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NBA Offseason Rankings: Scouting the Southeast Division

By Vincent Mcmillan

ATLANTA, GA - DECEMBER 28: Dwight Howard #8 of the Atlanta Hawks high fives fans as he heads to the locker room after the game against the New York Knicks on December 28, 2016 at Philips Arena in Atlanta, Georgia. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2016 NBAE (Photo by Scott Cunningham/NBAE via Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GA - DECEMBER 28: Dwight Howard #8 of the Atlanta Hawks high fives fans as he heads to the locker room after the game against the New York Knicks on December 28, 2016 at Philips Arena in Atlanta, Georgia. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2016 NBAE (Photo by Scott Cunningham/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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Dwight Howard, Atlanta Hawks
ATLANTA, GA – DECEMBER 28: Dwight Howard #8 of the Atlanta Hawks high fives fans as he heads to the locker room after the game against the New York Knicks on December 28, 2016 at Philips Arena in Atlanta, Georgia. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2016 NBAE (Photo by Scott Cunningham/NBAE via Getty Images) /

The NBA offseason is winding down. Just about all the rosters are set. With so much change taking place the power has shifted slightly in the Southeast Division.

This year’s offseason has seen lots of talent shift from the Eastern Conference to the Western Conference. It has been an offseason of player movement and crazy stories.

The Southeast Division has been relatively quiet compared to others as far as change goes. Teams throughout the division elected to bring back their core team for the most part and give it another shot. There will not be much change in the win totals throughout.

Some of the decisions to stay put in the Southeast Division stem from the Cleveland Cavaliers being so dominant. It is a foregone conclusion the Cavaliers will be in the NBA Finals for the fourth straight season. There is no need to go all in just yet.

But a report that Kyrie Irving has requested a trade from Cleveland changes the dynamic of the Eastern Conference. Not only is the Cavaliers roster unstable, three of the eight playoff teams from last season have taken steps back. This means the power is shifting in the Eastern Conference.

Last season the Southeast Division had two teams make the playoffs and two others just miss the cut. The Orlando Magic were the only team that never had a chance of sneaking into the playoffs from the Southeast Division.

This coming season, the Washington Wizards are the only team in the division that is a lock to make the Playoffs. The other four teams in the Southeast Division will need to fight to make the last few available playoffs slots.

The race for the playoffs starts with this offseason.

A few moves were made in the Southeast Division in pursuit of the Playoffs. Some teams have conceded and will tank this season while others are loading up on free agents to get involved in the wide-open Eastern Conference.

Let’s rank the Southeast Division teams by their offseason moves and the potential effect on their franchises going forward. This is not a prediciton of where teams will finish but how they fared this offseason.