Coming Soon To Arenas Near You

We're only TWO WEEKS away from the start of the NBA season (Tuesday, October 18th), and there are an unusually large number of squads coming into this year with legitimate hopes for title contention. Despite a healthy dose of offseason drama, the Celtics lead a fiercely competitive Eastern conference field 👇

• Boston looks like the most complete team in the league, with the additions of Malcolm Brogdon and Blake Griffin to an already loaded roster (RIP Gallinari)

• The Bucks are, of course, right on their tail, and boast the ultimate game breaker in Giannis Antetokounmpo

• Meanwhile, a revamped Philly squad and wild card Brooklyn roster could throw a wrench in these heavyweights' title hopes 🏆

Out West, the Warriors come into the season with the crown in hand — someone will have to wrestle it away from them. The Clippers look scary deep, but health is always a concern with their aging core. Phoenix, meanwhile, was the class of the West for much of last year, but is still reeling from an upsetting early playoff exit 😏

NBA Championship Betting Odds (subject to change)

• Boston Celtics: +600 (bet $100, win $600)

• Milwaukee Bucks: +650

• Brooklyn Nets: +700

• LA Clippers: +700

• Golden State Warriors: +700

• Phoenix Suns: +1000

• Philadelphia 76ers: +1600

The League Is Stacked

Despite Vegas throwing them some disrespect in those championship odds, the Warriors enter this season on top, with a well-rounded mix of veteran and youthful talent that's the envy of the league. Their Finals foe, the Celtics, again look formidable, but it remains to be seen how they will adjust to the loss of HC Ime Udoka for the foreseeable future. It's clear that both teams will have a very challenging road back to the Finals 🤫

• The Celtics may have slightly better championship odds than the Bucks, but Milwaukee actually scored much higher in the annual NBA GM survey

• It's clear that the league's top decision makers view Giannis as the top dog in basketball 👑

Philadelphia also poses an intriguing threat following the acquisitions of P.J. Tucker and De'Anthony Melton to surround the Embiid-Harden-Maxey trio. The heaviest variable, of course, will be the status of the much-maligned Harden, who claims to have shed quite a bit of weight this offseason 😂

I think that Harden may be slightly exaggerating, but he and the Sixers certainly appear geared up for a bounce back year. Another star whose weight fluctuations have caused many headlines over the past year is young phenom Zion Williamson 👇

• Zion's Pelicans are garnering a lot of excitement following a surprising playoff run in his absence last season

• Judging by Zion's physique at Media Day, the hype may be for real 💪

As usual, we're also seeing lots of familiar faces in new places, following yet another summer of free agency and trade drama in the NBA. Low-level playoff teams like the Hawks and Timberwolves are hoping to take a leap through their acquisitions of Dejounte Murray and Rudy Gobert. Both squads look threatening on paper, but only time will tell how their rosters fit on the court ⏳

• One new face who wasn't actually on the move this summer is Ben Simmons, who returns to the court after a controversial one year odyssey away from the game

• The on-court fit with KD and Kyrie seems like it will emphasize Simmons' strengths, tops among them his elite defense and passing ability 👇

Alas, there's always the question of the suspect (aka non-existent) jumper — from the initial preseason action, it doesn't seem like much has changed with the free throws 😬

If Simmons can act as the talented point-forward he once was, he should fit perfectly alongside Durant and Kyrie 💪

For My Parlay Gurus

It's hard not to be tremendously excited for this NBA season, as the parity and overall quality of talent in the league is at an all-time high. Many teams will vie for the crown, but I believe the Celtics and Clippers boast the two most complete rosters in basketball. I'm not betting on NBA Preseason lmao, but if I was putting in some futures here's what I'd ride with 👇

• Clippers to win the Western Conference: +600

• Celtics to win the championship: +330

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