The Boston Celtics took down the Dallas Mavericks to claim their 18^th championship. With the win, they broke the tie with the Los Angeles Lakers for most championships in the league. The Eastern Conference will be competitive next season. If everyone remains healthy, we are in for an amazing season and some teams feel they can dethrone Boston. All the top teams in the East made moves to beat Boston and reach the NBA Finals. Check out my top 5 Eastern Conference teams after free agency.

Philadelphia 76ers

Call me crazy, but I’m picking the 76ers as the top teams in the Eastern Conference as of now. They replaced Tobias Harris with Paul George and that’s a major upgrade. After opting out of his contract, Paul George signed a max deal to come to Philadelphia. The one concern is the injury history that he and Joel Embiid has and that’s concerning. If healthy, the Sixers have one of the best starting fives in the league. The signing of Calbe Martin from Miami is huge in my opinion also. Martin brings that Miami Heat culture to Philadelphia and he’s a clutch player also. The Sixers are sure to add a couple pieces before the start of training camp. To keep the core intact, they also signed Tyrese Maxey to a long-term contract also. The Sixers draft Jeremy McCain is great, and he’ll bring his speed to the second group.

Boston Celtics

The Boston Celtics are the defending Eastern Conference and NBA champions. They have Jayson Tatum and Jaylyn Brown locked up for the foreseeable future. Brown signed his monster contract last offseason. This year, the Celtics signed Jayson Tatum to the largest contract in NBA history. During the season, they locked up Jrue Holiday by extending his contract. Derrick White is another key piece to their championship run and signed a new deal. White signed a 4-year, $126 million deal to remain in Boston. Kristaps Porzingis had surgery on his injured leg, and he’s expected to miss some of the start of the season. The Celtics have signed valuable players to league minimums with the hopes of winning a championship. If Porzingis comes back healthy and remains that way, this team will probably finish atop the East.

New York Knicks

The Knicks are coming off an amazing season where Jalen Brunson played like a league MVP. Unfortunately, injuries were their demise in the playoffs, and they fell to the Pacers in the semifinal round. First off, they’ll have Julius Randle back in the lineup. Randle went down with a shoulder injury in January and didn’t return after having surgery. New York upgraded their roster by trading for Mikal Bridges from Brooklyn. Bridges adds another scorer and good defender to this Knicks team. The Knicks brought back OG Anunoby after he opted out of the final year of his deal. Anunoby signed a 5-year max deal to come back to the Knicks. New York will very much be in the mix with the Celtics and 76ers this season. The loss of Isaiah Hartenstein will be critical and one of the reasons they’re third on my list.

Milwaukee Bucks

The Milwaukee Bucks have underachieved ever since winning the NBA championship in 2021. Giannis continues to be one of the best players in the league. When they acquired Damian Lillard from Portland, we thought they could make a run. Giannis was one of many to be injured either in or heading to the playoffs. Milwaukee has most of its salary cap money going to Giannis, Dame, Middleton, and Lopez. Could they move on from Lopez seeing he’s in his final year? As great as Bobby Portis is, should they trade him or extend him? Unfortunately, the Bucks are in a position where they will have to bring in cheaper talent. As long as Giannis and Lillard can remain healthy, this team has a shot. It was a toss up between them and the Cavs for the fourth spot.

Cleveland Cavaliers

The Cavs are one of them teams that has the personnel to compete. First off, they signed Donovan Mitchell to a 3-year max extension about a week ago. There were rumors of them moving on from Jarrett Allen, but that has yet to transpire. Darius Garland is another name that’s been mentioned that could be on the trade block also. Cleveland believes that coaching is the main issue with this team, and they did something about it. They relieved J.B. Bickerstaff and hired Kenny Atkinson as the new coach. They will continue to add pieces and this team can be as good as the third best team in the East. The Cavs could also be the 6^th or 7^th seed with Miami and Indiana creeping behind them.

What do you think about my top 5 Eastern Conference teams? Who would be your top 5 in the East? Leave some feedback below about anything related to my top 5 Eastern Conference teams after free agency.

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