The Cs already had the best roster in the NBA and I think Justin Jackson, who is bad and never plays in a meaningful minute (actually he did like five games ago, but whatever), being upgraded to a big who can shoot the three and play decent defense, is a great trade deadline for Brad.
As for the Cs competition for the Eastern Conference:
- I am very skeptical that Jae Crowder makes the Bucks better. I think he's been over-rated for a while and is basically worse than Grant Williams at this point. Meh.
- I think Jalen McDaniels is supremely meh and a worse defender than Thybulle, who actually seemed to slow down Tatum last night. Don't get that at all.
- Cavs did nothing and are a little bit scary, but are 12-16 on the road and I don't think they've got the juice.
- The Nets are now essentially irrelevant.
- The Heat did nothing and are still pesky, but not particularly worrisome.
- The Knicks got Josh Hart, which is a good get for them, but they still shouldn't be a threat.
- Hawks/Bulls, whatever. I think Saddiq Bey has failed to get better and that team is heading toward completely blowing it up.
Finally, there's the Raptors. Poeltl. There's some significant chance we play the Raptors in the first round, so that's of some interest, and the Raptors play hard and Nick Nurse is good and all of that, but I don't think anyone thinks they're an actually threat to take a series with the Celtics.
Assuming good health, it now seems like a significant upset, if it wasn't already, if the Cs don't make the finals. They seem like a clear favorite.
But the West seems wide open. Maybe that turns into such a slug fest that whoever makes the finals is battered and broken by the time the Cs face them?
