When I say dominate, I really do mean dominate. Last season the Celtics played 16 games within the division against Atlantic foes, and they won 13 of them, most handily. Only the Lakers, who were similarly 13-3 against their own Pacific Division, had a similar intra-division record.
The reason for the Celtics' success? Not rocket science — the Atlantic was bad last season. Really bad. The Celtics were the only team in the NBA to be their division's lone rep in the postseason — Toronto finished second in the Atlantic at 40-42, but lost out on the East's No. 8 seed to Chicago in the final week of the season. It's been over three months now since we've seen the Raptors, Knicks, Sixers or Nets play a game. And if you're a fan of good basketball, you probably don't miss them much.
But next year, things might change.
The Knicks have sunk some serious cash into their rebuilding effort, shelling out $100 million over five years to bring in Amare, and another $16 million over two years for Raymond Felton. They spent years and years saving up salary cap room, and now it's time to cash in. Now's their chance to turn things around. And if they can land another big piece via a trade, perhaps Chris Paul, they'll really hit the big time.
The Sixers hit the jackpot in the draft lottery, landing the No. 2 overall pick in this summer's draft and snagging college basketball's player of the year, Ohio State's Evan Turner. Combining Turner with Andre Iguodala, Thaddeus Young and veteran leader Elton Brand equals a decent team in the Eastern Conference, and at the very least, an improvement on last year's 27-55 stinkbomb.
The Nets landed a future superstar at No. 3 in Georgia Tech's Derrick Favors. Favors has the athleticism and the raw talent to even be a star right away. Put him next to Brook Lopez, and you're looking at a dangerous 1-2 punch in the low post. This New Jersey team isn't going to be pushed around anymore.
The Raptors are ready to reinvent themselves in the wake of Chris Bosh's departure for Miami. With Bosh as their centerpiece, they had talent but had flaws in their build — Bosh was the leader of an up-tempo, running, gunning, scoring team, but they had little cohesion and no attention to defense. With Bosh gone, they'll look to start anew. It'll be up to Andrea Bargnani, Jose Calderon and Leandro Barbosa to give the Raps a new beginning.
These teams all have promise for the years ahead. But they all have problems, too — not enough depth, not enough experience, not enough talent just yet.
The Sixers or Nets might well be champions in 2016. Their window will eventually open. But the Celtics have still got it, and their time is now.
The Celtics have the division's best starting five, the division's best bench and the division's best coach. They're still the cream of the crop.
Next spring, you can expect another division title in Boston.
NESN.com will answer one Celtics question every day in July.
Tuesday, July 27: Will the Celtics play better at home?
Thursday, July 29: Will Danny Ainge make a splash with a midseason trade?
