NBA: I am the card dealer

Fourth place: Washington Wizards.

They made a strong run into the playoffs last season, and the backcourt duo showed extremely strong competitiveness, so it is not surprising that they are predicted to be in this position in the new season. After all, Wall has reached his full maturity, and Beal has fulfilled his talent and officially grown into a top-notch scorer.

In the new season, they retained Marquis Morris, Gortat, Mahinmi and other strong players, and added Scott, a forward, so their strength is absolutely guaranteed.

In addition, they have two other young talents who are emerging and have great hope that they can grow into capable assistants to Wall and Beal in the new season.

That's right.

These two people are Otto Porter, the third pick in 13, and Oubre, the 15th pick in .

The former averaged 13.4 points per game last season, with a shooting percentage of 51.6% and a three-point shooting percentage of 43.4%. He performed very well. Coupled with his standard forward size, he is expected to become the Wizards' third giant in the new season.

After two seasons, Oubre's superb breakthrough skills and good touch have been recognized by the Wizards. In the new season, he will become the most effective player on the bench.

Such a Wizards team is bound to become one of the spoilers in the Eastern Conference in the new season, so the mainstream media have placed it in the upper half.

Third place: Boston Celtics.

Isaiah Thomas, Jaylen Brown, Tatum, Hayward, and Horford, just this starting lineup is enough to be dazzling.

In the gift package sent by the Nets, the two rookies are really dazzling!

However, their combat effectiveness needs to be verified in the new season.

If Brown can continue to grow and Tatum can perform as expected, with a lineup like theirs, they have a chance to challenge for first place in the Eastern Conference. After all, they have a solid foundation.

In addition to the starters, they also have Rozier, who emerged last season, Smart, who has been well trained, and new players such as Marcus Morris, Baynes, and Theis.

There is no doubt that their lineup on paper is considered luxurious in the East.

With three All-Stars and two third picks, they will officially launch an attack on the finals in the new season, and there are only one or two teams that can compete with them.

Second place: New York Knicks.

Oladipo's departure is extremely harmful to New York, but they did not sit idly by during the offseason. First, they signed Hardaway Jr. with a high salary, hoping to make up for the shortcomings of Oladipo's departure.

Then they brought in Korver, a three-point shooter who could effectively open up space and fill the vacancy left by PJ Tucker, and then they brought in Darren Collison to strengthen the backcourt.

In addition, they have retained strong players such as Crowder, Jeff Green, Ilyasova, Rooney, etc., so the overall strength is still very strong.

After all, James has an All-Star level Lopez by his side, and the main structure has not been destroyed. James + Lopez is still worth looking forward to.

But if we go for the championship, it might be a bit risky.

Oladipo's departure broke the Knicks' ceiling, which means that the championship factor is completely gone.

Last season, they failed to win the championship even with the Big Three. This time, without Oladipo, who has extremely strong offensive ability, it is really a fantasy for them to dream of winning the championship.

But in the East, the Knicks are still one of the strongest teams.

No one can ignore James, and no one dares to underestimate the overall strength of the Knicks.

The first place is the Toronto Raptors.

DeRozan + Lowry are still their foundation. Keeping Lowry is a no-brainer. With them, the playoffs are absolutely guaranteed.

And they have been very active in the offseason.

First, he used a high salary to keep Ibaka, the inside pillar, and then spent a lot of money to dig CJ Miles, and then connected with Carroll, the inefficient and high-paid burden.

Most importantly, they signed Jeremy Lin from the Brooklyn Nets.

This is simply Lei Feng!

The Raptors' bench was already weak, and the scorers who could connect with the offense were not very reliable. Now that Jeremy Lin is here, their shortcomings are directly made up.

In addition, they also have Valanciunas, Siakam, VanVleet, Wright, Porter and other strong players.

Their lineup is also very strong in the Eastern Conference.

The arrival of Jeremy Lin pushed them to the top of the Eastern Conference.

After all, in recent years, the Raptors have always been a strong team in the Eastern Conference playoffs, and even dominated the upper half at one point. Their summer reinforcements were very targeted, and the overall improvement was visible to the naked eye, so it is not surprising that they were ranked first in the Eastern Conference by ESPN.

The only teams that can compete with them are the Knicks and Celtics.

The Knicks' strength seemed to have declined significantly after Oladipo left, which caused them to miss the first place.

The Celtics' two top picks' immediate combat effectiveness has not been verified, and Thomas is too short, which creates a natural loophole, so they were not ranked first.

Overall, the overall strength of the Eastern Conference has been downgraded.

After all, the Knicks are still one of the strongest teams in the Eastern Conference without Oladipo. This is clearly a serious relegation!

Last season, it was a battle between the Knicks' Big Three and the Heat's Big Three. Their momentum to break out of the Eastern Conference was obvious at a glance.

And what is the situation this season?

The Big Three have all disbanded, and no team stands out. The chaos has led to a situation of division among many factions, giving people the feeling that anyone can potentially get the first spot in the Eastern Conference.

But the West is different.

The Warriors' lineup is very complete, and they are undoubtedly the strongest team in the Western Conference, bar none.

The Spurs did not give up after being overturned in the Western Conference Finals. While keeping Gasol and Mills, they also brought in Rudy Gay, which preserved their strength.

The Spurs, with their Leonard and Aldridge combination, are still the biggest challenger to the Warriors, and may be one of the few challengers currently in the league.

Because there is simply no team in the Eastern Conference that can compete with the Warriors.

Apart from the Spurs, the only team left in the West is the Houston Rockets.

During the offseason, they brought in top point guard Paul to form a strong backcourt with Harden, which made their strength take a qualitative leap.

After all, the Rockets were very fierce last season, ranking third in the Western Conference in the regular season, second only to the Warriors and Spurs, but they were a bit fragile in the playoffs and were easily defeated by the Spurs.

And now that they have Paul joining them, it is equivalent to the third in the Western Conference + Paul, so their strength is naturally earth-shaking.

They are also a challenger for the Warriors, so it is still worth looking forward to.

Then there is the Oklahoma City Thunder, who traded Whiteside, who can't create space, for Gasol, an all-around center, and Will Barton, a scoring expert. There is no doubt that their strength has been improved.

Gasol may not have the rim-protecting ability he had in his peak period, but his ability to coordinate from the high post and create space is definitely what other teams in the league dream of.

This is important to Westbrook.

Because Westbrook's playing style is characterized by attacking the basket, it is a perfect match with Marc Gasol. Gasol can create a lot of space in the interior, making it easier for Westbrook to break through.

Gasol can also assist from his comfortable high position and attack from time to time.

The two of them working together should be able to create an effect where 1+1 is greater than 2.

The arrival of Will Barton will solve their problem of lack of scoring points, and he will be one of Westbrook's most capable helpers.

and so.

Their overall strength has definitely been improved, but the price is three first-round picks, and what they sacrificed is their future!

But can such a lineup stop the Warriors?

I guess it’s tough enough…

Next up is the Minnesota Timberwolves.

After getting Butler and Teague, they were directly promoted to four-star Timberwolves, and the strength of the lineup on paper was really a leap forward!

Coupled with Thibodeau's coaching, they have endless possibilities.

But Wiggins and Towns have never proven themselves since entering the league, which will be a huge problem.

After all, you haven't even played in the playoffs, and when you say you want to win the championship, it doesn't seem that realistic.

Then there are the New Orleans Pelicans.

They have twin towers, but they failed to get used to each other last season and did not make a name for themselves.

In the new season, they have three rounds of trial and error, and with Jrue Holiday staying and Rondo arriving, their strength on paper is still pretty good.

But again, Cousins ​​has never proven himself.

Davis has only made it to the playoffs once and has not shown absolute dominance.

So how far they can go depends on the chemistry between the twin towers. If they can work well together, they also have unlimited possibilities.

In addition to this, they have a fatal flaw, which is that their bench strength is too weak. If they want to go further, they must continue to strengthen their strength.

Next up is the Portland Trail Blazers.

Lillard and CJ McCollum were questioned for missing the playoffs last season, but no matter what, they are both rare duos in the league and are bound to be contenders for a playoff spot.

Then there are the Lakers.

As the defending champions last season, it is really sad that they have fallen to the point where they can only compete for a playoff spot.

But at least the championship team stayed, including Randle, Clarkson, Courtney Lee, James Johnson, Vonleh, Glenn Robinson, Joe Johnson, Zubac, and Larry Nance. The presence of these people made them competitive in the West.

Although their performance in the playoffs last season was very bad and they were criticized by the media and fans, they won the championship after all. If they didn't have some skills, how could they have maintained the points of others except Xue Liancheng?

There is no doubt that they are all powerful players, but compared with teams full of giants like the Spurs, Warriors, and Knicks, they seem very small.

That's it.

The arrival of Anthony has once again raised their bottom line, and it should not be a problem for them to fight for a playoff spot.

of course.

It mainly depends on Anthony's performance. If Anthony performs well, they can continue to move forward.

If Anthony performs mediocrely, they will be playoff gatekeepers, which is the general prediction of the media.

A strong contender for a playoff spot - the Denver Nuggets.

Last season they were not too far from the playoffs, and this season they added All-Star player Millsap, which greatly improved their strength.

They still have some competitiveness in the Western Conference, but compared to the Lakers, they have no advantage, so they can only be contenders for a playoff spot.

One of the contenders for the playoffs: the Los Angeles Clippers.

After losing Paul and JJ Redick, their strength has been greatly weakened, but they still have Griffin, Jordan Jr., long-range turret Gallinari, and Louis Williams. They still have some combat effectiveness and will not dive all the way.

But it doesn't seem easy to compete for a playoff spot.

Because none of the teams above are easy to deal with.

The guardian of the playoff tickets - Utah Jazz.

With the departure of Hayward and George Hill, they fell from the top four teams last season to the predicted eleventh place in the Western Conference.

There is nothing that can be done about it. After all, after Hayward, the scoring leader, left, they seem to have no decent scoring point.

However, their defense is still worth looking forward to. Gobert has already developed his rim protection ability, which he demonstrated last season, and it was simply amazing.

Then there are the Grizzlies.

Although they were a playoff team last season, their strength has declined instead of improved after losing their strong inside player, Big Black Bear Randolph. After all, they basically did not make any reinforcements in the summer.

If other teams remain competitive, then you will be eliminated. This is the truth that if you don't move forward, you will move backward.

Their overall lineup is not even as good as the broken Clippers.

The last Suns, Mavericks, and Kings.

These three teams have essentially locked up a lottery pick.

There is no hope.

The only thing people are looking forward to is whether Booker of the Suns can continue to improve.

The Mavericks have officially entered the rebuilding phase.

The Kings have been rebuilding, especially after Cousins ​​left, almost no one was optimistic about them.

This is ESPN's team prediction ranking.

The player rankings are even more interesting, after all, this is something that fans love to watch.

Many times, fans actually have a scale in their hearts and know what level this player is, so ESPN's ranking of players is very attractive.

Fans will subconsciously confirm their own thoughts.

If ESPN's ranking is wrong or does not meet their psychological expectations, they will jump up and curse.

But if ESPN's ranking meets their psychological expectations, it would be different and they would benefit a lot.

Regardless of whether it matches or not, who is the biggest winner?

Without a doubt, it is ESPN.

If the ranking does not match the fans' expectations, then ESPN will earn enough traffic.

If the ranking matches the fans' expectations, ESPN will gain prestige and continue to expand its influence.

It's simply the best of both worlds, grabbing both topics and traffic, and that's where ESPN excels.

of course.

Many players are disdainful of it.

The ranking was too high and the fans scolded him.

I was ranked low and felt insulted.

Anyway, the players are the ones who are neither here nor there.