So, if Horford goes somewhere else, is it safe to say that replacing Horford with Howard makes them a worse overall team? Their defense was good already, but they needed to improve their offense. I don't think Howard helps them there at all. Between losing Teague and this swap, I think they're a worse team.
Things may hopefully change later this weekend, but right now, we're also a worse team just by losing Turner. Cleveland, Indiana, Atlanta and Toronto are ahead of us. Again, that may quickly change by the end of the weekend.
Assuming we get Horford (even without Durant), it's shaping up to be a more competitive EC in 2016-17. This is my top-5, not necessarily in order of finish:
CLE - EC champion
TOR - EC finalist. Basically tread water so far with re-signing Derozan.
IND - Big upgrades - Teague, Jefferson, George
ATL - Howard, Milsap, Basemore
BOS - Horford, IT