NBA POWER RANKINGS

Jacob Tyson

With the NBA season tipping off at 10:30 am tomorrow (AEDT), I have gone through and given each team a ranking based on their chances of winning the NBA Finals. This is not a seeding projection, rather how I think each team will fare first in making the playoffs, then in how deep they get into the playoffs. Full lists below.

East

#1 - Milwaukee Bucks

#2 - Brooklyn Nets

#3 - Miami Heat

#4 - Atlanta Hawks

#5 - Boston Celtics

#6 - Chicago Bulls

#7 - New York Knicks

#8 - Philadelphia 76ers

#9 - Charlotte Hornets

#10 - Toronto Raptors

#11 - Indiana Pacers

#12 - Detroit Pistons

#13 - Washington Wizards

#14 - Cleveland Cavaliers

#15 - Orlando Magic

The East is stacked with talent this season, where there isn't a clear standout team unless you make the argument the Nets are. I wouldn’t make that argument as injuries and the Kyrie problem personally puts them below the Bucks for mine. There’s a close gap between 3-8 as any of those teams could fall higher or lower. The 76ers are so low as I don’t anticipate Joel Embiid to play anymore than 60 games, injuries being a massive problem for him and Simmons doesn’t look like he’ll be in the building much longer. I think they seed higher than 8th but ultimately I would give the Knicks, Bulls, Celtics and Hawks more chance of winning the chip than them.

West

#1 - Los Angeles Lakers

#2 - Golden State Warriors

#3 - Phoenix Suns

#4 - Dallas Mavericks

#5 - Denver Nuggets

#6 - Utah Jazz

#7 - Los Angeles Clippers

#8 - Portland Trail Blazers

#9 - Memphis Grizzlies

#10 - Minnesota Timberwolves

#11 - Sacramento Kings

#12 - San Antonio Spurs

#13 - New Orleans Pelicans

#14 - Houston Rockets

#15 - Oklahoma City Thunder

The Lakers ageing Roster worried me at first but just the sheer talent and depth makes them the standout of the West. The Golden State Warriors are going to be a force to be reckoned with come the playoffs, all they have to do is make that top 6 and they should go deep. The Clippers I have as a top 4 seed but that's more due to depth and less to talent, I think Paul George is an MVP candidate as he’ll be the stand out player on a high ranking team. The Oklahoma City Thunder will be one that’s interesting to see play out with lots of young talent that could turn into next gen superstars. SGA, Lu Dort and Josh Giddey are all phenomenal talents under the age of 24 who can play some exciting basketball this season.