4. How the Central Division stacks up
The playoff picture in the Eastern Conference beyond the Milwaukee Bucks and Philadelphia 76ers will be a cluster this coming season. Teams that could fit into the middle of the pack like the Chicago Bulls muddy the waters and make for a looming battle for the final playoff spots between about four or five squads.
What will be interesting for the Bulls is seeing how they stack up with the rest of the Central Division. There appears to be a set pecking order in this division at the top and then it gets hazy. The Bucks should command the top spot while the Indiana Pacers sit in second. The Pacers could even fight for a three-seed in the East this season.
But beyond the Pacers and Bucks sit the Detroit Pistons, Cleveland Cavaliers, and the Bulls. Two of those three teams could be vying for a seven or eight seed.
Unless the Cavs make a big push with the young backcourt pairing that is Sexton and Darius Garland, they could find themselves in the basement of the Central Division. Yet, there is a chance that the Cavs compete for playoff spot on a similar level as the Bulls and Pistons.
If the Bulls find themselves in third place in the division by season’s end, they should be firmly in the playoff picture in the East. It helps that the Central Division could be far and away the best in the East. The Southeast Division is very likely to be the worst in the NBA overall.