By Hocine LOUKKAF on 10/23/2018

For his potential last team before the end of his career, Lebron decided to join his main opponent, the Warriors. He has brought with him Rondo and McGee but it may not be enough to contend for the title. The Warriors are stronger than ever, waiting for DMC to come back from his injury. The Clippers will have the money to pay two stars next summer but they will bother a lot of teams this season with lots of vets and defensive experts. Finally, Sacramento and Phoenix will just try to improve helped respectivley by rookies Marvin Bagley and number one pick DeAndre Ayton.

#1 Golden State Warriors

If you thought the Warriors could not get better, try to add a top 3 center in the League. Despite being injured, Cousins has no pressure to come back soon and will take time to heal. The Warriors have finally launched Damian Jones whose size and athleticism will help against real centers. The rest of the team remain the same with KD, Curry, Klay and Green at their best. Golden State has only one goal, win the championship.

#2 Los Angeles Lakers

A lot of change for the Lakers with of course Lebron in the building. King James came to win and reaching the playoffs will not satisfy him. To help him, the staff also recruited vets Rondo, McGee and Stephenson to show the way to the young core of Ball, Ingram, Kuzma or Hart. Now, will this roster gel? The team may lack an offensive threat inside to play in the post as they lost both Lopez and Randle while the PG spot may lack some shooting with Rondo and Ball. We’ll see after one or two months which direction this team takes.

#3 Los Angeles Clippers

After Chris Paul and Blake Griffin, the Clippers lost the third member of their big three, DeAndre Jordan, who decided to come back to his native Texas. Already filled with solid defensive players like Beverley, Bradley or Harrell, the staff has added Gortat and Mbah a Moute. On offense, Williams, Gallinari and Harris form a solid trio of scorers who will create problems for a lot of teams. Add rookie Gilgeous-Alexander, a high upside PG prospect from Kentucky and this team has enough power to be a real  underdog in the West.

#4 Phoenix Suns

The Suns have been lucky with a top pick which gave them the opportunity to draft Arizona star DeAndre Ayton. He is supposed to bring new breath to the team and scoring inside. He was not known especially for his defense but has the tools, if he becomes tougher, to be one of top centers in the League. The Suns have also used the draft to bring another potential two-way player, Mikal Bridges who will compete with Jackson and Ariza for playing time, and French combo guard Elie Okobo. The staff traded Chriss for Ryan Anderson but has not solved the PG problem with Canaan as the starter. The playoffs still seems out of reach but the Suns have to make a real improvement this year.

#5 Sacramento Kings

After one more season of losses, the Kings are searching for a positive sign. They used the draft to bring Duke’s PF Marvin Bagley who will join a roster full of alumnis from the big schools. At the PG spot, the Kings may have found their pair with Fox and Mason, two complementary players. The inside sector has potential with Cauley-Stein, Labissiere, Bjelica and Giles. As Bogdanovic has been injured, Hield will start and be helped by Shumpert. The wing is a bit weak with Justin Jackson as the only real SF. In a very tough Western Conference, more than 30 wins would already be nice.

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