The NBA playoffs are just 11 days away, which sort of has my brain in a pretzel.
How are we already approaching mid April?
Different teams are in different stages, and not all playoff runs are created equal.
There is no team that enters the 2024 playoffs with more pressure to win than the Boston Celtics.
In fact, it’s not even relatively close.
Their 2024 season has been one of the greatest regular seasons in NBA history.
They have the 4th best point differential ever.
All 3 teams ahead of them (and the one behind) won the title.
They have the best offense, a top 2 defense, and a historic net rating.
Every single way you slice it, anything other than a title is a historic choke job.
There should be zero disagreement here.
The Clippers traded for James Harden to win the title in 2024.
The one thing to remember with the majority of this group is time is running out.
PHX, MIL, LAC are all filled with old ass rosters.
That’s what adds to the pressure to win now, in 2024.
That’s what gets you in this group.
What makes PHI intriguing is not only is Embiid healthy, but he’s also rested.
For DAL, this is it for Luka.
It’s time for him to show the world that his lone WCF appearance was not a fluke.
They’re getting legit bench play.
There’s really no excuse for Luka and the Mavs to not at least make the WCF.
They didn’t do that just to lose in the first round.
Maybe they sell high on that asset and rebuild.
Maybe they finally trade Tyler Herro.
My thought process is they are simply ahead of schedule in terms of their rebuild.
This is the reason I don’t have them in the Conference Finals or title tier.
For ORL, it’s a lot of the same reasoning.
NOBODY had that team as a 3 seed/competing for a 2 seed when the season started.
They are young as shit and in the early stages of their rebuild.
Whatever playoff reps they get now is a bonus and can only help their development.
Could they win a round?
Their defense is legit.
Could they lose early?
Their offense isn’t exactly all that great.
The point is, they are one of the few teams I see as someone without any real pressure.
It’s all about the developmental reps.
For SAC, I put them here strictly because of the injuries.
To me, that’s different than the rebuilding tier.
Those teams don’t have the same sort of ceiling to me.
Would these fanbases be all that upset if either missed the playoffs entirely?
I don’t think so given their seasons.
Either go all in or sell your pieces and rebuild.
It feels like that’s where we are with both.
With that said, I’d love to hear your thoughts on what you’d potentially change and why.
