Washington Wizards: Eastern Conference Power Rankings 2016
By Matt Levin
15. Brooklyn Nets
Over the past five seasons, the Nets have made trades to acquire many aging former All-Stars.
They acquired Deron Williams in 2011, Joe Johnson in 2012, and finished completed their “super team” by adding Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett in 2013.
In these trades, the Nets gave up many young players and drafts picks. The loss of assets hasn’t resulted in much tangible success. All of the aforementioned players are no longer in New York.
These moves have left the Nets in a hole with no end in sight.
The Nets traded Thaddeus Young to the Pacers this off-season for a first round pick which they used on Caris LeVert.
LeVert has the potential to become a contributor in the NBA but has dealt with foot injuries for the last two seasons which could hamper his development.
The Nets’ lone major acquisition this year was Jeremy Lin, who they signed to a $36 million contract.
Lin, a solid point guard, will join Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, Brook Lopez, and former Wizards forward Trevor Booker.
Lopez, an injury prone player himself, is the only proven player on the roster that teams will heavily scout.
The Nets no longer have the solid veterans they had a couple seasons ago and will be looking at a bottom seed this season with a lack of proven talent.
14. Philadelphia 76ers
Relatively speaking, the 76ers look a lot better this season than they did last. But coming off a 10-72 year, that’s not really saying much.
The Sixers were able to get the number one pick in the draft and selected Ben Simmons.
Simmons has the skills and the potential to become a major star in the league. The problem is, it will take some time for him to become that star. At this point, he won’t be capable of carrying the team alone.
Simmons will join former first round draft picks Nerlens Noel, Jahlil Okafor, and Joel Embiid, who has not played a game after getting drafted two seasons ago.
The Sixers were not able to make a splash in free agency but they were able to sign 3=point specialist Jerryd Bayless. Because of youth, inexperience and lack of talent, the Sixers will continue to lose games in 2016-17. Still, at least they will be somewhat entertaining with Simmons, Noel and Dario Saric leading the charge.
13. Milwaukee Bucks
After signing Greg Monroe in free agency and Jabari Parker returning from injury, the Bucks had high expectations coming into last season. The Bucks finished 12th in the East and Monroe is now on the trading block. It’s safe to say they did not live up to those expectations.
Roster-wise, the Bucks are similar to what they were last year.
Thon Maker, their 10th pick, did not attend college and won’t be able to help immediately. Matthew Dellavedova was brought in to fill in the void at point guard, but having a player of his caliber play big minutes could be disastrous.
The real keys to their success will be the play of Parker and Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Parker has already shown that he can play in the NBA, but he still needs to take a leap forward to become a star. The Greek Freak will carry this team as far as they can go, but in reality, the Bucks do not have much of a supporting cast. The other teams in the East did a lot more to patch up their existing holes this summer.
Next: Ranking 12-10