Subscribe
  • News
    • Local
    • Regional
    • Business
    • Real Estate
    • Outlaw Partners
  • Arts & Entertainment
  • Opinion
  • Sports
  • Yellowstone
  • Events
Menu
  • News
    • Local
    • Regional
    • Business
    • Real Estate
    • Outlaw Partners
  • Arts & Entertainment
  • Opinion
  • Sports
  • Yellowstone
  • Events

Sports commentary: top teams in the Eastern Conference

in News
Megan Paulsonby Megan Paulson
June 21, 2011

In the previous column, I discussed
the final four teams from the
Western Conference and what to
expect next season. This time, I’ll
cover the top teams in the Eastern
Conference.
The East has been riddled with
poor teams and marginal talent for
the past several years, allowing
teams with mediocre records to get
into the playoffs. The conference
has been top-heavy, with only a
handful of very good teams. With
some new contenders this year,
perhaps parity will finally come to
the East in the coming seasons.
Miami –
The Heat,
love them
or hate
them,
they’re here to stay.
They accomplished
a great feat this year,
relying on the starstudded
trio of Lebron
James, Dwyane Wade
and Chris Bosh. As
they draft young
contributors and develop
more chemistry,
they’ll only continue to improve as a
team. That spells trouble for the entire
league. Miami will be a force to reckon
with for years to come.
Chicago – The Bulls had
the look of a champion
as the regular season
ended. Led by MVP Derrick
Rose, they had the chemistry and
star power to succeed in the playoffs.
However, as the games intensified, the
Bulls became a one-man army of Rose
running isolation plays and trying to
do everything himself. The Bulls will
remain highly competitive, but until
they learn to play together in the postseason,
they may be doomed to second
place each year behind the Heat.
Boston – Celtics fans
hope their beloved team
will find a way back to
the post-season next
year, but with three of
their four stars a collective 103 years
of age, the window of opportunity
for Boston may be closing. They’ll
still be in the playoffs, but they may
not be a legitimate title contender
again until they reload.
Orlando – Dwight
Howard can only
do so much, and the
additions of Gilbert
Arenas and Hedo
Turkoglu proved not to be enough to
give them a legitimate title shot this
year. As long as they have Howard,
Orlando will continue to compete
in the East; but his contract is up in
2012 and if the Magic doesn’t find
some help for Howard soon, they
may lose him.
The Rest – The Atlanta Hawks
will continue to compete, but Joe
Johnson looks like one of those
players who can get you to the second
round of the playoffs but never
further. New York has a chance to
build on their exciting combination
of Carmelo Anthony and Amare
Stoudemire. They’ll be back next
season, but can they get enough
help around them to truly be competitive?
Philadelphia was a nice
story this season, but they remain
in rebuilding mode for the time
being. Indiana showed promise
and has some young pieces to build
on. If they can get some consistent
backcourt scoring, they should
improve next season.
Some teams in the East that could
take the next step include: the
Bucks, with Brandon Jennings and
Andrew Bogut; the Pistons have
a chance to develop a great young
big man in Greg Monroe; the Nets
should improve with a full season
of Deron Williams at the point;
and maybe the Wizards improve
with emerging superstar John Wall
running the offense.
Brandon Niles has done online
freelance writing since 2007. A
Communication Studies graduate
student at the University of North
Carolina Greensboro, Niles is also
an avid Miami Dolphins fan, which
has led to his becoming an avid
Scotch whisky fan over the past
decade. He’d love to visit Montana
one day.

Article Inline Ad Article Inline Ad Article Inline Ad
Outlaw Realty Outlaw Realty
Outlaw Realty
ADVERTISEMENT

Listen

Hoary Marmot Podcast

Joe Borden & Michele Veale Borden

Lastest Episode
See More Episodes

Upcoming Events

Jun 20
9:30 am - 12:00 pm

Community Yoga

Jun 20
11:00 am - 5:00 pm Event Series

June Show at the Big Sky Artists’ Studio & Gallery

Jun 20
7:00 pm - 9:30 pm Event Series

Trivia at the Waypoint

Jun 21
9:00 am - 10:00 am Event Series

Planting the Past: Crafting Historic Seed Boxes

Jun 21
11:00 am - 5:00 pm Event Series

June Show at the Big Sky Artists’ Studio & Gallery

View Calendar
Event Calendar

Related Posts

Construction to start July 7 on 19th Avenue in Bozeman
News

Construction to start July 7 on 19th Avenue in Bozeman

June 18, 2025
Gallatin County Commission adopts safe roads action plan 
News

Gallatin County Commission adopts safe roads action plan 

June 17, 2025
BSRAD invests in ongoing community projects, microgrants 
Local

BSRAD invests in ongoing community projects, microgrants 

June 16, 2025
Big Sky OUT’s Summer Pride March draws support across Big Sky
Local

Big Sky OUT’s Summer Pride March draws support across Big Sky

June 16, 2025

An Outlaw Partners Publication

Facebook-f Instagram X-twitter Youtube

Explore Big Sky

  • About/Contact
  • Advertise
  • Publications
  • Subscriptions
  • Podcast
  • Submissions

Outlaw Brands

  • Mountain Outlaw
  • Plan Yellowstone
  • Big Sky PBR
  • Wildlands Music
  • Outlaw Partners
  • Outlaw Realty
  • Hey Bear

Copyright © 2025 Explore Big Sky | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Your Privacy Choices

No Result
View All Result
  • News
    • Regional
    • Business
    • Outlaw Partners
  • Yellowstone
  • Arts & Entertainment
  • Sports
  • Opinion
  • Real Estate
  • Events

©2024 Outlaw Partners, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Explore Big Sky Logo
  • News
    • Local
    • Regional
    • Business
    • Real Estate
    • Outlaw Partners
  • Arts & Entertainment
  • Opinion
  • Sports
  • Yellowstone
  • Events
Subscribe
Facebook X-twitter Instagram Youtube