As the 2016-17 gets set to tip-off next week, we’ll be looking ahead to the biggest storylines, boldest predictions, and
While the hectic summer of 2016 has likely shifted the balance of power in the East (at least after the top 3 teams), with some notable exceptions the NBA’s Western conference may look awfully familiar this season. Can the Timberwolves make the leap into real playoff contention sooner than expected? Are we really sleeping on the new-ish look Spurs yet again? AHere’s how the final standings will shake out in the West:
15. 
Los Angeles Lakers
What they have going for them: With Kobe Bryant and Byron Scott out of the picture, the Lakers can embark on a campaign finally focused solely where it should be: on developing their crop of young talent as they virtually start from scratch on their rebuild.
What they have going against them: They’re, um, not very good. It remains to be seen how the pieces will fit, or if they’ll stay put given the team’s future is still up in the air. But the players who’ll see the floor the most—Russell, Randle, Ingram, Clarkson, etc— are simply not ready yet to consistently win in the NBA. The kids will be fun to watch, but it’ll feel like another long season in L.A.
Player to Watch: Brandon Ingram is this year’s incoming lottery pick (2nd overall), and should find his role as a go-to scorer fairly quickly on a team that could really use his skill-set, but all eyes will justifiably be on D’Angelo Russell, the ultra-talented point guard whose rookie year was tarnished by a coach who misused him and a certain cell-phone scandal that he’ll be trying to move past with a strong second season.
14. 
New Orleans Pelicans
What they have going for them: A legitimate superstar in Anthony Davis and a lottery pick (Buddy Hield) who landed on a team that will both need and allow him to bring his high-volume shooting act to the NBA.
What they have going against them: Everything else. For starters, Davis already hurt himself this year, missing most of the pre-season, and at this point can’t be expected to play a full season. Without him in the lineup, New Orleans instantly becomes the worst team in the conference. They made a couple of additions in the off-season, namely near-Raptor killer Solomon Hill, but also lost Ryan Anderson and Eric Gordon. The search for Davis’s co-star continues, and it feels like the Pels will be looking for quite some time still.
Player to Watch: While his NBA career to this point has been extremely hot-and-cold, Terrence Jones will get an opportunity to see significant floor time, particularly if Davis winds up on the IR for an extended stretch. Jones is a versatile forward who can shoot, run, and rebound at a high level. He was a very quiet pick-up amid a very loud off-season around the league, but don’t be surprised if he finds his niche in New Orleans.
13. 
Phoenix Suns
What they have going for them: Talent, roster flexibility, and building blocks for the future. Devin Booker is one of the most promising young guards in basketball, and along with Eric Bledsoe should form a terrifying backcourt. Throw in a pair of stellar rookies in Dragan Bender and Marquese Chriss, centre Alex Len, and the improving Archie Goodwin and there is a solid foundation for the (distant) future. What’s more, the Suns have a number of veterans and tradeable contracts that should help them swing deals before the deadline once they find their direction.
What they have going against them: For starters, something of a log jam in the backcourt, where Bledsoe, Booker, and Brandon Knight each deserve starters minutes (Knight appears to be the odd man out for the time being). But mostly this is another team focused on giving big minutes to young players who aren’t ready to contribute to a winner.
Player to Watch: A lot of the Suns’ young core have shown flashes this pre-season, but Devin Booker is the clear choice here. He’s a lethal shooter who can handle the ball like a point guard and has a bona fide competitive edge. It won’t be long until this team is officially his.
12. 
Sacramento Kings
What they have going for them: DeMarcus Cousins, the best centre in the NBA. Though he’s likely embarking on another season in which his dominance doesn’t translate to wins, Cousins is an incredibly valuable building block for a team desperate to find an identity around their all-star big man. Bringing in head coach Dave Joeger was a colossal off-season move for Sacramento, after a pretty poisonous situation under George Karl.
What they have going against them: The talent level drops significantly after Cousins, who is more or less a one-man team. Rudy Gay still puts up big numbers, but has reportedly already expressed he doesn’t want a future in Sacramento, and given young players like Ben McLemore are yet to prove they can handle a bigger responsibility, the Kings will have to find a way to surround Cousins with the right talent.
Player to Watch: Ok, Cousins aside rookie Skal Labissiere could prove to be a draft day steal after falling all the way to 28. Joeger is apparently impressed with what the 20 year-old big man has shown so far, and will give him an opportunity to prove the league wrong for passing on him.
11. 
Dallas Mavericks
What they have going for them: The Mavs surprised many who expected a regression last season as Dirk Nowitzki proved his game ages incredibly well, while also getting surprising contributions from the likes of Deron Williams and Canadian forward Dwight Powell. They return a similar roster with the notable addition of marquee signing Harrison Barnes and a fully-healthy Wes Mathews. Having written that, it’s clear their spot in these standings will most likely prove to be way low. Oh well.
What they have going against them: Father time (though it wasn’t much of an issue last year, was it?). Still, at some point it’s bound to catch up with Dallas’ veteran-laden roster. Again, I regret this ranking already.
Player to Watch: Bringing in Andrew Bogut was a sneaky move (he looked unreal in the Olympics), but Harrison Barnes will have to prove he was worth his wild $23 mil/year deal worth it. He’ll be given every opportunity to, and can become an offensive focal point if all works well.
10. 
Minnesota Timberwolves
What they have going for them: Everyone’s new favourite team, it’s hard to imagine a franchise better situated for long-term success given their core of Future Hall of Famer Karl-Anthony Towns, Andrew Wiggins, Zach LaVine, and rookie Kris Dunn. Towns in particular is the most promising big man in years and is poised to absolutely dominate in Year Two.
What they have going against them: They’re still incredibly young and even more unproven. Many are anointing Minnesota a playoff team, but they return more or less the same roster that couldn’t win 30 games last season. Which is fine. An organic growth means the playoffs are near, if not on the horizon quite yet.
Player to Watch: Wiggins is set to take a big leap forward as a near-elite two-way threat, but first-year point guard Kris Dunn should emerge as the steal of the draft, even he went fourth overall. Yes, Ricky Rubio is above him in the depth chart, but Dunn has the talent to change that quickly and become a strong lead guard for years to come.
9. 
Denver Nuggets
What they have going for them: While they’re not quite there yet, still too young, I really wanted to put Denver in the playoffs. That’s because there’s a really exciting collection of young talent on this team, led by breakout star centre Nikola Jokic, point guard Emmanuel Mudiay, wingman Will Barton, rookie Jamal Murray and more. It may not translate to wins quite yet, but this will be one of the most fun teams to watch all season.
What they have going against them: As mentioned, there is a ton of responsibility being placed on what’s still a relatively raw group of kids.
Player to Watch: As he established himself as a centrepiece for this franchise over the last couple months of his rookie season last year, Nikola Jokic averaged 11 points, more than 8 boards, 3 assists, over 1 steal and nearly a block per game. Factor in his impressive 25 point outing vs. Team USA in the Olympics, and the 21 year-old Serbian centre is poised for a significant role.
8. 
Utah Jazz
What they have going for them: Utah has steadily built a promising nucleus that has benefited from continuity, a real organic development. They have the talent to fill a number of roles— a quality floor general in George Hill, a go-to scorer in Gordon Hayward, a gunner in Rodney Hood, a low-post threat in Derrick Favours, an elite rim protector in Rudy Gobert, and plenty of budding youngsters off the bench, including Trey Lyles, Alec Burks, and Dante Exum.
What they have going against them: An injury to Gordon Hayward will keep him out to start the season, which is worrisome for a team that has lost significant players to injury in each of the last three seasons, effectively stalling their climb up the ladder out West.
Player to Watch: Rodney Hood should be a featured scorer on this Jazz team, improving on the nearly 15 points (and 5.7 attempted threes) he averaged last season.
7. 
Oklahoma City Thunder
What they have going for them: A vengeful Russell Westbrook, who averaged an absurd 31.3 points, 9.9 assists, 8.7 boards, and 2 steals per game in the 27 games Kevin Durant missed at the end of the ’14-15 season. You can expect that kind of production again, except you’ll recall Westbrook alone wasn’t enough for OKC to make the playoffs that year. It’ll be another tough go this season, but the addition of Victor Oladipo in the backcourt— now one of the scariest in the league— and the expected emergence of Steven Adams down low are signs of promise for the new-look Thunder.
What they have going against them: A distinct lack of depth and reliable shooting. The Thunder may be relying heavily on the likes of Ersan Ilyasova, Kyle Singler, Alex Abrines, and Anthony Morrow to help stretch the floor and create space for Westbrook, which, well, doesn’t seem like a surefire formula for success.
Player to Watch: It’s so far and away Russell Westbrook, who, for better or worse, will flat-out be the most enthralling player to watch in the NBA this season.
6. 
Memphis Grizzlies
What they have going for them: Literally every major player for the Grizz missed significant time last season— often all at once— and this team still made the playoffs. Now, with Mike Conley, Marc Gasol, Zach Randolph, Tony Allen et al healthy, Memphis seems to be highly underappreciated heading into this season. They are not title contenders by any means, but remain a very, very solid team (even if they decided it was a good idea to pay Chandler Parsons $94 million to average 11 points over the next four years…).
What they have going against them: A notable lack of depth (no offense, Vince Carter) means that another spell of injuries should quell the Grizzlies’ playoff hopes.
Player to Watch: Marc Gasol is barely a year removed from being arguably the best two-way centre in basketball. His foot injury from last year tends to be problematic for players of his size, but should his body cooperate Gasol, firmly in his prime, will remind everyone just how good he is.
5. 
Houston Rockets
What they have going for them: Scoring. Lots of it. Starting with James Harden running the point in new coach Mike D’Antoni’s offense, to newcomers like Eric Gordon and Ryan Anderson, there is a ton of offensive firepower on a team built to win in the regular season.
What they have going against them: In a word: defense. Or, a total lack thereof. The total commitment to the offensive side of the ball (worth noting that Patrick Beverley, Clint Capela, and Trevor Ariza are very capable defenders) means that the Rockets ceiling can only be so high this season.
Player to Watch: He may start the season low on the depth chart, but Brampton, ON. native Tyler Ennis has looked great in the pre-season and could have the opportunity to carve out a meaningful role off the bench on a team that could use depth at point guard.
4. 
Portland Trail-Blazers
What they have going for them: Portland kept more or less the same youthful group together that won 44 games last season, with some nice additions in Evan Turner and Festus Ezeli. On a team with a clear superstar/alpha dog in Damian Lillard, the Blazers aren’t sneaking up on anybody like they did last season.
What they have going against them: There are still questions about the rotation, particularly at small forward, and the depth chart in the front court may be muddled if nobody takes a step forward. What’s more, if Lillard goes down with injury they’ll be hard-pressed to find a way to replace his offensive contributions.
Player to Watch: Lillard is the man in Portland, but C.J. McCollum has proven to be a lethal shooter and scorer at the NBA level and seems on his way to becoming a household name among basketball fans.
3. 
Los Angeles Clippers
What they have going for them: A ‘big three’ with enough talent to win 50+ games in their sleep. Blake Griffin and Chris Paul both have player options after this season, and will be playing for their next contract, while DeAndre Jordan looked stellar in the Olympics and should be better this season than ever. Those are all scary notions for the rest of the conference.
What they have going against them: Another team with a decided lack of depth beyond their star players. As my great granddaddy used to tell me, it is generally not a great sign if you employ Austin Rivers for significant minutes.
Player to Watch: Blake Griffin is a likely trade deadline candidate should the Clippers fear he’ll want a chance for a fresh start elsewhere next summer following a, well, tumultuous season in L.A. Already a game-changing talent, the all-star is poised for his best season yet.
2. 
San Antonio Spurs
What they have going for them: A lot. I really wanted to put the Spurs at no.1, but was talked out of it by the entire Sportsnet staff. The addition of the still-very-good Pau Gasol fell under the radar, while the Spurs have accumulated young talent over the years ready to take on a bigger role, like guard/forward Kyle Anderson. With Gasol, Kawhi Leonard, LaMarcus Aldridge, Tony Parker, Patty Mills, and a deep supporting cast, the Spurs will just keep rolling, as always.
What they have going against them: The LaMarcus Aldridge drama from this week— in which it was reported he was unhappy playing second-fiddle to Leonard and could ask for a trade— is less than ideal, but if any franchise can weather that storm it’s the Spurs.
Player to Watch: Kawhi Leonard, always. Is it possible for a player to be considered a top-5 talent in the league and yet be madly underrated at the same time? Doesn’t hurt that the odds would be favourable, but I would absolute wager on Leonard as a darkhorse MVP candidate.
1. 
Golden State Warriors
What they have going for them: The best regular season team in history and a two-time defending conference champion went out and added the most deadly scorer in the NBA to their roster. That’s what.
What they have going against them: It will take some time for the Warriors to find their stride with Kevin Durant in the lineup, and I suppose there’s always the fear that there can’t be enough shots to go around for everyone. But let’s be real, as far as regular season success goes, this team is almost too good to fail.
Player to Watch: Take your pick. Will Steph Curry be able to go for the three-peat as league MVP? Or will Kevin Durant’s addition give him a lesser role and allow him to rest more this season? How will Durant respond to taking a slightly lesser role on a team with different values than his last? How deadly will Klay Thompson be when he’s left open as teams struggle to cover all of the Warriors’ weapons? Will Draymond Green bounce back from an off-season and playoffs where he was essentially vilified? Whatever happens, this team will be flat-out fascinating to watch.