Eight days remain until the playoffs begin, and the East is caught up in two intertwined narratives: which seed Joel Embiid and the Philadelphia 76ers will secure, and when will Antetokounmpo return from his calf injury?
If one were to poll one hundred coaches and executives on which East team had the best chance of challenging the Boston Celtics, I predict that Milwaukee and Philadelphia, before to Antetokounmpo’s injury, would have combined for about 75% of the vote. Having played for both clubs in the past, Jrue Holiday is now a Celtic due to the controversial Damian Lillard trade, which hasn’t yet yielded the anticipated benefits for the Bucks.
In the best-case scenario for Boston, Milwaukee and Philly could play each other in the No. 2-versus-No. 7 series. The rest of the East is in chaos due to injuries. When healthy, the New York Knicks may have the greatest ceiling of all the teams outside of Boston. Sadly, Julius Randle will miss the entire season. However, OG Anunoby and Mitchell Robinson are back, and the Knicks might scrape through to the conference finals if the seeds line up correctly (New York has a decent spot at No. 3). Heck, New York might even make that a lengthy series considering how they played against the Celtics on Thursday.
