The NBA has six divisions, and five sent at least one team to the second round of last season's playoffs.
The exception: the Southeast Division.
For the third consecutive year, none of the Southeast clubs — Atlanta, Charlotte, Miami, Orlando and Washington — found a way out of the first round. Atlanta and Orlando both lost in the Eastern Conference quarterfinals, Miami and Charlotte lost in the play-in tournament and Washington was the NBA's worst team.
But there is hope for change in the Southeast, which has more star power.
Giannis Antetokounmpo and Klay Thompson have joined Miami, while Anthony Davis (who technically joined Washington in February but didn't play any games) is set to team up alongside Trae Young with the Wizards for the first time. The Hawks added a big-time stopper in Lu Dort to an already strong defensive lineup, the Hornets brought former Duke guard Grayson Allen back to North Carolina and Orlando's big move was landing Sean Sweeney off of San Antonio's staff and making him the new Magic coach.
All that said, it seems like oddsmakers aren't expecting big win totals from anyone in the Southeast, with projected win totals according to most sportsbooks ranging around 35.5 (Washington), 37.5 (Charlotte), 43.5 (Orlando and Atlanta) and 46.5 (Miami). That would be on brand, since the Southeast has had only one 50-win team — Miami, 53-29 in 2021-22 — in the last 11 seasons.
A rundown of each Southeast Division team, in projected order of finish:
The Heat got the superstar they wanted in Giannis Antetokounmpo, surrounded him and Bam Adebayo with elite shooters like Klay Thompson and Tim Hardaway Jr,, plus added Bobby Portis Jr. for toughness and versatility. Even after missing out on LeBron James, who considered a return, it was still an elite offseason for Miami. The Heat were No. 2 in the NBA in scoring last season and should get back to their airtight defensive ways, which will make Erik Spoelstra's club not only a division contender but a team with a real shot of making some noise in April, May and maybe June.
After wasting a shot to eliminate No. 1 seed Detroit in Round 1 — with a 3-1 series lead — the Magic hired Sean Sweeney to replace Jamahl Mosley. Sweeney, who was Mitch Johnson’s top assistant with the Western Conference champion Spurs last season, is tasked with leading the team to its first playoff series victory since 2010. The Magic have a talented starting five led by forwards Franz Wagner and Paolo Banchero. Desmond Bane is a dynamic shooter, Jalen Suggs is a dogged defender and center Wendell Carter Jr. made big strides. The Magic ran it back; we'll see if it works.
Not only did the Hawks get back to the playoffs last season for the first time in three years, but they had a 2-1 lead in Round 1 against a New York Knicks team that went on to win the NBA title (and would win 15 of their next 16 games to close out that crown). Quin Snyder always gets his teams to play hard and the Hawks certainly seem to have the potential to be very tough on both ends of the floor. CJ McCollum's leadership can't be understated, and Jalen Johnson Jr. only seems to get better. This team is going to shoot a lot of 3-pointers, and not give up a lot of open ones.
The Hornets won 44 games last season, a 25-win improvement, and beat Miami in a play-in game. Despite those steps forward, general manager Jeff Peterson traded point guard LaMelo Ball and forward Miles Bridges with the goal of “long-term sustained success” in mind. Coby White takes over at point guard, with rookie of the year runner-up Kon Knueppel (who led the NBA with 273 made 3-pointers last season) in the backcourt as well. The issues will be rebounding and defense as Charlotte looks to snap the league's longest active playoff drought — 10 years and counting.
After just 50 wins over the past three seasons, the Wizards should at least be interesting now. They traded for Trae Young and Anthony Davis last season. The former played five games for them and the latter zero, but both are ready for 2026-27. Then Washington won the draft lottery, so now top pick AJ Dybantsa joins Young and Davis, bringing even more excitement to D.C. How long the good vibes will last is anyone’s guess. Davis can become a free agent after this season, and unless the Wizards make a truly spectacular improvement, he might want to be dealt to a title contender.
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AP sports writers Rob Maaddi, Noah Trister and Steve Reed contributed to this report.
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