Goeiedag, enchantée and welcome to this week's episode of Eight 2 Four presents: All-NBA Team of the Week. It is time to dive into our predictions for all 30 teams before the start of the season. We have listed all 30 teams in order of where we expect them to finish this regular season, starting from the worst teams and building up to the top teams. We’ll go over some of the changes teams have made during the offseason and how they have improved in comparison to last year. But of course not everyone got better, so we’ll touch on that too. Get ready for your All-NBA Team of the Week!
30. Utah Jazz
Our pick for worst team of the regular season are the Utah Jazz. It’s going to be a tight battle for bottom spot this season, but when Danny Ainge sets his mind to something, he usually comes out on top. Or in this case, on the bottom. He has traded away Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell this offseason and secured a whole heap of draft capital for them in return. Those trades included a lot of players as well, with Colin Sexton as the biggest name. Sexton was fantastic on the Cavaliers, putting up massive numbers on losing teams. The Jazz are counting on him to do this again this season.
Ainge still has some work to do to make sure this Jazz team will tank all the way to the bottom but I can’t imagine it would be difficult for him to find deals for players like Jordan Clarkson, Lauri Markkanen, Malik Beasley and Kelly Olynyk. But it could be a bit harder for veteran point guard Mike Conley, who still has 2 years left on his loaded contract and didn’t play a great season last year. But even Conley won’t be able to avoid a disaster season for the Jazz if he plays at his Grizzlies-days level. The Utah Jazz will fight to finish in last position and I believe they’ll take it out quite comfortably.
29. Orlando Magic
Spot 29 will go to the Orlando Magic. Winning last season’s draft lottery and taking Paolo Banchero at number 1, has the Magic yearning for more tanking. Finally it seems like this franchise has a workable future with some nice cornerstones. With Banchero, Franz Wagner, Cole Anthony, Wendell Carter Jr and, hopefully, Jalen Suggs, this team has a solid young core. Add question marks like Markelle Fultz, Bol Bol and Jonathan Isaac and this team has a potential playoff contender for future years. But let’s be clear, those years are far in the future.
The Magic are nowhere near a competitive roster right now. These young guys are all great prospects but they still have to prove that they can be proper NBA players. I am looking forward to Banchero making his mark in his first NBA season, though, and I think he will be the main candidate for rookie of the year. The Magic should be just good enough to give him that exposure around the league and get him in that conversation. But I don’t see this team winning any other awards this season, except maybe the lottery again.
28. Indiana Pacers
The third worst team in the league next year will be the Indiana Pacers. Granted, their positioning will depend on whether or not they trade Myles Turner and I’m banking on the assumption that they will. With Turner on the roster they still won’t be good enough to make it to the Play-In games but they’ll be too good to secure great lottery odds. They need to make a decision this season and I believe that the Pacers, for the first time in forever, will tank a season. Another good draft prospect could bolster this young core for the future.
With names like Tyrese Haliburton, Chris Duarte, Aaron Nesmith, Jalen Smith and rookie Bennedict Mathurin, the Pacers have the beginnings of what could turn into a solid playoff team in the future. But much like their competition for the number 1 draft pick, they still have a lot of growing to do in the league. Haliburton already showed us the last 2 seasons that he is a more than capable point guard in the league but, in my opinion, he still needs to justify the reaction he received when the Pacers traded Sabonis for him.
27. Houston Rockets
I believe that this season, the Houston Rockets are finally starting their way back up the standings. With the 27th spot they still won’t be any good but their young core will finally start to win some games. Jalen Green will make a leap and have a fantastic second year in the league, Kevin Porter Jr will keep it together, Alperen Sengun, Kenyon Martin Jr and Theo Maledon will take a step forward in their development and Jabari Smith Jr will have a fantastic rookie season. And with Eric Gordon and Jae’Sean Tate, they have 2 players with a lot of trade value that I believe they’ll cash in on before the trade deadline.
The Rockets still have a long way to go before they’ll be able to compete for even the Play-In in the West, but after 2 terrible years, we can start to see a little bit of sun in Houston. The Harden-shackles have been thrown off completely and the rebuild is starting to take shape. The worst thing that happened for the Rockets this offseason is that Kevin Durant wasn’t traded away from the Nets because the Rockets control the Nets draft picks until 2027. If the Nets had imploded completely over the summer, the Rockets would have been in an exceptionally good place. But they’ve done a pretty good job themselves in their rebuild, we just need to be patient before we can see the fruits of their hard work.
26. New York Knicks
The first surprise in my list are the New York Knicks, at place 26 or the third worst team in the Eastern Conference. I believe, in true Knicks fashion, their Jalen Brunson bet will completely backfire. Not that Brunson is a terrible player, in fact quite the opposite, I loved what he did for Dallas in the Playoffs last season. But I don’t see that translating to the Knicks roster. Who’s going to play next to him? Evan Fournier? He struggled massively last season to justify his massive contract. Derrick Rose? The 33-year old is Thibodeau's favourite player but can he stay healthy all season? I don’t believe he is reliable enough. Is Immanuel Quickley going to get more playtime? That would be an improvement over last season for sure! And since we’re on the topic of youngsters, Obi Toppin and Mitchell Robinson need to see time on the court together as well.
RJ Barrett and Julius Randle will have to carry this team again, hopefully in a great partnership with Brunson and they can form some sort of big three. But Randle will have to be the same guy from 2 seasons ago, the league Most Improved, and Barrett will need to make a leap much like his draft class competitor Ja Morant did last year. It’s a lot of things that need to go right for the Knicks, and in my experience as a Knicks fan, something always goes wrong. I will be very surprised if Thibs is still coaching this team at the end of the season and the roster will still look the same as it does now.
25. Sacramento Kings
I hate to do this to Kings fans but this is not the year the Sacramento Kings make it into the Playoffs. In fact, finishing as 25th and third worst team in the West, it will be a really disappointing season for the Kings. Annoyingly, the Kings didn’t necessarily get worse in the offseason, quite the opposite. I liked a lot of the moves they made. On the back of the Domantas Sabonis trade last season, they added scorers Malik Monk and Kevin Huerter around De’Aaron Fox and Davion Mitchell. And with Matthew Dellavedova and Kent Bazemore, they have added 2 vets that have been around the block a few times in their careers. And I expect KZ Okpala to have a sneakily great season for the Kings too. The biggest question at the moment is at center position. Who will fill that position next to Sabonis? Is Alex Len up to the task or will it be the inevitable Richaun Holmes? Or will the Kings convince Sabonis to play the 5 and go small? That would be my personal favourite.
Unfortunately, the competition for the Playoffs and Play-In in the West is huge and I think the Kings are going to fall short against their competition. They wouldn’t be the Kings if they didn’t. It already started in the draft where they passed on Jaden Ivey in favour of Keegan Murray at pick 4. Not that there's anything wrong with Murray, but it seems like the Kings have left an opportunity on the table to trade down and get something alongside Keegan Murray, even if it was only a future pick. But the Kings got their guy and are only looking ahead. The goal is to break the 16 year Playoff drought but like I said, I don’t believe it will happen this season.
24. Oklahoma City Thunder
I can already hear the trolls. Chet is injured, they’ll sit their aces SGA and Josh Giddey midway through the season and are all-in on the number 1 draft pick so they can add NBA prospect Victor Wembanyama to their roster next season. To those I say sure, a plausible scenario. But here is my prediction for OKC this season. Yes, they’re missing Chet for the whole season, but Giddey has taken another step and SGA is ready to start winning. Considering the trade they made with Houston recently, an 8 player swap, shows that they are ready to consider adding valuable older players to their roster. We’ll have to see if they actually hold on to Sterling Brown, Trey Burke, Marquese Chriss and David Nwaba, let alone if these guys get time on the court. Derrick Favours was a valuable piece to give up in this trade.
But I’m sure Sam Presti knows what he is doing. Another argument I want to use is the sheer size of the OKC draft chest. They have so many picks over the next few years that they can’t use them all because all these draft picks won’t fit on the roster. They will have to start trading some of those soon, so why not start winning now and use them to trade up in the draft. Maybe offer 4 future picks for this years’ number 1 pick, or whatever it takes to get there. Then the team can finally start winning, Presti can pick and choose what talents he picks up along the way and this OKC team can start to prepare for Playoff battles. But not this season, I believe this year they’ll just miss out on a Play-In berth.
23. San Antonio Spurs
On paper, the San Antonio Spurs are ready to tank themselves all the way to the bottom of the standings. In reality however, I don’t see it happening that way. I mean, with 6 rookies on the roster, it’s going to be hard but with Pop at the helm, he will find a way to get the best out of these youngsters and they’ll end up fighting for a spot in the Play-In games. Joshua Primo, Jeremy Sochan, Devin Vassell and mainly Keldon Johnson are the young guys that will have to impress this season. With Jakob Poeltl, Josh Richardson and Doug McDermott, they have a few guys on the roster that know the cracking of the whip. And it will be interesting to see what Zach Collins can contribute in his first full season after his injury.
I project the Spurs to finish 11th in the West, just outside the Play-In games but I do think that they will be in the running until the final few games. Pop will have these guys running like a well-oiled machine and we can expect to see some old school, organised basketball. Just the way Pop likes it. This team doesn’t really have any stars on the roster, just a pack of young, hungry players, eager to show what they can do and who all benefit from each other playing well. Johnson can take on the role of Duncan, Primo can follow in Tony Parker’s footsteps and Vassell should take a leaf out of Ginobili’s playbook.
22. Detroit Pistons
The main news this offseason out of Detroit came from head coach Dwane Casey about his star point guard Cade Cunningham. “He looks like a different dude,” Casey said about Cunningham. And that is great news for the Pistons. After a rough start to the season last year, Cade already showed that he is one of the better young players in this league. He had no trouble keeping up with the best of players and you can bet on it that ending third in the Rookie of the Year competition has only given him a chip on his shoulder for this season. Adding some extra pounds to his muscle mass is the cherry on top. He will push this Pistons roster to compete for the Play-In games as long as possible but in the end they’ll just fall short.
With Kemba Walker and Bojan Bogdanovich they have 2 fantastic vets to show this team of young prospects the ropes but if they’re going to rely on a bunch of unwanted Knicks players to win games, like Alec Burks, Nerlens Noel and Kevin Knox, things will get difficult for Detroit. But with Jaden Ivey and Jalen Duren they drafted very well last season and if these guys click, they will surprise most teams around the league and gain a few places in the standings over last season. But again, not enough to crack the top 10.
21. Washington Wizards
Honestly, predicting where the Washington Wizards will finish this season was harder than for any other team in the league. With Bradley Beal and Kristaps Porzingis they have a duo that could either work really well or not at all. On paper, they look like they fit together perfectly. A high-scoring guard who can score from anywhere on the court and a floor-spacing big with a lethal shot. But can Prozingis hold up for a whole season and will he be able to work together with Beal? Things didn’t work out for him in Dallas with Luka Doncic and Beal is not that different from Luka. Only time will tell if these guys can work together. I’m banking on the easy answer, no, and predict that they won’t make it into the Play-In games.
The East is tough again this season and if things don’t fall into place for the Wizards, a great Kyle Kuzma won’t be enough to pull them through unlike last season. Will Barton and Monte Morris were too light for the Nuggets so I don’t see them flourishing in Washington either. And there’s a lot of pressure on Rui Hachimura and Deni Advija to finally step up and claim their spot in the NBA. Hachimura especially is due for a scorching season after missing half of last year. But I believe the Wizards fall short of the Playoffs and even the Play-In games and this could even mean the end of Beal’s tenure for the Wizards. I wouldn’t be surprised if his name is mentioned most often in trade rumours around the league before the end of the season.
20. Charlotte Hornets
The Charlotte Hornets have had a horrible offseason and none of it was their own fault. With LaMelo Ball and Miles Bridges they had 2 fantastic franchise players and were drafting really well to surround these guys. Then the news broke that Bridges had to go to court on domestic violence charges. Bridges may not return to the Hornets or even the NBA altogether. A massive curveball for Charlotte with huge implications for their current roster. Bridges is not a player they can replace that easily but it does open up opportunities for younger guys like PJ Washington or Kai Jones to get some extra minutes on the team.
The Hornets have a lot of nice young players, but none of them good enough to lead you to a Playoff spot. Tanking is an option for Charlotte this season, but if LaMelo and Gordon Hayward play all season, they’ll be too good to fall to those bottom spots. The Hornets are in purgatory this season, all because of 1 person. There is a path back to the league for Bridges if he is found innocent of his charges, by negotiating a new contract with the Hornets, but it doesn’t look good for him. It’s an unfortunate outcome for the Hornets who, with Bridges, in my opinion would have been a Playoff contender this season. Instead, they’ll be battling for a Play-In spot this season.
19. Los Angeles Lakers
They’ll have to fight for it until the very last day of the regular season but I believe that the LA Lakers will just make it into the Play-In games. Much like last season, but then they just missed out. I don’t believe the Lakers are better than last year. Patrick Beverly and Dennis Schroder are not the guys that all of a sudden will transform your team. Lonnie Walker was a good acquisition and Kendrick Nunn has already shown us flashes of what he can bring to the table in this preseason, but again, not the guys that will transform your team. The only thing that will massively improve this Lakers roster is Russell Westbrook. Or at least, the lack of Russell Westbrook.
I am incredibly disappointed. I was a huge fan of the Westbrook trade last year because I believed that he would be capable of adjusting, playing alongside LeBron James and Anthony Davis. Boy, was I wrong. The experiment didn't work, the team tried to find a solution for Russell but couldn’t, and now we are back at square one. Either Russell changes or he leaves during the season, if that doesn’t happen, I would expect the same outcome as last year, regardless of the level LeBron plays at this year. Oh yeah, I do expect Anthony Davis to show us something for a change. You would almost forget that he is supposed to be a leader on this team.
18. Cleveland Cavaliers
What goes up, must come down. The Cleveland Cavaliers had an outstanding season last year, possibly even too good. I think they’ll come back down to Earth and in doing so, because the East is strong in the middle, they’ll struggle to get into the Playoffs. Much like the Hawks last year. They flew incredibly high the year before and couldn’t get it going last season. Adding Donovan Mitchell to the roster will also mean that they’ll have to fit him in and make sure he gets his touches, taking the ball away from some of the other performers last season.
But don’t get me wrong, I’m incredibly bullish on the Cavaliers. I think their roster is filled with talent and they have the opportunity to grow into a contender over the next five or so years. Evan Mobley is going to take another leap, maybe not this season but soon, Darius Garland will become one of the best guards in the Eastern Conference in no time, and Jarrett Allen is already an All-Star calibre center. And quietly, Kevin Love entering the last year of his massive contract is a blessing for the Cavs, because it will open up more cap space to sign someone else next year. Good things come to those who wait in Cleveland.
17. Portland Trailblazers
How things can change so quickly. It wasn’t that long ago that the Portland Trailblazers were expected to finish top 4 every season. Then all of a sudden, Damian Lillard gets injured, CJ McCollum is traded away and the Blazers were nowhere to be found. Now Dame is back and he has Jerami Grant alongside him, so you would expect the Blazers to be back. But something is different in Portland. It doesn’t feel the same way as it did 4 years ago. Dame has shown his age, and there simply isn’t enough depth in Portland.
They took a punt in the draft when they picked Shaedon Sharpe. Sharpe is potentially the best player in his draft class, but hadn’t played any games in over a year. In Summer League he went down with an injury after 5 minutes and that was the end of that. Now, if Sharpe is as good as he can be, he can be the difference for Portland straightaway, even this season. But if he is just as average as most of the other players on this roster, Portland will just dabble in the middle of the Western Conference table and miss out on the Playoffs and the lottery odds.
16. Golden State Warriors
If I told you that the reigning NBA Champion would come in 8th in their Conference the following year, your initial reaction would be to ask me if they have traded away their best players and blown up the team. Well, in this case, for the Golden State Warriors, it is quite the opposite. In fact, they have kept their championship winning roster together, at least at the top of the rotation, and they are fully fit, which wasn’t the case last season. But, as the cliche goes, these guys are another year older, and there seems to be a lot of money troubles in San Francisco, the city where money is usually no object.
With Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Andrew Wiggins all on max contracts, and Draymond Green, Jordan Poole and Kevon Looney fishing for big contracts as well, all of sudden there’s not enough room for all these championship winning players. Frustrations are starting to rise up to the top, with Draymond cowardly king-hitting Poole to the ground at training camp. He stepped away from the team after video footage was leaked but he didn’t look good at all. For me personally, he can not return to the team and if I was in their shoes, I’d try to trade him away immediately. At this point I haven’t heard anything from the Warriors camp yet, but this story is all but over.
Oh yeah, basketball! The Warriors will slowly fight through their struggles, as they always do. They won’t be too worried about the regular season, as long as they can get a foot into the Playoffs by the end of it. Because like we’ve all seen, if they’re in, they’re in with a chance.
15. Chicago Bulls
When your biggest acquisitions are Andre Drummond and Goran Dragic, it’s difficult to argue that you don’t have championship aspirations. The Chicago Bulls finished 6th last season in the Eastern Conference, after a very disappointing finish to a surprisingly strong campaign. Remember, the Bulls were leading the Eastern Conference at the All-Star break back in February. DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine were unstoppable on offence but the real reason behind their run was their defensive prowess, especially around the perimeter. Lonzo Ball and Alex Caruso proved to be 2 bulldogs, capable of stopping everyone. Then, injury struck both of them and the Bulls fell faster down the standings than you could say Playoff spot. They did manage to hold on to that Playoff spot but didn’t stand a chance against Giannis and the Bucks.
Now, if the Bulls could say that they have a complete roster, I probably would be a little more positive but unfortunately, they don’t. Nobody knows what is going on with Lonzo’s knee. He had surgery but still can’t run, jump or even walk without pain still, after nearly 9 months of recovery. Chances are that he’ll need to have new surgery, putting him out of action even longer. Obviously, the Bulls’ success doesn’t depend on Lonzo Ball alone, I personally think that last season’s early success had a fair chunk of luck included. The Bulls this season will be what they are, an average team, battling to make it to the Playoffs.
14. Atlanta Hawks
The Atlanta Hawks started off last season a little bit cocky. Trae Young let slip that they just weren’t motivated by the regular season anymore after a deep run in the Playoffs the year before that ended in the Eastern Conference Finals. But that ended up biting them in the ass because they only just scraped into the Playoffs again last season and had no chance in the first round against Jimmy Butler and the Miami Heat. A very disappointing season for the Hawks, and especially Trae himself, who were looking to build on their exceptional run.
This offseason the front office went back to the drawing board to make sure it won’t happen again and they decided to bring Dejounte Murray over from San Antonio. Murray will be a great addition next to Young, a small point guard who struggles a lot on the defensive end. Murray is one of the better perimeter defenders in the league and is happy to pick up that slack. Besides adding Murray, the Hawks haven’t changed much else but one move did raise an eyebrow for me, trading Kevin Huerter to the Kings. A first round pick is nice, but Huerter was one of the best players on the roster in that Eastern Conference Finals run. I don’t see the Hawks ending much higher than last season, but I do hope that they will be a bit more feisty in the Playoffs.
13. Minnesota Timberwolves
The biggest offseason move by any team this year came from the Minnesota Timberwolves. Five players and five picks. That was the price set by the Utah Jazz for Rudy Gobert and the Wolves happily put it on the table. By doing so, they sort of hamstrung the rest of the league with any further trades, but Minnesota has its man. I suppose they think that putting Rudy next to KAT will create an incredible duo under the boards, with KAT a menace on the offensive end and Rudy on the defensive end.
If we would play basketball just like American Football, I would agree that this is a fantastic trade. Bring KAT in on offense and swap him out for Rudy in defense. But having both on the court together? No, I don’t see the benefit. But it might not even matter, because if Anthony Edwards is making the leap I am expecting him to make, who cares what other players are on the court. If coach Chris Finch can get this team to play for Ant-Man, the Wolves should be able to claim their place in the Playoffs. However, if they cater to KAT and D-Lo, the Play-ins or worse could be their fate.
12. Brooklyn Nets
On paper, the Brooklyn Nets have one of the most exciting teams. I believe that Ben Simmons will fit really well around Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, regardless of him playing the 1 or the 5 spot. In fact, these guys could take positionless basketball to a whole new level with Ben playing both roles in back to back offensive setups. Talk about flexibility on the court there. And then they have 3 of the best shooters in the league on their roster with Patty Mills, Seth Curry and the return of Joe Harris. On paper, this team could quite easily take out the number 1 spot in the East and go to win it all.
But if there’s one thing we have learned about the Nets in the last few years, it is that there’s a big difference between what they could be on paper and what they are in reality. So please take everything I’ve said so far with a big grain of salt. Simmons hasn’t played in more than a year and who knows how his back will hold up? The road seems clear for Kyrie to play for a new and improved contract, but there’s always something with Kyrie so I’ll be surprised if he will be drama-free this season. And KD has been struggling with injuries in the last two seasons, he only managed to play 55 games last year. Can he stay healthy this year?
There’s too many questions surrounding the Nets to put them in the top 4, too many things that need to go their way. But I do think they’ll make it to the Playoffs and this time, they won’t be swept in the first round.
11. Denver Nuggets
I have the Denver Nuggets at 6 in the Western Conference, but this is a pick that I’m very uncomfortable with. Two-time MVP, Nikola Jokic singlehandedly pushed the Nuggets to the 6th spot last season, so the return of Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr should mean that the Nuggets are better, much better than last year. I wouldn’t be surprised if these guys end up battling for the number 1 spot in the West during the regular season, but that would mean that Jokic, Murray and MPJ need to play in most games. And I don’t believe that the Nuggets front office will want to see that.
With both Murray and MPJ coming off major injuries, you’d want to bring them back slowly, with plenty of rest and limited back to backs. Jokic himself rarely misses any games, but after a couple of gruelling seasons and plenty of national basketball in the offseason, I think the Nuggets will want to limit the chances of Jokic getting hurt and get him in top condition for the Playoffs. That will result in losing a few more games than expected and a lower spot in the standings than they could get to.
But then again, I’m a fan of players who play hard in every game and Jokic deserves a third MVP in a row. To get that one, he will need to play every game and finish on top of the West, just to be considered.
10. Boston Celtics
I’m sure Boston Celtics fans would have imagined their offseason slightly less dramatic than it was. It started on a positive note by bringing in Malcolm Brogdon and Danilo Gallinari. Both players were signed to give the Celtics a bit more depth and experience on the bench, Brogdon would be a perfect back up for Marcus Smart and Gallinari can spread the floor for them, like he did in Atlanta. But he ended up tearing his ACL while playing for Italy in the summer. It is unclear at this point if he will miss the whole season, but we won’t see him before the All-Star break. And that was not the only bad news for the Celtics.
The biggest news story in the offseason came out of Boston, where coach Ime Udoka has been suspended for the whole season after an improper relationship with a female member of the team staff. It’s a messy situation and details have not been released by Boston, and I’m not expecting them too. They have done their internal investigation and deemed it serious enough to suspend a winning coach, enough said. His assistant Joe Mazzulla is taking over the role, and even though on paper not much will change for the players, I think this will have a massive impact on the team one way or another. It took the Celtics until January last year before they showed us some decent basketball, if that happens again, they’ll struggle again to crack a top 4 spot.
9. Toronto Raptors
The Toronto Raptors are my dark horse to play in the Eastern Conference Finals. Rookie of the Year Scottie Barnes will take another leap this season, and Pascal Siakam and Fred VanVleet should finally prove that they don’t need Kawhi to make it all the way. With Thaddeus Young and Otto Porter Jr they have two vets who have been around the block a few times. I mean, Otto Porter won a ring last year on the Warriors and he’s only 29 years old, plenty of kilometres left in his tank. I am expecting a lot too of OG Anunoby, if he’s not in the conversation for defensive player of the year, we can consider his season as a failure.
But like I said, I am expecting them as a sneaky outsider for Eastern Conference Champions. Finishing 4th would give them home court advantage, meeting the Celtics at home. If they can get past Tatum and his mates, I expect them to see Philly and then all bets are off. And once you’re in the Conference Finals, anything is possible, although getting through the Bucks will be quite the task. Anyway, let’s not get ahead of ourselves. The Raptors are becoming a threat again in the Eastern Conference, just like they were in the DeRozan days.
8. New Orleans Pelicans
I am way too high on the New Orleans Pelicans, but I don’t care. Just the idea of seeing Zion back in action is getting me pumped. He looks in better shape than ever and I can’t wait to see him on the court. But it is not just Zion, that Pelicans team we saw in action against Phoenix in Round 1 of the Playoffs last year was exciting in its own right. Brandon Ingram and CJ McCollum were playing at All-Star level, even though they’ll likely miss out on selections this year, and the young guys like Herb Jones and Jose Alverado really impressed against the Suns.
The Pelicans are still building, we have to remember that, but much like the Grizzlies, I see them over perform this year. All the puzzle pieces seem to fit and if they can keep Zion healthy and engaged, there will only be a few teams stronger than these Pelicans. Right now, I have them finishing in 5th spot, just missing out on home court advantage but well above the Play-In spots. Like I said, probably way higher than what they actually will finish at, but I just can’t help myself.
7. Miami Heat
My prediction for the Miami Heat is that they’ll finish third in the East. Listen closely, I’m not saying that they’ll be worse than last season, in fact, I expect them to finish with the same number of wins as last year, 53. The difference with last year will be the competition. I believe that the Heat took out first spot in the East, mainly because everyone else failed. Obviously, it’s good to finish first but that’s not Miami’s main goal. They want to be a solid team in the regular season that can start the Playoff healthy and preferably with some form of home court advantage. It’s not like last year was a fluke, they deserved that top position, I just think that the exact same performance this year will see them drop a few spots.
The reason behind my prediction is simple, the roster hasn’t really changed. Yes, PJ Tucker has left, and he can be a very important piece on any roster, but they should be able to handle it, especially if they manage to bring back Jae Crowder. Other than that, nothing has changed. Besides Tyler Herro making a lot more money moving forward. No, Miami is running it back, and why wouldn’t they, they were only a Jimmy Butler 3 away from making it into the NBA Finals. This team has what it takes, they just got unlucky last year. And this year they might have a secret weapon with a healthy Victor Oladipo. If he can find his All-Star form again, he could just be that piece to get Miami over the line this year.
6. Milwaukee Bucks
Right now, the Milwaukee Bucks are my number 1 pick to win this year’s championship. That doesn’t mean they’ll top the standings at the end of the regular season, but I have them finishing pretty close to the top spot. They had Boston on the ropes in the Playoffs last year, taking a 3-2 lead, but missing Khris Middleton proved to be too much for the Bucks and dropped the last 2 games in the series. Even though he hasn’t returned from his injury yet in pre-season, it shouldn’t take Middleton long before we see him back on the court. And Middleton alongside Jrue Holiday and Giannis Antetokounmpo, they are just terrifying. All together, I’m sure we would have seen a different story written in the Playoffs.
Giannis himself seems to be getting bigger and stronger every offseason. After missing out on a back to back championship, he seems hungrier than ever to go back and win it all again. And considering his 2 running mates and the majority of their role players are all older than Giannis, he might not have many opportunities left to do it with this group. There’s 2 names on the roster I find intriguing, namely Serge Ibaka and Joe Ingles. Ibaka didn’t show us much last year but if he can get back to even just a fraction of his glory days, he can be crucial for the Bucks, coming off the bench. Same goes for Ingles, we haven’t seen him play since his injury at Utah but if he can get back to his normal form, even if it is just his shooting, he can help Giannis get that second ring.
5. Los Angeles Clippers
The Los Angeles Clippers are the most dangerous team in the league this season. It’s been quiet in Clippers town during the offseason, and that’s uncommon, especially for a team with Paul George. PG has never been shy to broadcast his ambitions, often to his own detriment. But Playoff P has taken a page out of Kawhi’s book and he has been quiet. In fact, the whole roster has been quiet. They give me sort of a mobster family vibe, all cool and quiet on the surface, ready to kill in the shadows. This is the year the Clippers have to win the Championship, otherwise the massive bet the front office took in 2019 can be considered a failure.
Yes, both Kawhi and PG have both resigned since that trade on long term contracts but at the end of the day, the original plan was for them to win immediately. We all know what happened since then, and I’m happy to use the injuries and the bubble and everything else as an excuse but if it doesn’t work out this season, there’s no more excuses. They are both healthy, they are surrounded by quality role players, most of them hand picked, and they have one of the best coaches in the league with Ty Lue. In all honesty, this Clippers team is so loaded they can get away with not playing Kawhi or PG at all until the Playoffs come around, but obviously that would be a dumb idea, I’m just trying to make a point here. Talking about points, I’m very interested to see how John Wall will fare on this roster. It is a great opportunity for him to redefine himself in this league, and go back to his roots.
Again, I’m expecting a lot from these Clippers. Especially because they’ll be the only team in LA this year with half a chance. And LA needs a team with at least half a chance.
4. Phoenix Suns
To say it in Brian Windhorst’s words: “What is going on in Phoenix?” The whole Robert Sarver saga has come to an end. He was suspended by the NBA for a year, not long enough, alongside a 10 million dollar fine, pocket change for a guy like Sarver. Outrage all around the league, including Chris Paul and even Commissioner Adam Silver had a dig at the NBA team owners or governors, as they are now called apparently, when he announced the “punishments'' for Sarver. Just in in case you didn’t get it, punishments was meant sarcastically.
Needless to say, the Suns had a tough offseason. Take into account the DeAndre Ayton saga and now Jae Crowder has asked to leave the team after rumours came out he might be moved to the bench. And to top things off, they lost a preseason game against the Adelaide 36ers. Look, it was only a preseason game, they don’t mean anything but after everything that had happened, that was the last thing the Suns needed. Look, no man overboard, the Suns are still the same team as they were last year and the year before. I still expect them to finish high in the standings and go deep into the Playoffs. But I do think they missed their window. The West is deep and the East is strong, and after last season I have lost faith in the ability of the Suns to finish it off when it counts.
3. Memphis Grizzlies
The future is now, the Memphis Grizzlies have shown that they are one of the better teams in the league, especially during the regular season. When they lost Ja Morant to injury last season, they put together one of the most impressive stretches of basketball in the entire league and won 80% percent of those games, going 20 for 25 in that stretch. They’re a completely different team without Ja, and for the puritan in me, they play a nicer style of basketball. But with Ja on the court, their game is just lifted, he is such an incredible player, I can’t get enough of him. He’ll be competing with Doncic and Embiid for MVP this season and I hope that he can get the better of them.
But in order to do so, he’ll need to stay healthy. Like I said, he missed 25 games last season, 19 the year before and 15 in his rookie year. The Grizzlies are counting on him to stay healthy for as long as possible, especially while Jaren Jackson Jr is out. Rumours have him injured until January, so until then Ja will have to carry the team. Surrounded by quality role players like Desmond Bane, Steven Adams, Dillon Brooks, Brandon Clarke, Tyus Jones, you name it, this team has a lot of depth and the possibility to make a few moves near the trade deadline. The best is yet to come for Memphis, and we’re not too far away from seeing it.
2. Dallas Mavericks
We’ve been watching it for years now, but I feel like this is the year we will truly see what Luka Doncic is capable of. The Dallas Mavericks had to let Jalen Brunson go in the offseason and weren’t really able to add much to the roster to replace him. They did add 2 big guys with Christian Wood and JaVale McGee, but I’m not expecting them to lift Dallas up to higher levels. It will all have to come from Luka this year and I feel pretty confident saying that he won’t disappoint. Coming off EuroBasket, which didn’t go as expected for Luka, he will start this season in the best shape he has ever been. And after missing out on the NBA Finals last year, I’m sure he is more motivated than ever.
Of all players in the league right now, I believe that Luka is the only one that can carry his team all the way on his own. A little bit like Dirk Nowitzki back in 2011 when he led a team of role players to the NBA title. Tim Hardaway Jr, Spencer Dinwiddie and Dorian Finney-Smith can be the Shawn Marion, Jason Kidd and Tyson Chandler to Luka’s Dirk. It was refreshing to see a tight knit team without really big superstars win a title, and that comparison would be true for this year as well. I’m not saying that Dallas is going to be the number 1 contender for the title but I do believe that they will have a great season and will be definite underdogs to take out the top prize.
1. Philadelphia 76ers
I’m picking the Philadelphia 76ers to be the best team in the regular season this year. This might come as a surprise to some of you, but I firmly believe that they are the only team with a good reason to take out the top spot. Joel Embiid wants to be the MVP this season. After missing out 2 years in a row, surely he wants to make a statement to prove everyone why they were wrong in previous years. Add to that a hungry James Harden, ready to show everyone he can still ball like the old days, Tyrese Maxey who is ready to make another leap, Tobias Harris who only has 2 years left on his monster contract and needs to start showing people he is worth that money and last but not least, Doc Rivers has a point to prove to the world that he can be the coach he was in Boston.
I expect Philly to be so hungry this season that they will blow away the opposition. Embiid will walk away with the MVP trophy at the end of the year, if he can stay healthy, and Philly will be the number 1 contender for the title. And then, like what usually happens to Philly and Doc Rivers teams, the balloon will deflate, the team will collapse, Harden will be a no-show and the Sixers will be eliminated from the Playoffs in the second round in a painful loss against the Raptors or the Celtics. And in true Philly fashion, everybody will go out swinging, blaming each other and stating an offseason full of rumours and speculation. Maybe it won’t be that dramatic, I just want to say that I don’t see Philly as a true title contender but I do expect them at the top of standings in April.
This is our All-NBA team of the Week. Please share our podcast and give us 5 stars. If you have any questions, you can contact the show on eight2fouroffice@gmail.com. Thank you for listening, ballers out!
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