There are two possible words to describe the NBA offseason thus far: player movement.

Since last season’s trade, deadline rumors of Dwight Howard leaving Orlando took NBA movement headlines. Although he has made it clear that he wants to join the Brooklyn Nets, the Orlando Magic have not found the right deal to send their superstar packing. It seems talks between the Magic and Nets are over for now after Brooklyn inked current center Brook Lopez to a four-year, $61 million deal. The longer the Magic continues to hold onto Howard, the less leverage they will have when it comes to deals. Orlando doesn’t want history to repeat itself when they lost Shaquille O’Neal for nothing.

The Brooklyn Nets did not let the “Dwight-mare” affect them when it came to making other deals. One of the biggest moves this offseason included the addition of ex-Atlanta Hawks guard, Joe Johnson, to Brooklyn. The Nets sent Jordan Farmar, Anthony Morrow, Johan Petro, DeShawn Stevenson, Jordan Williams, and two draft picks in exchange for the six-time all-star. The addition of Joe Johnson definitely helped Deron Williams make his decision to come back with the Nets, signing a five-year $98 million deal. The Nets also agreed to terms with veteran point guard, C.J. Watson.

The Nets possible starting line-up for next season could be: Brook Lopez, newly signed forward Mirza Teletovic, Gerald Wallace, Joe Johnson, and Deron Williams. Let’s not forget MarShon Brooks, who will make a great impact off the bench for the Nets. It seems the Nets have made a jump from possible lottery winners to playoff contenders in a few months.

With the Nets making all these moves and improving, their New York rival Knicks had to start doing something. In a sign-and-trade, the Knicks welcomed back Marcus Camby and sent Toney Douglas, Josh Harrellson, Jerome Jordan, and two future second-round picks to the Rockets. The 38 year old will help back up Tyson Chandler and Amare Stoudemire, as well as help the Knicks improve defensively.

Knicks brought in another veteran signing point guard, Jason Kidd. Kidd is coming off his worst career year, averaging only 6.2 points per game and 5.5 assists per game. Signing Kidd made Knick fans assume they would re-sign Jeremy Lin; however, that does not seem to be the case after the Knicks’ latest move. The Knicks are bringing back Raymond Felton and Kurt Thomas for Jared Jeffries and Dan Gadzuric.

Bringing back Felton likely closes the idea that the Knicks will match the Houston Rockets three-year $25 million deal for Lin. The Knicks have also re-signed Steve Novak and J.R Smith. Felton back in New York may be the only good move so far for the Knicks. Looking at everything else they seem to have just gotten older, not better.

However, the Knicks have parted ways with guard Landry Fields after not matching the Raptors three year $19 million deal. Toronto also added guard Kyle Lowry in exchange for Gary Forbes and a future first-round pick.

When everyone thought the Heat couldn’t get any better, the NBA champions did. The Heat added veteran sharp shooter, Ray Allen, in a three-year deal. Also, the Heat added veteran, Rashard Lewis, to a two-year deal.

After losing one veteran, the Celtics locked up Kevin Garnett to a 3-year $34 million deal. The 36-year old will definitely help improve Boston’s rookie big men Jared Sullinger and Fab Melo’s skills in order to be effective in the NBA. The Celtics also brought in another veteran guard, Jason Terry. Terry will likely start due to guard Avery Bradley undergoing shoulder surgery; however, once Bradley returns, Terry will take the duty as sixth man.

Philadelphia 76ers added guard Nick Young, who averaged 14.2 points per game last season. Young will be a good replacement for Lou Williams, who has reached an agreement with the Atlanta Hawks. In addition, Young may have the edge to earn the starting job over Evan Turner.

The Detroit Pistons traded away guard Ben Gordon and a first-round pick to the Charlotte Bobcats in exchange for Corey Maggette. The Bobcats also added free agents Ramon Sessions and Brendan Haywood.

Indiana Pacers re-signed guard George Hill as well as center Roy Hibbert. In addition, the Pacers added Gerald Green and D.J Augustin. However, the Pacers traded guard Darren Collison and Dahntay Jones for Ian Mahinmi.

The Milwaukee Bucks were able to re-sign probably one of the most underrated free agents this offseason, Ersan Ilyasova. Ilyasova signed a four-year, $45 million contract after having the best season of his career averaging 13 points per game and 8.8 rebounds per game.

Although the only news coming from Orlando is about Dwight Howard trade rumors, they were able to re-sign guard Jameer Nelson and add Gustavo Ayon via trade for three-point specialist Ryan Anderson.

There is still tons of time and room for more deals to be done in the East and it will be exciting to see what will happen next.

For More Eastern Conference Moves/Deals 

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The NBA playoffs are right around the corner, beginning April 16, and teams are preparing for the home stretch of the season. With the playoffs looming, there are several intriguing matchups in the Eastern Conference that will result in great playoff series, and must-watch TV.

No. 1 Bulls vs. No. 8 Pacers: The Bulls are neck and neck with the Celtics for the best record in the East, and as their team begins to get healthy, they have a solid starting five. Derrick Rose is unstoppable, and he is the engine that drives this team. Luol Deng, and Carlos Boozer are two nice scoring options, and Joakim Noah is a rebounding stud down low. The Pacers will have their hands full with the Bulls, but this young upstart team is fun to watch. They will enter the playoffs with a losing record, and although they boast good size inside with Roy Hibbert and Tyler Hansbrough, their guards will not be able to shut down Rose, and the Bulls just have too many offensive weapons to overwhelm the Pacers.

No. 2 Celtics vs. No. 7 Knicks: The Celtics could be the No. 1 or 2 seed in the East depending on how they finish the season. This difference between facing the Knicks, Sixers, or Pacers in the first round is huge. The Knicks with Amare Stoudemire, Carmelo Anthony, and Chauncey Billups are dangerous and exude playoff experience. The Knicks like to play a high tempo game which could wear out the Celtics’ older players, namely Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Shaquille O’Neal. The Celtics added Shaq to help their playoff run, but his inability to run the floor in transition could make him ineffective on defense. Billups will have trouble keeping up with Rajon Rondo, and Ray Allen is always dangerous, but this could be a much more interesting series than a 2 vs. 7 matchup should be.

No. 3 Heat vs. No. 6 76ers: The Sixers have a nice young team that they have been building for several years now. Elton Brand has been healthy this year and back to his All-Star form. The team has talented young guards Jrue Holiday, and Jodie Meeks, with Evan Turner and Lou Williams coming off the bench, but Andre Iguodala is their biggest offensive threat, and the key to their potential playoff success. The Sixers are young and deep, but the big three of the Heat will be tough to shut down, especially in the playoffs. Chris Bosh, Dwyane Wade and LeBron James will be hungry and dangerous, and with some depth now on the bench with Mike Miller, Eddie House, and Mike Bibby. The Heat should be able to handle the up and coming Sixers, trying to shut-up most of the basketball world who hates them, or at least quiet their dissenters in the first round.

No. 4 Magic vs. No. 5 Hawks: The Magic overhauled their team early in the season to try to change the dynamics, and play more to Dwight Howard’s strengths. This team looks much different than the team that competed in the playoffs last season. The additions of Jason Richardson and Hedo Turkoglu help make the team more dangerous, and Gilbert Arenas off the bench could come in, change the tempo, and fill up the basket when the team needs a spark. Joe Johnson, Josh Smith, and Al Horford lead the Hawks, who seem to have a solid playoff team from year to year. They are a tough team to face, and although they are having more of a down year, they will still be a tough out for the Magic. This series could easily go seven games, but the dominance of Howard in the end will help the Magic edge out the Hawks who lack an answer to arguably the best center in the game.

This should be a year of great matchups in the East, with the wealth of stars now in the conference. Whoever ends up representing the Conference will be battle-tested, and they will be well suited to win a championship against whoever comes out of the West.

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