a team that surprised many by snagging the eight seed last year and playied the Cavs tough in round one. Resigning Andre Drummond was a good move, resigning Reggie Jackson…meh. And, is that it? Tobias Harris was a solid midseason pickup last year, but that’s putting a lot of pressure on Stan Van Gundy to coach up this green group even more.
Scenario Where They Beat The Cavs: Stanley Johnson said he was “in LeBron’s head” during their playoff series. He claims he meant it, but it sounded like empty words from a young man who was totally and utterly scared shitless. Johnson played alright, but he’ll need to grow considerably, and Drummond will need to learn to make free throws if this team as currently constituted will have any shot at Cleveland. It starts with Detroit making more winning plays down the stretch of games. But until then, the Pistons are just another team in the grand scheme.
Atlanta Hawks
Offseason Moves: Acquired Dwight Howard and Jarrett Jack. Traded for rookie lottery pick Taurean Prince. Lost Al Horford, Jeff Teague and Shelvin Mack.
Outlook: The transition form Horford to Howard feels like an upgrade (on paper anyway), but dem Hawks got problems. For one, 35-year-old Kyle Korver may be washed. He was garbage in 2015— this, after a career year in 2014. Secondly, Dwight will never be Orlando Dwight again. That Dwight was six years, three teams and a bad back ago. Atlanta also needs to figure out what they’re doing with Paul Millsap— will they trade him or build with him? This team has the ability to play with real muscle on the interior, but their fate will likely be in the hands of Dennis Schroder, the young floor general with whom ATL has entrusted their future. In a league full of many a dope point guard, Schroder doesn’t appear to stack up, but Hawks brass still opted to deal Teague and promote Schroder.
Scenario Where They Beat The Cavs: Atlanta got destroyed by Cleveland in the second round last May. They had zero success defending the three, and guys like JR Smith and Channing Frye morphed into stars. They’ll need better defense from the $70M man Kent Bazemore (you read that right) and Dwight Howard will need to turn back the clock AND develop the post game he never had if the Hawks are going to knock of the Cavs. Given James’ track record against this franchise though, the Hawks couldn’t beat the Cavs in a series even if Mike Budenholzer signed Paper Boi to a 10-day contract just to take out LeBron. It’s worth noting the Cavaliers franchise has never lost a single playoff game to the Atlanta Hawks.
Toronto Raptors
Offseason Moves: Acquired Jared Sullinger. Drafted Jakob Pöltl. Lost Bismack Biyombo, James Johnson and Luis Scola.
Outlook: The Raps are running back the same group that was one game away from the top seed in the East and two wins away from the NBA Finals. Makes sense— Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan (with a brand new deal) each have an Olympic gold medal, only furthering their big game experience. Even if they don’t have the season they had last year, Dwane Casey’s crew has evolved enough to be a top four team in the East regardless. Sullinger gives them more front court versatility on the offensive end, however Sully’s signing comes at the expense of Biyombo’s departure, which is a blow to Toronto’s interior D. It’s amazing how big men can rake in millions after one good playoff game or series— Biyombo is the latest to cash in (word to Jerome James).
Scenario Where They Beat The Cavs: As great as the Olympic experience was for Lowry and DeRozan was, it won’t be enough. These two All-Stars flat out stunk in the playoffs (I’d underline “stunk” twice if my computer would allow me). It wasn’t the first time they’ve come up small in the playoffs either. As long as that mental roadblock exists, this team will never get past the Cavs. Their only hope is DeRozan improves his jumper and both men improve A TON in games that matter most, and find a way to stay consistent. A midseason acquisition is in order here— as currently constructed, Toronto cannot beat Cleveland in a series. While they may hold a size advantage, they don’t have the athleticism on the wing to deal with LeBron.
Toronto may finish with a better record, but other teams below them have a better shot at knocking off the champs.
These dudes are supposed to co-exist now, huh?
Chicago Bulls
Offseason Moves: Acquired Dwyane Wade, Rajon Rondo, Robin Lopez and Jerian Grant. Traded for Michael Carter-Williams. Drafted Denzel Valentine. Lost Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah, Pau Gasol and Mike Dunleavy.
Outlook: To say this won’t be a good shooting team is to say The Game has gotten into a few rap beefs over the year. Surprisingly the Bulls were third in the league last year in three-point percentage, however they were only 24th in attempts. That figure stands to drop even further with the departure of Dunleavy and the additions of abysmal three-point shooters like Wade and Rondo…AND THEN they traded for Michael Carter-Williams! Denzel Valentine had better be a quick study, because he looks to be the only guard on this team that can hit a shot outside 20 feet. Rebounding may also dip, but if Chicago is to succeed, they’ll need to relentlessly attack the rim, and the Wade/Rondo combo (and MCW) will need to rediscover their defensive prowess to force turnovers easy buckets in transition.
Unrelated: We also can’t lose sight of the fact that Wade and Rondo probably hate each other.
Scenario Where They Beat The Cavs: Wade knows LeBron better than anyone. In 2010, Rondo went head-to-head with James in a series and was the better player. Jimmy Butler is still the best player on the team. But a Wade/Rondo renascence leads to the pounding of the paint, which the Cavs with Birdman alone cannot withstand. This is seriously a one year thing though. Wade probably has only one great year left in him, if that. Maybe replacing one hometown hero (Rose) with another will be enough to spark one more run.
Boston Celtics
Offseason Moves: Acquired Al Horford. Drafted Jaylen Brown (third overall), Demetrius Jackson and a bunch of foreign dudes. Lost Jared Sullinger and Evan Turner.
Outlook: For now, Isaiah Thomas is now the second-best player on the team, which means the Celtics still aren’t going far (he’s good, but overrated and in over his head as a conference finalist’s second-best player). Brad Stevens will have to use smoke and mirrors to help this team go far beyond 50 wins. The Celtics are good at many things, but great at none. Horford should enhance the chemistry of this squad, while providing much needed post-production.
Scenario Where They Beat The Cavs: If there was ever a team that could catch the Cavs napping if their chemistry isn’t right, it’s the C’s. You know, great coach, “Celtic pride” and all that crap— the fans feed of that mystique. Maybe now that he has a ring and a gold medal, Kyrie wants a little more shine for himself and refuses to get his teammates involved, and Boston sneaks up on an overconfident Cavs team.
LeBron James however has never lost a playoff game (forget a series…A GAME…he’s 12–0!) to an Al Horford-led team.
That won’t change much, unless Danny Ainge uses his war chest of assets to make a midseason power move.
Indiana Pacers
Offseason Moves: Acquired Al Jefferson, Jeff Teague, Thaddeus Young and Aaron Brooks. Lost Ty Lawson, Ian Mahinmi and everybody with the last name “Hill”. Replaced coach Frank Vogel with Nate McMillan.
Outlook: The Pacers are the definition of quiet money. This is a team filled with underrated players, beginning with Paul George, who is back looking like a top 10 player. The growth of Myles Turner into a solid inside-outside threat should offset the loss of Mahinmi. They’ve cut out the cancer that is Ty Lawson and upgraded their backcourt, replacing one Nap Town native (George Hill) with another (Teague). Also a fresh voice on the bench should do this team some good. It took a lot for Larry Bird to move on from Vogel, but the Pacers are clearly in “win now” mode.
The health of Big Al will be key, but this team (nearly good enough to make the conference semis) added three real pieces. The Bulls, Knicks, Hawks and Celtics all made splashier moves, but with the caveat of Jefferson’s health, no other East fringe contender helped themselves more than the Pacers this summer.
Scenario Where They Beat The Cavs: Cleveland never upgrades at backup PG and the combo of Teague, Monta Ellis, Rodney Stuckey and Brooks (solid depth here) wears down Kyrie. Young and George together provide enough length and athleticism to at least slow down LeBron, and the Pacers punish the Cavs on the block for not having anyone who can deal with Jefferson (i.e. anyone over 6’10”, and also under 35).
Heading into the 2016-17 NBA season, the Pacers are the team best equipped to take out the Cavaliers in a seven game series. Larry Bird is the John Elway of the NBA— he’s pushing all his chips in with the hopes that the his team of veterans finds the right chemistry, and the assumed favorites (in Elway’s case, the Patriots) stumble just enough.
Wouldn’t bet on it happening, but as the future Hall of Famer Kevin Garnett once said…