The days in which Lebron James and the Miami Heat/Cleveland Cavaliers dominated the Eastern Conference in the NBA are long gone. Prior to Lebron's departure to the Western Conference in 2018 to the Los Angeles Lakers, he had made it to eight consecutive NBA Finals appearances. While many of Lebron's teams were not the regular-season winners of the top seed for the playoffs, fans and experts alike predicted his teams to come out as the representatives of the Eastern Conference in the Finals. For eight consecutive years, it was either the Heat or the Cavaliers that would be playing the best team from the West for the Larry O'Brien Trophy.
Lebron's departure left a significant vacuum in the East, giving many teams like the Toronto Raptors, Boston Celtics, Philadelphia 76ers, Miami Heat, and the Milwaukee Bucks opportunities to succeed.
Since Lebron's eight consecutive finals runs, the first four with the Miami Heat and the last four with the Cleveland Cavaliers, no such dominance has been achieved by a team in the Eastern Conference since the 2017-2018 season. In the years since Lebron's absence, the Toronto Raptors made it out of the Eastern Conference in 2019. In the Covid Bubble, the Miami Heat faced the Lakers in 2020, and in 2021, the Milwaukee Bucks represented the volatile Eastern Conference.
As the 2022 regular season nears its end, the Eastern Conference is once again a tossup. As of Monday, March 28, the Miami Heat, led by All-Star Jimmy Butler, is tied with the Boston Celtics, who boast two young stars in Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown for first place. Breathing down their necks are the defending champions, Milwaukee Bucks, who are tied for second and just half a game out of first place with the star-studded Philadelphia 76ers who sport the front runner for MVP, Joel Embiid and former MVP James Harden. These four teams are all fighting for the top spot, while the Chicago Bulls, Toronto Raptors, and Cleveland Cavaliers are all starting to fade into the background in regards to pulling the top seed for the playoffs.
Speculating who will win the regular-season title in the Eastern Conference is only half of the equation. While the Celtics, Heat, Bucks, and 76ers have had strong success in the regular season and are certainly contenders for winning the Eastern Conference Finals, it would be foolish to ignore the Brooklyn Nets. The Nets are currently vying for a spot in the play-in games, which are rewarded to the 7th-10th best teams in each conference.
The play-in tournament involves a high-stakes matchup between the 7th and 8th and the 9th and 10th best teams in the conference. The winner of the 7th and 8th seed matchup will play the 2 seed in the first round of the playoffs, while the loser of that game will play the winner of the 9 vs. 10 matchup. The loser of the 9 vs. 10 matchup is officially knocked out of the playoffs. In order, as of March 28, the 6-10 seeds belong to the Cleveland Cavaliers, Charlotte Hornets, Brooklyn Nets, and the Atlanta Hawks.
Despite the Nets holding the 9 seed with a 39-36 record, many still expect them to make some serious noise in the playoffs, assuming that they make it out of the play-in and into the first round. The Nets have been plagued by injuries and other oddities, such as superstar Kyrie Irving's inability to play home games for the squad due to New York City's vaccine mandate. However, with New York City Mayor Eric Adams ending the mandate, Kyrie Irving is now available to play in the rest of the Net's games which will surely give the team a boost in rhythm and chemistry heading into the playoffs. Kevin Durant, arguably the best player in the NBA, just recently returned to the lineup after missing 21 games due to a sprained MCL in his left leg. In addition, the Nets are hopeful that Ben Simmon, a 7-foot defensive-minded point guard that was acquired by trade earlier during the year, will return by the season's end.
All in all, the East is tight, and it is impossible to know who will win the Eastern Conference Finals this year. Will it be the best defensive team in the conference, the Boston Celtics? Will it be the Miami Heat, who are bolstered by veteran guards and a formidable two-way big man, Bam Adebayo? Perhaps it will be the Milwaukee Bucks, led by two-time MVP, Defensive Player of the Year, and Finals MVP Giannis "The Greek Freak" Antetokounmpo, that will once again reach the promised land.
Don't count out the 76ers, as they have one of the best centers in the league, Joel Embiid, and dominant scorer and former MVP James Harden. If the Nets stay healthy and gain some key pieces back from injury, they will be as dominant as anyone, and who knows, maybe the tenth-ranked Atlanta Hawks will discover some similar magic to last year and find themselves amongst the contenders. The East is wide open, and it will be a treat for all NBA fans to enjoy the dog fight that is sure to come.