Is the NBA's Eastern Conference really a wasteland?

The NBA’s Eastern Conference has endured a horrid few months. 

Jason Tatum, Tyrese Haliburton and Damian Lillard have all fallen to Achilles injuries, with Haliburton’s especially painful after his Indiana Pacers took the presumed juggernaut Oklahoma City Thunder the distance in the finals and looked primed in Game 7. With all those stars set to miss the 2025-26 season, will the East be able to produce a legitimate contender?

The New York Knicks are talented but alarmingly top-heavy and presently searching for new leadership. The Cleveland Cavaliers are still to prove that they can manage a 16-game playoff sprint, rather than just being an 82-game flat-track bully. The rumors of Giannis Antetokounmpo and his Bucks parting ways refuse to die. So that’s the top five eastern teams form the past season, all in some level of flux.

With bonafide bottom feeders in the Washington Wizards, Charlotte Hornets and the perpetually rebuilding Brooklyn Nets, the outlook isn’t great for the East. Or is it?

With an ascendant young core, led by a big lead guard, a hyperathletic wing and a two-way big, the Detroit Pistons look on the verge of a breakthrough. The Pistons won 13 more games this past season than they did in the previous two campaigns combined, also winning their first playoff games since 2008. With solid veteran help around them, the young core of Cade Cunningham, Ausar Thompson, Jalen Duren and Jaden Ivey should be starting their first round series at home in 2026.

Orlando’s star trio of Paolo Banchero, Franz Wagner and Jalen Suggs made a grand total of six appearances together last season. Presuming good health, aligned with the addition of Desmond Bane, the Magic suddenly possess a quartet that might be the equal of any in the conference. The Magic’s depth saved them from missing the playoffs last season. This season, it should allow them to manage the minutes of their young stars while always sending out a solid five-man unit. We just saw what depth allowed the Thunder and Pacers to achieve. Orlando is not far behind in that regard.

The Atlanta Hawks just swung for the fences, acquiring talented-if-fragile center Kristaps Porzingis from Boston. Porzingis’s rim protection and spacing should mesh perfectly with Trae Young and the underrated playmaking of ascendant star Jalen Johnson. Throw in progression from Dyson Daniels and Zaccharie Risacher and you suddenly have dangerous starting unit, with nice depth behind it. This is clearly the best team that Quin Snyder has coached since his days in Salt Lake City.

The Chicago Bulls' late season run (15-5 in their final 20 regular season outings) may be fool's gold. That said, this young group has developed chemistry as a speedy, free-flowing unit that gets up and down the floor. The return of Lonzo Ball will only make them faster and more pass happy. Coby White and Josh Giddey look to be ascending to something approaching stardom and Matas Buzelis’ late season form was intriguing. The lack of defense from veteran big Nikola Vucevic is a concern and getting literally anything out of Patrick Williams would be a boost, but with so many teams in the East essentially in a gap year, don’t count out the Bulls obtaining a top four seed.

The elephant in the room is the Philadelphia 76ers. Joel Embiid remains a powerhouse when healthy (yeah, yeah…) and Paul George, ageing like a normal human being, will likely have a better season than last. Tyrese Maxey, who really should be the Sixers tentpole star given Embiid’s availability, and Jared McCain form a talented young backcourt and they have the third pick in a hugely talented draft (or what they can glean from a trade) to add to the mix.

That’s five teams who, along with the Knicks and Cavs, should be playing some great basketball next season. Sure, none of these teams can likely match our new Thunder overlords, and the West maintains far greater depth, but rumors of the East’s demise have been greatly exaggerated.