The Boston Celtics finished second in the Eastern Conference last season at 56-26, but were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs by the Philadelphia 76ers.

And while the Celtics still figure to be solid, even in the wake of trading Jaylen Brown, it does appear that repeating at that record will be harder this season. The Eastern Conference has gotten better, and deeper, which will make life tougher across the board.

Joe Mazzulla is a championship head coach, so we trust that he can push the right buttons to keep the Celtics competitive, but again, there are questions to answer.

1) Will the team remain three-point dependent, or will it be able find more balance?

2) How will Jayson Tatum fare as the true leader of a team for the first time in his career?

3) How much will Paul George and Mike Conley be able to contribute, specifically George, who has only played 60 games or more once in the last seven years?

4) What about the development from Baylor Scheierman and Hugo Gonzalez? How will that impact things?

1) After winning the title last season, it's clear that the New York Knicks are better than the Celtics right now. However, in an effort to ease into the season, and stay fresh for the playoffs, could they end up taking the regular season a little less serious?

2) With Brown, LeBron James, Tyrese Maxey and Joel Embiid, the 76ers appear significantly better than the Celtics right now, but can Embiid stay healthy?

3) The Pistons were the No. 1 seed last season, and Cade Cunningham is only getting better....

4) The Cavaliers just traded for Peyton Watson, pairing him with the likes of Donovan Mitchell, Jarrett Allen, Evan Mobley and James Harden. I'm not a big fan of Harden at this point, but that's a formidable group.

While the other four all appear better than the Celtics, this next group could go 50/50:

4) The Raptors added Kawhi Leonard, but will that deal ever actually officially go through?

5) The Indiana Pacers, coming off a dreadful season, will get Tyrese Haliburton back. They may not be as good as the team that went to the NBA Finals in 2024-25, but they have real strong points.

6) The Miami Heat have brought in Giannis and Klay Thompson. They still have questions about health, age, and who is going to play point guard, but there are things to like here.

7) The Orlando Magic have made the playoffs two years in a row, and Paolo Banchero is still excellent.

8) I'm not a huge Trae Young fan, but when you pair him with Anthony Davis, there's something there.

For now? It seems like the Celtics are probably headed for a No. 5 or No. 6 seed in the playoffs. It would be important to get there, as those seeds avoid the NBA's play-in tournament.

The first four teams all seem better, and we'll say the Celtics end up worse than Toronto, and they'll be battling with Miami for the No. 6 spot.