We broke the Eastern Conference General Managers into three groups: the really bad, the really good, and the so-so GMs. Here are SML's rankings:

Bad, bad GMs:

15. Billy King, Philadelphia 76ers: A no-brainer, literally. This man just had to trade best player, a future hall of famer and one of the top 10 players in the NBA, for practically nothing (Andre Miller, two so-so #1 picks, and cap space) because of his incompetence. His list of terrible signings, of overpaying players, is long. Philly is so helpless right now that even adding Oden or Durant next season would still not make them a playoff team for at least two more years, especially since they are over the cap for next season. Notable transactions: Traded a #1 pick for Kenny Thomas, then traded Kenny Thomas for Chris Webber's unmovable contract. Finally bought-out Webber this season, but his $20 million is still on the cap for this and next season. Traded Keith van Horn and a #1 in 2005 for Glenn Robinson, who he ended up trading for Jamal Mashburn (still on the cap this season despite not playing a game). Took Thabo Sefoloska with the #13 pick in 2005, then traded him for Rodney Carney. To date King has had only one other #1 pick in the last four drafts; that was used on his one bright spot, taking Andre Iguadola with the 9th pick.

14. Danny Ainge, Boston: Danny has failed to do anything with the team he inherited, including a stud in his prime, Paul Pierce. Not only that, this team has gotten worse every season, and Danny Ainge is holding on to his job for the same reason anyone even roots for the Celtics anymore - potential. The possibility of young team's potential keeps Ainge employed. But this dude freaking traded his #7 pick for Sebastian Telfair, even though he had a young point already in Delonte West. Not satisfied with West nor Telfair, he then trades for the Suns #21 pick so he can draft Rondo, a point guard with a jump shot so atrocious that no one bothered to guard him in the SEC last season... how is going to keep NBA defenses honest? Even worse, he's been the Celtics most promising point this season. Danny is terrible. Other notable points: Has Wally Szczerbiak for another 2 years at $13 million a year; Perkins and Scalabrine are signed through 2010.

13. Billy Knight, Atlanta: Another Billy that's at the bottom of the list. Let's go through the tenure: started as GM in 2003; got off to a good start. He signed Jason Terry and Stephen Jackson (off a trip to the Finals with the Spurs). He traded the remains of Glenn Robinson's career to the 76ers (in other words, he outsmarted #15) for a #1 pick. He used that pick in the 2004 draft to choose 6'7 swingman Josh Smith at #17, a compliment to the player they used their own pick (#6) on, 6'7 swingman Josh Childress. Then the wheels come off: trade Jackson for Harrington... not a bad move, but Harrington wanted no part of the Hawks, and ended up getting trade to the Indy Pacers for their 2007 #1. Traded Shareef Abdul-Rahim, while at peak value, for Rasheed Wallace, who they then trade two weeks later for Chris Mills, Bob Sura, Z. Rebreca, and a #1 pick from Detroit. In other words, they traded their prime asset for a reputed headcase (Wallace) that only netted them crap. Jason Terry was next to go, along with the #1 from Detroit, to Dallas for Antoine Walker and Tony Delk. Antoine Walker was traded within a year to the Celtics for Gary Payton, Tom Guggiota, and a #1 pick (which forced me to move Billy Knight above Danny Ainge). At least they got the #1 from Boston; still, Knight traded Terry for next to nothing. He then drafts 6'8 swingman Marvin Williams in the 2005 Draft, passing on Chris Paul. Oh, he also trades Boris Diaw and 2 #1's to Phoenix for Joe Johnson, a 6'7 swingman. And he used the #5 pick in the 2006 draft on Shelden Williams. Exhibit One: Sheldon Williams, picked fifth in the 2006 draft. The job of a GM is to recognize his team's need; Billy Knight has failed to do that. Unless he thinks his team's needs are more swingmen (Exhibit two: A team whose roster is almost all 6-7 swingmen with similar skill sets).

12. Larry Bird, Indiana: Has done nothing with his team, and they went from a championship contender (remember when they made it to the NBA finals?) to a perinnial .500 team with no hopes of either making it to the second round of the playoffs or finishing low enough in the lottery to possibly land an impact player. He picked Shawne Williams in the 2006 draft, adding nothing to the team. I will give him props for a good pick in 2005, with Danny Granger. Terrible trades: Trade Brad Miller for Scot Pollard. Traded Ron Artest, at his lowest value, for Peja Stojanovic, who left as a free agent after playing only half a season. Traded a #1 to Atlanta for Al Harrington, who they then traded along with Stephen Jackson this season to the Warriors for Troy Murphy, Mike Dunleavy, and Ike Diogu. Salary Cap: Dunleavy and Murphy are both signed through 2011! Wait, so is Jamaal Tinsley. This team cannot add any players to their current roster, other than rookies (which will most likely have to be found at the #17 spot, which Indiana always ends up in), until 2011. Maybe they can trade Jermaine O'Neal (signed at $20+ million through 2011, and injury-prone). They will not be making a run anytime soon.

11. Danny Ferry, Cleveland: He signed Larry Hughes, and now has no flexibility and an injury-proned SG. The Damon Jones signing hasn't panned out very well, either. The only thing that has worked out in Cleveland's favor since LeBron dropped into their laps is, well, nothing - they lost Carl Boozer (how kickass would the Cavs be if they had both Boozer and James?), and had to settle for Drew Gooden. Their team has an aging center signed through the next three seasons, along with Hughes. Eric Snow, Drew Gooden, Donyell Marshall, and Damon Jones are signed for the next two. This team is only LeBron and nothing else. That might be enough to make noise come playoff time, but imagine if LBJ had some talent around him? Though he's been GM for only a year, Ferry is responsible for signing Jones, Ilgaukas, Hughes, Marshall, and Gooden. Not surprisingly, the Cavs are over the cap for the next two years, so similarly to Indiana, what you see is what you are getting... until 2010. By that time LBJ will be planning his move to Brooklyn to team up with role model/business manager Jay-Z.

The So-So's

10. Isiah Thomas, NYK: Just cracks the list of so-so GMs. He gets points for savvy draft pickings - Frye and Lee are hot commodities, and Balkman has shown potential. He inherited a terrible team, and changed the nucleus from an aging core to a young core that is just hitting their late 20's together - Curry, Q-Rich, Crawford, and Jeffries. But you have to subtract points for bad signings - Jerome James - plus bad contracts picked up (Steve Francis). The main difference between him and the five GM's below him? Two teams are among the bottom-5 despite inheriting top-10 players (Boston with Paul Pierce, Philly with Allan Iverson). One team is wasting a talent player inherited right now, with no way to make their team anything more than a .500 team (Indy with O'Neal). At least in Isiah's defense, the Knicks he inherited didn't have anything close to a Jermaine O'Neal type player, and yet right now the two teams are facing very similar futures. Cleveland may have a brighter future, but that's despite Ferry, not because of anything he's done. And finally, the last GM (Atlanta's Knight) inherited a team with no talent (like Isiah's Knicks), but without any of the salary cap troubles that Thomas inherited (Allan Houston, for example, is still on the cap three years later).

9. Bernie Bickerstaff, Charlotte: Bernie's just chilling. Not much to say. They have tons of salary cap room, nice young talent in Gerald Wallace, Okafor, Felton, and possibly Morrison. But they still aren't making the playoffs anytime soon. And they aren't signing free agents. How do you rate someone who doesn't really do much?

8. Larry Harris, Milwaukee: Doing slightly more than nothing. Significant moves: Signed Mo Williams. Traded TJ Ford for Charlie Villanueva. Bill Simmons liked that move; I didn't. I agreed with trading Ford, since Williams was a better point for the Bucks, but I thought that the Bucks should try to get more. Still, it's not a bad move, and I think if Charlie is healthy the Bucks are in good shape with him and Bogut. Other moves: traded Desmond Mason and a #1 to the Hornets for Jamaal Magliore; eventually swapped the Canadian Jamaal for Steve Blake, and then Blake for Earl Boykins. Not a good use of their #1 pick. Signed Bobby Simmons, a move I didn't like. Bobby Simmons parleyed his contract season of hard work into a long-term deal, and hasn't earned his pay since. I liked the trade of Joe Smith for Ruben Patterson. The Bucks are $20 million under the cap for next season, and have Redd, Bogut and Villanueva signed, along with Simmons ($10 million a year for the next two seasons). Unfortunately they have Mo Williams as a free agent at the end of this season, and he needs to be resigned. If only the Knicks could work out a trade with the Bucks for Steve Francis....

The Good GMs:

7. Otis Smith, Orlando: I wanted to put him higher, but he's only been on the job for a year, and still has moves to make. Still, what he's done so far has been great; I liked the trade for Darko (giving up almost nothing), and the trading of Steve Francis really secured the team's future. With Grant Hill's contract up this season, the Magic will be $30 million under the cap this offseason. Look for them to make a push for Vince Carter. Dwight Howard, Darko, Jameer Nelson and Carlos Arroyo are all signed for the near future, so we'll really see how good a GM Smith is this off-season. I would also expect him to make a run at Mo Williams, too. 6. Ernie Grunfeld, Washington: I like Ernie. I like what he did in Milwaukee, and with the Knicks. The man picked Michael Redd in the second round. He struck gold. He traded Kwame Brown's unfulfilled potential to the Lakers for Caron Butler. He signed Gilbert Arenas as a free agent, when nobody knew who Gilbert was. I like the shape the team is in: He's got Butler and Arenas signed for two more years, and can keep Jamieson for another year, at $16 million. And the team is $20 million below the cap next season, so he can make moves (maybe acquire the missing big man he needs). In fact, Grunfeld has a team that is very similar to the Nets, minus the aging $20 million point guard, and the soon to be free agent SG. On the minus side, Grunfeld can't seem to buid championship teams; his teams are too perimeter-based (his Bucks were very similar), and they really seem to make it past the second round.

The ChampionBuilders (note; I didn't write nearly as much about these guys because their body of work is pretty well written about):

5. Randy Pfund, Miami: As revamped the team several times during his 10-year tenure, and finally got a championship last year. His Alonzo Mourning teams of the late 90's started fading, so he made the deal for Shaq in 2001. When the first team he built around Shaq didn't get the job done, he rebuilt the team around Wade and Shaq, and they won it all last season. Incredible, they have a pretty good salary cap situation despite having Shaq's $20 million and Wade's loot signed through 2010. The only bad contract on the cap is Antoine Walker's; look for them to rebuild again after next season. Expect the rebuilding to be quick, as it always is.

4. Joe Dumars, Detroit: He built a championship team in Detroit. That's Exhibit A of why he's considered a top GM. But he has also failed in other regards... his teams have lacked depth or sparks off the bench. The drafting of Darko (over Bosh, Wade, and Anthony) is an all-time blooper. And considering that the championship team was built around five players playing as one, letting Ben Wallace walk (to a division rival, none the less) could be a big mistake come playoff time. Still, with Webber joining the team, I like the Piston's chances, and more importantly, they continue to be a championship contender thanks to Dumars.

3. John Paxson, Chicago Bulls: Great eye for talent, patiently building one of the best young teams in the NBA, all while making solid moves. He traded away Curry and Chandler, and managed to luck into getting back some good talent for them. His signing of Ben Wallace at once hurt a key division rival and signal that the Bulls were once again a team with their eyes on the championship. Unfortunately, they lack reliable offense, particularly down in the paint, and that will have to be address soon. The BUlls are $17 million under the cap for this upcoming season, but they will have to decide what to do about young stars Luol Deng and Ben Gordon, especially since they are due for a big raise soon.

2. Rod Thorn, New Jersey Nets: He has taken a team that was for a long time the worst sports franchise in the eastern coast of the U.S., and made it respectable. He built a team that was able to make the NBA Finals once, and that routinely makes the playoffs. The Jason Kidd trade is one of the most lopsided trades in NBA history, and picking Vince Carter was a gamble that paid off. The Nets were hurt this year by Kristic's injury, but it never the less remains that the Nets are a dangerous team come playoff time, as always.

1. Bryan Conangelo, Toronto: His work in Phoenix is well-known; he turned that franchise into the most exciting team in the NBA swiftly. Incredibly, he has done the same again in Toronto. The TJ Ford trade has paid off; Bargnani and Garbojosa are paying off already. This team looks like a darkhorse favorite to win the East come playoff time. Regardless of how the Raptors do in the playoffs, if we had to pick a GM from the East to build our team, this is the man we would pick.

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