NBA’s Eastern Conference remains shockingly talent deficient

It was almost perfect.

Danny Ainge, Isaiah Thomas, and other Boston Celtics players had shown up in the Hamptons to woo Kevin Durant. They even brought Tom Brady.

It looked like it might work. What better way to cement your legacy than winning a title for the franchise of Bird, Russell, and Havlicek?

Best of all, a weak Eastern Conference meant that the Celtics, especially if Durant enticed Al Horford to join him, could waltz to a Conference Finals date with LeBron James. That is no cake walk, but it seems like a much easier route to a ring than the playoff gauntlet out West.

It was not to be.

Everybody knows what happened.

KD signed with the Golden State Warriors. And it seems like there are only two teams, the Warriors and the reigning champion Cleveland Cavaliers, with any shot at winning the next ring the league hands out.

Imagine Durant in Celtics’ green though. It would have been perfect for a league that could have had its conference’s re-balanced overnight. It would have given the league an equal geographic distribution of marquee teams: Boston in the Northeast, Cleveland in the Midwest, and the Warriors in California.

Instead, the NBA remains severely lopsided in favor of the Western Conference — as it has largely been since Michael Jordan retired.

The only time the East really had the talent to stack up was when Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, and Ray Allen teamed up in green and Dwight Howard was one of the most imposing players alive.

But for the last half-decade, with all due respect to Frank Vogel’s Indiana Pacers, there has only been one elite team in the East: Whichever one LeBron James has played for.

It wasn’t so long ago that the sands looked like they could be shifting.

About two years after KG and Ray Allen crossed the Mississippi, both Deron Williams and Carmelo Anthony made the West-to-East move. This looked like four Hall of Famers changing conferences in less than three years, in an era when the Deron vs. Chris Paul debate (while always silly) was still making the rounds.

But injuries weighed down Deron, and Carmelo has only had enough talent beside him in New York to lead one formidable team (in 2012-13 when the Knicks made the second round). Then the East lost Dwight Howard in an ugly, strange breakup with the Magic that sent him to Los Angeles. Throw in Garnett and Ray Allen getting old and the East was never able to make up any ground in the talent department.

It remains highly talent deficient and, somehow, incapable of attracting star players in their prime even though their route to the Finals would be easier by moving closer the Atlantic seaboard.

We largely keep seeing the same story play out year after year. Kevin Durant left his team this offseason — but he stayed in the West. Last summer LaMarcus Aldridge did the same.

This offseason, Russell Westbrook, James Harden, and Mike Conley re-upped on contracts that are expected to keep them out there for the foreseeable future. Last summer, Kawhi Leonard, Anthony Davis, Dame Llillard, Marc Gasol, and Draymond Green all decided to stay put as well.

Here is a (mostly) full list of the players who switched conferences in the summer of 2016, as well as the free agent who chose to stay in the East.

Depleting the Conference: Players Going East to West

Pau Gasol (Bulls >> Spurs)
Nene (Wizards >> Rockets)
Luol Deng (Heat >> Lakers)
George Hill (Pacers >> Jazz)
Evan Turner (Celtics >> Trail Blazers)
Jared Dudley (Wizards >> Suns)
Aaron Afflalo (Knicks >> Kings)
Timofey Mozgov (Cavaliers >> Lakers)
Solomon Hill (Pacers >> Pelicans)
Langston Galloway (Knicks >> Pelicans)
Anthony Tolliver (Pistons >> Kings)
Joe Johnson (Heat >> Jazz)
Jose Calderon (Knicks >> Lakers)
E’Twaun Moore (Bulls >> Pelicans)
Jordan Hill (Pacers >> Wolves)
Cole Aldrich (Knicks >> Wolves)
Garrett Temple (Wizards >> Kings)

Adding Some Balance: Players Going West to East

Dwight Howard (Rockets >> Hawks)
Rajon Rondo (Kings >> Bulls)
Mirza Teletovic (Suns >> Bucks)
Jeff Green (Clippers >> Magic)
Dion Waiters (Thunder >> Heat)
Gerald Henderson (Trail Blazers >> 76ers)
Roy Hibbert (Lakers >> Hornets)
Trey Burke (Jazz >> Wizards)
Jon Leuer (Suns >> Pistons)
Trevor Bookers (Jazz >> Nets)
Bobjan Marjanovic (Spurs >> Pistons)
Randy Foye (Thunder >> Nets)
D.J. Augustin (Nuggets >> Magic)
Chris Andersen (Grizzlies >> Cavaliers)
Luke Babbitt (Pelicans >> Heat)

Status Quo: Players Staying in East

Stayed in East (Same Team)

LeBron James (Cavaliers)
Andre Drummond (Pistons)
DeMar DeRozan (Raptors)
Nicolas Batum (Hornets)
Hassan Whiteside (Heat)
Bradley Beal (Wizards)
Marvin Williams (Hornets)
Evan Fournier (Magic)
Kent Bazemore (Hawks)
Tyler Johnson (Heat)
Miles Plumlee (Bucks)
Tyler Zeller (Celtics)
Richard Jefferson (Cavaliers)
Udonis Haslem (Heat)
Kris Humphries (Hawks)
Lance Thomas (Knicks)
Sasha Vujacic (Knicks)

Stayed in the East – New Team

Al Horford (Hawks >> Celtics)
Jeff Teague (Hawks >> Pacers)
Joakim Noah (Bulls >> Knicks)
Al Jefferson (Hornets >> Pacers)
Bismack Biyombo (Raptors to Magic)
Courtney Lee (Hornets >> Knicks)
Jared Sullinger (Celtics >> Raptors)
Ian Mahinmi (Pacers >> Wizards)
Jeremy Lin (Hornets >> Nets)
Brandon Jennings (Magic >> Knicks)
Mike Dunleavy (Bulls >> Cavaliers)
Gerald Green (Heat >> Celtics)
Aaron Brooks (Bulls >> Pacers)
Matthew Dellavedova (Cavaliers >> Bucks)
Luis Scola (Raptors >> Nets)
Jarrett Jack (Nets >> Hawks)
Jerryd Bayless (Bucks >> 76ers)
Andrew Nicholson (Magic >> Wizards)
Derrick Williams (Knicks >> Heat)
Jason Smith (Magic >> Wizards)
Wayne Ellington (Nets >> Heat)
Ish Smith (76ers >> Pistons)
Ramon Sessions (Wizards >> Hornets)
Kevin Seraphin (Knicks >> Pacers)

Outside of LeBron James never leaving, the East continues to prove unable to convince any of the big-name talent to come over.

This year, the best it could manage was adding two big-name, but highly flawed, players in Dwight and Rajon Rondo. There weren’t even many low-key signings that look to be big coups for the conference.

None of this is going to move the needle.

The Toronto Raptors should still be a solid team. Boston could be much improved with the Horford pickup alone. The Hawks may surprise some people if Howard can stay healthy. One of the Knicks or Bulls could make their star-studded, past-its-prime roster work. The Hornets could end up closer to their low-ceiling than their high-floor. And the Pacers are remade with a high ceiling.

The talent remains incredibly lopsided, however.

It’s no contest.

The East still can’t compete.