By Jonah Drew

Denver Nuggets: 54-28

Nikola Jokic is the undisputed best player in the world, he is currently enduring one of, if not the single greatest offensive peak in the history of the National Basketball Association. I am worried about the core around him, though. The loss of Kentavious Caldwell-Pope can not be overstated, he is an ideal 3-D wing who will be greatly missed. Jamal Murray is extremely up and down, we have seen his pull up shooting fluctuate but over a full seasons sample size it should even out. I do not think there are more perfect fits for a team than both Michael Porter Jr. and Aaron Gordon with Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets. MPJ provides elite spacing and C&S 3 point shooting for a team that needs it and Aaron Gordon provides great versatility and the constant threat of a backdoor lob courtesy of Nikola Jokic. Christian Braun and Peyton Watson will be largely responsible for replacing KCP. While I trust them to at least supplement him defensively, it remains to be seen if they can even remotely replace his invaluable 3 point shooting. Regardless of the turmoil, the Nuggets have a trustworthy offensive formula and a superb defensive baseline that gives them a floor of 50 wins.

Minnesota Timberwolves: 46-36

Adressing the elephant in the room, I really cannot even begin to fathom the thought process of Tim Connelly and the Timberwolves in trading Karl-Anthony Towns. You finally found it, after Mass suffering and horrible basketball, you finally found a sustainable method to winning with the 2 big lineup. Despite that, after your best season in decades, you decide to trade your franchise cornerstone for Julius freaking Randle. The Randle-Gobert fit is equally as clunky as the KAT-Gobert fit, if not more and Randle is just less skilled and more of a ball stopper. Outside of this trade though, this is still a winning roster. Anthony Edwards took massive strides as a jump shooter and if he can maintain at least above average pull up jump shooting numbers, with his absurd ability to get downhill, watch out, that’s all I’ll say. Mike Conley is vital to this team, he is the offensive engine and their already middling half court offense gets ugly when Conley is off the court. Lastly, the offensive punch they added to the bench should help improve the offense, Donte Divincenzo, and rookies Rob Dillinghama and Terrance Shannon should add some much needed offensive creation off the bench. The defense will be elite, that we know. But can the half court offense pull its weight to make this team successful, that is what will decide the Timberwolves’ season.

Oklahoma City Thunder: 60-22

Sam Presti, take a bow. You sir have constructed a roster that has the potential to be the best in the western conference for a decade. Most importantly, you have your guy, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is one of the best pure scorers he have seen in a while, on top of that he is also a plus defender for the position. He has solidified himself as a Top 5 player in the game. Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams both have potential to be stars in this league for years to come. Chet is already an elite defender and is ungodly fluid for a guy his size. JDub is tremendously versatile, not only can he score at all 3 levels but he can guard 1-4. Alex Caruso and Isaiah Hartenstein are not only ELITE role players, but they are both perfect fits. Alex Caruso adds spacing and he can actually operate offensively without the ball in his hands(Cough Cough Josh Giddey). Not to mention the fact he is an elite guard defender. Hartenstein adds some desperately needed size and rebounding while maintaining the Thunder’s ability to play position less basketball with his composure and playmaking. The depth on this team is nuts, Aaron Wiggins, Isaiah Joe, Lu Dort, Cason Wallace, Kenrich Williams, and Jaylin Williams. What team has this many quality players just at their disposal? The Star power, the defense, the youth, the depth, the chemistry, It’s going to be a fun season in OKC.

Portland Trail Blazers: 27-55

Individually, this Blazers roster has some talent. The backcourt of Scoot Henderson and Anfernee Simons certainly does have some appeal. Scoot is obviously supremely talented, but there is no denying he was terrible in his rookie season. Scoot posted a 97 oRTG, a 9.5 PER, and a -5.8 BPM. Simons is objectively a very good offensive basketball player, he put up 22.6 PPG on 57% TS. I loved the addition of Deni Avdija, he was 15 PPG on 60% TS with great rebounding and playmaking. The frontcourt of Jerami Grant and DeAndre Ayton is skilled offensively, no doubt but they both lack defensive effort and intensity despite the fact they are both capable defenders. I loved the selection of Donovan Clingan and I thought it was a wonder he fell to them at 7, he can be a defensive anchor on day 1. This may be weird to say but I like the role player foundation in Portland, but I still believe they are missing an offensive engine. Unfourtunately, that’s the hardest piece of the puzzle.

Utah Jazz: 25-57

If one team won the NBA Draft, it was the Utah Jazz. I love Cody Williams potential as a do it all wing and Kyle Filipowski is way too talented to be a second round draft pick. Most of all though, getting Isaiah Collier out of USC in the late first was the steal of the draft. I would have comfortably taken Collier in the top 10, he is an Uber athletic point guard who can get downhill and kick to open shooters effectively. Outside of the rookies though, this roster is pretty bare. Lauri Markennen is tremendous, no 7 footer should be able to shoot off movement like him. Collin Sexton is extremely underappreciated, he is a very efficient offensive player and while he is limited defensively, his effort makes him passable. This team defense needs to improve if they wan’t to be competitive, the Jazz were last in defensive rating and weirdly they didn’t do much to improve their defensive personnel.

Sources

Basketball Index

Basketball Reference

ESPN