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Through 10 weeks of the NBA season and beyond, we've had the opportunity to check out where every team in the league stands in terms of potential regular season success. Most of the teams are placed right where they will be at the end of the season among the Conference standings, and barring major injuries, loss of form or unforeseen locker room trouble, we have gauged the strengths and weaknesses of every playoff contender.
The Atlantic Division is among the most competitive divisions of the league, up there with the Pacific Division and the Northwest Division, which had 5 playoff contenders last season and 2 of the top 4 seeds in the Western Conference.
The likes of Philadelphia, Boston and Toronto have all been touted as Finals matchups for prohibitive favorites Golden State, but all three of these teams have had issues to contend with already.
Read on to find out what state the Division is in today.
Boston Celtics
Record: 20-14
Streak: 1 loss
Grade: C
The Celtics have huffed and puffed their way to 5th place in the Eastern Conference standings, and they don't look likely to go higher than their current standings any time soon. Much hyped following the postseason of 2018, the Celtics' young core has largely stagnated, and in some cases, regressed in this season.
While they've had Kyrie Irving to bail them out in close games with his unrivaled ability as a pure scorer in the clutch, most of the Celtics squad has played well below its potential. Barring Irving and Marcus Morris (who's playing the best basketball of his NBA career this season), nobody is able to consistently knock down 3-pointers.
Jayson Tatum hasn't taken the leap expected of him, while a reduced role hasn't helped Jaylen Brown who looks thoroughly unpolished this season compared to the confident scorer he was in the playoffs last year. Terry Rozier's stock is at its lowest right now, while Hayward and Horford have not been their respective selves on the offensive side of things despite playing really good defense and leading the Celtics to a top defensive record once again.
Brooklyn Nets
Record: 17-19
Streak: 2 wins
Grade: B-
The Nets have emerged from the basement of the NBA just as their picks stopped conveying to the Celtics. Despite having a really inferior team in terms of talent and ability last season, the Nets performed credibly to finish 11th in the Conference, in stark contrast to the likes of the Knicks and the Hawks, for example.
At full strength, Caris LeVert, D'Angelo Russell and Spencer Dinwiddie present a formidable 3-guard threat, all with different skill sets. Joe Harris is a legitimate sniper, Allae Crabbe has been trending upwards after a bad start to the season while Rondae Hollis-Jefferson continues to be one of the best combo forwards in the league.
On the back of 9 wins in their last 10 games, the Nets will present a stiff playoff challenge this season to the likes of the Hornets, Pistons and the Heat who currently occupy the playoff berths in the East.
New York Knicks
Record: 9-27
Streak: 6 losses
Grade: A-
It feels strange to associate the Knicks with anything other than malfunction and turmoil, but based on what we've seen from the team this season, we have to hand the Best-Drafting-Franchise-for-2018 award to them.
The trio of Kevin Knox, Allonzo Trier and Mitchell Robinson have all shown flashes of their talent in varying capacities, and the former duo, especially, projected to be All-Star caliber players at some point in their futures if they keep growing.
With Porzingis out for a majority of the season, if not all of it, there were no expectations from the Knicks to compete for a playoff berth this time around. They seem to have their sights set on Zion, in addition to the likes of the Cleveland Cavaliers, Atlanta Hawks and the Phoenix Suns who make up the basement of the NBA standings right now.
The prospect of landing any of the 3 Duke prospects to an inexperienced but capable roster with the cap space to attract a max free agent in 2019 is the only thing that keeps Knicks fans in good stead these days, though, given the bad taste of their current 5-game losing streak.
Philadelphia 76ers
Record: 23-13
Streak: 1 win
Grade: B
Despite a Christmas Day overtime loss at the TD Garden to the Boston Celtics, the Sixers can still enjoy their holiday with their family based on their record through the season thus far. Ranked 4th in the Conference and boasting of a 22-13 record so far, the Jimmy Butler trade has, by and large, increased their chances at championship contention this year.
Even so, their already worrying depth was further depleted with the departure of Dario Saric and Robert Covington, who were crucial pieces for the team that ended the 2017-18 regular season with a 16-game winning streak in addition to Marco Belinelli (Spurs) and Ersan Ilyasova (Bucks), whose absence has been felt from the start of the season.
The Sixers will probably be one of the teams making a move to add perimeter shooting and, more importantly, guard defense to their roster - the 2 main aspects of their play that have been inconsistent and rank bad in that order.
Toronto Raptors
Record (as of 26th December, 2012): 26-10
Streak: 1 win (106-104 at Miami Heat)
Grade: A+
The Raptors have established themselves as the most well-rounded team in the league in the first 10 weeks of the regular season. A deep, functional bench that came to life in the regular season last year fueled their hot early start before the likes of Serge Ibaka and Jonas Valanciunas were ruled out with injury, depleting their big man rotation.
Ibaka has adapted to life as a starting center quite well, posting career highs in mid-range field goal percentage. Valanciunas is one of the toughest offensive covers for any traditional big man in the league. The Raptors added the Wing Stop (Kawhi and Danny Green) to an already top-5 regular season defense, and the impact of this roster tweaking has been immense.
Pascal Siakam is having a breakout season, Lowry has been his usual self and the only noteworthy problem bugging the Raptors right now is their below-par 3-point shooting, an aspect of their play that can still be attributed to a cold start rather than as a genuine cause for concern.
Kawhi's MVP-level play will keep them on track for their second Conference Finals appearance in franchise history.
Guess the Lakers players!
