When the NBA season started, the consensus was that the Miami Heat would meet the Boston Celtics the Eastern Conference finals. And while that matchup may hold true, there are plenty of variables.
Trades and injuries have muddled the previously clear playoff picture in the East. With more than two-thirds of the season gone, the Celtics are the current No. 1 seed, one game ahead of the Heat.
But both teams could face serious challenges from the Bulls (No. 3 in the standings, 2 games back), the Magic (No. 4, 5.5 games back) and the new-look New York Knicks. All three teams have superstar players, and it will be interesting to see how the jockeying for position goes down as the playoffs loom.
Normally, I would say the Celtics would be best suited to play the Magic in the second round, given their recent history against Orlando, but now I'm not so sure after trading away defensive stalwart Kendrick Perkins.
Perhaps Boston would best benefit from playing the Heat. While Miami might have the most talent at the top, it doesn't go very deep and the Heat have nobody in the middle to contend with.
The Knicks seem a little scary, with the 1-2 punch of Amare Stoudemire and Carmelo Anthony, but the one team Boston needs to avoid are the Bulls. Even when they were at their pinnacle (during the 2008 postseason), the Celtics struggled with Chicago in a 7-game series. Since then, point guard Derrick Rose and forward Joakim Noah have only gotten better, and the Bulls have some added punch in forward Carlos Boozer.
Still, the Celtics are the best team in the East and barring any serious injuries, should squeak back into the NBA finals for the third time in four years.
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