By Joe Browne

Milwaukee Brewers: A-

Milwaukee had a very strong first season in the Pat Murphy era and exceeded pretty much everyone’s expectations. I wrongly predicted a losing season for the Crew in 2024. They handily won this division and practically had it wrapped up on September 1st. Milwaukee was just two outs away from defeating the Mets and moving on to the NLDS in game 3 of the Wild Card. Then, Pete Alonso struck against Devin Williams and that was all she wrote for the Crew. Overall, a very successful season for the Brewers but one question remains once again. Can they make the right moves to put together a team that is a legit championship contender in 2025? 

Chicago Cubs: C-

Coming into the year this looked like maybe the most complete Cubs team we had seen in a long time but this group fell short of what they looked to be capable of. Injuries certainly played a role here, the Cubbies played inconsistent ball all year. They surged a bit down the stretch but in the end just had to make up too much ground to catch all the way up. Imanaga was much better than anyone had expected and that is massive. Also, I expect the Paredes-Morel deal to end up in their favor in the long run but only time will tell. There is talent here, let’s see if Counsell and co. can put together a more consistent campaign in 2025. 

St. Louis Cardinals: C

Coming in, I thought this team was going to be really bad but they actually were better than expected. Still, average at best in the long run. Ryan Helsley quietly was an absolute force out of the bullpen this year and basically locked down half of this team’s wins. The writing is on the wall, Arenado and Goldschmidt are past their primes and are slowly declining. The time to move on from those two should be sooner rather than later. Rookie Masyn Winn had himself a really nice year on both sides of the ball and hopefully can grow into the franchise shortstop role for the future. I will say it until he proves me wrong though, with Oli Marmol at the helm this team is going nowhere.

Cincinnati Reds: D

The Reds came up just shy of the postseason last year and ran back pretty much the same squad this year so fair to assume they took that leap right? No. Matt McLain’s season ended before it started which was detrimental to this team’s success. On top of that, the hitters that performed in ‘23 for the most part just did not in ‘24. Big years from both Green and De La Cruz give this franchise hope that if they can build around those two, consistent winning could be very much in the picture. The Terry Francona hire is the right move. A veteran manager with a boatload of experience is what this group needs for a hopeful return to playoff contention in 2025. 

Pittsburgh Pirates: D+

Not going to sugarcoat this one, the Pirates are the Paul Skenes and Jared Jones show until they can put together a competent lineup to help them. Both Skenes and Jones are amazing and are here to stay for a long time at this level. These two will do everything they can to keep this franchise afloat in the coming years but if they consistently fail to put together a lineup of quality Major League bats it will be impossible to win. Also, a disastrous year from closer David Bednar certainly did not help this year. Pittsburgh needs to spend money and soon or before you know it, Paul Skenes will be a free agent and packing his bags the first chance he gets. 

By Jonah Drew

Golden State Warriors: 42-40

2024-25 will be the first season since 2011-12 that Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors will be without Klay Thompson. Unfortunately, I believe that signifies the beginning of the end for one of the greatest dynasties in the history of the NBA. Steph Curry, while not peak Curry, is still among the best point guards in the game currently. Even Draymond, for as much criticism as he receives, is still an insanely impactful and effective basketball player. Those 2 are not the problem, it is the core that Mike Dunleavy has surrounded them with. I actually do like some of the Warriors’ young pieces, Trayce Jackson-Davis, Brandon Podziemski, Moses Moody, and Jonathan Kuminga are all good up and coming players. With that said, the timeline just doesn’t make sense, the young players are too young, and the older players are too old. In this Western Conference, I have a hard time believing this Warriors team is a serious threat.

Los Angeles Clippers: 36-46

I really do not like how Lawrence Frank and the Paul George situation. The Clippers were reportedly unwilling to give PG the 4th year on his contract and that is what led to him looking elsewhere and ultimately, Philadelphia. The Clippers are already in too deep financially, they do not have the ability to just scratch and reset. They have no choice but to ride out this Kawhi era. Were they going to win anything with PG, probably not. However, without him they certainly won’t win anything and they are just counting down the days until they can just tear down and rebuild. As for this current rendition, the team is severely limited. I personally am not relying on Kawhi Leonard to stay healthy and contribute for any significant period of time. James Harden can still score the heck out of the ball but he provides almost nothing else on the court. There is still a solid collection of role players on this team that can make this team at least competitive, Terrance Mann, Derrick Jones Jr., Ivica Zubac, Norman Powell, and Kris Dunn are all objectively solid NBA Players. With that said, I do not think this team is up to par with the other mid tier teams in the west, I do not expect to see this team playing Postseason basketball.

Los Angeles Lakers: 49-33

Rob Pelinka and the Lakers were very quiet this past off-season, with their main moving coming on the sideline, replacing Darvin Ham with the youthful JJ Redick. They also made headlines when they selected Bronny James with the 55th pick in this past years draft. Outside of that, the Lakers were pretty much dormant for the majority of the off-season. This roster however, is still very talented. Lebron James is elite as ever, the Goat is still a freight train in transition, an elite playmaker, and just had his best 3 point shooting season of his career, mind you at 40 years old, wow. Anthony Davis is arguably the best defender in basketball and was one of the most efficient players in the league last year, posting a 25.8 PER. The Backcourt, is poor defensively, but very skilled offensively. Both DLo and AR15 are knockdown shooters that can create their own shot with ease. They also have defensive specialists like Rui Hachimura and Jarred Vanderbuilt that can help supplement the defensive defeciences around them. Overall, any team with Lebron and AD is dangerous, especially with the talent they have around them.

Phoenix Suns: 45-37

The Big 3 experiment was a massive failure last season as the Suns were quickly swept out of the playoffs by the Timberwolves. I think that series made it clear that this team has a big 2, not a big 3. Devin Booker and Kevin Durant are 2 of the top 10 offensive players in today’s game. However, Bradley Beal’s best days are behind him. He lacks the juice to create space and create his own shot. And as we know, without shot creation, Bradley Beal is nothing. The Suns don’t have regular role players, rather they have specialists. Tyus Jones: Playmaking Specialist, Ryan Dunn: Defensive Specialist, and Grayson Allen: 3 Point Specialist. This feels like a deliberate effort from James Jones and we will see how this approach works out.

Sacramento Kings: 45-37

2022-23 was a franchise defining season for Sacramento. They were finally competitive and earned the 3rd season in a tough western conference. 2023-24 was a bit of a plateau year for the Kings, they were a play-in team and they were bounced by New Orleans in the play-in game. This roster is still very intriguing though, DeAaron Fox is an electrifying point guard, Domantas Sabonis can stuff the stat sheet(although I have defensive questions), and newly added Demar Derozan adds an offensive punch that this team could use. Keegan Murray can shoot the leather off the ball and he provides spacing that this team needs more than ever with the addition of Derozan. Overall, this is a talented group and I do expect them to at least play a playoff series

Sources

Basketball Reference

Basketball Index

ESPN

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