When you look at the NBA Eastern Conference standings this season, it’s really not fair. Many of the teams are looking for a playoff spot with a sub-.500 record. To their dismay, they all battle for third place.
The Boston Celtics and Detroit Pistons are clearly the two elite teams in the Eastern Conference this year. By. Far. If they were in the Western Conference, none of the thirteen teams in the East would make the playoffs, as of March 5. As exciting as the Western Conference has been this year, with all its crazy trades and new stars, the Eastern Conference is pretty much the opposite: boring and predictable. No offense to teams like the Cleveland Cavaliers and Orlando Magic, but there’s no way they’re going to beat the Celtics or Pistons in a seven-game series, let alone both. To be completely honest, I don’t know who will come out of the East and go to the NBA Finals, but it will be the Boston Celtics or the Detroit Pistons. There is no what if, it will be.
Last year, most Celtics fans were probably ready to pack up and give up after a horrible couple of seasons; Some eight months later, the Celtics are on the brink of clinching a playoff spot in the first week of March. But don’t think Doc Rivers and his team are buying that. He even went so far as to say, “this team hasn’t accomplished anything yet,” which is good because it’s true, the playoffs are what really matter, just ask last year’s Dallas Mavericks.
There’s no question that the Celts have the best trio in the league of Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and Paul Pierce, but in a long playoff series against a team like the Pistons, depth can become a concern. It will be interesting to see if newly acquired point guard Sam Cassell can be more consistent than current PG Rajon Rondo.
If you take a look at the Detroit Pistons’ roster, and that alone, you might be surprised that they’re doing as well as they are, but the fact remains that they’re pulling it off (once again) this year. They must have a sour taste in their mouths after letting LeBron James and the Cavs beat them in the Conference Finals last year, and they’ll be out for revenge. The one thing the Pistons have over all other teams, especially the Celtics, is depth and veterans with plenty of experience.
So maybe David Stern should just make a new rule for this year in the Eastern Conference and skip the first two rounds of the playoffs because when the Eastern Conference Finals come around, in May, it’s going to be Boston Celtics vs. Detroit Pistons. Write it down. I send my condolences to the rest of the East; better luck next year.
