The 2022-23 NBA regular season will begin on Tuesday, Oct. 18 and all teams continue to shape their final rosters as this date approaches. We may see further signings for all teams but at the time being several teams give us early tips that they will show a tendency to rise in the standings. The nba parlays today depend on many factors so we break them down all here.
EASTERN CONFERENCE – TOP 5 CONTENDERS
BOSTON CELTICS: Main additions of the Celtics were Malcolm Brogdon and Danilo Gallinari during the summertime. However, D.Gallinari had a torn ACL while he was together with his national team. He not only missed the
Eurobasket tournament but will also miss the entire season which will affect Celtics’ depth in the rotation. As a stronger side, the Celtics have a strong backcourt rotation and the duo of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown will continue to lead the team. It is also believed that a few additions will be made for PF-C spots in order to back up Al Horford and Robert Williams.
PHILADELPHIA 76ERS: After an unpleasant ending of the last season, the 76ers are ready to show their ambition for the title this year. Despite, there being an investigation for tampering concerning James Harden’s lower contract, The Beard seems motivated enough to lose weight and announce his obvious target as winning a championship. With the help of the lower salary which Harden accepts, the 76ers were able to sign PJ Tucker and Danuel House. Another critical move was the signing of DeAnthony Melton and the newly signed Montrezl Harrell will also have a major effect on the depth chart. Let’s see if all these moves will take the sufficient burden from Embiid’s shoulders which can also lead him to be vigorous during the Playoffs.
MILWAUKEE BUCKS: Despite K.Middleton undergoing wrist surgery on his non-shooting arm, he is not expected to miss any significant time during the regular season. As the Greek God will once again force the team to step up in Eastern Conference, the Bucks will surely be one of the contenders once again. Bucks were quiet in the FA market and only signed injured veteran Joe Ingles and added rookie Marjon Beauchamp who may have a significant role only in the medium term. The good news is they kept their main roster and re-signed UFA Bobby Portis.
CLEVELAND CAVALIERS: Cavs made a huge move by adding Donovan Mitchell to their roster while sending Collin Sexton to Jazz. In Yahoo Fantasy rankings, the Cavs have four young players in the first 50 rankings right now ( D.Garland 19 – D.Mitchell 20 – J.Allen 44 – E.Mobley 46). When checking other supplementary pieces, we can see names like C.LeVert, K.Love, I.Okoro, and so on. Cavs now have a promising core and several veterans after a very long period while they are a candidate to be one of the contenders in the Eastern Conference this season.
ATLANTA HAWKS: The pairing of Trae Young and DeJounte Murray will create nothing but excitement for Atlanta as both of them has a double-double potential with their different playing styles. Hawks also have a strong frontcourt with J.Collins, C.Capela, and developing youngster O.Okongwu while other spots will usually be filled by B.Bogdanovic and D.Hunter. They have all the necessary tools to be successful so let’s watch the new duo’s interesting cooperation.
WESTERN CONFERENCE – TOP 5 CONTENDERS
GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS: The defending champion will surely be competitive once again as they mainly kept the key players on the roster. Warriors lost defensive factors such as Gary Payton II, Otto Porter Jr, and Juan Toscano Anderson, however, they will try to compensate for these losses with the addition of Donte DiVincenzo and JaMychal Green. Still, the most critical contributions can come from Jonathan Kuminga, Moses Moody, and James Wiseman as all of them will have a bigger role in the depth chart.
PHOENIX SUNS: Suns had the best record of the last season with 64-18, however, Luka Doncic stole the show in the Playoffs. The upcoming season may be the last chance for Chris Paul to win a championship ring and he needs to enter the Playoffs without any injury this time. Suns added a perimeter defender like Josh Okogie and shooting guard Damion Lee to the roster, but they are still weak at the frontcourt due to the loss of Javale McGee and Frank Kaminsky.
LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS: Clippers are expected to be one of the top teams in the Western Conference this season, especially with the return of Kawhi Leonard and the newly added John Wall. Both players may leave their prime days but it is believed that they still have enough gas on their tanks. Clippers are quite strong on SG-SF positions, however, they will still lean too much on Ivica Zubac as their weakness is at the center position. We can easily see them in the top three in conference standings.
DALLAS MAVERICKS: Luka Doncic is currently putting on a show in the Eurobasket tournament and his high basketball IQ indicates that he will set his dynasty in Dallas after German legend Dirk Nowitzki. Mavs lost UFA Jalen Brunson to the Knicks but recruited Christian Wood and JaVale McGee in order to strengthen their frontcourt. Rookie Jaden Hardy may also find some minutes and show his potential throughout the season. It is not surprising to project Mavs at the top four positions in Western Conference.
DENVER NUGGETS: Season MVP Nikola Jokic will certainly be a major force again for the Nuggets while newly signed players like Bruce Brown and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope will fill the defensive void for the team. Yes, Nuggets lost Monte Morris and SG Will Barton to the Wizards but their main problem was at the defensive end last season. Both Brown and KCP are very versatile 3-D players and they will support pure scorers of the team, namely Jokic, MPJ, Murray, and B.Hyland.