The Pistons have been a step ahead of the rest of the East all season long. Will that continue as 2025-26 wraps up?
From time to time, NBA.com’s writers will share their takes on the biggest storylines and trends around the league.
Who will be the top six teams in the Eastern Conference and why?
Steve Aschburner
- Detroit Pistons
- Boston Celtics
- New York Knicks
- Cleveland Cavaliers
- Miami Heat
- Orlando Magic
That five-game advantage in the loss column with which the Pistons woke up Friday is a hill too high for the Celtics or any other East rival to climb. In fact, I think homecourt edge in the first round will belong to the four teams sitting in those seeds right now. The Heat are due for some serious, grindy hoops after Bam Adebayo’s 83-point performance, which should get them past the Magic and perhaps challenge the Cavs. The next four – Raptors, Hawks, Sixers and Hornets – scream “SoFi Play-In Tournament” to me, with Charlotte the likeliest sleeper.
Brian Martin
- Detroit Pistons
- Boston Celtics
- New York Knicks
- Cleveland Cavaliers
- Orlando Magic
- Miami Heat
Detroit bounced back from a four-game skid to strengthen its hold at the top of the East over Boston. For the No. 3 seed, New York holds a 1.5-game lead and the tiebreaker over Cleveland. Orlando and Miami are in a dead heat for the final two spots and enter their final head-to-head matchup Saturday on six- and seven-game win streaks, respectively. The Magic already own the tiebreaker (4-0), but the winner would earn a full-game lead, which could prove crucial.
Shaun Powell
- Detroit Pistons
- Boston Celtics
- Cleveland Cavaliers
- New York Knicks
- Toronto Raptors
- Miami Heat
The first four of these teams have been in the running all season and were never threats to drop out of the top six guaranteed playoff spots. The borderline teams are a different story. Orlando slips into the SoFi Play-In Tournament because of inconsistency and Franz Wagner’s injury issues.
John Schuhmann
- Detroit Pistons
- Boston Celtics
- New York Knicks
- Cleveland Cavaliers
- Miami Heat
- Orlando Magic
The top four is fairly straightforward, though the Celtics have a much tougher remaining schedule than the Knicks, so New York (with a 2-1 head-to-head lead) has a chance to take the 2 seed. Miami (seven-game winning streak) and Orlando (12 out of 16) were in SoFi Play-In Tournament spots for a long time, but they’re both playing their best basketball of the season, while Philadelphia is shorthanded and Toronto has lost six of its last eight games. None of those four teams in the No. 5-8 tier has a much easier or tougher remaining schedule than the others.
