Before the 2022/23 NBA season got underway, we polled Hoops Rumors readers on the win totals for each of the league’s 30 teams, using over/unders from major betting sites. From the Celtics (55.5 wins) to the Thunder (22.5 wins), our readers made their picks for whether each team’s win total would land over or under the projected figures.
This is the sixth year we’ve run these polls. After finishing a little below .500 in each of the first three seasons, our voters broke through in 2020/21 with a 17-13 record and went 16-14 in ’21/22. Will that winning streak carry over to ’22/23? Let’s check in on the results and find out…
Eastern Conference
- Boston Celtics (Under 55.5 wins): ❌ (57-25)
- Brooklyn Nets (Under 51.5 wins): ✅ (45-37)
- Philadelphia 76ers (Over 50.5 wins): ✅ (54-28)
- Toronto Raptors (Over 46.5 wins): ❌ (41-41)
- New York Knicks (Under 40.5 wins): ❌ (47-35)
- Milwaukee Bucks (Over 52.5 wins): ✅ (58-24)
- Cleveland Cavaliers (Over 47.5 wins): ✅ (51-31)
- Chicago Bulls (Over 44.5 wins): ❌ (40-42)
- Detroit Pistons (Over 28.5 wins): ❌ (17-65)
- Indiana Pacers (Under 23.5 wins): ❌ (35-47)
- Miami Heat (Under 50.5 wins): ✅ (44-38)
- Atlanta Hawks (Over 46.5 wins): ❌ (41-41)
- Charlotte Hornets (Under 36.5 wins): ✅ (27-55)
- Washington Wizards (Under 35.5 wins): ✅ (35-47)
- Orlando Magic (Over 26.5 wins): ✅ (34-48)
Eastern Conference record: 8-7
Big misses on teams like the Knicks, Pistons, and Pacers contributed to losing records in the Atlantic and Central, but our readers salvaged an above-.500 overall mark in the East by nearly sweeping the Southeast — only a disappointing showing from the Hawks prevented a 5-0 record in that division.
Western Conference
- Denver Nuggets (Over 51.5 wins): ✅ (53-29)
- Minnesota Timberwolves (Over 49.5 wins): ❌ (42-40)
- Portland Trail Blazers (Under 40.5 wins): ✅ (33-49)
- Utah Jazz (Under 25.5 wins): ❌ (37-45)
- Oklahoma City Thunder (Over 22.5 wins): ✅ (40-42)
- Golden State Warriors (Over 53.5 wins): ❌ (44-38)
- Phoenix Suns (Over 53.5 wins): ❌ (45-37)
- Los Angeles Clippers (Over 52.5 wins): ❌ (44-38)
- Los Angeles Lakers (Under 45.5 wins): ✅ (43-39)
- Sacramento Kings (Over 34.5 wins): ✅ (48-34)
- Memphis Grizzlies (Over 49.5 wins): ✅ (51-31)
- Dallas Mavericks (Over 48.5 wins): ❌ (38-44)
- New Orleans Pelicans (Over 44.5 wins): ❌ (42-40)
- Houston Rockets (Under 24.5 wins): ✅ (22-60)
- San Antonio Spurs (Under 23.5 wins): ✅ (22-60)
Western Conference record: 8-7
The parity in the West this season didn’t help our voters. Even though the Warriors, Suns, and Clippers were among the top six teams in the conference, for instance, they all fell well short of their projected win totals. Even the Nuggets and Grizzlies, the West’s top two teams, only narrowly beat their projections, as our readers predicted.
Despite a handful of big messes in the West, including on the Timberwolves, Jazz, and Mavericks, our voters eked out a winning record in the conference with some nice calls on the overachieving Kings and Thunder and the tanking Rockets, Spurs, and Trail Blazers, among others.
Overall record: 16-14
For the third season in a row, our voters finished above .500 in their over/under picks. That’s a legitimate winning streak!
Looking back at the preseason projections, along with your predictions, which team surprised or disappointed you the most? Jump into the comment section below to share your thoughts!
Strange how in the Pacific division all 5 teams are in the playoffs.
That’s a play-in-worthy performance by the HR voters
Over an 82 game season, they’d have won 44 games or so. So better than all play-in teams but the Heat. Not bad.
I went 22-8, surprised by the Raptors, Jazz and Pistons. Suns Warriors and Mavs would have missed and didn’t see the Pacers but they make sense. No idea why everyone was so high on the Clippers and Timberwolves