Western Conference: 1 Warriors 65-17 2 Spurs 56-26 3 Blazers 53-29 4 Clippers 53-29 5 Thunder 48-34 6 Grizzlies 46-36 7 Jazz 45-37 8 Nuggets 43-39 9 Rockets 39-43 10 Mavericks 38-44 11 Kings 34-48 12 Pelicans 31-51 13 Timberwolves 30-52 14 Suns 30-52 15 Lakers 25-57 Eastern Conference: 1 Cavaliers 60-22 2 Raptors 53-29 3 Celtics 50-32 4 Hawks 46-36 5 Pacers 45-37 6 Wizards 44-38 7 Pistons 44-38 8 Bulls 41-41 9 Magic 38-44 10 Knicks 36-46 11 Hornets 33-49 12 Heat 32-50 13 Bucks 28-54 14 76ers 26-56 15 Nets 18-64 Whats yours?
I'd have a hard time naming rosters this early on..I know the Jazz and Wolves got better, Philly got better, Boston got better
Prolly better to do this in preseason. Nuggets? um no. Wolves will not win less than 41, and same with NOP unless AD is hurt for an extended period.
Western Conference 1. Warriors 64-18 2. Spurs 57-25 3. Blazers 56-26 4. Clippers 51-31 5. Grizzlies 48-34 6. Jazz 45-37 7. Timberwolves 40-42 8. Mavs 40-42 9. Thunder 38-44 10. Rockets 37-45 11. Pelicans 34-48 12. Nuggets 33-49 13. Kings 30-52 14. Suns 30-52 15. Lakers 20-62 Eastern Conference 1. Cavs 60-19 2. Raptors 58-26 3. Celtics 51-31 4. Hawks 50-32 5. Pistons 45-37 6. Bulls 44-38 7. Knicks 43-39 8. Pacers 43-39 9. Hornets 41-41 10. Wizards 40-42 11. Magic 40-42 12. Bucks 31-51 13. 76ers 24-58 14. Heat 23-59 15. Nets 19-64
Nuggets are very underrated and have a lot of depth. They're all young so they should grow. I like them. Wolves have one good NBA player. Dunn's a question mark. Wiggins is no better than Rudy Gay. Rubio is bleh. Pelicans are injury prone and not that great to begin with. Davis hasn't shown the ability to carry that team, and they lost talent as well.
Outside of huge injuries for MIN there is no chance the Nuggets have a better record than the Wolves.
The Wolves are so overrated. Jokic is a stud of a center, not KAT but closer than some people think. I like a supporting core of Gallinari/Chandler/Barton/Harris/Murray better than a supporting core of Wiggins/Rubio/Dunn/Dieng/Muhammed The Nuggets are the team built to surprise here. The T'Wolves are just the media's darlings. Wiggins might be the most overrated player in the league. He's a horrible defender, doesn't distribute or make plays for others, nor does he rebound. The only thing he does is score on average efficiency without even bring and to shoot from the outside.
That is all well and good and I even agree with a lot of it but the Wolves still finish with a better record than the Nuggets imo. The biggest difference will be defensively between the two teams.
I think a 5th place finish and 46.5 wins is a pretty good over/under. As always injuries can completely change the west, but if things regress toward the mean in that department across the conference, I think it's going to be a much tougher schedule for the Blazers, even with the inevitable decline of OKC. They'll be moderately better, but they won't make the "good to great" leap unless they can get somebody besides Lillard to put in an All-NBA caliber performance (by that I mean, I think the Blazers raised their floor with their roster moves, but didn't necessarily raise their ceiling too much).
I'm going to wait till camp opens before I make a prediction. I want to see a couple of exhibition games and hear about how the team is jelling. We've made a few important signings and I esp. want to see Turner play. Good thing we don't have to wait that long.....
