The Eastern Conference has long been viewed as the inferior half of the NBA. Seven of the last 15 championships have been won by the East, but the West has been the deeper of the two conferences with more teams capable of hosting a parade in the end. Getting through the West was trumpeted as a monumental accomplishment.
Winning the East was something that some team had to do eventually, but few of them got much credit for it by comparison. That perspective has shifted. With at least 10 teams having designs on the eight playoff spots, it appears we're headed for one of the most competitive races the conference has produced in quite some time.
With the NBA tipping off in less than a week, here are our first Eastern Conference tiers heading into the season. The Knicks have earned a tier all to themselves after winning their first championship in more than half a century. New York entered the playoffs as the No. 3 seed, then laid waste to the competition.
The Hawks somehow took two games off them in the first round. Incredibly, that was the best performance by any of the opposition. The Knicks swept the 76ers and Cavaliers before mounting remarkable comeback after comeback against the Spurs to win the Finals in five games.
It was an epic, all-time performance. New York should be feeling pretty good about its title defense despite the history stacked against it (and the attendant pressure of the organization deciding to press pause on contract negotiations). For starters, there are the starters.
The Knicks' first five is intact from last season, and we've already seen what Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns, Mikal Bridges, OG Anunoby and Josh Hart can accomplish when they're all healthy and locked in. They're the best starting lineup in the league. After that, coach Mike Brown will have more work cut out for himself this season.
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