The best and the worst scenarios for each NBA East Conference team: Knicks has every interest in doing the tank this season

As they say, the pleasure is not always at the rendezvous. It's in the journey. And we do not know where this NBA season will take us.

Here are some assumptions: Optimal scenarios and adverse scenarios for all teams in the East.

Are all these scenarios realistic? I think so. At least, all except Dwight Howard, turn into Kevin Durant or Anthony Davis. These are mainly prophecies of the best or the worst case. But I try not to get into a direct fantasy.

(Note: We do not count serious team injuries as one of the worst case scenarios, but we consider players with a history of injury.)

For the best and the worst scenario of each West Conference team, click here

Best case: Trae Young proves that he could really become Stephen Curry 2.0 – and he's only 20 years old. Of course, he has his filming nights 2 in 13, and his nights of nine turnovers, and his defiance nights around the defense, but Young is clearly the first young star of the NBA shaped in Curry's image . The Hawks modeling themselves after the Warriors work better than they would have imagined: Kevin Huerter seems to be the best three-dimensional player on the 2018 draft, and the agile heaviness of Omari Spellman combines with an excellent outside shot to turn him into a player he's long been aiming to be the Draymond Green of a poor man. Taurean Prince continues to progress as a valuable and versatile wing of the NBA, and John Collins continues to look like one of the biggest flights of the 2017 project. The Hawks are not good – they do not win that 27 games and are raised to the lottery – but with two other lottery choices in 2019, theirs and those of the nonconformists, added to this promising nucleus, they seem to be going in the right direction.

Worst case: Young looks overwhelmed playing in the NBA; he shoots too much of three, he makes too many turnovers, he looks like a boy among men. The Hawks' decision to transfer Luka Doncic to Young is described as a disaster. Young is still confident to shoot but barely reliable; A young man shooting at 33% out of three is not what the Hawks front office expected when they planned their future. The Hawks are giving more and more Young minutes to Jeremy Lin as the season progresses, but they spend the whole season preaching patience. The only good news of the 20 Hawks season is that they are guaranteed a high pick in the repechage. The hint of gray in this positive lining is that the 2019 project is not particularly noteworthy – and the immediate ascent of Doncic to make him a star is now making the NBA's Mavericks team the most surprising in the playoffs and makes the 2019 pick that the Hawks receive from Dallas a lot less.

Best case: The addition of Gordon Hayward to last year's full formation makes the Celtics the number one team to beat in the East, for this season and in the near future. Jayson Tatum continues to grow as one of the NBA's top young all-round offensive players, while Jaylen Brown continues to grow as one of the NBA's best young all-round defensemen. Kyrie Irving leads the team as leader and scorer, finishing third in the most valuable player and Al Horford anchors a defensive group that is the best in the NBA, winning the title of defensive player of the year. The Celtics go to the NBA Finals and lose in a hotly contested 7-game series against the Golden State Warriors. After Kyrie realized that leaving Boston would be a stupid idea, he signed a big extension in the off season by stipulating that the Celtics must endow a chair to Mr. I. whose sole purpose is to investigate the roundness of the earth. Vegas chose the Celtics as favorites to win the title in 2019-20.

Worst case: Too many cooks in the kitchen, too many star players to occupy too few minutes – and it's too hard to handle, even for the team's chemistry master, Brad Stevens. While Tatum and Brown continue to evolve towards young stars, they steal some of the brilliance from Irving, who becomes vocally unhappy by the mid-season. Horford does his best to show by his example how you have to make sacrifices for the sake of the team, but the ego continues to face it. All this comes to mind at a lively meeting reserved for players in March. The Celtics are doing very well, finishing fourth in the East, but Danny Ainge's carefully prepared plans are going badly. The Celtics are no longer a destination of choice for elite players like, for example, Anthony Davis. Adding insult to injury, Irving signs with the New York Knicks in the offseason.

Best case: The Nets' Young Founders – Caris LeVert, Spencer Dinwiddie, Jarrett Allen, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson and D & # 39; Angelo Russell – are all taking a step forward and looking to establish themselves as NBA's valuable pieces of long duration. Russell in particular is one of the most surprising successes of the NBA; He is in good health for the first time since his rookie year and seems humiliated by the bumpy road of his first seasons in the league. He reduced turnarounds while scoring an effective score of 18 points per game, looking more and more like the player he said he was modeling his game after being in college, Manu Ginobili. The Nets improve to 36 wins and even appear to be a marginal playoff team at one point. And they end up with two lottery choices, theirs plus the Nuggets, since Denver gets the 13th pick, which means it's not protected. The enhancement creates a craze in Brooklyn, and this adds to the huge cap space of the Nets to place the franchise in the race for the largest free agents in 2019. Sean Marks has signed two of the most important brands of Kevin Durant and Jimmy Butler. The Nets are in the running for the foreseeable future.

Worst case: The Nets seem to have some solid pieces for the future – including Allen and LeVert – but no one seems ready to assume the role of best player on the team. Russell tries, but he continues to be the inefficient and often alienating player that he has been during the early years of his underperforming career. The nets do not resist completely; they end up with 29 wins, which is unfortunate because the 2019 project has some potential potential among the top five, but it is not remarkable for its depth. With little improvement seen from last season at this season, the main argument that Marks can do for free agents is that it can give them a ton of money and the lights of the big city. The throws do not fly and the Nets end up losing all the big free players.

Best case: Kemba Walker has the best season of his career, and the Hornets have their best season since Michael Jordan became owner, winning 48 games and getting the sixth seed in a surprisingly difficult Eastern Conference. The last two Hornets selections flourish; Malik Monk finds a regular shot and averages 14 points per game on a three-point shot at 40%. Miles Bridges looks like a more athletic version of the Spartan Michigan State Span, which has no place. He embodies his game after: Draymond Green. Michael Kidd-Gilchrist improves his defense so much that he almost became the NBA's all-defensive team, while a healthy Nicolas Batum returns to the offensive player to do everything he can was a year ago. The name of James Borrego is cited among the best young coaches in the NBA. The Hornets are eliminated in the first round of the series, but Walker signs again on behalf of the free agent and, for the first time in a long time, the Hornets appear on a trajectory where the ceiling is more than mediocrity.

Worst case: They form a team consisting of a group of guys and Walker – which is not what the All-Star leader wants to spend his entire career in mediocrity. The Hornets are in the bottom of OK, not the worst team in the East, but should never be confused with a good team. They spend the entire season at the limit of the so-so teams fighting for the eighth-seeded Eastern Conference (which, considering that the eighth-seeded will go to the first team to win 40 games, will not enough to brag.). None of their last three first-round picks sound like an intelligent elite. Frank Kaminsky is just a shooter who is overwhelmed by the physical strength of other great men. Malik Monk warms up from time to time but is beset by inconsistent attack and lack of effort in defense, and Bridges appears as an athlete but not a basketball player. The Hornets are no worse than 2017-18 – winning another 36 games, again well out of the playoff race – but the problem is that they are not any better. Walker leaves a place in free will where he gives him a chance to win and the Hornets reluctantly enter rebuilding mode.

Best case: Lauri Markkanen's pre-season injury has no detrimental effect on his return in early November. Markkanen relies on his epic rookie campaign and becomes one of the NBA's best players for outdoor shooting, averaging nearly 20 points per game and a nearly 40% win over three . Markkanen and Wendell Carter Jr., who make up the all-in-one team, fit in perfectly, giving the Bulls one of the NBA's best young front-ends. In addition to Markkanen's success, Zach LaVine and Kris Dunn are strong starters in the NBA, with LaVine reinforcing his defense (while regaining his excellent three-point shot from two years ago) and Dunn becoming a goal. more reliable (make a reputation for being one of the best defenders of the NBA perimeter). For a while, it seems that the Bulls could participate in the playoffs, but they switch to the lottery by March. Nevertheless, a season of 36 victories and many advances from the young core gives Fred Hoiberg job security. The Bulls enter the category of free agencies in 2019 – where they will have many free places – with a clear direction. for the future.

Worst case: The pre-season elbow injury that stunned Markkanen for the first month of the season lasts throughout the season, and a year in which he could have climbed into one of the young The brightest stars of the NBA becomes a lost season. Other young bulls also experience disappointing seasons. Dunn becomes the very good perimeter defender that many had planned in his draft, but his offensive efficiency is awful and he is one of the NBA's worst scorer guards. LaVine's monster contract determines the expectations of many observers: a huge overpayment for an exciting offensive player who is one of the worst defenders of the NBA. Carter hopes to have a promising future as a big, solid NBA man in both directions, but he does not seem to have the star potential that the Bulls need from the rookie. The defense of Jabari Parker is predictable, even if he counts 19 points per game. The Bulls finished last in the NBA in terms of defensive efficiency. The franchise is heading in the wrong direction, winning only 24 games and not showing the kind of progress that is expected with this crowd of young people.

Best case: Things are not so bad. No, this would never be confused with a leading team in the East, but Kevin Love is coming back to something like the 26 point monster and 12 rebounds that he was in Minnesota before playing a role complementary next to LeBron James. The rest of the team, released from the pressure and the spotlight of playing with perhaps the best player of all time, plays in a free and liberal way and finishes third in a conference of the East which is surprisingly strong at the top . Collin Sexton seems to be a robbery as the eighth draft pick of 2018, his audacity and explosiveness allowing him to compare himself to young Russell Westbrook. Cedi Osman becomes an elite shooter and a positive development story for the Cavaliers. The team is not ready to win a championship this year or next, but the franchise and the direction to go are clear.

Worst case: The Cavaliers struggle fiercely when they seek an identity in the post-LeBron era. The lineup is built around an aging core of players who have been recruited solely for their ability to line up around a team centered on LeBron and built to win immediately: Love, 30, George Hill, 32, 37 year old Kyle Korver and JR Smith, 33 years old. They seem to be heading for a long stay in the NBA Purgatory as one of those mediocre and mediocre teams where a sixth place is considered the ceiling – without ever being bad enough to grab a draft high to build a franchise. Sexton, the choice of the rookie lottery, has his moments of brilliance and pride, but he also seems to be cursed with a weak outside shot, hitting less than 30% of the three. The Cavs qualify for the playoffs, but a seventh place in an Eastern Conference without too much competition in the bottom row really inspires the confidence of the season ticket holders who have spent a lot of money. money in the hope of a return from LeBron.

Best case: The Pistons exceed all expectations. They are far from being a leading team in the Eastern Conference, but they are much better than the mid-size team close to .500 that it has been in recent years. André Drummond's three-point shooting experience works; His 35% shot on three opens the Pistons' offense and gives new coach Dwane Casey a genius. Blake Griffin does not return to the high-flying athlete's freak of recent years, but his athleticism seems to be at least continuing over the past two years, and he continues to progress as one of the most complete attackers of the world. NBA. Drummond and Griffin form the All-Star Team and argue in their favor as one of the best front-outs in the NBA. The Pistons are comfortable in the series bubble in the low East Conference and grab five top seeds as Heat, Bucks and Wizards collapse. The young are all in the line: Stanley Johnson finally lives at about his coaching position, Luke Kennard ranks among the best three-pointers in the NBA, Henry Ellenson is worthy to be at least one rotation player from the NBA and Khyri Thomas and Bruce Brown both look like second-round robberies. The Pistons lose a first-round series against the Indiana Pacers in seven games, but the season is considered an absolute hit, with a clear path to greater future success.

Worst case: Griffin continues to evolve as a shooter, but as he gets older, he is far from the MVP caliber player he was a few years ago. The experience of Drummond as a shooter ends in an abrupt conclusion. Reggie Jackson is one of the worst goaltenders in the NBA for the first half of the season, until he loses his starting position for Ish Smith. The young flicker: Johnson, eighth pick in 2015, looks like a bust, Ellenson continues to not even look like a rotating NBA player, and Kennard does not seem much more than a sniper. The loss of Anthony Tolliver in the ranks of the free agencies stings more than anyone thought, and yet, the Pistons are found exactly as expected: In search of the eighth seed in March in the East is weak . Instead of trying to build for the future, the Pistons are going from the front, distributing future assets to another veteran spin-off player at the trading deadline. The gambit does not work, the Pistons ending ninth. The future looks even worse.

Best case: The team not only counts one player in the 2019 All-Star Game at Victor Oladipo. They have two, while the imposing young man Myles Turner makes a huge jump in his contract year, averaging 20 points and 10 rebounds, scoring 40 percent against three and finishing in the top 10 of the defensive player's vote. l & # 39; year. The Pacers find a way to successfully reunite Turner and Domantas Sabonis; in 2017-18, the two big men only played 269 minutes together and the team posted a net score of under-6.2 during that period, but this season both players have played over 1,000 minutes together, and both flourish. Oladipo is also a legitimate superstar of the NBA. The text message that he sent to his coach just minutes after the Pacers' defeat in the 2017 playoffs – "When do we start? I'm ready to take it to another level" – proves to be prophetic, Oladipo playing 80 matches with an average of 25 points and gets both MVP and defensive player of the year votes. His work ethic sets the tone for the rest of the team, which ranks in the top 10 in terms of offensive and defensive efficiency and finishes in surprising second place in the East. The Pacers travel to the finals of the Eastern Conference before losing seven goals against the Celtics. Even before leaving the ground, Oladipo sends a text message to his coach – "There are at least two extra levels for me, MVP and Hall of Fame, let's go." – and his confidence makes the Pacers use their 2019 cap space to attract an elite free agent. Suddenly, the Pacers form a leading team in the East in the foreseeable future.

Worst case: Stagnation, and classic case of a team exceeding its expectations from one year to another. Oladipo is still the best player on the team and still a very demanding perimeter defender, but his steady progress as a shooter went from 32.7% to three rookies to 37.1% last season. He regresses and the Pacers struggle to create. Off-season additions Doug McDermott and Tyreke Evans hurt the Pacers' defense, while his body's transformation during Turner's off-season did not end up reshaping his game. The Pacers are doing well, finishing sixth in the East. , but the excitement aroused by the surprise of last season turns into disappointment at a lack of significant progress.

Best case: Pat Riley gets Jimmy Butler and does it cheaply, not sacrificing either Justise Winslow or Josh Richardson, and suddenly the Heat again has a legitimate star. Butler's presence and Erik Spoelstra's training make what was the NBA's eighth defense last season one of the top three defenses of the season. Dion Waiters and Winslow both have one of the best injury-free season of their career, while Hassan Whiteside reverses his attitude and returns to the massive and bouncy blocker in which the Heat placed all his confidence in giving him such a big contract. . Wayne Ellington says his reputation is one of the best three-point threats in the NBA. The Heat finish third in the East, less than one point that fails to annoy the Celtics in the semifinals of the Eastern Conference. Butler falls in love with South Beach (hard not to do it) and signs an extension for the offseason.

Worst case: A team without a single superstar player becomes simply another mediocre team that fights with a group of other mediocre teams to sneak into the final playoff spot of the Eastern Conference. Whiteside becomes a toxic presence on the court and in the locker room and is trading against cents (against a cap) before the trade deadline. The waiters and Winslow can not stay healthy, Ellington and Richardson are stepping back, Goran Dragic seems to have passed his peak and Dwyane Wade's elite looks like a long time ago. Spoelstra can not draw anything special from a team that has a lot of depth but no star power. The only good moment is when the LeBron Lakers arrive in town and Heat and LeBron offer Wade a special gift to commemorate these titles: A gold-plated banana boat. LeBron re-presents him to Wade, thinking that Wade will have more time to sail on the high seas.

Best case: Everything is going well, with new head coach Mike Budenholzer leading the group led by Giannis to hell. The Bucks are the surprise of the NBA, finishing third in the East. Giannis Antetokounmpo takes another step forward, becoming the first Buck from Milwaukee to win the most valuable player title since Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in 1973-1974, as well as improving the 12 games of the Bucks, not forgetting the The team that positions itself as its defense, ranked 21st in the 2017-18 rank among the top 10 defensives – wins the Budenholzer Coach Award of the Year. Khris Middleton makes his first appearance among the stars. The Celtics defeat in 2018 in the playoffs in the first round is a harbinger of a bunch of hardcore players. Giannis realizes that this team is aiming for something special. At the press conference following the defeat of the Bucks in the sixth game of the Eastern Conference finals, he stated that he was considering staying in Milwaukee throughout his career.

Worst case: Despite his reputation as a defensive wizard, Budenholzer fails to convince his players to strengthen their defense and the Bucks remain in the last third of the NBA in terms of defensive score. This even prevents them from sniffing the summit of the Eastern Conference. Giannis' three-point shot takes a step back as his 25% mark out of three bends defenders. At mid-season, he almost avoids shooting three times. This highlights the anti-modern approach of the team in shooting that places the Bucks at 25th in the NBA in three attempts last season and 20th in percentage of three points. In April, a playoff spot is up for grabs. They are sneaking into the playoffs with a .500 record, but a team with so many early-season promises seems to be heading in the wrong direction. The murmurs of Giannis, which leaves in a few years, are bubbling; Dallas is a popular conjecture, where Giannis 'brother, Kostas, has made amazing progress and made the Mavericks' lineup.

Best case: Listen to me: the best scenario is … for the Knicks to be the worst team in the NBA. Look, this team is going to be terrible with Kristaps Porzingis with a ripped ACL. The worst thing that could happen would be for the Knicks to be on hand for the eight-seeded Eastern Conference, which started early February, and for Porzingis to feel compelled to speed up his return from injury. then hurt yourself again. Instead, the Knicks see this year as a lost year in terms of the playoffs, the only importance being how the Knicks can position themselves for 2019-20 and beyond. Frank Ntilikina made a positive leap forward in the attack during his second season in the league, while proving himself an elite perimeter defender. Rookies Kevin Knox and Mitchell Robinson both look like robbers at their respective positions. Emmanuel Mudiay and Mario Hezonja look rejuvenated in their new home and prove that they are able to play the NBA rotation. Porzingis looks great in a few minutes when he returns in March. The Knicks only win 23 games, but this is mostly because young people have the opportunity to fail. With the No. 1 pick in 2019, the Knicks have the choice between three future Duke stars – RJ Barrett, Cameron Reddish or Zion Williamson – and then use their capital letters to recruit a player under maximum contract in 2019 in free offense (ahem, Kevin During). Suddenly, the Knicks look like pretenders to the East in the years to come.

Worst case: The Knicks are not terrible, but must never be confused. They are not in the hunt for the playoffs. But they are not at the bottom of the East. Ntilikina continues to be a defensive bumper but shows little progress in attack. The summer league success of Kevin Knox and Mitchell Robinson seems like a mirage. Off-season Knicks players against Mudiay and Hezonja pay no dividends. The Knicks have won 33 games on the backs of veterans. They rely on players that no franchise could consider as fundamental: Enes Kanter, Courtney Lee and Tim Hardaway. Porzingis rushes for his comeback in February in a push of the misguided series. He does not seem to be ready and the effects of his injury are persistent. The Knicks get the 10th pick in a shallow 2019 project. Free agents avoid Madison Square Garden like the plague.

Best case: The length and athleticism of the Magic make it a youthful version of Utah jazz. The magic jump of the twentieth NBA defense last season in the top 10. Rookie Mo Bamba is still a boss in attack, but his defense resembles that of Rudy Gobert. He averages 2.5 blocks per game. . The formations including Bamba, Jonathan Isaac and Aaron Gordon are among the best defensive formations in the NBA. The lost season of Isaac is turning into a second year campaign full of promise; he makes trios at a higher rate than the average and his defense is aggressive and sporty. Gordon continues his evolution from a simple athlete to a complete basketball player, even getting a mid-season craze as a potential player. While the lack of effective playmakers limits the Magic's ceiling, they still win 34 victories and boast of a young kernel that seems on the verge of becoming one of the NBA's best defenses. .

Worst case: The lack of an effective playmaker hampers the development of Orlando's young forward zone. Although the defense is slightly above average, the team simply can not create buckets. It's an ugly sight to watch as the NBA's 25th-ranked offense last season is transformed into the league's lowest-ranked offensive. The Magic finishes with 22 wins, the second worst in the league. A top-five choice in 2019 is not able to meet their basic needs, as the 2019 project is not very demanding for the elite leaders.

Best case: Sam Hinkie's sacrifice turns to the redemption of the Sixers. The process is considered complete as the 76ers sweep the Raptors in a four-game Eastern Conference final. The pre-season lyrics of Amir Johnson at CBS Sports headquarters on Joel Embiid – which he's noticeably improved since the end of last season – are prophetic. Embiid's self-realization comes true when she wins the MVP award. More importantly, the entire team is in good health. Embiid, Ben Simmons et Markelle Fultz jouent tous dans 75 matchs ou plus. Simmons termine cinquième pour MVP tandis que Fultz remporte le prix du joueur le plus amélioré; son coup de saut revient à son apparence au collège et sa façon de jouer donne du crédit à la raison pour laquelle les 76ers se sont échangé pour le faire entrer dans le repêchage de 2017. Toutes les questions sur les blessures de Fultz, les mécanismes de tir et les possibles Yips semblent être de l'histoire ancienne et assez stupide rétrospectivement. Les 76ers se rendent en finale de la NBA et perdent dans une série de six matchs très disputée contre les Golden State Warriors, mais l'enthousiasme suscité autour de l'équipe fait des 76ers une destination de choix pour les agents libres de 2019. Les 76ers érigent une statue de Sam Hinkie devant le Wells Fargo Center.

Pire cas: Blessures, blessures, blessures. Et pas seulement effrayantes, Gordon Hayward-esque blessures non plus. L’équipe est en proie aux mêmes blessures que ses trois jeunes stars – Embiid, Simmons et Fultz – au cours de saisons entières ou de gros morceaux de saisons au cours des dernières années. Avec ces trois joueurs jouant un total de 100 matchs en saison régulière, les Sixers manquent avec embarras les éliminatoires dans une conférence de l'Est faible. Pendant ce temps, Jayson Tatum – le joueur que les Sixers auraient pu choisir en 2017 au lieu de Fultz – se transforme en un buteur incontournable pour les Celtics, enregistrant une moyenne de 20 points par match pour une équipe de Celtics qui fuit avec l'Est.

Meilleur cas: La seule équipe de la NBA à se classer parmi les cinq meilleures en efficacité offensive et défensive la saison dernière (deuxième en attaque, cinquième en défense) s’est en quelque sorte améliorée. La soustraction de DeMar DeRozan et de sa misérable défense, combinée à l'ajout de Kawhi Leonard et de sa défense d'élite, fait des Raptors le meilleur défenseur de la NBA. Les Raptors se rendent en finale de la NBA et perdent dans une série de six matchs très disputée contre les Golden State Warriors. Kawhi est en parfaite santé et remporte à la fois le prix MVP et le titre de joueur défensif de l’année; Il est étrangement enchanté par la réputation de Toronto comme ville de classe mondiale, par ses hivers paralysants, et lors de la première conférence de presse de sa vie après la défaite du match 6 des Raptors, il confesse son amour inattendu pour cette franchise et cette ville. Il annonce qu'il va signer un supermax avec eux pendant la saison morte et que personne d'autre ne devrait venir frapper à la porte. Le jeune noyau des Raptors, Fred VanVleet, OG Anunoby et Pascal Siakam, montre des progrès en attaque et joue un rôle clé dans la défense élite des Raptors, tandis que Kyle Lowry ne montre aucun signe de vieillissement. Vegas a choisi les Raptors comme favori pour remporter le titre en 2019-2020.

Pire cas: Ce truc Kawhi? À la mi-novembre, lorsque la première chute de neige à Toronto a atteint son niveau le plus bas, il est clair que cette situation ne va pas. Sa blessure au quad persiste tout au long de la saison, entravant son athlétisme et transformant un joueur qui figurait parmi les trois meilleurs joueurs de la NBA en 30 joueurs. Leonard supportant moins un fardeau offensif que prévu, il en incombe une plus grande part à Lowry et, en mars, la charge de procès-verbaux pèse lourdement sur Lowry. Serge Ibaka continue de chuter pour devenir un joueur très onéreux et peu pertinent, tandis qu'Anunoby et Siakam deviennent des passifs offensifs. Pire encore, dans la Conférence de l'Ouest, les Spurs de San Antonio volent haut. DeRozan joue une défense efficace tout en continuant d'étendre son arsenal offensif au-delà de la ligne des trois points et Jakob Poeltl poursuit son ascension en tant qu'un des meilleurs jeunes hommes Poeltl est à nouveau en tête du classement en termes de pourcentage de tirs. Kawhi part à la saison morte et le directeur général, Masai Ujiri, entame un processus de reconstruction visant à remodeler l'équipe à son image.

Meilleur cas: Superman est encore Superman. La carrière de Dwight Howard, qui a connu une trajectoire à la baisse depuis son départ d'Orlando il y a six saisons, fait un pas en arrière dans la mesure où Howard comble le vide majeur que les Wizards ont au centre depuis des années. La prédiction de l'entraîneur d'Howard selon laquelle il pourrait évoluer en Anthony Davis ou en Kevin Durant s'avère être moins ridicule qu'il n'y paraissait. (Dans une colonne remplie de scénarios invraisemblables, cette partie est une pure fantaisie.) Plus important encore, le vestiaire n’allume pas Howard, car il montre à ses coéquipiers qu’il a vraiment grandi. John Wall et Bradley Beal font tous les deux partie de l'équipe des étoiles, Kelly Oubre est l'un des joueurs les plus avancés de la NBA et les Wizards organisent une série éliminatoire du premier tour.

Pire cas: L'un des vestiaires les plus combustibles de la NBA explose absolument. Ses coéquipiers se moquent de Howard rapidement. Le reste de l'équipe devient rapidement effiloché. A split develops between Beal and Wall as Wall begins to regress in his age-28 season while Beal continues his All-Star production. One of the NBA's worst salary cap situations looks a little bit worse. The $170 million Wall is owed over the next four seasons feels like an albatross that will sink the franchise into continued mediocrity.