“If you think and achieve as a team, the individual accolades will take care of themselves. Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence win championships.” The quote is from 6-time NNA Finals MVP and 4-time regular season MVP, Michael Jeffery Jordan. Jordan famously led the Chicago Bulls to two 3-peats and six out of eight championships. Thirty teams around the league are preparing to lace up their sneakers this week as they begin the pursuit of lifting the Larry Obrien trophy. The NBA is a superstar league, and the elite players should take to heart Jordan’s words because the best teams win championships. What do we have on deck for the upcoming NBA season? In this article, we make five bold predictions about an epic basketball year.
1. Who wins the Wild West? – The Western Conference will be one of the toughest to win since its inception. Teams such as the Rockets, Jazz, Spurs, and Blazers are considered the weaklings, but these young teams will be able to beat the top teams on any given night. The conference is wide open, and the favorite to win is the defending NBA Champions, the Denver Nuggets. The Nuggets have the talent, chemistry, and championship experience of winning as a group. The team lost Bruce Brown as the only major loss after lifting the title. The next contenders are the Los Angeles Lakers and Phoenix Suns. The Lakers retained all their major players except Dennis Schroeder and added Christian Wood, Gabe Vincent, Taurean Prince, and Cam Reddish. The Phoenix Suns will be the most interesting team to watch after acquiring Bradley Beal and Jusuf Nurkic from the Wizards and Blazers respectively. The Lakers are the deepest team, while the Suns will be the most potent offensive attack. In the end, I still have Denver winning the West, because I think some people still see their championship as a fluke, and the chip is still on their shoulder.
2. Who will be the Beast in the East? – the Eastern Conference is a top-heavy conference, but my contenders are the Milwaukee Bucks, Boston Celtics, and Miami Heat. The Bucks failed to win their first-round matchup in the playoffs, and massive changes had to come. The team fired former NBA Championship Coach Mike Budenholzer and traded Jrue Holiday to acquire Damian Lillard. The pressure is on the Bucks to win given Giannis Antetokounmpo’s desire to win more titles under new Head Coach Adrian Griffin. The Boston Celtics have potentially the best-starting unit in the NBA after acquiring Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday. The Celtics could not return with the same team after the disappointing end to the season. Brad Stevens decided to move Marcus Smart, Malcolm Brogdon, and Robert Williams to complete the makeover. Porzingis adds a new dimension to the Celtics offensively, because he spaces the floor and can operate from the low post. Holiday brings defense, leadership, and championship experience. Finally, the Heat were underdogs last season, and they will be happy when many doubt they will win this season. I think the Heat are the deepest team, but the Bucks and Celtics will have too much talent for the boys in South Beach. I have the Celtics winning the Eastern Conference Finals because I think the Bucks will struggle defensively without Holiday.
3. Who is the dark horse in both conferences? – my dark horse in the west is the Sacramento Kings. Last season, the Kings were 48-34, the third seed in the regular season, and Mike Brown won the Coach of the Year. The Kings ended their 16-year playoff drought with euphoric celebrations in the city. Unfortunately, they failed to close out the Golden State Warriors in a game seven meltdown. However, I think this young team is poised to take another step having benefited from the experience of the playoffs, and young players like Darren Fox, Malik Monk, and Keegan Murray will only get better this season. In the Eastern Conference, I have the Cleveland Cavaliers as my dark horse. Last season, the team lost in the first round of the playoffs to the New York Knicks. However, the team is poised to improve with Donavan Mitchell playing his second season near Lake Eerie and young players like Evan Mobley, Darius Garland, and Caris Lavert.
4. Who wins MVP? -my prediction for the top 3 candidates for the biggest individual award this season are Nikola Jokic, Joel Embiid, and Jayson Tatum. Embiid is the reigning MVP after averaging 33.1 pts, 10.2, and 4.2 assists per game. Embiid deserved the award and was the dominant force in the league. However, the biggest leap will come from Tatum in leapfrogging the likes of Luka Doncic and perhaps even Giannis Antetokounmpo. Tatum averaged 30.1 points, 8.8 rebounds, and 4.6 assists last season and is poised to get better with his ability to score in the midrange, from three-point range, and strength to attack defenders in the post. Jokic got revenge after being snubbed from the award by winning the Finals MVP. Last season, the Serbian averaged 33.7 points, 11.8 rebounds, and 9.8 assists. I feel Jokic will reclaim the award because he is unstoppable as a triple-double machine in how he scores, rebounds, and sets up his teammates with unreal passes.
5. Who wins the title? -I have the matchup of the Celtics and Nuggets matching up in the finals barring any major injury. It will be interesting to see who has the home-court advantage at that point, but I think the Celtics will ultimately win the matchup. The Celtics must see this year as the golden opportunity to win the title this year. The team has the talent, motivation, and coaching experience to keep them poised under the pressure to deliver. Brad Stevens can add a player or two to the bench with a trade or on the buy-out market to bolster the bench. It will take at least 6-7 games to win, but Banner 19 appears to be heading to Massachusetts next summer.