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Four bottoms expected to rise next season: Two youth troops disrupt the West, 76ers return to the top

2:40am, 17 June 2025Basketball

As the two small-scale teams in the Thunder and Pacers enter the playoffs, the league has begun to become more and more balanced, but the big-scale market has a great advantage and will attract more All-Stars to join. Therefore, many small-scale markets have to be bad to cultivate their own players. After a period of reconstruction, there will also be teams that will rise again. So which teams will likely rise again next season? Let’s take a look together.

76ers

76ers are the most surprising team in the East this season, with only 24 wins and 58 losses in the regular season, ranking third from the bottom in the East. They signed Paul George in the offseason last season. They thought they could show off their skills with Embiid, but they did not expect that the team's record was poor due to different degrees of injuries. Not only the Big Three, but many people in the team were injured and stopped. Fortunately, many players have made their mark.

Like Yabussele, Grimes have all played as a top blue-collar level, and the team will be the first to consider retaining them in the offseason. In addition, the team has three giants, even if Embiid is still absent for a certain amount of time, as long as Maxi and George can guarantee certain attendance, plus McCowan, this year's Tanhua, the 76ers' lineup depth next season is still enough. The Eastern Celtics' dominance period is over, and the 76ers still have the chance to return to the top echelon.

Spurs

The Spurs made it into the playoffs. They have the chance to make it into the playoffs this season, but Wenban's reimbursement also made the team miss the opportunity to return again, but the Spurs are not in a hurry. After they gradually got on the right track and introduced Fox, the team's strength has also been greatly enhanced, and there is also a second-largest draw this season, which will further make the Spurs' strength even further by both their own use and trading.

Although the Suns' quotation for trading Durant was rejected, the Spurs are not unable to wait for a while, and when the chemical reaction between Fox and Vinban Yama occurs, waiting for the growth of rookies such as No. 2 and Castle. Even if they cannot get stars, the current lineup still has a high lower limit, but the West will be even more crazy next season, and the Spurs need to return to the strong team step by step.

Trail Blazers

I believe many people are still surprised. After all, there is no good star guarantee, but in fact, their regular season record with the Suns this season is the same, only three wins behind the tenth Mavericks. In the early stage, the team was obviously playing badly, but after finding that their own star could not be sent away, the All-Star ended and they also made a small winning streak. Billups still brought great changes to the team.

They show very strong defense. Kamala, Klingen, Seble, Rowe and Grant are all excellent defensive players. Having defensive ability can ensure the team's lower limit. There are talented players like Avdia and Anfini Simmons on the offensive end, but they still need an absolute core player to ensure that they can break through the siege of the West.

Raptors

Raptors ranked 11th in the East this season, which is the result of their intention to play badly. Otherwise, according to their current talent lineup, they would not be in this position. The team now has three young core cores, Barrett, Barnes and Quickley, and they also got Ingram through a trade. The latter has not played for the Raptors due to injury. The Raptors also plan to trade Barrett in recent days, building a team around Barrett, Ingram and Dick.

The East will change greatly next season, and the Celtics' dominant position is gone. The Cavaliers, the number one in the regular season, will definitely usher in a change in the lineup, so the Raptors' current lineup can also impact their record. Both talent and paper strength are top-notch, and they have the opportunity to return to the glorious period of 19 years. What do you think of these 4 teams? Let’s discuss it together!

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