Tom Thibodeau did something no New York Knicks head coach hadn’t been able to do in 25 years. Make the Knicks relevant again.

In his fifth season, Thibodeau led New York to a top-three seed in the Eastern Conference. However, the playoff run ended in disappointment, as the Knicks fell to Tyrese Haliburton and the Indiana Pacers in the conference finals.

Just as Thibs seemed poised to lead the Knicks back to the NBA Finals for the first time since 1999, the rug was pulled from under him. In a major shift, the Knicks fired the defensive-minded Thibodeau and replaced him with Mike Brown, a coach known for favoring a faster tempo. Brown, a disciple of Steve Kerr’s pace-and-space methodology that powered the Golden State Warriors to four NBA championships in eight years, brings a new approach.

Brown takes over a Knicks squad led by reigning Clutch Player of the Year Jalen Brunson.

Brunson, who averaged 26.0 points and 7.3 assists per game last season, is the unquestioned leader of the Knicks and arguably the franchise’s best star player since Patrick Ewing. Brunson, along with Knicks teammates Josh Hart and Mikal Bridges, played college ball at Villanova.

In Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns, the Knicks have one of the best guard-center combos in the league, and Brown will lean on both to help him establish a more diversified offensive attack.

Towns fit in seamlessly with the Knicks and earned a fifth All-Star selection. OG Anunoby, Bridges, and Hart formed a sturdy perimeter wall, locking down opposing wings and bringing toughness on both ends of the floor. The Knicks, with their core under contract for the next few years, are well-positioned to contend for a championship. The last time the Knicks won an NBA title, “The French Connection” won Best Picture at the Oscars. That was 54 years ago.

OneManFastBreak projects the top eight teams in the Eastern Conference.

1-New York Knicks — Devastating Achilles’ injuries to Boston’s Jayson Tatum and Indiana’s Tyrese Haliburton open the door for the Knicks to climb into the top spot and become beast of the East. The addition of free agents Jordan Clarkson and Guerschon Yabusele should bolster the Knicks bench.

2-Cleveland Cavaliers — The Cavs won 64 regular-season games a season ago but got bounced early in the postseason. The pressure is on All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell to help the Cavs rebound from last season’s disappointing finish.

3-Detroit Pistons — Cade Cunningham took his game to a new level under J.B. Bickerstaff. Motor Cade got a taste of the postseason last season, and another year under his belt will only increase his stock. Jaden Ivey returns to the lineup after missing 52 games due to a knee injury.

4-Milwaukee Bucks — Giannis Antetokounmpo is coming off a superb summer, leading his Greek national team to a bronze medal at EuroBasket. As long as the Greek Freak is healthy and happy, the Bucks will always be a threat.

5-Orlando Magic — The addition of shooting guard Desmond Bane should make life a little easier for Franz Wagner and Paolo Banchero. Wagner is coming off a sensational summer after helping Germany win a gold medal at EuroBasket.

6-Atlanta Hawks — The Hawks opted not to offer point guard Trae Young a max extension. Trae will be highly motivated to show the Hawks that he’s worth the $229 million investment.

7-Miami Heat — Heat Culture took a hit last season, winning only 37 games and finishing 12th in the conference. Erik Spoelstra won’t let it happen again, and he’ll have a new spark plug in Norman Powell to fire up the offense.

8-Boston Celtics — Tatum’s Achilles’ tear drastically alters the Celtics’ plans for this season, but it doesn’t mean they are going to tank. Finals MVP Jaylen Brown is still on the roster, and expect expanded roles for Payton Pritchard and Derrick White.

Play-In teams: Chicago Bulls and Philadelphia 76ers

Jalen Suggs couldn’t stop smiling after he left the court in his NBA summer league debut as a member of the Orlando Magic.

The former Gonzaga star put on a show for the Las Vegas crowd. He scored 24 points, grabbed nine rebounds, had two steals, and two blocks. He led his team to a 91-89 victory over the Golden State Warriors in overtime.

Suggs embraced the whole experience, even the tough ones. He enjoyed every single moment of his first live NBA game. Well, until the regular season begins. For now, it’s practice jerseys and teammates who may never see again.

“I’m just so happy to be here, to be honest,” Suggs told NBATV’s Dennis Scott.

“Tempo is a lot different,” said the 6-4, 205-pound guard, who was the fifth overall pick in the 2021 NBA draft. “Coming off the picks and going up and down the floor, the physicality. The bumps.”

Orlando was thrilled Suggs was still available when it made its selection at No. 5. Many draft experts predicted that Suggs would be taken fourth and wear the Toronto Raptors jersey. But the Raptors pulled off a draft-day shocker by taking Florida State forward Scottie Barnes. Raptors general manager Masai Ujiri is one of the most well respected and highly regarded NBA executives, but after what we’ve witnessed in the NBA summer league in Las Vegas, Ujiri and the Raptors may regret not selecting Suggs.

Barnes hasn’t been bad in the summer league. He’s just not Suggs.

Barnes is seen as a do-it-all forward who can play multiple positions. Positionless basketball has become fashionable these days. But not having a clear position also has its disadvantages. You still need a primary ballhandler or a 1, you still need a 5 man (aka center), and you still need wing players (2-3). The power forward (also referred to as 4) has evolved over the years. The 3 and 4 have become interchangeable, and some 4s are able to play the small-ball 5.

Suggs is clearly a 1 or 2. But what is Barnes?

At Florida State, Barnes came off the bench and was utilized as a Swiss Army knife. Seminoles coach Leonard Hamilton subscribes to positionless basketball and Barnes falls in line with other positionless athletic wing players who came through Hamilton’s system: Patrick Williams, Jonathan Isaac, and Terance Mann. Williams, Isaac, and Mann are good role players but none of them are going to receive a max contract.

Sometimes NBA scouts and executives fall in love with trends. Barnes was a trendy pick because of his versatility. He could ultimately be a solid player for the Raptors. He’s shown he can fill up the stat sheet and can defend multiple positions. However, Barnes hasn’t flashed star quality. Suggs, on the other hand, has star quality. He already looks like a superstar capable of lifting an entire franchise and leading a huddle. Suggs looks like a natural leader, and his background as a top high school quarterback gives him a leg up over other rookies. He can lead.

The Magic have completely retooled their team in the last two years, moving off Aaron Gordon and Nikola Vucevic and sending their massive contracts to the Denver Nuggets and Chicago Bulls, respectively. Orlando mutually parted ways with head coach Steve Clifford and handed over the reins to Jamahl Mosley.

Mosley, the 15th head coach in franchise history, comes to Orlando after spending the previous seven seasons as an assistant coach with the Dallas Mavericks. He is considered as a rising star in the Magic’s eyes and he’ll be tasked with helping the franchise rebuild. And Suggs appears to be the cornerstone of the rebuilding process along with second-year guards Cole Anthony and R.J. Hampton.

Anthony, the son of former NBA player Greg Anthony, was the Magic’s first-round pick in the 2020 draft and showed some flashes of brilliance in the second half of his rookie campaign. Anthony and Suggs have shown they already have strong chemistry, Mosley should at least try to pair them together in the starting lineup. Suggs thinks the combination of himself and Anthony will be “dangerous.”

“The moment we started going, the rhythm that we get the closeness. It’s gonna get dangerous,” Suggs said. “We’re gonna continue to work. We’re both workaholics. We both want to be great.”

Erik Spoelstra led the Miami Heat to 66 wins and the franchise’s third NBA title in 2012-13. (GETTY IMAGES)

Erik Spoelstra sat in the stands inside Cox Pavilion on the campus of the University of Nevada Las Vegas looking very relaxed. He happily signed a few autographs, scribbling “Coach Spo” on one program.

Life is good for Coach Spo. He’s coming off a second championship season and one day before the start of training camp the Heat reportedly is working on a lucrative contract extension that would keep the 42-year-old head coach in Miami for a long time.

Spoelstra is 260-134 in his first five seasons with Miami, going to the NBA Finals the last three seasons. Only 12 other coaches in NBA history have multiple championships and only seven others have collected rings in back-to-back years. And last season may have been Spoelstra’s best coaching job.

The Heat rolled through the regular season, winning 27 straight games at one point on the way to a 66-16 record. Then in the playoffs, Miami had to rally from a 1-0 second-round deficit against Chicago and ultimately had to grind out seven-game victories over Indiana in the Eastern Conference finals and San Antonio in the NBA Finals.

”What’s overlooked for him is the management of the team,” Wade told AP last season. ”It’s not the coaching part of it. It’s, ‘Can you manage these egos, these personalities, without having one your damn self?’ He’s done it.”

Every team in the league are gunning for Spoelstra and the Heat this season. But they were all gunning for them last year as well, and we all know how that turned out.

OneManFastBreak.net examines teams in the Eastern Conference’s Southeast Division and where they’ll finish:

1-MIAMI HEAT

LeBron James is at the height of his powers and no one is no longer doubting his ability to win, especially in crunch. He delivered a virtuoso performance in the 2013 playoffs, including a dagger mid-range jumper from the right elbow to seal Game 7 of the Finals against the San Antonio Spurs. If there are chinks on the Heat’s armor it’s injuries and fatigue. Dwyane Wade’s knees are beginning to fail him and his health has been a concern for three years. Wade turns 32 in January and he has 100 percent relinquished the team’s “Batman” title to his buddy LeBron. The Heat are about to embark on a historic journey. Since the NBA-ABA merger, only two teams have gone to four consecutive NBA Finals: Magic Johnson’s L.A. Lakers teams from 1982-85 and Larry Bird’s Boston Celtics teams from 1984-87. The Heat have played well over 100 games the last three seasons, so fatigue will definitely be an issue.

2-WASHINGTON WIZARDS

Owner Ted Leonsis, team president Ernie Grunfeld and coach Randy Wittman are going all in on point guard John Wall, as the Wizards inked the No. 1 overall pick in 2010 with a five-year, $80-million contract. The team is shaping entire game plan around Wall, a player who is blessed with many physical gifts but is still learning how to run an offense. Wall made great strides last year after missing the first 33 games with a bum knee. He averaged 18 points per game, but more importantly nearly eight assists. Instead of going end-to-end looking for his own shot, Wall started sharing the ball and finding open teammates. Wall’s evolution as a point man helped Washington play .500 ball over the final 50 games. Bradley Beal got off to a slow start but finished strong, earning third place in the rookie of the year voting.

3-ATLANTA HAWKS

Larry Drew did a commendable job in 2012-13 despite having a depleted roster and losing All-Star Joe Johnson to free agency. Instead of getting a hearty handshake, Drew was shown the door and was let go. Enter new coach Mike Budenholzer, an assistant coach under Gregg Popovich. Budenholzer was hired by general manager Danny Ferry, another former Spurs employee. Ferry believed that the Hawks were “locked into an identity that was hard to change and was going to be harder to maintain.” Change is coming in Atlanta. Aside from losing Drew, the Hawks won’t have Josh Smith. Jeff Teague and Al Horford are now the focal point of Budenholzer’s new attack, and free agent pickup Paul Millsap replaces Smith in the starting lineup. Lou Williams, who is coming off an ACL tear, should bolster scoring off the bench.

4-ORLANDO MAGIC

The Magic organization is now two years removed from the Dwight Howard drama and, frankly, Orlando seems to be doing just fine; the rebuilding process is well under way. Second-year head coach Jacque Vaughn was given a bad hand to start his coaching career, but he should have more pieces to work with this year beginning with prized rookie Victor Oladipo. The second overall pick in the 2013 draft shined during the summer league, averaging 19 points, four rebounds, five assists, and two steals while primarily playing point guard. Oladipo comes into the NBA with reputation as a defensive standout who loves to slash to the basket. But he impressed the Magic coaching staff with his ballhandling and outside shooting. The former Indiana University star will be a strong candidate for rookie of the year in 2014.

5-CHARLOTTE BOBCATS

Charlotte fans are absolutely giddy, and it’s not because they picked up Al Jefferson in free agency or drafted Indiana University stud Cody Zeller. The reason for the big buzz in the city is the return of the “Hornets,” as in the Charlotte Hornets. The NBA Board of Governors recently approved the name change after New Orleans changed its name to the Pelicans. Charlotte just needs to tough it out for one more season as the Bobcats before switching to the Charlotte Hornets at the start of the 2014-15 season. The change can’t come soon enough for team owner Michael Jordan because since taking over majority ownership in 2010 the Bobcats have become comatose, winning just 28 games in two years. But help is on the way. First-year head coach Steve Clifford has armed himself with great assistants in Patrick Ewing and Mark Price. Too bad Ewing and Price can’t put on uniforms.

Joel Huerto is editor and publisher of OneManFastBreak.net. Follow him on Twitter @onemanfastbreak.

Victor Oladipo shines at the Orlando summer league. (GETTY IMAGES)

Four games into his pro career Victor Oladipo was showered with chants of “O-la-di-po!” from a small but boisterous group of Orlando Magic supporters attending the NBA Summer League game at the Magic’s practice facility inside Amway Arena.

It didn’t take long for the 21-year-old, 6-foot-5 guard out of Indiana University to get acclimated to the NBA game. He knocked down his first three shots, including two from behind the 3-point line, and impressed his coaches and teammates with his willingness to do just about anything — even play point guard.

The second overall pick in the 2013 NBA draft had never played point guard before, but certainly didn’t look out of place. Oladipo, who played shooting guard almost exclusively in college, ran Orlando’s summer league team like a 10-year pro, yelling out instructions and making sure everyone was in the right spots.

His best moment occurred in his fourth game when he hit a 22-foot, step-back jumper with 4.4 seconds over fellow rookie Michael Carter-Williams to give the Magic a 90-89 win over the Philadelphia 76ers. Watch the play:

“I’m slowly, but surely, learning,” Oladipo told the Orlando Sentinel. “I’m just trying to take every aspect of the point guard position and trying to perfect it, limit my mistakes and learn when to be aggressive and when to find my teammates.”

Oladipo averaged 19.0 points, 4.3 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game in four games. He did average 4.8 turnovers per game, but Magic officials can live with those mistakes. His 10 free throw attempts per game showed a knack for finding seams in the defense and creating offense when a play breaks down.

What Oladipo proved in a small sample size at the summer league was that the pro game is not too big for him. He has quickly made the transition from college standout to professional athlete in a matter of weeks. His needle keeps pointing upward and the sky is the limit for this former Hoosier, who two years ago wasn’t on anyone’s radar.

The Magic will begin training camp Oct. 1 and Oladipo could see time at point guard and shooting guard. Jameer Nelson remains the incumbent at point for Orlando, but head coach Jacque Vaughn may want another option.

The Magic currently have five guards under contract for the upcoming season: Oladipo, Nelson and shooting guards Arron Afflalo, Doron Lamb and E’Twaun Moore. Oladipo figures to be the most effective defender — he was an All-Big Ten defender in 2012-13 — while Nelson is the least effective defender.

A backcourt of Oladipo at point guard and Afflalo at shooting guard in certain situations would be a significant upgrade defensively for Orlando, which ranked 25th in defensive efficiency last season. Oladipo averaged 3.0 steals per game during the summer league.

“He’s a young man that’s infectious,” Borrego told the Orlando Sentinel. “He’s a young man that his team rallies around. You can feel it. He’s got a contagious quality about him that, until you have him in your program, until you have your hands on him, you don’t really understand. I think his teammates feel his competitive energy, his spirit, and we got to see it firsthand.”

One year after losing star center Dwight Howard, Orlando seems to be turning the corner. Oladipo is at the forefront of the Magic’s return to relevance and could be an early favorite to win rookie of the year in 2013-14.

Dwight Howard returns to Orlando and drops 39 points on his former team. (GETTY IMAGES)

It wasn’t quite the same venom as the time when LeBron James returned to Cleveland as a member of the Miami Heat, but Dwight Howard’s return to Orlando was still dramatic.

There were plenty of boos and some fans brought vulgar signs. The worst was the “FCK D12” shirts, and the “Dwight Coward” reference was sorta clever. But all the boos and all the negative energy that surrounded the Orena seem to fire up Howard, who is slowly returning to form after a long and arduous rehab from offseason back surgery.

Howard was active on both ends of the floor, and his activity translated to more touches and more paint points. He finished with 39 points and grabbed 16 rebounds. But the most impressive part of his Orlando homecoming was his free throw shooting. Despite the Hack-a-Howard strategy, which put the Lakers center on the line a NBA record 39 times (tying Howard’s own mark set in 2012), Howard hit back by sinking 25 of 39 foul shots, including 16 of 20 in the second half.

“I missed a lot of free throws, but it was good that I made a lot of free throws,” Howard said after leading the Lakers to a 106-97 win.

Lakers coach Mike D’Antoni joked that the Hack-a-Howard gimmick was the best offense the Lakers have going, and he was glad Orlando fouled him that many times.

Every time Howard stepped to the line he was booed, which was expected. The Magic fans are still seething at Howard for turning his back on a team that basically raised him since he entered the league in 2004 out of high school. Despite all the fans’ anger aimed at him, Howard had nothing but love for the Magic fans.

“I wanna thank everybody here in Orlando who supported me for my eight years,” he said. “I don’t care how many times they boo me, I don’t care how many times they make signs or whatever I still got love for these people.”

In an interview with Kevin Frazier, Howard says he apologizes for the way things unfolded in his final days in Orlando.

“I am sorry for everything that happened,” Howard said. “Some things I could have handled a lot better. But never intended to hurt those people. At the same time, I’ve moved on. I needed a change for my life. I needed everything that could have happened so I could become a stronger man.”

“Dwight genuinely loves Orlando,” D’Antoni said. “I’m sure for him there was a lot of emotion, but he got through it.”

Howard, who is deeply religious, says getting traded to the Lakers was the right play for him, although it didn’t appear that way for months when Howard seems real uncomfortable wearing the purple and gold, and was constantly dropping hints that he was unhappy in L.A. But Howard said all the negative press has been blow out of proportion, including his reported riff with Kobe Bryant. Howard claims he and Kobe are “cool” and that he’s started to get more comfortable in his role with the Lakers.

“I think all this stuff is good for me, as a person, as a man,” Howard said. “We didn’t allow the outside chatter to affect us as a team. We found a way to get better.”

”I had no intention of shooting another jumper,” said James, who got the ball on the wing with 12 seconds remaining in the game and Heat down by one to lowly Orlando. He stepped back a few steps to give himself more room to operate then attacked Magic forward DeQuan Jones with seven seconds on the clock. James got all the way to the rim and rolled the ball in with his strong hand with three seconds left to give the Heat a 97-96 victory.

James finished with 26 points and was 7-for-14 from the field. According to NBA.com, LeBron is among the league leaders this season in most points in the final minute of a game (40 points), trailing only Kyrie Irving (48), Kevin Durant (44), and Jarret Jack (40).

So much for all the nonsense that James doesn’t possess the so-called clutch gene. Take that, Skip Bayless!

Dwyane Wade and LeBron James are looking to add to their championship ring collection. (GETTY IMAGES)

The road to the 2013 NBA Finals got a little easier for defending champion Miami.

Dwight Howard left Orlando and headed for Hollywood and Joe Johnson left Atlanta for Brooklyn. The defections gutted the Southeast Division, leaving the Heat without a legitimate sparring partner in the division. Unless Josh Smith turns into Dominique Wilkins overnight and John Wall develops a Gilbert Arenas-like jump shot, the Heat should finish with the best record in the Eastern Conference based on the simple fact that it has little competition within the division. And last time we checked, LeBron James still wears the Heat colors and he’ll have a healthier Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, and a new sniper in Ray Allen to help him defend the NBA title.

Team president Pat Riley and head coach Erik Spoelstra went into the offseason with a mindset of upgrading the roster, something the Heat didn’t do the season after they won the championship in 2006. Allen provides the Heat with another spot-up shooter — arguably the greatest 3-point shooter in history — to open up the floor for Wade and LeBron. Spoelstra has also asked Chris Bosh to slide over to the center position full-time, freeing up LeBron to play power forward. About the only major question mark for the Heat heading into the season is Wade’s surgically repaired knee. If all the reports are accurate, Wade should be back to being D-Wade for 2012-13.

OneManFastbreak.net predicts the order of finish in the Southeast Division:

1-MIAMI HEAT — LeBron finally rid of that humongous monkey off his back when he got that elusive championship ring in 2012. James should get a big bump off his championship season, and this is bad news for the division and rest of the league. But the Heat are much more than just the Big Three. What makes Miami so difficult to beat is balance. The Heat have players (Mario Chalmers, Shane Battier, Udonis Haslem) who know their roles and make “championship” plays each and every night. Chalmers is not afraid to take and make big shots down the stretch. Battier and Haslem are committed to doing all the dirty work: playing defense, taking charges, diving for loose balls. Those are all the type of things that don’t show up on the box score.

2-ATLANTA HAWKS — You don’t lose a Joe Johnson and consider yourself a championship team. This is the dilemma the Hawks are facing this year. But the Hawks can point to the addition-by-subtraction theory, and the feeling is the ball should move better without Johnson, who can be a ball-stopper. Former 76ers guard Lou Williams may not have Johnson’s All-Star credentials, but he’s an explosive scorer who plays better when the game is on the line.

3-ORLANDO MAGIC — No D. Howard, no Stan Van Gundy, no expectations. The Magic are starting over and it begins at the top with the hiring of Jacque Vaughn as head coach. During his NBA career, Vaughn was remembered for being a smart player on offense and tough on defense. Expect the Magic to be those things, but it will take time to recover from the mess left by all the Dwight drama.

4-WASHINGTON WIZARDS — The Wizards ditched their youth movement and brought in more experienced players. The team felt there was too much knuckleheadedness and not enough professionalism. But what the Wizards don’t realize is sometimes experience doesn’t make up for youth and talent.

5-CHARLOTTE BOBCATS — Coming off one of the worst seasons in NBA history, there is nowhere to go but up for the Bobcats. Starting with the choice of Michael Kidd-Gilchrist in the draft and naming last year’s top pick Kemba Walker as the starter at point guard, the Bobcats are putting the franchise on the shoulders of two college basketball winners and hoping their championship pedigree rubs off on the entire team.

Joel Huerto is the editor and publisher of OneManFastBreak.net. Follow him on Twitter @onemanfastbreak.

The Houston Rockets have their sights set on Orlando Magic All-Star center Dwight Howard. (GETTY IMAGES)

Many people around the NBA have to be wondering what the Houston Rockets are doing. This is a team that just barely missed out on making the playoffs in the final weeks of the season. But, they seem intent on blowing it up and starting over.

They have traded Kyle Lowry (understandable since he said he didn’t want to be there) for a first-round draft pick, but then they basically let Goran Dragic walk to Phoenix when they tendered him an offer. They gave Omer Asik and Jeremy Lin crazy back-loaded deals that pay them way too much in the third years: $15 million for Asik, and $14 million for Lin. They used the amnesty clause on Luis Scola, who has been a pretty solid and underrated power forward the last three seasons.

Now, the reason for all this is the possible acquisition of Dwight Howard. But he would benefit from having a legit PF next to to him – if Houston were to actually get him. And if they do, it’s basically a rental situation. Howard has not said he would sign an extension or that he wants to play for the Rockets.

The Rockets could have used the amnesty on injury-prone Kevin Martin, who rarely suits up. Scola has several years left on his deal and Martin has just a year left and will be an unrestricted free agent next summer.

But let’s say the Rockets get Howard and Lin (if the Knicks don’t match). They have a Big 3 of Howard, Martin and Lin? Sure, they have an excellent center in Howard, but they have a shooting guard who has averaged 59 games in his eight-year career and a point guard in Lin who showed flashes but is still a work in progress. That’s not going to strike fear in any team, in my opinion, and they won’t be instant playoff contenders (more likely fighting for the 6-8 spots in the Western Conference.

And if they don’t get Howard? They are a lottery team. But, they would have traded their first-round picks (the offer is four first-rounders) and some nice young talent such as Jeremy Lamb, Royce White, and Terrence Jones.

If the Howard deal falls apart (and this is a strong possibility), the entire Rockets front office should be cleaned out. This is too big of a gamble to just stink it up for the next 2-3 years and be an expansion-type team. People will need to be held accountable. Michael Jordan had a borderline playoff team in Charlotte with Gerald Wallace and Stephen Jackson when he traded them both and decided to get draft picks.

Basically, robbing the fans of their hard earned money.

Darren Jacks is a regular contributor to OneManFastBreak.net. Send him an email at djroxalot@hotmail.com.

Orlando Magic forward Glen Davis scored 22 points in the Game 2 loss to the Indiana Pacers. (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

Lost in Orlando’s 97-74 blowout loss to Indiana in Game 2 Wednesday was the excellent play of Magic forward Glen Davis.

The man known as Big Baby held down the fort Stan Van Gundy’s Dwight Howard-less crew with team-leading 22 points, including an impressive spin move on the baseline for a short jumper that got the Magic within three points at 33-30 midway through the second quarter. On the way back up the court, Big Baby did a little high-stepping move that would have probably gotten him decent marks on “Dancing With the Stars.”

When asked about the dance, Davis said: “Emotion. You have to do a little dance to help it go in sometimes.” Big Baby’s basket was the only highlight of the night for the Magic, who are now down 2-1 to the Pacers in their best-of-seven playoff series.

Paul Pierce's Celtics meet Marvin Williams and the Hawks in the opening round of the Eastern Conference playoffs. (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

For the second consecutive season, the Chicago Bulls finished with the best record in the Eastern Conference and, based on a head-to-head tiebreaker against the San Antonio Spurs, the Bulls will have home-court advantage in the NBA Finals if they get that far.

Last season, the Bulls were eliminated in the conference finals by the Miami Heat. Just like last year, the Heat will enter the postseason with the second-best record in the East. Both teams may not be at their best heading into the second season, with the Bulls concerned about Derrick Rose’s health and the Heat concerned about Dwyane Wade’s finger and ankle injuries. However, they’re still easily the best teams in the conference and it will take a monumental effort to knock them out.

Here’s how OneManFastBreak sees how things will shake down in the Eastern Conference playoffs:

FIRST ROUND

(1) Chicago Bulls vs. (8) Philadelphia 76ers
Doug Collins should get votes for coach of the year for what he has done in Philly. The Sixers play good defense and share the ball on offense. They have a first-team all-defender in Andre Iguodala and one of the top sixth men in Lou Williams. However, the Sixers don’t have enough offensive firepower to put the Bulls defense at risk. Philly may stretch this to a six-game series because of Rose’s shaky health, but that’s about it. BULLS IN 6

(4) Boston Celtics vs. (5) Atlanta Hawks
The Celtics won the season series 2-1, but all the games were very close. Going back to the 2008 playoffs during Kevin Garnett’s first season in Boston, the Hawks matched up well with the Celtics. Joe Johnson loves to play against his former team and Josh Smith is playing at a high level. The Celtics go into the playoffs hobbling a little bit with Paul Pierce nursing a toe injury and Ray Allen hampered by a foot problem. This could be the final run for Boston’s Big Four so they won’t go down without a fight. CELTICS IN 7

(3) Indiana Pacers vs. (6) Orlando Magic
In years past, the Magic are a shoe-in to move past the first round. Not this year. Without their franchise center and three-time defensive player of the year Dwight Howard, the Magic could have their shortest postseason run in the Howard era and may lead to the firing of head coach Stan Van Gundy. The Pacers may have the easiest road to the second round than any team in the East. PACERS IN 5

(2) Miami Heat vs. (7) New York Knicks
The Heat have struggled after the All-Star break, leading some to believe that the NBA’s most hyped squad are extremely vulnerable this postseason. But last time we checked, the Heat still have LeBron James and Dwyane Wade on the roster. And whenever you have two top-five players on the same squad, you are a tough out. Carmelo Anthony may be able to scratch one victory by himself against the Heat, but ultimately Miami’s superior dynamic duo and battle-tested defense will win out. HEAT IN 5

CONFERENCE SEMIFINALS

(2) Miami Heat vs. (3) Indiana Pacers
The Pacers are a resilient bunch, but now they’re facing a formidable foe with a devastating 1-2 punch. During the regular season, the Pacers had trouble handing LeBron James and Dwyane Wade, and the Heat went on to win three of the four games. There is no one in the Pacers’ locker room who defend James or Wade one-on-one. Indiana coach Frank Vogel has huge matchup dilemma in his hands. If Vogel goes with the starting lineup of George Hill and Paul George at guard and Danny Granger at small forward, he has to put Hill on Wade and George on LeBron because Granger has no chance against Wade or LeBron. Look for the Heat to try to wear down Granger, much like how LeBron wore down Carmelo Anthony in the previous series. HEAT IN 5

(4) Boston Celtics vs. (8) Philadelphia 76ers
The injury to Paul Pierce’s leg is a major concern in Boston. Kevin Garnett may be the Celtics’ best player, but Pierce is the guy who makes them special. Pierce appears to be dragging his leg in the Hawks series and left a lot of shots short because he had very little lift. Look for the Sixers to take away Pierce by putting their best defender, Andre Iguodala, on him. The other key matchups are the KG-Elton Brand battle up front and the Rajon Rondo-Jrue Holiday duel in the backcourt. It’s nice to see the Celtics-Sixers rivalry renewed. The Sixers will bring their youth and athleticism to the series, while the Celtics bring their experience and grit. It may not have the same feel as those Dr. J-Larry Bird battles during the 1980s, but this series will be an absolutely war. CELTICS IN 7

CONFERENCE FINALS

(2) Miami Heat vs. (4) Boston Celtics
You could argue that the Celtics had a huge hand in making the decision for LeBron to leave the Cavaliers after dispatching James and the Cavs in the 2010 playoffs. And James probably hasn’t forgotten about that. This is definitely the last hurrah for Boston’s Three Party of KG, Ray-Ray and The Truth. Allen is a free agent and seems finally slowing down. There’s a good chance KG may come back, but that’s not a certainty. The Celtics live and die with Rajon Rondo, and they feel last year’s playoff game could have been different if Rondo didn’t dislocate his elbow. The one wild card in the series is the health of Chris Bosh, who hasn’t played since Game 1 of the conference semifinals. If Bosh plays, the Heat should roll past the Celtics. Without him, this series is wide open. Miami will get Boston’s best shot, and could stretch this series to seven. But in the end, the Celtics simply are not healthy enough — mainly Pierce and Allen — to deal with LeBron and Wade for an entire series. HEAT IN SIX