You could certainly question if the Western Conference has ever been as competitive as it appears to be heading into the 2024/25 NBA season. With the Dallas Mavericks looking to return back to the promised land and the Denver Nuggets dreaming of a reunion with the Larry O’Brien trophy, both are definitely in the running for the top seed. Although there are a plethora of teams which will fancy their chances and the division is set up intriguingly for the season ahead.
- Portland Trailblazers
23/24 Record: 21-61
The Blazers headed into rebuild mode last offseason, trading Damian Lillard to the Milwaukee Bucks and subsequently finished with the worst record in the West. I cannot see them climbing from that spot this year despite the improvements of young players like Shaedon Sharpe and Anfernee Simons, as well as the addition of Deni Avdija and 7th overall pick Donovan Clingan.
- Utah Jazz
23/24 Record: 31-51
Utah continued their rebuilding faze throughout this Summer and added three highly rated prospects via the draft (Isaiah Collier, Kyle Filipowski, and Cody Williams). They also held onto former all-star Lauri Markkanen despite numerous trade rumours. Markkanen could be one to keep an eye on as the season approaches the trade deadline. Overall, you have to feel this is around the spot the Jazz will end up come the end of the regular season.
- San Antonio Spurs
23/24 Record: 22-60
It is impossible to think of the Spurs without thinking of last year's rookie of the year Victor Wembanyama, who is arguably the most exciting player in the NBA. San Antonio struggled last season in spite of Wembanyama's stellar play, but have added veteran point guard Chris Paul who will undoubtedly do a great job at assisting Wembanyama. I doubt they will be able to improve much on their record and it will likely be another year of rebuilding for San Antonio.
- Houston Rockets
23/24 Record: 41-41
After falling narrowly short of the play-in tournament last year, the Rockets will fancy their chances at qualifying for the playoffs this season. Houston has an intriguing young core of players, including big man Alperen Sengun and shooting guard Jalen Green. They also made an exciting addition in the draft with 3rd overall pick Reed Sheppard, who in college was an elite three-point shooter. Ultimately, I believe they will still fall short of the playoffs in an incredibly stacked Western Conference.
- Golden State Warriors
23/24 Record: 46-36
Just three years ago the Warriors were NBA champions, yet they struggled last season and had to settle for the last play-in spot despite another incredible season from Steph Curry. It was a difficult offseason for GSW too, as all-time great Klay Thompson left for Dallas after 13 seasons in the backcourt with Curry and they failed to make any significant additions in free agency to replace his production. Therefore, I feel it likely they will fall out of the playoff spots this season especially with the level of competition in this division.
- Sacramento Kings
23/24 Record: 46-36
Sacramento decided to shake things up this offseason and added mid-range master DeMar DeRozan to create a big three with De’Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis. Although this may improve the Kings roster on paper, I dislike DeRozan’s fit with Sacramento’s offense which under coach Mike Brown has been very fast paced. The Kings are definitely a team to look out for as the season progresses but I feel falling short of the postseason is likely.
- Los Angeles Lakers
23/24 Record: 47-35
In what could well be Lebron James’ final year in the NBA, the Lakers have made very little changes to a roster which struggled for the majority of last year. Their only additions were from the draft with 17th overall pick Dalton Knecht and Lebron’s oldest son Lebron James Jr. Although it will be a sight to see both James’ sharing the court it will be another disappointing year for Laker fans as they are not prepared for a deep playoff run.
- New Orleans
23/24 Record: 49-33
The Pelicans made one of the first moves of this offseason acquiring guard Dejounte Murray from the Atlanta Hawks to add to their core of Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram. New Orleans’ biggest issue over the last couple of seasons has been keeping their stars on the court and they certainly have the potential to finish higher if all things click for them. Another issue this season could be their lack of size especially with the news this week that it is likely Trey Murphy will miss the start of the 24/25 season.
- Los Angeles Clippers
23/24 Record: 51-31
It will be an interesting season for the Clippers as they move into their new home (the Intuit Dome) but they will be without all-star forward Paul George as he left via free agency after he and owner Steve Ballmer failed to come to an agreement over his value. They do, however, still have two future hall of famers in Kawhi Leonard and James Harden who can definitely fill in the hole left behind. Although I do believe it will be a difficult season for the Clippers, especially when Leonard and Harden are missing.
- Memphis Grizzlies
23/24 Record: 27-55
After a massively injury plagued season last year, the Grizzlies will be back amongst the contenders this season. Their core of players will be available this year, including superstar Ja Morant who battled suspension and an injury last season. It will be interesting how things come together for Memphis as the development of guys last year can massively complement the talent that was already on their roster.
- Phoenix Suns
23/24 Record: 49-33
Prior to the 23/24 season, the Suns went all out and brought shooting guard Bradley Beal to Arizona to complement Devin Booker and newly acquired superstar Kevin Durant. However, it did not go entirely to plan as both Beal and Durant spent significant periods of time on the injury list and they failed in the playoffs, losing 4-0 to the Timberwolves in the first round. Phoenix did manage to add some bench depth this offseason and will look to improve on their mediocre performance this time.
- Minnesota Timberwolves
23/24 Record: 56-26
Minnesota had a superb year last season even managing to beat the defending champions – the Denver Nuggets – in the second round. However, they were embarrassed in the conference finals losing to Dallas in 5 games. Since then, the Wolves have shaken things up trading away their all-star center Karl-Anthony Towns in exchange for all-star forward Julius Randle and guard Donte DiVincenzo from the Knicks, as well as trading up in the draft to select Rob Dillingham 8th overall. As long as things go to plan the Wolves will undoubtedly be one of the sides favoured to make it out of the West.
- Dallas Mavericks
23/24 Record: 50-32
Dallas shocked everybody last postseason making it all the way to the NBA finals, and they will certainly be in contention again this year. After being trashed in 5 games by the Celtics the Mavs have made multiple additions this offseason, the biggest of which was a sign-and-trade deal which brought sharpshooter Klay Thompson to Dallas. They made two other signings – Naji Marshall and Quentin Grimes – which will provide needed depth at the wing and guard spots. With Luka Doncic at the helm the Mavericks will fancy their chances of lifting the Larry O’Brien trophy for a second time in their History.
- Denver Nuggets
23/24 Record: 57-25
The Nuggets will be right up there again this season, as Nikola Jokic goes in search of his third consecutive MVP. Denver was unable to defend their title last season, falling in seven games to the Timberwolves. They managed to make some interesting signings this summer including former MVP Russell Westbrook. Unquestionably the Nuggets will be many people’s favourites to once again make it out of the Western Conference.
- Oklahoma City Thunder
23/24 Record: 57-25
My Pick to top the Western Conference this season is the OKC Thunder as to put it simply they have the best and most promising young core in the NBA. Led by last years’ MVP runner up Shai Gilgeous-Alexander they surprised everyone when they beat Denver to the top spot last year. The development of guys like Jaylen Williams and Chet Holmgreen were the reason why. The Thunder also managed to address their greatest need this offseason by signing center Isaiah Hartenstein to a 3-year $87 million contract to improve their inefficient rebounding. This is a huge season for the Thunder as they are finally set for what looks to be a dynasty in the making.
By Will C
Add comment
Comments