Community Shootaround

It may feel as if the 2019/20 NBA season just ended, but we’re just suddenly hours away from the ’20/21 regular season tipping off.

With the coronavirus pandemic ongoing, this season won’t quite look like a typical NBA campaign. Teams are only scheduled to play 72 games instead of 82, and that’s assuming that they can get through the season without cancellations.

On Monday, commissioner Adam Silver told reporters – including Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press – that he expects some “bumps in the road” for the NBA as the 2020/21 season progresses, acknowledging that there will likely be some positive COVID-19 tests among players and other on-court personnel. However, Silver also said the league is “prepared for all contingencies” and is confident that it will be able to get through the full season.

Time will tell if Silver is right. But for now, let’s assume – or at least hope – that he is. We want to get your predictions on which teams and players will rule the 2020/21 NBA season — assuming the league can get through it.

Playoffs and NBA Finals

Betting site BetOnline.ag currently lists the following 12 teams as the best bets to claim the top six spots in each conference:

Eastern Conference:

1. Milwaukee Bucks
2. Brooklyn Nets
3. Boston Celtics
4. Miami Heat
5. Toronto Raptors
6. Philadelphia 76ers

Western Conference:

1. Los Angeles Lakers
2. Los Angeles Clippers
3. Denver Nuggets
4. Dallas Mavericks
5. Utah Jazz
6. Portland Trail Blazers

Only the top six finishers in each conference are assured of playoff berths this season, as the Nos. 7-10 teams will participate in a play-in tournament at the end of the year for the final two spots. The seventh and eighth seeds will only have to win once in two games to claim their spots, while the ninth and 10th seeds would require two wins.

Based on BetOnline’s odds, the Pacers, Hawks, Wizards, and Magic are the best bets for the 7-10 spots in the East, with the Bulls, Hornets, and Cavaliers among the teams lurking as threats.

In the West, the Suns, Warriors, Rockets, and Pelicans are considered the best bets for that 7-10 range, with the Grizzlies, Spurs, Kings, and Timberwolves looking to push them out.

Meanwhile, the Bucks and the Nets are the frontrunners to make the NBA Finals in the East, per BetOnline, while the Lakers and Clippers are the overwhelming betting favorites to represent the West.

What do you think? Do those projected standings look about right to you, or do you think certain teams are noticeably overvalued or undervalued? Do you expect some combination of the Bucks, Nets, Lakers, and Clippers to play in the Finals, or will another team (or two) crash the party?

NBA End-of-Season Awards

Some end-of-season awards are a little easier to forecast than others. We have a general idea of which players should be in the mix for the Most Valuable Player award or Defensive Player of the Year honors. But there could be dozens of candidates for Most Improved Player, while an award like Sixth Man of the Year often hinges on whether injuries force certain top bench players to become starters.

Still, BetOnline has provided betting favorites for all of major awards. Here are bettors’ top five picks for each one:

Most Valuable Player:

1. Luka Doncic (Mavericks)
2. Giannis Antetokounmpo (Bucks)
3. Kevin Durant (Nets)
4. Stephen Curry (Warriors)
5. Anthony Davis (Lakers) / LeBron James (Lakers) (tie)

Defensive Player of the Year:

1. Anthony Davis (Lakers)
2. Giannis Antetokounmpo (Bucks)
3. Rudy Gobert (Jazz)
4. Bam Adebayo (Heat)
5. Joel Embiid (Sixers)

Rookie of the Year:

1. LaMelo Ball (Hornets)
2. Obi Toppin (Knicks)
3. James Wiseman (Warriors)
4. Killian Hayes (Pistons)
5. Anthony Edwards (Timberwolves)

Sixth Man of the Year:

1. Lou Williams (Clippers)
2. Jordan Clarkson (Jazz)
3. Danilo Gallinari (Hawks)
4. Goran Dragic (Heat)
5. Serge Ibaka (Clippers)

Most Improved Player:

1. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Thunder)
2. Deandre Ayton (Suns)
3. Christian Wood (Rockets) / Michael Porter (Nuggets) (tie)
4. Jamal Murray (Nuggets)
5. Coby White (Bulls)

Coach of the Year:

1. Steve Nash (Nets)
2. Tyronn Lue (Clippers)
3. Monty Williams (Suns)
4. Brad Stevens (Celtics) / Erik Spoelstra (Heat) / Frank Vogel (Lakers) / Rick Carlisle (Mavericks) (tie)
5. Doc Rivers (Sixers)

While the favorites for each of those awards make sense, there are some guys I like who don’t make the cut. I think Kings guard Tyrese Haliburton is an intriguing Rookie of the Year candidate, and I’d be tempted to make Davis Bertans my choice for Sixth Man as long as the Wizards intend to continue bringing him off the bench.

What do you think? Are you picking mostly from the above candidates for your award selections, or are you going off the board with some of your choices?

With the regular season to tip off, we want to hear your predictions for the coming year.

Head to the comment section below to share your picks for the 2020/21 regular season standings, the playoff results, the award winners, and any other subjects you want to weigh in on (James Harden‘s trade destination? Or maybe the first head coach to be fired?).

Happy opening night!

The Rockets found a way to accommodate Russell Westbrook, essentially swapping him for another burdensome contract in John Wall. Will they be able to do the same for James Harden?

On paper, Harden does not seem to have much leverage. He’s got three years and $133MM remaining on his contract, including a $47MM player option in the final year. But when was the last time a superstar wanted to be traded and didn’t eventually get his wish?

Harden wants to go to the Nets, Sixers, Bucks or Heat, but that’s not a simple task. Brooklyn would seemingly have the assets to pull it off and create a fearsome trio of Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and Harden but it could also turn out badly with three headstrong perennial All-Stars trying to mesh their talents.

The Sixers would likely have to give up Ben Simmons but would a pairing of Harden and Joel Embiid work better? New coach Doc Rivers believes he can find ways to maximize the talents of Simmons and Embiid.

The Bucks would seem to be an unlikely destination unless Giannis Antetokounmpo demands it as an incentive to sign a supermax extension. Even then, Milwaukee probably wouldn’t have the assets to pull it off.

Pat Riley has never shied away from bold moves but he seems to have a good thing going. Would the Heat president gut the rotation and go all in on a Harden-Jimmy Butler–Bam Adebayo trio? It’s more likely Riley will wait to see what the free agent market brings next summer.

That leads us to our question of the day: Where do you believe James Harden will wind up this season?

Please take to the comments section to weigh in on this topic. We look forward to your input.

Kawhi Leonard and Paul George are saying all the right things.

Facing the media on Friday, Leonard said he was eager to erase last season’s playoff collapse from his memory banks.

“I am motivated. I want to start, I want to get back after it,” he said. “It does leave a bad taste in your mouth blowing a 3-1 lead. But I love it. These are things that build the player. It’s the things that I like, the challenge. The road of going to a championship is hard. I love the process.”

George said he’s so happy in Los Angeles that he wants to retire as a Clipper.

It all sounds good but both stars have options in their contracts to become unrestricted free agents next summer if they wish to leave.

The biggest change since the Clippers fell apart against the Nuggets in the conference semifinals comes on the sidelines. Former Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue has replaced Doc Rivers, looking to deliver a championship to another franchise that hasn’t tasted that kind of success.

The Clippers have made two significant additions to the player roster in proven playoff performer Serge Ibaka and sharpshooter wing Luke Kennard. They were also able to re-sign another key frontcourt piece, Marcus Morris.

That brings us to our question of the day: Did the Clippers do enough this offseason to win a championship? Or are they destined for more disappointment in the postseason?

Please take to the comments section to weigh in on this topic. We look forward to your input.

Free agency opened less than a week ago, which means that in a typical NBA offseason, today would be about the equivalent of July 5. But in 2020’s warp-speed offseason, the start of training camps are, incredibly, just five days away. Opening night will tip off in less than four weeks.

So even though there may be more free agent signings and trades on the way in the coming days and weeks, it’s not too early to start considering what the on-court impact of this offseason’s roster moves will be.

[RELATED: 2020 NBA Free Agent Tracker]

With that in mind, we’re looking today at which 2020 non-playoff teams have the best chance at returning to the postseason in 2021.

Let’s start in the East, where the Hawks look like perhaps the best candidate to get out of lottery territory. They finished 14th in the conference last season, but an offseason roster overhaul that saw them add Danilo Gallinari, Bogdan Bogdanovic, Rajon Rondo, Kris Dunn, and Onyeka Okongwu  – plus a healthy Clint Capela – suddenly makes Atlanta’s roster a whole lot more interesting.

There’s also some intrigue in Washington and Charlotte. Will John Wall‘s return be enough to help buoy the Wizards into a playoff spot? Will the arrivals of No. 3 pick LaMelo Ball and free agent splash Gordon Hayward improve the Hornets significantly?

The other four Eastern teams didn’t necessarily upgrade their rosters in a major way, but the Bulls could be intriguing after hiring Billy Donovan and drafting Patrick Williams, especially if Otto Porter is back to full health. The Pistons, Cavaliers, and Knicks are probably at least a year or two from playoff contention, but if their young talent takes bigger immediate strides than expected, maybe they could make some noise.

Over in the West, there are handful of intriguing candidates to make the move from the lottery to the postseason.

The Warriors, who will have a healthy Stephen Curry back in their lineup to go along with Draymond Green, Andrew Wiggins, Kelly Oubre, and No. 2 pick James Wiseman, are an obvious team to watch. So are the Suns, who have added Chris Paul, Jae Crowder, Langston Galloway, and E’Twaun Moore, and No. 10 pick Jalen Smith to the mix after an 8-0 run during the NBA’s summer restart.

The only major moves the Pelicans and Grizzlies made in free agency involved re-signing their own players, and New Orleans traded away Jrue Holiday. But both teams were knocking on the door of the playoffs in 2020, and young cornerstones like Zion Williamson, Brandon Ingram, Ja Morant, and Jaren Jackson should only get better.

[RELATED: 2020 NBA Offseason Trades]

That leaves the Timberwolves, Spurs, and Kings. Minnesota has a long way to go after finishing last season with a 19-45 record, but adding No. 1 pick Anthony Edwards and having a full season with Karl-Anthony Towns, D’Angelo Russell, Malik Beasley, and Juan Hernangomez shouldn’t hurt.

As for San Antonio and Sacramento, neither team was too far removed from the postseason in 2020. Continued improvements from young players like Derrick White, Dejounte Murray, De’Aaron Fox, and Marvin Bagley should help keep them within striking distance, and both teams got nice draft-lottery additions in Devin Vassell and Tyrese Haliburton.

It’s also worth noting that any team that finishes in the top 10 of a conference has a chance to make the postseason this year as a result of the NBA’s new play-in tournament. The No. 9 and No. 10 seeds will play each other at season’s end, and the winner will face the loser of the No. 7 vs. No. 8 game for the final playoff spot. As a result, more teams than ever could remain in the playoff hunt until late in the season.

What do you think? Which teams do you like to make it back the playoffs this year after missing out in 2020? And which of last season’s playoff teams do you expect to fall into the lottery to make room for those newcomers?

Head to the comment section below to weigh in with your thoughts!