Much has been made of the hectic Western Conference that's seen the additions of Dwight Howard, Andre Iguodala and J.J. Redick/Jared Dudley lead sub-contenders like the Houston Rockets, Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Clippers into the depths of the elite. With the top six essentially set in the West, the battle for the last two spots go to teams that are also improved: New Orleans Pelicans, Minnesota Timberwolves and Portland Trail Blazers. That's a highly competitive, but not surprising notion, given the past decade of excellence in the West.
Meanwhile, the beleaguered Eastern Conference is slowly shaking off its mediocre showings by forming a top-heavy conference with four teams competing for the crown. It isn't all notable additions as injuries will play a major factor in how things fare next season.
There are the interesting sub-playoff teams in Washington, Cleveland, Atlanta, New York, and Detroit; all holding interesting storylines, but unlikely to make much noise in the grand scheme of the postseason. The true contenders come down to the Brooklyn Nets, Indiana Pacers, Chicago Bulls and of course, the Miami Heat.
Brooklyn Nets
Mikhail Prokhorov has no care in the world for your salary cap, luxury tax or anything relating to a money restraint in the NBA. He's picked up veterans Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and has now inked Andrei Kirilenko to a massive discount to play alongside Deron Williams, Joe Johnson and Brook Lopez.
This might not be the most aesthetically pleasing team to watch, as we don't know how Jason Kidd will fare in his first season as head coach, but the level of intrigue will rival that of those for Sharknado. Will AK-47 or Paul Pierce start alongside Johnson? What's the crunch-time lineup consist of? As it stands right now, Pierce and Johnson boasts the same skillset, and remember, there's only one basketball to play with. Throw in the up-and-down nature of Deron Williams and this could as easily turn into a disaster as quickly as it could become an Eastern Conference finalist.
Kirilenko solves many problems on defense but they'll need to establish a sense of identity. Is this a grind-it-out team like the Doc Rivers Celtics or the team that lost to the Nate Robinson-led Chicago Bulls at home in seven games? These are alarming questions for a roster with seemingly championship aspirations and a small window to fit it into.
Indiana Pacers
The Pacers lost to the LeBron James last postseason not because their starting lineup wasn't good enough, but because their bench held no one in consequence, and didn't allow the starters to rest without a crazy run going against their way. Since then, they've signed C.J. Watson (a capable backup point guard), Chris Copeland (a shotoer who can play a little defense) along with the return of David West.
And let's not forget Danny Granger, who presents another high-scoring threat opposite of George. The lack of a dribble penetrator is still glaring but West and Hibbert are good passers from the post and Granger can stretch the floor just fine enough from an offensive standpoint.
The defense, however, will remain as elite as ever, representing the lankiest and nastiest lineups with Hibbert anchoring what should be another great season. They shored up their weaknesses with shooters, and gained a more polished version of George on the offensive end. Just one game away from playing in the Finals a season ago, these improvements should make them the favorites to usurp Miami's throne.
Chicago Bulls
It all hinges on the return of Derrick Rose; a man looking for vengeance. The Bulls lose Marco Belinelli and Richard Hamilton but add Tony Snell and Erik Murphy in the draft (two potential role players), Mike Dunleavy (an excellent shooter) and a healthy Luol Deng and Joakim Noah won't hurt.
But no matter how great the defensive pieces of Noah, Gibson, Deng and breakout candidate Jimmy Butler may be, the Bulls aren't going anywhere without a healthy Rose. After about two deacdes of rehabbing, it appears, only for sanity's sake, that Rose will regain at least most of the explosiveness and become the slashing maven he was two years ago. If that is the case, Thibodeau's normally stout defense combined with an infusion of offense should challenge the Heat yet again.
Miami Heat
LeBron James will be back for the final season of his contract, meaning a three-peat is possible and a rare four straight NBA Finals appearances in the offing. They return everyone of consequence—only needing to make a decision on Mike Miller's amnesty.
Every contender has improved and it isn't as if the Heat ran through the playoffs with reckless abandon. With another year of Dwyane Wade's injuries, even more minutes for both James and Chris Bosh, there are questions for the two-peat champions. All this is to foreshadow that while people are busy focusing on the races in the West and assuming the Heat will run through the East again, this myth will surely be debunked next season. Omar from The Wire once said, "If you come at the King, you best not miss". The Eastern Conference is rapidly improving, and nothing will raise intrigue like a struggling Heat team about to go into the offseason with it's future with LeBron James uncertain.
Doesn't this story sound familiar?