NBA Coach Says Eastern Conference Is 'Worst It's Ever Been' amid 2025 Free Agency

In the wake of Jayson Tatum and Tyrese Haliburton suffering Achilles injuries that have jeopardized their availability for next season, people within the NBA are looking at the Eastern Conference as being in a state of disarray.

Per ESPN's Tim Bontemps and Brian Windhorst, one assistant coach in the league said the East is "the worst it's ever been" right now.

The Eastern Conference was much more shallow than the West last season, but it could at least boast about having two of the league's three 60-win teams (Cleveland Cavaliers, Boston Celtics).

The top three teams in the East had more combined wins (176) than the top three teams in the West (170). The depth was far better in the West with all eight playoff teams having at least 48 wins. Five teams in the East won at least 48 games.

Along with the uncertainty about Tatum's return from injury, the Celtics lost Kristaps Porziņģis (trade), Jrue Holiday (trade) and Luke Kornet (free agency). The Pacers lost Myles Turner to the Milwaukee Bucks in free agency.

The current state of the Celtics and Pacers has opened the door for other teams in the conference to act more aggressively this offseason than they might have otherwise.

Porziņģis and Nickeil Alexander-Walker were brought in by the Atlanta Hawks. The Orlando Magic added Tyus Jones to play point guard after trading four first-round picks and a pick swap as part of a package to the Memphis Grizzlies for Desmond Bane.

The Cavs and New York Knicks project to be very good once again despite relatively quiet roster moves, but their flaws were exposed in the playoffs make them vulnerable if a team like the Hawks and/or Magic can take a step forward.

It's also unclear what a team like the Bucks will look like. The addition of Turner gives them a replacement for Brook Lopez, but their projected starter at point guard is Kevin Porter Jr.

Porter has never been the lead guard on a team that won more than 22 games in a season. He was solid as a backup last season, splitting time between the Los Angeles Clippers and Bucks.

The Philadelphia 76ers are the wild card in all of this. If they can get 130 combined games from Joel Embiid and Paul George, plus continued improvement from Tyrese Maxey and strong contributions from rookie VJ Edgecombe, it could be argued that it gives them the highest ceiling in the conference.

No one should bet on good health for Embiid or George because we just saw last season that's a losing wager, but it certainly seems to be what the Sixers are counting on.

Everything in the East looks like a mess right now, and it could play out that way, but there's also an opening for new blood to breakthrough during the 2025-26 season.