Jeff Teague believes there is one Eastern Conference side that is perfectly equipped to handle the new-look Atlanta Hawks and Orlando Magic.
The Eastern Conference is going to look very different next season. A devastating Achilles injury bug in the NBA took out the Boston Celtics, Indiana Pacers, and Milwaukee Bucks from contention.
In their anticipated absence, two other teams emerged this offseason as possible contenders – the Atlanta Hawks and Orlando Magic.
The Atlanta Hawks have built well around Trae Young, as they added Kristaps Porzingis, Nickeil Alexander-Walker, and Luke Kennard to their roster.
On the other hand, the Orlando Magic landed Desmond Bane in a massive trade that kicked off the NBA offseason in spectacular fashion.
Both sides will compete with the New York Knicks to emerge as the Eastern Conference champions. But Jeff Teague thinks there is one side that will have their number.
Jeff Teague spoke on his Club 520 podcast about the teams in the Eastern Conference. While the Atlanta Hawks are strong, he doesn’t think the Orlando Magic are quite at that level.
In fact, Teague believes the Detroit Pistons are a cut above both of those teams. He pointed to Cade Cunningham’s development as a big reason for his strong support for them.
“I’m more worried about Detroit than them [Magic], to be honest. Cause they’ve got people that can guard Trae Young. They do. They got young athletes that can stay in front of Trae Young a little bit.
“Nah, bro. None of them f—— with Cade. None of them rockin’ with Cade, at all… The Magic ain’t never won, bro.
“Why do you keep talking like they’re like that? Y’all about to start making me hate the Magic, bro.”
Even if you don’t agree with Jeff Teague’s assessment of the Orlando Magic or even the Atlanta Hawks, there is a good reason for his comments.
For starters, the Detroit Pistons are a proven commodity. We saw what Cade Cunningham and the Pistons were able to do under J.B. Bickerstaff last season.
Meanwhile, we haven’t seen how the Orlando Magic and Atlanta Hawks will perform with their new rosters. They’ve made good moves, but we’ve seen strong rosters on paper flounder before.
Hopefully, all three sides play at the highest level possible, as it will provide fans with some very exciting basketball, something that has been lacking in the Eastern Conference for quite some time.
