There has certainly been a lot to digest in the wake of the stunning Jaylen Brown for Paul George that started the month of July. The immediate reaction was shock and horror with almost a sense of betrayal, as in ‘how could the Celtics have done this?’ But as time has passed, the logic behind the deal has become more commonly accepted and understood.
Fans, media members, and even those within the NBA may still not necessarily agree with the deal from Boston’s end, but I think everyone can at least accept the logic that went into it for Brad Stevens and company.
So now that things have been processed, the talk has moved on to what things will actually look like on the basketball court, both for Boston and Philly. And the general consensus seems to be that neither team was a title contender before the trade, nor is one after.
Hollinger and Lowe agree that Celtics and 76ers are not contenders
Recently, John Hollinger of The Athletic wrote a column explaining how even with all of the moving parts this offseason, the balance of power hasn’t shifted at all; we still have the Thunder, Spurs, and Knicks… and then everyone else.
Then, on his Wednesday podcast, Zach Lowe shouted out Hollinger’s column and reiterated the same point, going through every team that made a big move and how they still aren’t contenders. The Celtics will still likely be good in the regular season, but as Lowe pointed out, they may have lost playoff equity without Brown. Plus, injuries aside, they’ve only won one playoff series in two seasons, so it’s hard to argue they were true contenders before the Brown trade.
Furthermore, even with the addition of Brown, Philly is still a ways away. Joel Embiid is obviously a massive question mark, at best, and we don’t know how the Brown/Tyrese Maxey/VJ Edgecombe fit is going to work out. Beyond their ‘big four’, the team has virtually no depth to speak of either. Obviously, a LeBron James signing could change things, but as it stands, the Sixers may have raised their floor, but the ceiling has plenty of room to grow.
And the point holds true across the NBA. The Heat got Giannis, but that team still has a lot of flaws. The Raptors (likely) will add Kawhi, but he’s far from a sure thing. John Collins isn’t moving the needle in Detroit. A lot could still change between now and the start of the season, and the conference definitely got a lot better, but as things stand, the Eastern Conference sure looks like the Knicks and then the rest of the field.
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