Despite all the player movement over the last few months, basketball experts agree the Western Conference is still deeper in talent, but that could lead to fewer upper echelon teams and a tighter race at the end of the year for a spot in the playoffs.
Golden State won the title last year and with the young talent on the roster and the confidence gained from winning the title last year, it makes sense that the Warriors are tops on the list as the best franchises in the league. With just 15 losses during the 2014-15 season, the only question entering this season is if this squad can win more than 67 games in the upcoming year.
Cleveland did everything possible to keep their roster in place in hopes for another shot at the Warriors. The biggest news over the summer was resigning Kevin Love and with the best player on the planet, LeBron James and company are a clear-cut favorite in the Eastern Conference and second in the power rankings entering into training camp.
The biggest question in the NBA is Oklahoma City and where will Kevin Durant play next year. With plenty of talent, the Thunder are considered a top-5 squad in basketball, but with all the off court issues the team will encounter over the next few months, it might cost them a shot at fulfilling their dreams of winning a title.
ESPN has done a terrific article looking at the future success of franchises and surprisingly they have Toronto as a squad that will struggle. With a big drop in defensive rankings over the last two years and the likelihood they could lose DeMar DeRozan after this season, it looks like the Raptors are going into rebuilding mode next summer, but with the roster moves the front office made over the summer, they could make a deeper run than their first round loss to Washington in last year’s playoffs.
