The 2026-27 NBA season is only a few weeks away from tipping off, and every team around the league is deep in preparation mode. Right in the middle of all that buzz, a former NBA champion has dropped a bold take on how things might shake out in the East.
Former NBA Champion Gives Verdict on Miami Heat and the Philadelphia 76ers
On the latest episode of the “Club 520 Podcast,” the whole crew got into a deep discussion about the offseason trades and moves that have gone down so far.
At one point, 2021 NBA champion Jeff Teague said the Miami Heat are going to be better than the Philadelphia 76ers this season in the Eastern Conference.
“I told y’all the Heat was gonna be better than the Sixers… We got Bam [Adebayo], Giannis [Antetokounmpo], Klay [Thompson], [Andrew] Wiggins, Davion Mitchell, Tim Hardaway Jr. off the pine, Bobby Portis off the pine.”
“We got a nice 7. Ryan Conwell. I like Buddy too, Nikola Jovic. He ain’t bad… Don’t let Jrue Holiday get a buyout and go to Miami. We [Heat] are the best team in the East, competing with the Knicks,” Teague said.
This isn’t some random hot take out of nowhere either. Teague’s claim comes right on the heels of the Dallas Mavericks buying out the final year of Klay Thompson’s contract.
After clearing waivers, Thompson turned around and signed a two-year, $11.5 million deal with the Heat, instantly making Miami’s roster a lot more interesting heading into the new season.
Moreover, this isn’t even the first time Teague has said something like this. Back in July, during an earlier episode of the same podcast, he already made the same claim, saying the Heat would have a better season than the Sixers.
“I got Miami Heat better than Philly… No cap. No pending… I’m rolling with the Heat. Better season than the Sixers,” Teague said at that time.
Right now, Miami’s roster is looking pretty stacked, with a potential “big three” of Bam Adebayo, Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Thompson. If anyone’s wondering whether Adebayo can hold his own alongside two future Hall of Famers, just look back at what he did in March.
Adebayo dropped 83 points in a 150-129 win over the Washington Wizards. That was the second-highest single-game scoring total in NBA history, behind only Wilt Chamberlain’s legendary 100-point game from 1962, and ahead of Kobe Bryant’s 81-point outing.
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A performance like that from a guy not usually known as a scorer says a lot about what he’s capable of, and it’s easy to see why people think this Heat trio could cause serious problems for the rest of the East.
Now with that said, the Sixers shouldn’t be counted out just because of one guy’s opinion on a podcast. LeBron James, Jaylen Brown, and Tyrese Maxey have been putting in serious work together this summer. Clearly, Philadelphia isn’t just sitting back.
