Boston Celtics set to dominate the East for years
The Boston Celtics are peaking at the perfect time to truly dominate the Eastern Conference
Just as the Boston Celtics are finally reaching the culmination of their rebuild, the Eastern Conference is the weakest it has been in recent memory. The Celtics are the only team that can be put in the top tier of teams in the NBA, and no one else is really doing anything to catch up to them.
With LeBron James gone, and no other significant player coming back, the East is the most wide open it has been for this generation. Op top of that, the Celtics clearly gave James the best competition in the East, before adding two of the best players in the entire conference.
The Celtics are set up to have the players to dominate now, with the young talent that will allow them to keep up with some of the other young cores in the East.
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The Toronto Raptors are on their last legs. DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry will get another chance with a new coach, but they have done nothing this summer to suggest they can turn it around and finally compete deep in the playoffs next season.
For the future, the Raptors have no chance of keeping up with the Celtics. They have some solid young pieces, but they are on the verge of going into a rebuild, and could be off the radar in the East for a long time.
People are quite high on the Philadelphia 76ers, and they have a chance to be relevant in the East. Right now, however, there is no way they are close to the finished product the Celtics are. The Celtics made a big statement by beating them in five game shorthanded next year, and anything short of Kawhi Leonard keeps them off the level of the Celtics.
When you think about the future too, the 76ers still have work to do. Markelle Fultz needs to have that special impact people expected from him, but Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown are younger than Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid. On top of that, the two of them are more experienced in the playoffs than the 76ers young core. The Celtics have a young duo that can keep up with those two, along with top stars that are still at the beginning of their prime.
The Indiana Pacers also made it clear that they can do some damage in the east, but know they are still pieces away. The Pacers could make some moves that make them contenders, but they cannot keep up right now and do not have the same kind of longevity that the Celtics have established.
The Washington Wizards will try and go on their run, but it is getting harder and harder to trust them. They put themselves in a tough situation with the salary, and are forced to take risks in free agency.
If the Wizards put it together, they can put up some resistance, but they have to do a lot more before that can be a trusted possibility.
The Milwaukee Bucks might have the most potential. They fought the Celtics harder than the 76ers last year, have their established star in Giannis Antetokounmpo, along with a great sidekick in Khris Middleton. They have a lot of dynamic talent, but have never put things together in an effective way.
If the Bucks can find the right coach, develop their talent well, and find some great additions to give them that top end talent boost, they can be a top team in the East for a long time. With the Bucks, however, it is still all about potential.
Next: Looking into Boston's Summer League roster
A lot of teams in the East are in a position to make moves that will bring them to the next level. For now, the Celtics are in a class of their own in the Eastern Conference, and it could stay that way for the foreseeable future.