The Cleveland Cavaliers and Chicago Bulls are the beasts of the Eastern Conference after loading up their rosters with elite free-agents this offseason. But according to Basketball Insiders insider Alex Kennedy, their places in the conference finals are far from sealed because there’s going to be some competition from a feisty team like the Charlotte Hornets.

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In his latest chat session on Basketball Insiders, Kennedy admitted that the Cavaliers and Bulls are the clear-cut favorites to face each other in the Eastern Conference finals. Still, the road to their much-awaited playoff showdown could be derailed by Hornets, who also made some solid acquisitions this offseason.

The NBA analysts believed the Hornets’ acquisition of Lance Stephenson and Marvin Williams along with their defensive-minded approach being employed by a good coach like Steve Clifford would certainly give elite teams some scare.

Although the Cavs and Bulls each have a deep arsenal to get over the hump, there’s no discounting the fact that the Hornets are capable of pulling off a big surprise in April.

“For the last month, I’ve been saying that I think Cleveland and Chicago are the only contenders in the East. Every other team is a notch below those two, since they’re clearly the top-tier squads in the conference,” Kennedy stated.

“If I had to choose one team that could give Cleveland and Chicago a scare, I guess I’d go with Charlotte. Al Jefferson, Lance Stephenson, Kemba Walker, etc. form a good core and Steve Clifford is a very good coach. But like I said, there’s a big drop off after Cleveland and Chicago and Charlotte isn’t on the same level as those two teams.”

After reaching the playoffs last season, expectations are high for the Hornets to go deeper into the postseason this year.

TagsNBA rumors, cleveland cavaliers, Charlotte Hornets, NBA trade news