2019-2020 Season Predictions
Sept 30, 2019 10:30:32 GMT -5
MemphisGM, fernans (MIAMI HEAT), and 1 more like this
Post by Miege22 on Sept 30, 2019 10:30:32 GMT -5
It's media day for most of the teams in the league, which means it's officially basketball season again. We've never really done this in the past, but with the real life league more wide open than I can remember, I'd love to see how everyone sees this season playing out. What are your record predictions? Who makes the Finals? Who wins awards? I'll start us off
EAST
1. Milwaukee (58-24)
2. Philadelphia (55-27)
3. Toronto (49-33)
4. Boston (48-34)
5. Miami (47-35)
6. Brooklyn (47-35)
7. Indiana (43-39)
8. Orlando (41-41)
9. Detroit (40-42)
10. Chicago (35-47)
11. Atlanta (33-49)
12. Washington (28-54)
13. Cleveland (27-55)
14. Charlotte (22-60)
15. New York (21-61)
The bottom of the East is going to be really bad again, but Atlanta and Chicago will be frisky. I don't trust Blake to stay healthy enough to push Detroit past Orlando. Toronto isn't blowing things up right away, which means their continuity is going to lead to a pretty decent record (they're also one of the few "no one believes in us" defending champs in NBA history). Indiana will be a below-.500 team until Oladipo gets back and turns them into a scary 1st round match-up with Philly. Ultimately, this is how I see the Eastern Conference playoffs playing out:
1. Milwaukee over 8. Orlando 4-2
2. Philadelphia over 7. Indiana 4-2
6. Brooklyn over 3. Toronto 4-3
4. Boston over 5. Miami 4-3
1. Milwaukee over 4. Boston 4-2
2. Philadelphia over 6. Brooklyn 4-2
1. Milwaukee over 2. Philadelphia 4-3
WEST
1. Utah (54-28)
2. Denver (54-28)
3. Houston (53-29)
4. Golden State (50-32)
5. LA Clippers (49-33)
6. LA Lakers (48-34)
7. Portland (47-35)
8. Sacramento (44-38)
9. San Antonio (43-39)
10. New Orleans (40-42)
11. Dallas (37-45)
12. Minnesota (36-46)
13. Oklahoma City (30-52)
14. Phoenix (30-52)
15. Memphis (21-61)
The West is a damn nightmare to predict. I think there are legitimately 7 teams that could finish first. I'll give Utah the nod since they seem like the most well-balanced, and their major addition should be easier to incorporate than either of the LA teams or Houston. Continuity, I think, also gives Denver an edge, while sheer talent will help Houston overwhelm opponents on most nights. Paul George being out until "Novemberish" means the Clips are going to have to go through multiple transition periods, which doesn't lend itself to great regular seasons. And while I think the LeBron-AD pairing is the most well-balanced duo in the league, the Lakers are thin and will take nights off. Portland seems to be a team all over the board when it comes to predictions, but I think the Lillard-McCollum duo is good for at least 47 wins. Now, the playoffs is where things get a little wild:
1. Utah over 8. Sacramento 4-2
2. Denver over 7. Portland 4-3
6. LA Lakers over 3. Houston 4-2
5. LA Clippers over 4. Golden State 4-3
5. LA Clippers over 1. Utah 4-3
6. LA Lakers over 2. Denver 4-2
5. LA Clippers over 6. LA Lakers 4-3
Which means we get Giannis and the Bucks against Kawhi, PG and the Clippers. Assuming health, I've got to take the Clippers in 6. The pieces just fit too well once they get acclimated.
REGULAR SEASON AWARDS
MVP - Giannis (kind of by default, with a vocal minority touting Steph)
DPOY - Embiid
6MOY - probably someone from the Clippers
MIP - Gary Harris (he's going to win the award even though, as people will correctly point out, he only "improved" because he was healthy)
ROY - Zion
COY - Nick Nurse
ALL-NBA 1st Team
G - Harden
G - Curry
F - LeBron
F - Giannis
C - Embiid
ALL-NBA 2nd Team
G - Kyrie
G - Dame
F - Kawhi
F - AD
C - Jokic
ALL-NBA 3rd Team
G - Kemba
G - Conley
F - Butler
F - Siakam
C - Gobert
EAST
1. Milwaukee (58-24)
2. Philadelphia (55-27)
3. Toronto (49-33)
4. Boston (48-34)
5. Miami (47-35)
6. Brooklyn (47-35)
7. Indiana (43-39)
8. Orlando (41-41)
9. Detroit (40-42)
10. Chicago (35-47)
11. Atlanta (33-49)
12. Washington (28-54)
13. Cleveland (27-55)
14. Charlotte (22-60)
15. New York (21-61)
The bottom of the East is going to be really bad again, but Atlanta and Chicago will be frisky. I don't trust Blake to stay healthy enough to push Detroit past Orlando. Toronto isn't blowing things up right away, which means their continuity is going to lead to a pretty decent record (they're also one of the few "no one believes in us" defending champs in NBA history). Indiana will be a below-.500 team until Oladipo gets back and turns them into a scary 1st round match-up with Philly. Ultimately, this is how I see the Eastern Conference playoffs playing out:
1. Milwaukee over 8. Orlando 4-2
2. Philadelphia over 7. Indiana 4-2
6. Brooklyn over 3. Toronto 4-3
4. Boston over 5. Miami 4-3
1. Milwaukee over 4. Boston 4-2
2. Philadelphia over 6. Brooklyn 4-2
1. Milwaukee over 2. Philadelphia 4-3
WEST
1. Utah (54-28)
2. Denver (54-28)
3. Houston (53-29)
4. Golden State (50-32)
5. LA Clippers (49-33)
6. LA Lakers (48-34)
7. Portland (47-35)
8. Sacramento (44-38)
9. San Antonio (43-39)
10. New Orleans (40-42)
11. Dallas (37-45)
12. Minnesota (36-46)
13. Oklahoma City (30-52)
14. Phoenix (30-52)
15. Memphis (21-61)
The West is a damn nightmare to predict. I think there are legitimately 7 teams that could finish first. I'll give Utah the nod since they seem like the most well-balanced, and their major addition should be easier to incorporate than either of the LA teams or Houston. Continuity, I think, also gives Denver an edge, while sheer talent will help Houston overwhelm opponents on most nights. Paul George being out until "Novemberish" means the Clips are going to have to go through multiple transition periods, which doesn't lend itself to great regular seasons. And while I think the LeBron-AD pairing is the most well-balanced duo in the league, the Lakers are thin and will take nights off. Portland seems to be a team all over the board when it comes to predictions, but I think the Lillard-McCollum duo is good for at least 47 wins. Now, the playoffs is where things get a little wild:
1. Utah over 8. Sacramento 4-2
2. Denver over 7. Portland 4-3
6. LA Lakers over 3. Houston 4-2
5. LA Clippers over 4. Golden State 4-3
5. LA Clippers over 1. Utah 4-3
6. LA Lakers over 2. Denver 4-2
5. LA Clippers over 6. LA Lakers 4-3
Which means we get Giannis and the Bucks against Kawhi, PG and the Clippers. Assuming health, I've got to take the Clippers in 6. The pieces just fit too well once they get acclimated.
REGULAR SEASON AWARDS
MVP - Giannis (kind of by default, with a vocal minority touting Steph)
DPOY - Embiid
6MOY - probably someone from the Clippers
MIP - Gary Harris (he's going to win the award even though, as people will correctly point out, he only "improved" because he was healthy)
ROY - Zion
COY - Nick Nurse
ALL-NBA 1st Team
G - Harden
G - Curry
F - LeBron
F - Giannis
C - Embiid
ALL-NBA 2nd Team
G - Kyrie
G - Dame
F - Kawhi
F - AD
C - Jokic
ALL-NBA 3rd Team
G - Kemba
G - Conley
F - Butler
F - Siakam
C - Gobert