The 2023-24 NBA season has been an absolute showstopper. Many teams are in position for a postseason spot, and some will probably be fighting for a championship spot. There are some teams that are suspect though, and they are fooling the casual NBA fan. Here is my list of pretenders and contenders for this NBA season. (Note - these are the teams currently listed 1-8 as of April 1, no play in teams)
Contenders: Nuggets, Heat, Knicks, Timberwolves
Nuggets - Not much to say here, the Nuggets are the defending champs. Nikola Jokić is the most dominant player in the association. Denver is the team to be feared in the playoffs.
Heat - Yes, I know the Heat are fighting for a playoff spot while currently being in the play-in. But we have all seen how the Miami Heat turn up when their backs are against the wall. Never count the 305 guys out on the biggest stage.
Knicks - The Knicks have been the laughing stock of the NBA for two decades. Nowadays, they are no laughing matter. The midseason Jalen Brunson has proven that he’s an elite player ready to lead an aggressive Knicks team deep in the playoffs.
Timberwolves - This is my dark horse team that’s ready to make a run. Anthony Edwards is in the midst of taking that superstar leap. Rudy Gobert being their defensive anchor shifted the culture as well. With Karl-Anthony Towns ready to return early in the playoffs, the first seed Wolves will be ready to attack.
Pretenders: Thunder, Celtics, Clippers, Suns, Mavericks, Bucks
Thunder: OKC is electric right now, but they simply aren’t ready yet. The inexperience will catch up to them, especially if they run into a veteran team. The lack of bigs will also hurt the Thunder, something they should have focused on at the trade deadline and in free agency.
Celtics: You are probably wondering why they are here. Boston has been the favorite in the East for the last few years and they could not get the job done. The problem with Boston is that their best two players play the same position. This eventually catches up to them deep in the playoffs every season. Also the lack of depth will be detrimental, if Tatum or Brown don’t show up in big games, they are finished.
Clippers: Paul George, James Harden and Russell Westbrook. Those three names make the Clippers pretenders. Harden has shown time and time again that the postseason is his worst nightmare. George’s numbers drastically drop in the postseason as well. Westbrook’s indecisiveness comes into play in the postseason as well. Kawhi’s injury history should not be ignored either. I don’t see the Clippers winning a championship.
Suns: Phoenix simply does not have the bench to compete with the real contenders in the playoffs. KD, Beal and Booker also do not complement each other well enough to win a championship.
Mavs: Dallas does not have a deep enough squad to compete for a championship. Luka and Kyrie agree absolute stars, but just these two aren’t strong enough to lead the Mavs to a championship.
Bucks: Giannis and Dame should be enough for them to be contenders, but with Doc Rivers as head coach, this automatically puts Milwaukee in pretender territory.
Playoff teams that everyone should know aren’t contenders: Sixers, Magic, Cavs, Pacers, Pelicans, Kings
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