The regular championship of the National Basketball Association will last from October 2022 to April 2023. During this time, 30 teams divided by 15 into two conferences will play 82 games each. Then 12 teams will get to the 1/8 finals, and 8 more will play in the play-in for additional 4 trips.
Based on bookmaker quotes, the main favorites to win the Western Conference are the Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Clippers, Phoenix Suns and Denver Nuggets. Next, we analyze the information for each of the teams, thanks to which the chances of guessing who will be the strongest in the West will increase. Bets on this event are accepted by site.
Golden State Warriors
Main Stars: Andrew Wiggins, Clay Thompson, Draymond Green, Stephen Curry.
Steve Kerr’s guys are the reigning champions of the National Basketball Association. Last season, in the fight for victory in the West, the Warriors alternately defeated the Denver Nuggets, Memphis Grizzlies and Dallas Mavericks. At the same time, representatives of San Francisco gave only four matches to their opponents. In the final, Stephen Curry and partners also dealt with the Boston Celtics without any problems – 4:2.
The main bones of the Californian team have been preserved, so the chances of competing for the next championship among the “warriors” are impressive. At least the Blue-Yellows are able to win the Western Conference bestemsguide.com.
Los Angeles Clippers
Main stars: Paul George, Kawhi Leonard, Nicolas Batum, Ivica Zubac.
The Los Angeles Clippers looked disgusting last season and ended their performances in the regular season. This was due to the fact that the leaders of the team were constantly injured among the “sailboats” and the maximum combat squad rarely appeared on the floor. The team from California started the current regular season again without Kawhi Leonard and looked extremely unconvincing.
Wards Tyrone Liu are able to break into the playoffs. But in the battles to take off, the “hairdressers” are unlikely to be able to go far.
Phoenix Suns
Main stars: Dario Saric, Chris Paul, Devin Booker, Deandre Ayton.
“Solar” have a powerful composition. At the same time, last season, Monty Williams’ guys managed to reach only the semi-finals of the conference. In the first round, the brainchild of Robert Sarver beat the New Orleans Pelicans in six games. Then in the seventh game of the series, the Phoenix Suns were weaker than the Dallas Mavericks.
It will be difficult for the team from Arizona to repeat the achievement of 2021. Nevertheless, in the current season in the West there are a lot of formidable opponents capable of knocking out the “sunny” ones in the playoffs.
Denver Nuggets
Main stars: Aaron Gordon, Jamal Murray, Michael Porter, Nikola Jokic.
Last season, the Nuggets were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs. Having met with the future champion Golden State Warriors, the Denver Nuggets turned out to be weaker – 1:4. At the same time, Nikola Jokic and partners should not be written off. The potential of the brainchild of Stanley Kroenke is very impressive. To finish in the strongest six of the regular championship club from Colorado should be very likely.
How far the Denver representatives will go in the playoffs will depend on the state of the leaders. If the San Francisco warriors don’t get in the way early, Michael Malone’s guys could make it to the conference finals.
Our forecast
The Golden State Warriors are not unreasonably considered one of the strongest clubs in the NBA today. It is unlikely that on the way to the next final, someone will be able to stop the “warriors”. In the battle to become the strongest in the West, the San Francisco team is likely to be forced into the fight by the Phoenix Suns. Yet Devin Booker and company know how to add. The Denver Nuggets are also able to surprise, but with a good combination of circumstances, the “nuggets” can be higher than the “sunny”. The Los Angeles Clippers, due to unstable results and frequent injuries to leaders, are unlikely to be able to impose a fight on more formidable opponents. If the “sailboats” at the very least make it to the first round of the playoffs, then this can already be considered a success wapmallu.blog.