5 reasons Frank Vogel can lead Orlando Magic to NBA Playoffs
By John Buhler
5. A team of role players can make the Eastern Conference Playoffs.
One underrated aspect that the Eastern Conference has going for it that the Western Conference does not in the NBA is that a team full of role players is much more likely to make the NBA Playoffs in the East than in the West. That is because most of the league’s superstar players play in the Western Conference.
Outside of LeBron James with the Cleveland Cavaliers, does the Eastern Conference really have another undeniable superstar? Maybe an aging Dwyane Wade in Miami and a few other players, but really nobody painfully obvious.
An Eastern Conference devoid of stars actually plays in the 2016-17 Magic’s favor if they think that they can finish in the top eight next spring. It wouldn’t be the first time, nor would it be the last, that a team full of nothing but role players contend for an Eastern Conference Playoff spot.
The 2014-15 Atlanta Hawks won 60 regular season games without a true All-Star. The Raptors have two great back court players in point guard Kyle Lowry and shooting guard DeMar DeRozan, but neither a transcendent superstars for Toronto. Brad Stevens’ Boston Celtics has one All-Star in point guard Isaiah Thomas.
In short, Vogel won’t need a star in Orlando to win somewhere between 40 and 45 games to contend for a six to eight seed in the Eastern Conference Playoffs next spring. His arrival in Orlando means that the Magic will have their opportunities to contend for the postseason as early as next year.
Next: 4. East experiences higher playoff turnover than West.