Before the 2018-2019 season gets fully underway, let’s dive into who the top teams heading into the new season are:
- Golden State Warriors (58-24): The back-to-back champions with four all-stars added a fifth in Demarcus Cousins, who, when healthy, is as dangerous as any center in the league. Why wouldn’t they be projected to win it all?
- Boston Celtics (55-27): You know the story: one good quarter away from the NBA Finals without Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward. Perhaps the deepest team in the entire league, the Celtics have a most legitimate chance to knock off the Warriors out of all other teams within the association.
- Houston Rockets (65-17): In a league that is all about offense, losing two key defenders in Trevor Ariza and Luc Mbah a Moute may be more significant than some are expecting. Carmelo Anthony is past his prime, but good enough to help Chris Paul and James Harden continue to pile on buckets.
- Toronto Raptors (59-23): If Kawhi Leonard is the same two-way monster from 2016-17, the Raptors could vie for an NBA Finals berth without LeBron James to take them out yet again. Watch out for Danny Green, who came along with Leonard in that Spurs blockbuster trade, as his shooting abilities can benefit Toronto a lot more than people think.
- Oklahoma City Thunder (48-34): Beware year two of the Paul George experiment with Russell Westbrook. The comfort level is increasing between those two, Steven Adams could have a career year, and the quiet additions of Nerlens Noel and Dennis Schroder make the Thunder a real dark horse in the Western Conference.
- New Orleans Pelicans (48-34): Anthony Davis is a future MVP; whether it comes this year or not, he should power the Pelicans to a possible top-4 finish in the West. I don’t see them getting far in the playoffs, but strong play from Jrue Holiday and Nikola Mirotic should garner more than enough victories.
- Philadelphia 76ers (52-30): Contrary to popular belief: I don’t believe in the process getting past the second round. Ben Simmons can’t shoot and Markelle Fultz won’t live up to his number one draft pick status, but Joel Embiid can at least help Philly finish in the East’s top 3.
- Utah Jazz (48-34): They get overlooked since they’re out west, but the Jazz have everything a great team needs: a prolific scorer and a monster rim protector. Donovan Mitchell hopefully won’t have a sophomore slump and Rudy Gobert can make it back-to-back DPOYs to lead Utah to sustained success in a deep Western Conference.
- Los Angeles Lakers (35-47): Any team that has LeBron James on it automatically makes any list of best teams in the league. This year may be his toughest since his rookie year, but he and Rajon Rondo will provide veteran leadership for a group of young and hungry players to make the Lakers’ first postseason appearance since 2013.
- San Antonio Spurs (47-35): Whoever believes the Spurs will miss the playoffs this year clearly have not watched the past twenty years of Gregg Popovich run teams. He will get the absolute best out of DeMar DeRozan to complement LaMarcus Aldridge and once again, the Spurs should make the postseason for a record 22nd consecutive time.
