The Atlantic Division is full of heavy hitters, teams vying to win at all costs, major players in the playoffs and of course, the Boston Celtics.

To put the strength of the Atlantic division in perspective, the Atlantic had 3 teams make playoffs in 2020-21 with the 76ers advancing the furthest in making the Conference Semi Finals.

2020-21 Conference Standings

1.       New York 57-25

2.       Philadelphia 45-27

3.       Toronto 42-40

4.       Brooklyn 27-55

5.       Boston 15-67

The talent in the Atlantic appears to have improved on the whole over the offseason. The Conference champs, the New York Knicks, will remain a contender in the conference, the 76ers have a new star in Damian Lillard, Boston look stronger on paper as Jayson Tatum appears ready to take the jump and the Raptors have been busy assembling one of the most talented rosters in the competition. Don�t believe me? Ask GM Dunne, he will tell you all about it. The only team that will likely maintain a similar record or fall down the standings is the Brooklyn Nets who have their own pick this offseason and appear ready for tank warfare.

The GMs 

The Atlantic is loaded with quality front offices. If we were ranking the divisions on charisma, it would be the strongest by a stretch.

New York GM Smokey- The spreadsheet king, is rumoured to have offers from the 2019 season still backlogged in his PC, awaiting the perfect moment to exploit a deal. He�s a savvy roster builder who is building a well-rounded squad around Fox Ingram and Capella (his boy). Watch for Smokey to reach into his booty of picks (8 first rounders) and make a play at another star for the mecca of basketball to drool over.

 

Philadelphia 76ers GM Nenjamin- The gentleman of the NSL, Nenjamin works as hard as anyone behind the scenes. He�s not afraid of a blockbuster deal and has a team that is in the window right now so I could see him  continuing to buy assets to put around his star, Damian Lilllard. It will be interesting to see if Nenjamin looks to extend his window and ship out some of the older pieces if the record isn�t resembling last season�s by around the middle of the year.

 

 Toronto Raptors GM Jesse Dunne- GM Dunne is as competitive as any GM in the league and banters with the very best, if not, he is the best. Dunne�s roster continues to shape very nicely and he�s made a slew of moves over the offseason to put his Raptors right in the picture for a division crown. It looks like it could be time to FEAR THE NORTH.

 

Brooklyn Nets GM Breece- GM Breece is a cultural asset to the league. He�s easy to be around, is active on the trade front and makes a hellova mix tape. His roster has had a turnover since last season while he awaits the return of his star Jamal Murray and it�s possible he missed his window with the guard favouring sliders last year. Breece owns his pick and the Spurs pick this year so it�s likely he joins in the tank warfare.

 

Boston Celtics GM Toby- A terrific wheeler and dealer in his own right, GM Toby has been playing the slow game since the league�s inaugural season. He�s got 1 part of a big 3 in Jayson Tatum and is awaiting a leap from one of his youngsters to take his team to the next level. Signing Adams seems a savvy move and could indicate the Celtics will join in on the action this season. We sure hope they join the party as GM Toby will attract the ladies to the nerd section of the club. The league will watch on to see if Boston are hungry this year.

 

Predicted Line-ups

New York Knicks
PG Monte Morris
SG DeAaron Fox
SF Brandon Ingram
PF Larry Nance
C Clint Capela
Bench DeAndre Jordan, Immanual Quickley, DeAnthony Melton
Status- Buying

Philadelphia 76ers
PG Damian Lillard
SG Donte DiVincenzo
SF Gordon Hayward
PF Draymond Green
C Al Horford
Bench LaMarcus Aldridge, Matisse Thybulle, Landry Shamet
Status- Buying

Toronto Raptors
PG Fred VanVleet
SG DeMar Derozan
SF Paul George
PF Miles Bridges
C Mitchell Robinson
Bench (BEST IN LEAGUE) Carmelo Anthony, Markelle Fultz, Montrezl Harrell, P.J. Tucker
Status- Contending

Brooklyn Nets
PG Jamal Murray (Injured)/ Cameron Payne
SG DAngelo Russell
SF Jae Crowder
PF Maxi Kleiber
C Jusuf Nurkic
Bench Jarrett Culver, Tyus Jones, Jeremy Lamb
Status- Rebuilding/Selling

Boston Celtics
PG Darius Garland
SG Kevin Porter Jr
SF Luguentz Dort
PF Jayson Tatum
C Steven Adams
Bench Deni Avdija, Alperen Sengun, James Wiseman, Jonathan Kuminga
Status- Rebuilding/ Buying

 

Predicted Atlantic Division Standings

1.       Toronto Raptors     (2^nd in East)   58-24

2.       Philadelphia 76ers (5^th in East)    50-32

3.       New York Knicks     (7^th in East)   46-36

4.       Boston Celtics         (10^th in East)  40-42

5.       Brooklyn Nets         (15^th in East)  14-68

The Atlantic looks ready for a shake up in 2021-22. After an incredible off-season, Jesse Dunne and his Raptors look ready to seize the division and hit contender status with a genuine opportunity to win a title. The 76ers will once again be in the picture and the addition of Gordon Hayward may make them deserving of a more glowing positioning in this article. GM Smokey and his Knicks will once again be in the mix with an underlying goal of being a playoff team while extending the window of contending. Boston are the question mark, they could push playoffs or tank again. The league would love to see GM Toby have a go and see if he has the same talent at the controls as what he has in the GM room. Expect Brooklyn to take the year off as this quality GM does what anyone who know what they�re doing would do in the same position, rebuild, get better and ready to recharge in a year.

Good luck to all GMs as we approach another season in the world�s greatest league. We look forward to seeing incredible standard of basketball coming out of the Atlantic Division once again in 2021-22.

FEAR THE NORTH