Ten Bold Predictions for the Upcoming NBA Season

Whether they be positive or negative, here are my ten bold predictions for the 2017-2018 NBA season.

1: The Los Angeles Clippers will be a playoff team.

After losing Chris Paul to free agency, the Clippers have been written off by many as playoff contenders. Sure, losing a surefire Hall of Fame point guard is going to hurt, but the Clippers did a very good job finding replacements for him.

In exchange for Paul, the Clippers received Patrick Beverley, Lou Williams, Sam Dekker, and Montrezl Harrell. With Blake Griffin set to take control of the offense and be able to display his full arsenal of playmaking talents, Beverley is a fantastic fit alongside him. Beverley does not need the ball in his hands often to be successful, can stretch the floor and create space for Griffin to operate, and can defend the other team's best guard at an elite level. He was selected to the All-Defensive First Team last season, and for good reason.

Lou Williams will continue to play at a Sixth Man of the Year level, as he has been doing for the last three years, and Montrezl Harrell is a bouncy big man ready to contribute in spurts off the bench. Miloš Teodosić will bring three point shooting and playmaking to the second unit after dazzling Europe for years with his impressive passing ability.

Perhaps the biggest addition of the offseason for the Clippers was Danilo Gallinari. His ability to create on the offensive side of the ball helped lead the Nuggets to the third best offense in the NBA last season. He is an excellent off the ball option on the wing, and should mesh with Blake Griffin quickly.

Overall, these additions are more than enough to keep the Clippers afloat in the Western Conference playoff hunt, and while their title aspirations may be out the window, it is not unrealistic to believe this team can finish as high as sixth in the West.

2: The Atlanta Hawks will win fewer than 15 games this season.

After years of mediocrity and basketball purgatory, the Hawks decided to start from ground zero and clean house. They allowed Paul Millsap to walk in free agency, traded Dwight Howard to the Hornets, and are now left with a team full of youngsters that are unproven at the NBA level and with low upside.

Dennis Schroder broke out last year and displayed that he is deserving of being a starting point guard in this league. He will return to man what seems to be a sinking ship in Atlanta. Kent Bazemore is another solid role player for the Hawks, but after that there are question marks everywhere.

Historically, there have only been 16 teams ever to win fewer than 15 games in a season. Most recently, the Philadelphia 76ers struggled to do so in 2016 in the midst of their historic tank job. Last season, the Brooklyn Nets managed to win 20 games despite their lack of talent, but they did have borderline All-Star Brook Lopez, veteran point guard Jeremy Lin, and emerging young players such as Sean Kilpatrick, Isaiah Whitehead, Caris Levert, and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson who showed some promise throughout the year.

This Hawks team, talent-wise, is more reminiscent of the 2016 Sixers than the 2017 Nets. Their goal should be to lose as many games as possible, because being able to land someone like Michael Porter Jr., Luka Doncic, or Marvin Bagley in the 2018 draft could turn this team right around.

3: The Los Angeles Lakers will be the worst team in the West.

Before I begin here, I just want to say that I am a big supporter of the Big Baller Brand and am very high on Lonzo Ball as a prospect moving forward. That being said, his impact in year one will not be nearly enough to elevate the team out of lottery status.

Lonzo will, without a doubt, create numerous jaw-dropping plays this year with his court vision and passing ability, but as seen in the summer league, it is going to take him some time to adjust to the NBA game when it comes to scoring the basketball. Playing against rookies and D-Leaguers in the summer league, Lonzo shot an inefficient 38.3 percent from the field.

The biggest reason why the Lakers might get stuck at the bottom of the conference is because every team around them seemingly got better. The Kings added veterans George Hill and Zach Randolph to guide their young core of De'Aaron Fox, Buddy Hield, and Skal Labissière. The Mavericks added Dennis Smith Jr. in the draft and resigned Nerlens Noel to sure up a team that had already won 33 games last year. The Timberwolves will no longer be at the bottom of the West either after adding All-Star Jimmy Butler through trade.

This leaves the Lakers and the Suns battling it out at the bottom of the West, and between Devin Booker, Josh Jackson, Eric Bledsoe, and Dragan Bender, I believe the Suns will slightly edge out the Lakers.

4: Both Demarcus Cousins and Anthony Davis will play out the entire season on the Pelicans.

Rumors have been swirling ever since the Kyrie Irving trade went down about the Cavaliers and the Celtics possibly targeting one of these bigs in a trade. The Cavaliers would have to give up the Nets first round pick and the Celtics would have to give up a few key assets, which could benefit the Pelicans in the long run.

The Pelicans, however, might not be so quick to accept a deal along these lines, as they have a chance to compete for a playoff spot this year in the West. They brought in Rajon Rondo, Tony Allen, and Ian Clark while also being able to resign Jrue Holiday, making for an exciting team to watch this season. Floor spacing could create issues, but with arguably the two best big men in the league on the same team for an entire season there should be no reason why the Pelicans can't at least be the eight seed this postseason.

Demarcus Cousins' contract expires after this season, and without the guarantee of him resigning, teams will probably be hesitant to trade for him. Anthony Davis still has three years left before his contract expires, so the asking price would more than likely be massive in order to trade for him. Their names will be involved in trade talks all year, but I do not see either star big man being moved before the All-Star break.

5: Rudy Gobert will not lead the Jazz to the playoffs.

After losing Gordon Hayward and George Hill to free agency, many Jazz fans still have faith that their team can compete for a playoff spot. Between those two, the team is losing 38.8 points per game, which will be difficult to replace on a team with few shot creators remaining.

The team brought in Ricky Rubio to replace Hill at the point guard spot, but while his playmaking ability for others has always been at a high level, his shot making ability has consistently been detrimental to every team he has played on. He has never been on a playoff team, and his inefficiency from the three point line (ranked 164th out of 169 last season) makes it easier to take him out of plays. Compared to having George Hill running the offense, who shoots 47.7 percent from the field and 40.3 percent from three, the lack of spacing is going to create issues for the offense.

The Jazz will be relying on Rudy Gobert to take a major step forward this season offensively, but whether or not he is capable of doing so is yet to be seen. He has never really displayed a large plethora of moves on the offensive end, and relies heavily on others creating open looks for him to score the ball. About 94.1 percent of Gobert's shots came within five feet of the rim last year, and when he shot the ball outside of five feet he only made 32.4 percent of them. 74.1 percent of his made field goals were assisted on as well, showing that about three out of every four shots he makes were set up by someone else.

On top of all of that, many teams in the Western Conference have added the talent necessary to pass the Jazz this offseason. The Timberwolves added Jimmy Butler, the Nuggets added Paul Millsap, and the Pelicans, Grizzlies, and Trail Blazers will still be competing for a playoff spot. Overall, the losses of Hayward and Hill will be too much to overcome, and the Jazz will find themselves watching the playoffs from home this year.

6: Kevin Durant finishes top three in MVP voting.

After joining the Golden State Warriors, many made the assumption that having Kevin Durant and Stephen Curry on the same team would cancel them both out of the MVP race. While this assumption may have been true last season, in which Russell Westbrook, James Harden, and Kawhi Leonard were the top three vote getters, it was in large part due to Durant missing an extended period of time due to injury.

Before the injury, Durant was playing incredibly efficient basketball for the Warriors on both ends of the floor. He was blocking more shots than ever before, and his versatility to be able to switch onto any player on defense was very valuable during the team's championship run. To add to this, he scored the ball more efficiently than he had ever done in his career, posting a true shooting percentage of 65.1 percent.

The Warriors may not be considered Durant's team, but he certainly is the best player for them, and the best player on the best team on the league more often than not finishes top three in the MVP voting.

7: Julius Randle loses his starting job.

Julius Randle is one of the most peculiar players in the entire NBA. He's a multi-talented playmaking forward who's highlight reel is easy to fall in love with. He is strong, quick, and skilled, and finds the most success in transition, where he creates offense either for himself or for others at a high level.

The problem for Randle comes in half court offense, which happens to be the majority of offensive possessions. The Lakers have a net rating of minus-10.2 with Randle on the court and a minus-3.5 net rating with him on the bench. Randle's terrible net rating was the lowest out of every rotation player on the Lakers, and the team's net rating becomes the highest on the team when he sits. So far, Randle's stats have been empty, and a lot of factors point to him contributing very little to winning basketball.

Part of why Randle is so ineffective in half court sets is because his jump shot is a complete non-threat. He's a career 27.3 percent shooter from three, which leads to defenders backing off of him and forcing him to come to them.

Players like Larry Nance Jr., who is a much better defender, and Kyle Kuzma, who is a much better shooter, will be competing for minutes this year, and with the Lakers having traded away their first round pick this year they have no reason to tank. They will be playing the players that help them win first and foremost, and Randle's leash will be extra small this year.

8: The San Antonio Spurs will not win a playoff series this year.

With the Rockets adding Chris Paul and the Warriors being the Warriors, the Spurs are slated to finish third in the Western Conference this season. After an offseason where seemingly every top free agent flocked to the West, this could be problematic for the Spurs.

Teams that are most likely to finish around sixth in the conference, such as the Nuggets and Timberwolves, have made significant upgrades to their rosters that have them ready to compete with anyone. The Nuggets added star forward Paul Millsap, and the Timberwolves added star guard Jimmy Butler.

The Spurs, on the other hand, are trending in the wrong direction. Lamarcus Aldridge is a shell of himself, and players like Manu Ginobli, Tony Parker, and Pau Gasol are another year older. Kawhi Leonard is still a superstar in his prime, but the team that got taken to six games by Houston last year has done nothing to improve, and it is debatable that they have gotten worse this offseason. Sure, they added Rudy Gay to replace Jonathan Simmons, but Rudy Gay has proven throughout his career that his presence on a team really doesn't elevate that team at all.

The Nuggets had one of the best offenses in the league last season, and the addition of Millsap is sure to solidify their defense. The Timberwolves have Karl-Anthony Towns, who had a historically great second season in the league, and is set to become one of the best centers in the entire league this year. Add that to rising star Andrew Wiggins and current star Jimmy Butler, and the Spurs might be in trouble.

The West is as loaded as ever, and with many of the Spurs contributors on the wrong side of 30 age-wise, there is a good chance their playoff run gets cut short.

9: Robert Covington will make First Team All-Defense.

There is a case to be made that Covington was snubbed from making the All-Defense team this past season. With the 76ers set to play 14 games on national television this year, Covington's national recognition should also increase.

Last season Covington was one of only four players to average 1.5+ steals per game and 1.0+ blocks per game. He forced players to shoot 3.4 percent worse from the field when he defended them and he led the entire NBA in defensive deflections at 4.2 per game. Oddly enough, he finished fourth in Defensive Player of the Year voting despite not making an All-Defense team, so he is beginning to get some of the respect he deserves.

Covington, along with Joel Embiid, helped anchor the third best defense in the league in the month of January, and that success could have continued had Embiid not gotten injured. With Embiid back to full strength, the Sixers could once again be a top defensive team.

He may not be a household name yet, but his time in the spotlight is approaching.

10: Lauri Markkanen emerges as a legitimate Rookie of the Year candidate.

When the Bulls traded up in the draft, many fans were disappointed when they wound up drafting Markkanen. Players like Dennis Smith Jr. and Malik Monk were still available and both were seen as better prospects at the time.

Players with play styles similar to Markkanen often get a negative response by the fanbase that draft him, so this was no surprise. Kristaps Porzingis was boo'd by Knicks fans on draft night, and Suns fans were uneasy when they drafted Dragan Bender last year.

This summer, Markkanen has been dominating his opponents in the European basketball tournament called Eurobasket. Many of the best players from around the world compete in this tournament, and Markkanen emerged as a force from the get go for the Finnish national team. He can shoot over defenders with ease, score in the post with a plethora of moves, and has a sneakily good handle of the ball for a seven footer.

With the Bulls in full rebuild mode, there will be plenty of opportunity for Markkanen to show what he can do on the court. He is going to get plenty of minutes, which should lead to plenty of production. His team may not win many games, but his production could be on par with any other rookie in his class. He may not win the award over highly touted rookies like Ben Simmons or Lonzo Ball, but his name will be in the conversation for sure.