It’s early July and the NBA Finals are about to be begin. Having outlasted the Durantian fury of Brooklyn, and then stomped all the agility out of the Atlanta Hawks even without their superstar, the Milwaukee Bucks at last represent the Eastern Conference in the promised land. But is that all that they represent? For purposes of this post, Milwaukee is already flying a championship banner, representing that curious — perhaps even almost obsolete — NBA unit, the division.
Here are a handful of stories and links to the present on the rosters and outlook for the Central Division in the coming year, with a few thoughts on how our Cleveland Cavaliers performed against each of their divisional foes in the 2020-21 season.