Two weeks have passed since the Boston Celtics won the NBA title in 2024, but the Eastern Conference appears more competitive than owing to several offseason moves that changed the conference’s landscape.
With years’ worth of draft money at their disposal, the Knicks made a major investment in Mikal Bridges, who they signed to team alongside OG Anunoby to help them compete against Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and the Celtics. After gaining their player in free agency, the Sixers now have optimism that Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, and Paul George will be sufficient to lead them to success.
On Tuesday, the Cavaliers took action by agreeing to a maximum contract extension for All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell. In an attempt to acquire much-needed depth, the Magic surreptitiously signed vital role player Kentavious Caldwell-Pope from the Nuggets.
After reviewing the conference as a whole, keeping all the trades in mind as well as all the ones that are yet to come we take a look at whether The Knicks can give competition to the Celtics or not.
The obvious question facing Tom Thibodeau’s team is: Are the Knicks Boston’s greatest rival in the East, or are they something else entirely? Even though Mikal Bridges was a blockbuster acquisition, the deal made sense, especially if the team believed that no superstar would likely leave in the next year or so.
After Bridges and OG Anunoby agreed to a hefty five-year, $210 million contract a few days ago, it will be extremely difficult for the opposition to score on them.
