In the East, my vote would be Brooklyn or Atlanta.
Brooklyn is deep at just about every position. Mikal Bridges is a very good scorer. Cam Johnson a very talented 2-way player. Dinwiddie a solid 2-guard. Claxton is one of the more impressive young centers in the league. A lot rides on Simmons and if he can be 75 percent of what he once was. At the very least, he looks to be in shape entering the season. Brooklyn looks to have a plethora of two-way players. The question is if Bridges can be the main scorer on a contending title team.
Atlanta has Trae Young, who is now flying under the radar as one of the best scoring guards in the NBA, and many solid defensive pieces surrounding him in Murray, Hunter, Capela. If Trae can get a hot in a playoff series, you never know.
In the West, I think it’s Minnesota. On paper, they are loaded with talent. Ant, KAT, McDaniels, Gobert, Reid, Conley and Anderson might be as good of a first 7 you will find in the league today. Of course, the main question is — can Chris Finch make Towns and Gobert work offensively? We saw how tough Minnesota can be in the Denver series last year. With most everyone on their roster now having multiple years of playoff experience in addition to having continuity among their depth chart and coaching staff, they are my sneaky pick to make the West finals this year.
Who is your sneaky pick in each conference to make a deep playoff run? Or do you believe there’s no logical selection?
I think everyone has written off the Clippers because they haven’t been able to stay healthy. But both Kawhi Leonard and Paul George have been pronounced "fully healthy.” And it’s possible they will obtain a motivated James Harden before the season is over.
If they get Harden their problem is being ancient although pg style harden might fit well i suppose, i also wouldn’t call Kawhi fully healthy ever again with his chronic knee issues
Kawhi being healthy is still not the same Kawhi from even 2 years ago. The injuries have taken a toll on his body and his declining athleticism was noticeable last season. He's still a hell of a player and his shooting looks better than ever but I doubt we'll ever see the athletic beast Kawhi again.
Hey Kawhi, your degenerative knee thing has somehow become regenerative. This is great news.
I am always rooting for the counted out players and teams. It probably won’t happen, but it would be so fucking funny if they just steamrolled everyone this year.
In a similar vein, it would be pure comedy if Ben Simmons was a legitimate MVP candidate this year.
How long does a motivated James Harden last? I like the clips, i hope they don’t get Harden. Guy is a legit cancer.
More than one season, which is what OP is talking about.
And what makes him a cancer?
He asked out of a rebuild. Was he a cancer then? Then asked to get away from a teammate who refused to play. Was he a cancer then?
And now it's been confirmed that his mother is sick, so is he really that vile for wanting to go home with her?
Would his new Clipper teammates really care about him leaving Philly.
In regards to your "top 25 player" - which I can't reply to;
He was a top 25 player last season.
I’m not a harden fan in the least but idk how people even argue he wasn’t top 25.
Until he gets paid or gets a ring. Dude is a top 25 player still and would only help in facilitating for Leonard and George, not to mention he’s played with Westbrook so….