Top Four Candidates to Make the 2017–18 NBA Finals From the Eastern Conference
Has the recent injury to Kyrie Irving knocked the Boston Celtics out of contention?
The 2017-18 NBA Playoffs tip off next Saturday, and while the Western Conference playoff picture is still somewhat jumbled, things are a bit clearer in the Eastern Conference.
The field has seemingly been divided between those who may just be fortunate to win a series and those who harbor legitimate Finals aspirations.
Listed below (in descending order) are the teams with best chances of making the Finals this season, and it begins with a squad that received some devastating news recently.
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4. Boston Celtics
As soon as Gordon Hayward sustained that horrific injury on opening night, many fans quickly assumed that the 2017–18 season would be a kind of transition year for the Boston Celtics, a year they would use to see what they had in their young guys even if that meant enduring more losses.
To the team's credit, they did not use that early blow as an excuse for them to punt this season. Instead, they have already won more regular season games this year compared to last and they have also locked down the second seed in the Eastern Conference.
With youngsters Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum showing they are for real and the team having a true number one scoring option in Kyrie Irving, the Celtics appeared poised to make noise in the postseason even without Hayward.
Unfortunately, with Irving now expected to miss the rest of this season and the playoffs, per this report from ESPN, the Celtics just took another staggering hit.
Still, head coach Brad Stevens has shown that he can bring the best out of just about any player he coaches, and even without Irving and Hayward, the Celtics cannot be written off completely. The Celtics may even be better defensively with guard Terry Rozier playing in the place of Irving.
The Celtics definitely have an uphill climb to the Finals, but they still have a chance of completing that.
3. Philadelphia 76ers
It can seem crazy to even hint at the possibility of the Philadelphia 76ers making the Finals this season, but in a conference with no true juggernaut, the idea is not at all outlandish.
Ben Simmons has been a revelation in his first season, and he has a great chance to be an All-Star as early as next year.
At the end of the day, the 76ers' hopes of going deep this postseason will hinge on the health of center Joel Embiid.
The good news for 76ers fans is that the latest medical update provided by Dr. Daniel Medina, the team's vice president of athlete care, indicates that Embiid is recovering well.
If Embiid is fully healthy for this upcoming postseason run, the 76ers will be a force to be reckoned with.
2. Toronto Raptors
Per Basketball Reference, the Toronto Raptors rank in the top 10 for both offensive and defensive rating this season. The franchise has also benefited from the continued development of shooting guard DeMar DeRozan and the emergence of several bench players who have excelled in their roles.
The Raptors are deep and extremely talented, and no Eastern Conference team has been as impressive as them during this regular season.
Still, even when taking all those things into account, it's difficult to choose the Raptors as the favorites to make the Finals from the east.
The team's postseason struggles are well documented, and their inability to strike fear into the heart of one particular player on another Eastern Conference squad makes it seem like they are the underdogs even if they are going to be the top seed once the postseason begins.
1. Cleveland Cavaliers
That one player that always seems unfazed whenever he is going up against the Toronto Raptors is none other than the Cleveland Cavaliers' LeBron James.
Just going by the numbers they have posted this season, the Cavaliers don't look like a team that should be favored to win the east, especially given how porous their defense has been.
Even if the Cavaliers lock in during the playoffs, defending will continue to be a problem for them but they will also still have the brilliant James to lean on.
Basketball fans should, however, keep in mind that James is currently averaging more than 27 points, over nine assists and nearly nine rebounds per game during what is his age-33 season, according to Basketball Reference.
James is still the best player in the NBA and by far the best player in the Eastern Conference.
He's made the NBA Finals seven years in a row, and the last three of those were with the Cavaliers.
James could take his talents elsewhere this summer, but since he will still be playing for the Cavaliers this postseason, they continue to be the team with the best chance of representing the Eastern Conference in the NBA Finals.
More news about the upcoming NBA playoffs should be made available soon.
