MIAMI _ There are two ways to look at a season for teams not looking ahead to the next lottery: Good enough to contend for a championship? Good enough to make the playoffs?
The Miami Heat stand in the latter group, which makes the math a bit simpler when it comes to the Eastern Conference postseason equation: eight teams make it, seven don't.
Some of the arithmetic is relatively simple: The New York Knicks are facing the possibility of most or all of the season without Kristaps Porzingis in the wake of last season's knee injury. The Atlanta Hawks, Chicago Bulls and Orlando Magic continue to operate taking the long view. The Brooklyn Nets have prioritized restocking draft picks.
That takes care of five of the non-playoff seven.
The Cleveland Cavaliers, for the moment, are standing by Kevin Love and playoff aspirations. But we all know how it went in Northeast Ohio the last time LeBron James left.
And the Charlotte Hornets remain trapped with bad contracts and the possibility of having to deal Kemba Walker before he walks in 2019 free agency.
So assuming those seven are out, a look at how the Eastern Conference is setting up two months before camps open.
