The 2021/2022 season is full of unknowns. The Milwaukee Bucks proclaimed NBA champions just a few months ago, achieving his first title in decades. Giannis Antetokounmpo He led a team that had been on the verge of success too many times and established himself as one of the great players on the planet.
However, the return to ‘school’ leaves us many doubts. The new NBA course is about to start and predicting a champion is not easy. Of course, the Bucks themselves are once again candidates for the Larry O’Brien trophy, but they are not the only ones capable of winning it all. Who are the top favorites to the ring?
We will leave the analysis of the current champions for last. First you have to take a look at the teams that can succeed Wisconsin’s throne. To talk about the first great candidate you don’t have to go very far. The Brooklyn Nets They are once again, one more year, the team to beat. They have been doing things very well for a while and building a team with the necessary pieces to take the title.
However, luck has never been on his side. They put together a ‘Big-Three’ of film with Kevin Durant, James Harden and Kyrie Irving but these three stars have hardly shared the field. Injuries and personal problems have always been protagonists in a team that does not finish dominating. Now the controversy around Irving and his refusal to get vaccinated threatens to shake Steve Nash’s house of cards again.
If they can stay healthy, get performance from your bench and his old glories,Hello, Griffin and Aldridge!) and maintain good locker room chemistry, they will once again be favorites in the ring. They and no one else are the real alternative to the Milwaukee Bucks in the Eastern Conference.
And on the other side of the country? Things are more complicated there. The two Angeleno teams are always favorites. To what? To everything. However, this year there are many obstacles that could come your way. The first is injuries. For some they have already started and it is that Los Angeles Clippers can’t count on Kawhi Leonard start and possibly throughout the year. This drastically reduces his options, but Ty Lue’s roster is talented enough to pull forward without him.
In the same city we have the eternal rival, Los angeles lakers. Those who were champions just over a year ago in Disney they have undergone a total facelift. Barely LeBron James, Anthony Davis and Horton-Tucker were still on the team of that team that won the ring. The laps of Dwight Howard and Rajon Rondo have made up a bit of this fact but the truth is that the Lakers have assembled an All-Stars squad to be champions without anyone coughing them … In 2012, of course.
The reader may not fully understand what we mean. The truth is that the Lakers have moved a lot and well this summer. Have signed to Russell Westbrook or Carmelo Anthony, among others, but they have made a template for which the clock begins to tighten. The gold and purple ones don’t have much margin and can’t wait long; they have to win now.
Who then completes the list of candidates for the title? There are several teams, mainly in the Wild West, who could discuss things with the aforementioned. Golden State Warriors wants to be up again. Injuries are a thing of the past (or almost) and the youngsters already have their experience in the league. Steph Curry It is before one of his last opportunities to obtain one more ring to put the icing on his career in the bay.
Behind we find Phoenix Suns y Utah Jazz, two of the great surprises of last season. Some had the best balance of the entire regular season, while the others reached the NBA Finals, where they lost to the Bucks. Both franchises have changed their squad construction just enough to cover weaknesses. This year they will be a headache for many teams.
Finally, as promised, there are the Milwaukee Bucks. The Budenholzer boys hit the mark last year and were proclaimed NBA champions. What do you need to repeat? Good luck, perseverance and, like everyone else, some improvement. The immobility never helped anyone. Wisconsin have retained a number of key players and have moved well in free agency to leverage a squad that has tasted glory and wants more. Now the only thing missing is that the ball flies and everyone starts to play.
Favorites to title
Ranking of bookmakers
1-
Los angeles lakers
1-
Brooklyn Nets
3
Milwaukee Bucks
4
Golden State Warriors
5
Los Angeles Clippers
Read also
