The dust has pretty much settled on the NBA offseason.
Sure, there’s still a player or two out there and a move or two some teams can make. But for the most part, teams have put together their rosters for the 2015-16 season.
Have any teams in the Eastern Conference improved enough to climb out of the lottery and into the playoffs? And can any team threaten the Cleveland Cavaliers for conference supremacy?
The Sheridan Hoops staff offers its take in this edition of the Three-Man Weave.
1. Which team is most likely to jump from the lottery to the playoffs?
CHRIS SHERIDAN, PUBLISHER: Easy – the Miami Heat. If those guys stay healthy through the season and through the first two rounds of the playoffs, we will have ourselves a dandy Eastern Conference finals. Remember, Goran Dragic and Chris Bosh have not yet had a chance to play together.
CHRIS BERNUCCA, MANAGING EDITOR: Miami. Right now, the Heat’s starting five is Chris Bosh, Luol Deng, Hassan Whiteside, Dwyane Wade and Goran Dragic. With everyone healthy, that is one of the best units in the league, let alone the East. Their bench is Amar’e Stoudemire, Josh McRoberts, Justise Winslow, Gerald Green and the underrated Tyler Johnson. (Mario Chalmers and Chris Andersen may be tax casualties.) A possible dark horse is Indiana if Frank Vogel can figure out how to play small ball.
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MICHAEL SCOTTO, COLUMNIST: Last season, the Heat were victimized by injuries to stars Wade and Bosh. If both remain healthy, along with a full season of Dragic at the helm, the continued emergence of Whiteside and the addition of Winslow in the draft, the Heat should be a force in the East. On paper, a starting five of Whiteside, Bosh, Deng, Wade and Dragic is one of the most formidable in the league. Stoudemire and Green provide needed depth. Erik Spoelstra remains a top coach and will maximize his talent to the fullest.
2. Which team is most likely to fall from the playoffs to the lottery?
SHERIDAN: The Heat are going to knock out somebody else, and the team that seems ripe to be picked off is the Celtics, who overachieved their way into the 2015 postseason, much to the dismay of both Danny Ainge and Kevin Love. Brooklyn was better with Jarrett Jack on the court than it was with the now-departed Deron Williams, so I think they will get in again. But the last spot might come down to the Nets and the Hornets.
BERNUCCA: Boston. David Lee, Amir Johnson and two rookie guards who won’t play are not enough to keep the Celtics in the postseason. It is possible that GM Danny Ainge isn’t finished wheeling and dealing; he certainly has enough young players, expiring contracts and draft picks to pop for a transformational player. But if he doesn’t, who on this roster actually scares anybody? Regardless of whether you play small ball or bully ball, you need a player who gets double-teamed, and the Celtics still don’t have one.
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SCOTTO: The Brooklyn Nets will take a step back next season. Joe Johnson isn’t getting any younger. Brook Lopez is always an injury concern, and the Nets traded away Mason Plumlee, Brooklyn’s only insurance policy. Thaddeus Young creates mismatches at power forward on offense but is less effective against fellow small ball power forwards and doesn’t rebound or block shots well enough on the defensive end. The Nets will need Bojan Bogdanovic, Markel Brown and Rondae-Hollis Jefferson to become key contributors. Jarrett Jack is slated to become a full-time starter for the first time since the 2011-12 season. Don’t be shocked if Johnson is shopped again this season in the hope of acquiring needed draft picks. With that in mind, playoffs in Brooklyn? “Fuhgetaboutit!”
3. Which team could topple Cleveland as conference champions?
SHERIDAN: Miami and only Miami. If you want to look two to three years down the road, then maybe the Milwaukee Bucks. But that is a big maybe. Cleveland is just too good, too deep and too built to last.
BERNUCCA: The Heat have a shot if they can stay healthy. Of course, that is a huge if when Wade is on your roster. The Hawks went out and got the size they need to battle the Cavs, but it came at the expense of DeMarre Carroll, the only player they had who could bother LeBron James. Atlanta would have to catch last January’s lightning in a bottle to truly challenge Cleveland. Chicago? Don’t make me laugh. Here’s the bottom line: The Cavs have James, and you don’t.
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SCOTTO: To be clear, I think the Cavaliers are the class of the East. However, if the stars align, I could see the Heat giving them a run for their money. Their starting five should not be taken lightly. The bench is also stacked with depth. Who wouldn’t want to watch Wade against Kyrie Irving, Bosh against Kevin Love and Deng against LeBron James? It wouldn’t shock me to see both of these teams in the Eastern Conference finals provided both stay healthy.