With preseason now on its way, each day inches closer and closer to the start of the regular season action that we know and love. This year, with many teams making major moves such as the Knicks trading their multiple time all-star Julius Randle for another past all-star in Karl-Anthony Towns, or the 76ers signing Paul George in free agency, the competition to win the title is closer than ever. Although it’s nearly impossible to predict what will happen to a team with injuries or a player not playing up to expectations, there are some factors we can look at to make an educated guess at who will succeed. These factors include past success, fit, and most importantly talent. With that in mind, let’s take a look into the teams that The Trumpet’s staff thinks have the best chance to win a title this year.
- Philadelphia 76ers
The 76ers had a great start to the season last year with Joel Embiid playing at an MVP level and Tyrese Maxey taking another jump to become a legit all-star caliber player. But that didn’t last long as he went down with an injury that lasted him nearly the entire season. After that, the 76ers weren’t anywhere nearly the same, falling all the way down to the seventh seed and just barely grabbing a playoff spot. This season they look strong though with Embiid back and adding Paul George, this team talent wise is without a doubt a top 3 team in the league. However, there’s one thing holding them back, injuries. We’ve already talked about what happened to Embiid last season and adding in an injury prone George doesn’t help that problem. The chances of both of them being healthy for the playoffs is slim to none. But with the slim chance that they are, you can’t leave them outside the top five.
- Dallas Mavericks
The Mavericks were quite the opposite of Philadelphia. They started off slow and it seemed as if they were undoubtedly going to be a play-in team at best. But right when all hope seemed lost they started to win some games and grabbed the fifth seed in the west. They carried that momentum all throughout the playoffs and found themselves in the finals where they eventually lost in five games. With an MVP candidate in Luka Doncic and one of the best sidekicks in the league in Kyrie Irving, they’re in prime position to head right back to where they were last season.
- New York Knicks
The Knicks have one of the deepest rosters in the league with an unreal amount of talent. They have a star in Jalen Brunson who has continued to make giant leaps in his game over the past two years. Pair him with great complementary pieces like newly acquired Karl-Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges, as well as keeping great role players such as OG Anunoby and Josh Hart and you have a title contender. If Brunson can keep progressing his game and the pieces all fit together, then the Knicks may have a chance to end their 52 year title drought.
- Oklahoma City Thunder
The Thunder may have one of the youngest rosters in the league, but you can’t overlook their talent. They have a big three in Shai-Gilgeous Alexander, Jalen Williams, and Chet Holmgren, while also adding two important role players in Isaiah Hartenstein and Alex Caruso. They’ve already proven themselves as well by earning the number one seed in the west last season. There’s no one that they can’t beat on any given night, but as good as they are there’s still one more team that’s sure to give them a run for their money.
- Boston Celtics
The Celtics are the easy favorites to repeat again this year. Last year’s Champion, the most stacked roster in the league, and a force to be reckoned with for any team that has to go through them in the playoffs. They managed to resign just about all of their key pieces from last year’s title run and are looking to become the first team to go back to back since the 2017-18 Warriors. Even with the league becoming more competitive, my bet is still on the Celtics to bring home the title.
