The NBA season is nearing the halfway point, but the Eastern Conference continues to show separation among the top three teams.
Boston has won six in a row and is two games ahead of the Milwaukee Bucks, who have won nine of their last ten games. Milwaukee's offense has ignited into one of the NBA's best and for the past month, the Bucks have started to emerge as the biggest threat to Boston in the playoffs.
Philadelphia has had to navigate an entire week without Joel Embiid but is still comfortably in third place in the East. Embiid has been playing at an MVP level this year and the 76ers should stay in the top three as long as he is healthy.
Miami is 7-3 in the last ten games and has been battling injuries this year as well. When they are fully healthy, they are a safe bet to be the fourth-best team in the Eastern Conference this year at worst and could challenge for a top-three spot.
Orlando and Cleveland make up the fifth and sixth spots. The Magic got up near the top of the standings earlier in the year, but are 4-6 in their last ten games and still might be a year or so away from being among the best teams in the East. They could be an interesting team to watch at the deadline because they could use some scoring. Cleveland is also a team to monitor at the deadline amid the Donovan Mitchell trade rumors.
The play-in teams right now are the Pacers, Knicks, Nets, and Bulls. The Pacers still have the NBA's top offense, but the defense is going to keep them from being a real threat. The Knicks made the first big trade of the season by acquiring OG Anunoby from the Raptors and they could be a team that gets back into the top six. The Nets continue to tread water and the Bulls are hanging onto that last spot.
Atlanta and Toronto remain right behind Chicago and are two more teams to monitor at the deadline.
Charlotte, Washington, and Detroit remain at the bottom.
Current Eastern Conference Standings (01/01)
1. Boston Celtics (26-6)
2. Milwaukee Bucks (24-8)
3. Philadelphia 76ers (22-10)
4. Orlando Magic (19-13)
5. Miami Heat (19-13)
6. New York Knicks (17-15)
7. Cleveland Cavaliers (18-14)
8. Indiana Pacers (17-14)
9. Brooklyn Nets (15-18)
10. Chicago Bulls (15-19)
11. Atlanta Hawks (13-19)
12. Toronto Raptors (12-20)
13. Charlotte Hornets (7-23)
14. Washington Wizards (6-26)
15. Detroit Pistons (3-29)
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