The Eastern Conference

Atlantic Division

The Boston Celtics have started the defense of their championship crown with a 24-2 record. The Celtics are 14-1 at TD Banknorth Garden and impressive 10-1 on the road.

Despite losing super-sub James Posey to the New Orleans Hornets and veteran power forward P.J. Brown to retirement, the Celtics actually have an improved team thanks to point guard Rajon Rondo and center Kendrick Perkins stepping up their games.

Of course the Big Three, Kevin Garnett, Paul Peirce and Ray Allen, have played brilliantly this season, but Rondo is a legitimate all-star candidate and Perkins is having the best year of his career.

Even though the NBA season is a marathon and far from over, the Celtics already have an insurmountable lead in the Atlantic Division. Suffice to say, Boston Celtics can already start selling tickets to the post-season.

Some upcoming games that could be very interesting include Boston taking on the Cleveland Cavilers, Boston matching up against the Detroit Pistons and Boston hosting the Houston Rockets.

The next best team in the Atlantic division is the New Jersey Nets. Currently hovering around .500, the Nets are fueled by superstar-in-waiting Devin Harris. The fifth overall pick from Wisconsin is averaging nearly 24 points a game and six assists.

Meanwhile, former “Vin-sanity” star, veteran Vince Carter, is playing inspire hoops (22 points and five boards a game). Coach Lawrence Frank has lots of young talent on his squad and they should make the playoffs as a seventh or eighth seed.

The Philadelphia 76’ers acquired Elton Brand in the off-season but fired coach Maurice Cheeks just 23 games into the regular season.

Replacement Tony DiLeo has gone on recorded as saying his two main priorities are defense and running the fast break on offense.

While the jury is still out on DiLeo’s philosophy, the early results are promising. In his first game as coach, the Sixers easily defeated the Washington Wizards and Brand scored a season-high 27 points.

However, Brand is the key to Philly’s success. If Dileo can find a way to consistently incorporate Brand into the mix (something Cheeks couldn’t do) the 76’ers will return to the post season.

Of course, integrating Brand will now take even longer since the power forward is out with a dislocated shoulder.

With the amount of attention the New York Knicks have received this season you’d think the Knicks would be challenging the Celtics for the division lead. Actually, the Knicks are well below five hundred.

Head coach Mike D’Antoni has done the impossible: he’s made the Knicks relevant again. Forget the Stephon Marbury drama, the Knicks have some ballers. Al Harrington is a great fit, Chris Duhon is a candidate for Most Improved Player and Nate Robinson is a spark coming off the bench.

Like the 76’ers, the Toronto Raptors also made an early season coaching change. After an 8-9 start, the 2006-07 NBA Coach of Year Sam Mitchell was sacked and Jay Triano was inserted as boss.

Triano has the unenviable task of dealing with Toronto’s lack of athleticism at the wing spots, guards that can’t defend, and the league’s second worst rebounding team.

A squad with Chris Bosh, Jermaine O'Neal, and Jose Calderon should not be this bad. But they are and the playoffs look doubtful.

Central Division

It’s a travesty that one of the biggest stories of the young NBA season is speculation that Lebron James will leave the “Mistake-By-The-Lake” for New York City after becoming a free agent in 2010.

What isn’t a travesty is the Cleveland Cavilers’ season.

One of the main reasons the Cavs are leading the Central Division at 21-4, is the addition of Mo Williams. With Williams, James is finally playing with another offensive threat that opposing teams must guard.

The bad news for the Cavs is they’ve played every bad team the NBA has to offer. Granted, if you can’t beat the bad teams, you probably can’t beat the good teams either.

When the Cavs do finally get tested, look for their Achilles’ heel—their bench—to rear its ugly head.

The Detroit Pistons sent shockwaves through the league when they traded Chauncey Billups to the Denver Nuggets for Allen Iverson. With Iverson and his shot-jacking tendencies, the Pistons have radically altered their offense.

Give this veteran squad sometime to gel and they will be one of the East’s best teams along with the Celtics and the Cavs.

The Chicago Bulls have a shot to grab the East’s last playoff spot, but who really cares. Right now they are just fodder for a Celtic first round sweep.

Why then should you pay attention to the Bulls? The answer is Derrick Rose.

You’ve probably already seen his eye-popping crossover he made on the 76er’s Andre Miller—ESPN practically had the clip on a loop.

Rose, the first overall selection in last year’s draft, has already put together an impressive and lengthy highlight reel.

The de facto Rookie of the Year, plays a team-high 38.7 minutes, is second on his team in scoring (18.2 points) and dishes out 6.3 assists. Amongst rookies, Rose is second to O.J. Mayo in scoring.
Rose also became the first Bulls rookie to score 10 points or more in his first 10 games since Michael Jordan in 1984. Rose is already being mentioned in the same sentence with his “Airness?” Yes, the rookie is that good.

I dare you to name two Milwaukie Bucks players. That’s what I thought you can’t do it. Just for the record, Michael Redd leads the Bucks in scoring with 20 points a game and Andrew Bogut leads the team in rebounding with 10 boards a game.

Richard Jefferson is also on the roster. The former Net is averaging 18.4 points a game and pull down five boards.

Head coach Scott Skiles has the Bucks playing hard, but his team’s inability to finish has them off to an 11-16 start.

Also Milwaukie is in Wisconsin and that’s about all you need to know for NBA’s most forgotten franchise.

The Indiana Pacers’ claim to fame this season is they are one of two teams to have defeated the Boston Celtics. While that was a big win, Pacers have found it difficult to accrue any more.

Of course part of the blame can be placed on their schedule. Of the Pacers' first 24 opponents, only six would not be in the playoffs if the postseason were to start today. By the way, Toronto, Philadelphia and Dallas are included in those six. If that wasn’t enough, the Pacers have already played 14 road games.

You can also blame the Pacers’ defense for their status as Central Division bottom dwellers. On average, Indiana is allowing a whopping 104 points a game.

Southeast Division

The Southeast leading Orlando Magic are more than just a one player team. Granted that one player, the NBA's leader in All-Star voting, Dwight Howard, is wickedly good. The all-pro center is averaging 21 points and 14 boards a game.

Joining him in the starting line-up is Rashard Lewis and his 19 points and six boards a game.

Hedo Turkoglu can play big in big games. Already this season, Turk sank a game winning three pointer to lift the Magic pass the Portland Trailblazers.

Jameer Nelson is shooting over 38% from beyond the arch and Mickael Pietrus, when healthy, is averaging 12.9 points a contest.

What all those numbers mean is all five Magic starters are in double figures. However, the offensive production drops from there as the Magic’s bench is the team’s one big weakness.

As bad as their bench is, the Magic still should be able to hold off the Atlanta Hawks and win the division.

The Hawks maybe the sexiest team in the Eastern Conference. The dirty birds are young, long, and athletic. If that wasn’t enough, they play defense too.

Joe Johnson is the team’s franchise player averaging 23 points a game along with five assists. Mike Bibby provides veteran leadership and facilitates the offensive. Al Horford leads his team in rebounding, pulling down eight boards a night.

While this team may be a year or two away from seriously contending, the Atlanta Hawks, whether they’re playing at Philips Arena or on the road, will be very entertaining.

Atlanta versus the Chicago Bulls should be pure excitement. Another intriguing match-up is the Hawks battling the Detroit Pistons. And look for the scoreboard to start smoking when the Hawks host the Los Angeles Lakers.

The Miami Heat selected Michael Beasley second overall in the 2008 NBA draft. The rookie is the team’s second leading scorer, averaging half as many points as Dwayne Wade. However, the 6’9” forward is pulling down just as many boards as 6’4” guard.

Therein lies the Heat problem, they rely on D-Wade way too much. The gold-medal winning Olympian is averaging 28 points per game, and leads the Heat in assists, steals, and blocks. Wade also leads the team in heart and determination.

D-wade alone is good enough to keep the Heat hovering around .500 and that win-lose record will be good enough to get the Heat into the postseason.

Recently, the lowly Charlotte Bobcats traded Jason Richardson and Jared Dudley to the Phoenix Suns for Boris Diaw, Raja Bell, and Sean Singletary. Diaw played well in his first game as a Bobcat, but Bell, who the Bobcats would love to be their starting two-guard, did not.

Diaw helps the Bobcats down low, and Bell will be consistent (consistently average), but they will do little to lift the Bobcats out of obscurity—the team is already 10 games below .500.

The Bobcat’s brain trust of Larry Brown and Michael Jordan know this and they will try to make more roster moves. Rumors are already swirling that the Cats are looking to trade starting point guard Raymond Felton to the Golden State Warriors for either rookie Anthony Randolph or forward Brandan Wright.

The Cats can make this move thanks to the stellar play of rookie D.J. Augustin, the ninth overall pick of the 2008 NBA draft.

Cats leading scorer Gerald Wallace’s name is also being bandied about in trade rumors.

The Bobcats won’t be competing for anything this season, and with owners as bad as they have, the Cats might not be competitive for a while.

However, seeing the Charlotte Bobcats at the Time Warner Cable Arena will be interesting just for the mere opportunity to see who takes the floor.

Who will play for the Bobcats against the Boston Celtics? Will Augustin start for the Bobcats when the Los Angeles Lakers come to town? Will Wallace still be on the team when the Bobcats host the New York Knicks?

Saving the worst for last, the Washington Wizard are not only the worst team in the Eastern Conference, they are also one of the worst teams in the entire NBA.

They also have the distinction of making an early season trade (Antonio Daniels to New Orleans for Mike James and Javaris Crittenton) and an early season coaching change (fired Eddie Jordan and hired Ed Tapscott).

Trades and coaching changes can’t make up for injuries. Agent zero, Gilbert Arenas is out with a bum knee and center Brendan Haywood has yet to play this season. Haywood is still recovering from surgery to repair a torn ligament in his right wrist.

With "Hibachi" out, Caron Butler and Antawn Jamison are the Wizards’ only scorers. Butler is averaging 21.4 points a game and Jamison is averaging 19.9. No other Wizard is scoring in the double-digits.

A date for Arenas’ return is still unknown, but the shooter may be back with the team sometime in January. Meanwhile, Haywood could miss the entire season.

Overview

The east is a three tier conference. The Celtics sit alone on the top tier. The C’s are not only the best team in east they are the best team in the NBA.

In the middle tier sits the Pistons, Cavs and Magic, teams that could, with some luck, threaten the defending champs.

In the bottom tier, is everyone else. In a conference that will probably send a team with a losing record to the playoffs, no club, at least this early, is out of the hunt.

Yet, with the Celtics playing so well, and with so much drive and determination, there may not be a hunt.