The NBA's offseason sent the league's balance of power into chaos. The most glaring change, LeBron James returning to the Cavaliers, helped push the Heat out of the playoffs completely.
By some measure, Evan Turner signing with the Celtics affected the eventual Eastern Conference playoff picture. Boston's roster is a weird assortment of young talent and Turner is a de-facto veteran on his squad. Without his presence, they may not be in the playoffs.
The Celtics and Cavaliers will meet in the first round – a literal reminder of recent postseason nightmares for Cleveland fans. Obviously, Ohioans have a vested interest in that series because of the Cavs, but Turner and Jared Sullinger will suit up for the green and white. The other two Buckeyes in the NBA playoffs – Memphis' Mike Conley and Kosta Koufos – open in Portland.
Both the Celtics and Grizzlies will have a difficult time making it out of the first round. Before we say goodbye to those teams, we preview their playoff chances and recap Conley, Koufos, Sullinger and Turner's seasons below.
Mike Conley
Conley remains, by far, the best Buckeye in the NBA.
His 5.4 assist per game average was the lowest since 2009-10, but he's improved in several other ways. He shot 38.6 percent from three, his highest since 2009-10 and attempted more than he normally does. Therefore, his 55.8 true shooting percentage was a career high and desperately needed for a squad without much perimeter scoring.
Like any NBA team – at least those not named the "Warriors" – the Grizzlies went through an extended period of losing games. It hasn't been particularly pleasant since the all-star break, Memphis is only 16-13 in that two-month span. On Feb. 24, they were only three games behind Golden State. Now, they're the fifth seed in the West, facing a gauntlet immediately.
Various injuries to Conley's wrist and ankle didn't help stabilize the Grizzlies. They turned the ball over nearly 20 times per game in a five-game stretch during Conley's absence, via ESPN.com.
Conley is currently battling a foot injury, severe enough for head coach Dave Joerger to say this:
Joerger says Allen and Conley couldn't play if tonight was a playoff game. There's no timetable for their return. http://t.co/wYRV1ZumuM
— Ronald Tillery (@CAGrizBeat) April 15, 2015
ESPN.com's Basketball Power Index gives the Grizzlies a 55 percent chance of beating the Blazers in the first round. Memphis has home court because of a better regular season record, despite being the lower seed.
However, if Tony Allen and Conley are out, Beno Udrih, Vince Carter, Nick Calathes and Jordan Adams will take on larger roles. That doesn't bode well against Arron Afflalo and, especially, Damian Lillard.
KOSTA KOUFOS
While Memphis' backcourt may be in flux right now, their frontcourt is as strong as ever. That's mainly due to a healthy Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph, but Koufos provides solid depth behind them.
Last season, the Grizzlies needed Koufos. He started 22 games in place of an injured Gasol and earned playoff minutes because of how well he performed in Gasol's absence. This season, Gasol has been healthy for the most part. Surprisingly, Koufos is doing a better job of protecting the rim in terms of points saved per 36 minutes.
Koufos is a free agent following this season, so his agent would be wise to tout those stats. In all likelihood, Memphis overpays to keep him when Gasol leaves or Koufos departs.
The Grizzlies know Koufos' talent is valuable to them, part of the reason why they kept fending off overtures from the Cavaliers before they acquired Timofey Mozgov. Hopefully, their decision to keep him and delay further upgrades to the team pays off in another deep playoff run. He should help in case someone gets in foul trouble trying to defend LaMarcus Aldridge.
Prediction: Grizzlies beat Blazers in seven, lose to Warriors in five.
Jared Sullinger
It's been another trying year for Sullinger, who battles injuries yet again. He played in 58 games, averaging 13.3 points and 7.6 rebounds per contest, but missed a large chunk of games after the all-star break.
Sullinger has been easing back into the Celtics rotation after missing 24-straight games with a left-foot stress fracture. He played 28 minutes against Milwaukee, Wednesday night, showing head coach Brad Stevens he's capable of staying on the floor.
Unfortunately, he's not shooting well enough for Stevens to have much faith in him:
Jared Sullinger is 8-for-34 shooting since returning from injury #celtics
— gary washburn (@GwashburnGlobe) April 16, 2015
Prior to the foot injury, Sullinger showed tremendous growth and expanded his range. He shot above the league average from mid-range, exceptionally so from above the free-throw line and in the high-post on the left side of the floor.
Evan Turner
The man dubbed "The Villain" is as highly-scrutinized as anyone of his talent level. Pacers fans still blame him for their locker room mess at the end of last season.
The Celtics still took a risk on Turner and, at times, it's paid off. For example, he had multiple triple-doubles within a two-week span towards the end of the season. Overall, Boston's season completely turned around when he took over point-guard duties following Rajon Rondo's trade to Dallas.
Turner remains highly inefficient at times, shooting only 43 percent from the field and hitting only 28 percent of his three-point shots. Boston is better on both ends of the floor when he's on the bench, according to NBA.com's on/off stats.
To his credit, Turner is having his best season as a pro and minimizing his mistakes relative to his previous years in the NBA. He helped lead the Celtics to a 20-10 finish, making significant improvements in his offensive and defensive ratings since the all-star break.
One thing he's never lacking in is confidence. He believes Boston would have a much better record to show for their playoff berth if not for the mid-season trades.
"Had we had this same team the whole year, it probably would have been a different situation," Turner said, via ESPN.com. "It doesn't matter ... We came out and played. We came out and won big games on the road and earned our way to the playoffs."
Prediction: Celtics lose to Cavs in four.
