Heading into the 2024-25 season, there seemed to be a few teams in the Eastern Conference that could pose a legitimate threat to the Boston Celtics’ supremacy. However, through the first two weeks or so of the new campaign, only the Cleveland Cavaliers have come close to being a team that can call itself the Celtics’ peer. Both teams won again on Monday, with the Celtics demolishing the Atlanta Hawks, 123-93, and the Cavs mounting a furious comeback against the Milwaukee Bucks, 116-114, to move to 7-1 and 8-0 on the season, respectively.
And following the results of Monday night’s 15-game slate, the Celtics and Cavs are currently the only teams in the Eastern Conference with a winning percentage above .500, as per Yahoo Sports on X, formerly known as Twitter.
This level of play was to be expected from the Celtics, as they are coming off a championship-winning season. Despite not having Kristaps Porzingis yet as he continues to recover from injury, the Celtics have remained dominant, thanks in large part to the MVP-level play of Jayson Tatum, as well as the continued incredible play of the team’s supporting cast, led by Derrick White, Jrue Holiday, and a surging Payton Pritchard.
But the Cavs have been slept on entering the season, and they have, in turn, been turning the heads of fans with how well they’ve played on both ends of the floor. The hiring of new head coach Kenny Atkinson has turned the Cavs into a legitimate powerhouse, with the team firing on all cylinders with all members of the team’s core four playing their part in keeping the team unbeaten in the early goings of the season.
It is very possible that the Cavs head into their November 19 NBA Cup clash against the Celtics with a 15-0 record. Their next seven games will be against teams with plenty of question marks, and with the exception of the Golden State Warriors, all of those teams currently have a record of .500 or worse. That game should be a treat to all NBA fans, as it could prove to be a foreshadowing of an eventual matchup deep into the 2025 playoffs.
Cavs and Celtics are running away from the Eastern Conference pack
Of course, this is not a trend that will hold all season long. There are a few sleeping giants in the East that could soon wake up. Two of those teams are the New York Knicks and Indiana Pacers; the Knicks should be much better than they’ve been thus far once they fully integrate Karl-Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges, while the Pacers have shown that they are a serious threat after taking two early-season wins against the two teams that made the 2024 NBA Finals — the Celtics and Dallas Mavericks.
Meanwhile, the Philadelphia 76ers recently got Paul George back, with Joel Embiid soon to follow, and there’s simply no way that the Milwaukee Bucks remain the worst team in the conference, seeing as they have Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard on the roster, not to mention the eventual return of Khris Middleton.
But the Cavs and Celtics have shown that the Eastern Conference will be running through them this season.
The post NBA news: Celtics, Cavs’ dominance overshadows pathetic Eastern Conference appeared first on ClutchPoints.
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