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. The East is stacked. 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.
(Odds via FanDuel)
Tier 1 – The Champs
New York Knicks (+360 to win East)
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. Backup center Mitchell Robinson left New York for Boston. In his place, the Knicks signed Andre Drummond, a capable enough rotation player but not nearly the rim protector or defensive presence that Robinson provided. Landry Shamet and Jose Alvarado stuck around and were rewarded with new contracts. We'll see how much run is earned by Jordan Clarkson, Miles McBride (whose production and playing time fell off in the postseason) and the rest of the bench.
Defending their title won't be easy, but then doing so never is. The Warriors were the last back-to-back champs in 2017 and 2018. Since then, we've had a new winner in each of the last eight seasons. But until someone knocks them off, the Knicks are the title holders. Grabbing the Larry O'Brien Trophy means going through New York.
Tier 2 – The crowded contender field
Whoa boy. Did we mention the East is stacked? Each of these teams can make a case for being the biggest challenger to New York's throne, but all of them come complete with questions and concerns when it comes to claiming the crown for themselves.
We'll take each of these in alphabetical order (rather than the betting odds) to avoid angering one of the fanbases and inviting them to storm the CBS Sports Bastille.
Cleveland Cavaliers (+900)
The Cavaliers reached their first conference finals without LeBron James last season. It was also the first time Donovan Mitchell advanced that far in his playoff career. Then they got embarrassed by the Knicks -- and embarrassed themselves in the process with coach Kenny Atkinson saying something inadvisable about the whole thing and James Harden somehow going one step further. In addition to keeping their core four together of Mitchell, Harden, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen, the Cavs managed to bring breakout wing Peyton Watson to Cleveland in a sign-and-trade with the Nuggets. That starting five is as good as any in the league. The bench is more troublesome following the losses of Dean Wade, Keon Ellis and Dennis Schroder. Atkinson is looking at a lot of Jaylon Tyson and Sam Merrill minutes. And years after the rest of the league sold all of its Mario Hezonja stock, the Cavs suddenly bought some. We'll see what kind of returns they get on that investment, if any.
Boston Celtics (+500)
The Celtics had what could charitably be called a volatile offseason. After getting upset by the Sixers in the first round of the playoffs, they dangled Jaylen Brown, a former finals MVP coming off the best season of his career, in a failed trade attempt for Giannis Antetokounmpo. Then they shipped Brown to Philly, of all places, for Paul George and picks. To say the Boston faithful was not initially thrilled about that is an understatement. PG is seven years Brown's senior and has had injury issues at times, but if he's available, he's at minimum a 3-and-D presence who should slot nicely into the starting lineup. The Celtics addressed their starting center concerns by snagging Robinson from the Knicks, but how many minutes and games they can count on from him is one of Boston's biggest variables. Derrick White remains one of the best defenders in the NBA, but he's coming off the most inefficient shooting season of his career. How Joe Mazzulla, ever the galaxy brain tinkerer, might meddle with the nightly rotation is anyone's guess. The Celtics are still one of the deepest and best-run teams in the NBA, but there are more variables in Boston this season than there have been in years.
Detroit Pistons (+1000)
Detroit spent much of last season atop the Eastern Conference standings -- only to barely squeak past the Magic in seven games in the first round and then lose to the Cavs in seven in the second. Cade Cunningham made All-NBA for the second straight season, but the rest of the Pistons were far from consistent when coming to his aid. Jalen Duren made his first All-NBA team, flamed out in the playoffs and then proceeded to get into a nasty and protracted contract negotiation with the front office in the offseason. A five-year deal worth $200 million should help heal the hurt feelings, but how long might any bitterness linger, even with Duren saying all the right things about mending the relationship? Ausar Thompson was a Defensive Player of the Year finalist, but his offensive game was (and might still be) lacking in the extreme. Tobias Harris is gone, replaced by John Collins, who should be an upgrade. Isaiah Stewart was traded to Memphis, leaving Paul Reed as the backup big. Duncan Robinson and newly acquired Isaiah Joe are quality shooters, if not much else. Daniss Jenkins will fill the backup point guard minutes. After Cunningham, the Pistons are once again headed into the season without a reliable second option.
Toronto Raptors (+950)
Kawhi Leonard is back in Toronto. He's an obvious upgrade in the starting lineup over Brandon Ingram, who was alternately ineffective and unavailable during his time with the Raptors. Leonard is coming off one of his best statistical seasons, and pairing him with Scottie Barnes makes an already good Raptors defense something closer to terrifying. Barnes and Leonard instantly become one of the best two-way combos in the league, and they should give opposing teams fits on a nightly basis. The basketball concern in Toronto is making sure Leonard is around for the postseason. He played 65 games a year ago, but over the last decade, he's cleared that threshold just three times.
Philadelphia 76ers (+400)
And then there are the new-look Sixers. On paper, Tyrese Maxey, VJ Edgecombe, Jaylen Brown, LeBron James and Joel Embiid are among the most formidable starting units in the league. The upside here is huge -- as is the potential for the franchise to pull its latest faceplant. How will Maxey, coming off his first All-NBA nod, be utilized with three superstar veterans starting alongside him? For that matter, how will Edgecombe, who had a brilliant rookie season, fit in? How will Brown be deployed with his new team when last season, with his old one, he wasn't asked to defer to anyone? Will Embiid be healthy enough to contribute after missing 150 games over the last three seasons? And what about LeBron? He's arguably the greatest player of all-time, and he decided to go to Philly on a vet minimum to play for a franchise that hasn't gotten out of the second round in more than a quarter century.
That's a lot of talent, a lot of egos, and even more unknowns about how this thing plays out. Whatever you do, just don't ask whose team this is.
Tier 3 — Wait, what about us?
Miami Heat (+1100)
Heat fans are likely apoplectic about being relegated to Tier 3. (Please direct all concerns to @SamQuinnCBS.) Miami won the Giannis Antetokounmpo sweepstakes, but doing so required a bushel of draft capital as well as Tyler Herro, Jaime Jaquez Jr. and Kel'El Ware, all of whom are useful rotation players if not something north of that. The projected starting lineup of Giannis, Bam Adebayo, Andrew Wiggins, Klay Thompson and Davion Mitchell should be fearsome on defense. The concern here, even with Thompson in town, is spacing and shooting. The Heat could use more playmaking and shot creation, too.
Indiana Pacers (+1500)
The Pacers made the finals just two seasons ago and came within one win (and possibly one ruptured Tyrese Haliburton Achilles) of holding a championship parade. After taking a gap year last season, Haliburton is back. Waiting for him is new center Ivica Zubac, acquired at the deadline from the Clippers. Much of the roster that reached the Finals remains in place, as does Rick Carlisle, who is on everyone's short list as one of the best coaches in the NBA. If Haliburton takes time to knock off the rust, it could be slow going for the Pacers. If he looks anything like the version of himself that turned in one of the great individual postseason performances before getting hurt, Indiana will quickly graduate into the contenders tier, much to the chagrin of the rest of that already overloaded category.
Atlanta Hawks (+1500)
The Hawks! The Hawks were the only team to beat the Knicks more than once during the postseason. Jalen Johnson is a triple-double machine. Nickeil Alexander-Walker went from a quality sixth man in Minnesota to a valuable starter in Atlanta. Dyson Daniels is a defensive dervish and Onyeka Okongwu is an underrated big. Lu Dort and Aaron Wiggins have come over from OKC to bolster the rotation. The Hawks should be good. Good enough to break into the contender tier is another matter, though.
Orlando Magic (+1600)
After years of underachieving, the Magic dumped coach Jamahl Mosley in favor of Sean Sweeney. We'll see if he can make Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner work together. So far, no one has been able to crack that code. Desmond Bane was a useful defender and the Magic's best (only?) reliable shooter from distance last season. As always, Jalen Suggs is entering another season with everyone waiting for him to make the leap or at least make it through the majority of the campaign without missing significant time due to injury.
Tier 4 — Not happening
- Charlotte Hornets (+3500)
- Chicago Bulls (+20000)
- Washington Wizards (+5000)
- Brooklyn Nets (+75000)
- Milwaukee Bucks (+50000)
It feels rude to include the Hornets -- last year's feel-good, fun-watch team -- in this tier. Charlotte made the right call by moving on from LaMelo Ball. But even with addition by subtraction, getting out of the play-in looks like it will be even harder for the Hornets this season, considering the field in front of them.
The Bulls should be excited about Caleb Wilson and the new front office led by Bryson Graham. The Bucks and Nets are rebuilding and we can probably forget about them until further notice. As for the Wizards, they've indicated that they want to compete this season by giving Trae Young a fat four-year, $212 million deal that no other team seemed willing to offer or even come close to dangling.
They also decided to hold onto Anthony Davis, who has played a grand total of 29 games since the Lakers traded him. The Wizards lucked into the first pick and selected AJ Dybantsa. Alex Sarr had a good season last year. Why Washington isn't investing heavily in its young players instead of choosing this ill-advised two-timeline path is hard to fathom. Maybe because the Wizards can't stop being the Wizards.