USA TODAY Sports[/caption]The closer we inch towards April and the start of the 2013 NBA Playoffs, the tighter the conference-races become. With the exception of the Miami Heat out in front by a landslide, the other seven seeds are all up for grabs.
No team is safe or should be satisfied with where they sit now. There is plenty of room for error, but there is always room for improvement.
The East is a different animal than the West, in that we know for certain who will be included in the postseason events. The top eight teams are all safely going to advance to the first round. There is a huge gap between the Milwaukee Bucks, who sit in the eighth seed, and the Philadelphia 76ers, who are ninth.
The intriguing part of the Eastern Conference’s playoff-race is trying to determine where the seven teams behind Miami will end up finishing. The final seeding will play a big role in whether or not anybody will come close to challenging the Heat throughout.
Let’s see where our eight Eastern Conference playoff teams currently sit and where they most likely will end up.
Milwaukee Bucks (34-33, 8th Seed)
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Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports[/caption]The difference between the Bucks and the seven teams that lie are not in the East’s playoff-chase is that this team found a way to get wins at the beginning of the season when many of the others did not.
They haven’t had any overly-impressive win-streaks or beat many super-talented opponents, but they just continue to win here and there which turns out to be just enough in the weaker of the two conferences.
Teams like the Sixers and Raptors showed signs of putting it all together and even came close to challenging the Bucks for the eighth seed, but they never could sustain any kind of success. Milwaukee has hovered around .500 for the entire season. They will be rewarded with a playoff berth for basically winning one out of every two games.
They have an eight-game advantage over the ninth seed, so they have no reason to worry about losing their spot. Even if only slight, there is a chance they could catch Boston for the seventh seed. They sit two games back of them currently, but it is not likely considering how well the Celtics have played lately.
Overwhelming odds are that Milwaukee will draw the Heat in the first round of the playoffs and be promptly eliminated.
Boston Celtics (36-31, 7th Seed)
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Streeter Lecka/Getty Images[/caption]Out of the eight teams in contention for playoff-berths in the East, the Celtics have the most to gain in the last month of the season. They are legitimately within reach of the fourth seed even though they are currently ranked seventh.
Yes, three teams separate them from that seed and a lot can happen in the 16 games they have left; but if they can channel some of the intensity they brought against the Miami Heat this past week, I would bet money on them at least climbing the standings to the fifth seed, if not higher.
They have veteran experience on their side with a couple of the best closers in the game in Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett. I anticipate it will take about a 9-6 or 10-5 finish from the Celtics to be in play for the fourth seed position by the postseason.
Chicago Bulls (36-30, 6th Seed)
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Mark L. Baer-USA TODAY Sports[/caption]For quite some time, the Bulls looked as though they were going to be the ones squeaking into one of the top four spots, grabbing home-court advantage for the first round. Now they sit a half-game ahead of Boston, holding onto the conference’s sixth-best record, hoping for a favorable opponent when the playoffs start.
It will not be easy for them to move up the standings based on their last 16 games. They will face the Heat twice, the Pacers, the Nets, and the Knicks in that span. With a little luck and some solid play, they could go 10-6 and find themselves right in contention for the fourth or fifth seed seed.
With a little less fortune or another injury, they could just as easily remain where they are or even fall to No. 7. It is tough, because in a way they control their own destiny and in another way they don’t. They need to win but they must also hope for the teams in front of them to lose.
Atlanta Hawks (38-30, 5th Seed)
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USA TODAY Sports[/caption]This team, more than the other seven, is a wildcard for the playoffs. They are a wildcard because they are highly capable when they are utilizing each other effectively, but they can also be highly volatile. This year has proven to us that they can win against some of the better teams in the league.
It has also become clear that they are prone to cold stretches where they will struggle to find the bottom of the hoop for days, maybe weeks. As of right now it is hard to tell if the Hawks are ready to break out or implode when the postseason begins.
They are right in the thick of the playoff race sitting in the fifth seed. The fourth seed and even the third seed are not out of reach for Atlanta if they get hot soon. I do not foresee them jumping any higher than their current standing however, based on their performance over a larger sample size of games.
If I were cheering for one team specifically in the Eastern Conference playoffs, I would hope that my team was matched up with Atlanta in the first round. I believe they are the weakest of the eight and the most likely to flop when the pressure is on.
Brooklyn Nets (40-28, 4th Seed)
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Bruce Bennett/Getty Images[/caption]Things start to get really interesting at the fourth seed, where Brooklyn currently possesses the last spot that commands home-court advantage.
First off, the Nets now only trail the Knicks by one game since New York has been barraged with injuries. Going the other direction, the Nets lead Atlanta by a two-game margin, Chicago by three and Boston by 3.5.
Everyone enjoys talking about the Western Conference race for the 3-4-5 spots so much that they have mostly forgotten about the battle for 3-7 in the East.
To keep control of the fourth seed or possibly leapfrog into the third seed, the Nets will need roughly an 8-6 to 9-5 effort to finish out the season. It is doable because they will face only five playoff-bound teams in their last 14 games..
New York Knicks (40-26, 3rd Seed)
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Ben Margot/AP[/caption]Holding on by a thread, the Knicks are bruised, beaten and battered, but they are not finished. They have taken hit after hit and seen themselves fall out of the second seed and into the third where they barely own a small lead over the rest of the playoff-contenders.
There is still a lot of work to be done if they wish to hold onto the third seed, or at worst, home-court advantage for the playoffs. Their lead has dwindled down to plus-one game over the Nets and plus-three over Atlanta.
Health has been the main deterrent to the Knicks’ success because they have had to go extended stretches this season without Carmelo Anthony, Tyson Chandler, Amar’e Stoudemire, Jason Kidd or Iman Shumpert.
With the current state of their roster, I am not sure who they are best suited to play in the first round of the playoffs, but I do know that a Madison Square Garden home crowd could contribute quite a bit towards some Knicks wins if they can find a means of holding onto a top-four seed.
Indiana Pacers (42-26, 2nd Seed)
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Howard Smith-USA TODAY Sports[/caption]It was only a matter of time until the Pacers figured out how to play the way they were at the end of last season. Luckily for them, they did not waste too much time and have fought hard to gain a sturdy hold on the second seed in the East.
They have a one-game gap on the declining Knicks and a two-game lead on the next closest contender. They trail the Heat by a whopping 11 games, so the best case-scenario for them is simply sticking where they are.
If it weren’t for the Heat above them, I would say they are the most complete and Finals-ready team in this conference. They have the big men to dominate the block, an efficient point and shooting guard, a break out star on the wing and a solid 3-4 man bench that adds to the rotation.
In my mind, they are still the biggest threat to the Heat before the Finals. To be safe, I would estimate they will need to go roughly 8-6 in their last 14 games to be well out of harm’s way and have a sure spot as the second seed.
This would be well worth the hassle of finishing out the season strong because they could then avoid the Heat until the Eastern Conference Finals.
Miami Heat (53-14, 1st Seed)
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MCT[/caption]Expectations have always been high for the Big Three and company down in Miami. From the moment they all decided to play together, the goal automatically became championships. They are currently one-for-two in that category and working on their second title in a row.
They are in the midst of a dumbfounding 24-game win streak that is both historical and memorable for all who have had the privilege of viewing any part of it. It has been a true spectacle watching Miami destroying their competition and toying with teams to make it seem as though they are offering a challenge.
Right when a team believes they might be the one to end the Heat’s win streak, all of a sudden here come LeBron James and company like the game has a fresh start and they end up running away with the win. I have never seen anything like the five-week display this team has put on.
They have had the first seed locked up almost all season, but now it truly belongs in their possession as they lead the Pacers by 11.5 games. For the sake of viewers everywhere, I hope one of these other seven teams is able to put up a fight before the Heat reach the Finals.
If not, the odds are against any team that stands between Miami and a repeat.
Predicted Playoff-Picture
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Michael Hickey-USA TODAY Sports[/caption]1. Miami Heat
2. Indiana Pacers
3. Brooklyn Nets
4. New York Knicks
5. Boston Celtics
6. Atlanta Hawks
7. Chicago Bulls
8. Milwaukee Bucks
