Now that we are over half done the 2022-23 NBA season, I thought it was a good practice to revisit my early season predictions. It’s been an odd season so far, especially from the perspective of a Toronto Raptors fan. Boy was I off. Scoring is way up, no team looks like they are unbeatable and honestly I think the biggest key to winning the title will be health.
Here are my predictions for the season with a little commentary added on how it’s going as of January 30th.
Eastern Conference
- Milwaukee Bucks (current 3)
- Philadelphia 76ers (current 2)
- Boston Celtics (current 1)
- Toronto Raptors (current 12)
- Atlanta Hawks (current 8)
- Cleveland Cavaliers (current 5)
- Miami Heat (current 6)
- Brooklyn Nets (current 4)
- Chicago Bulls (current 10)
- Detroit Pistons (current 15)
- New York Knicks (current 7)
- Charlotte Hornets (current 14)
- Washington Wizards (current 9)
- Indiana Pacers (current 11)
- Orlando Magic (current 13)
I have one right so far. Let’s see how the last few months play out. Indiana could be in the top eight. Was way off on Toronto and Brooklyn.
Western Conference
- Memphis Grizzlies (current 2)
- LA Clippers (current 4)
- Golden State Warriors (current 6)
- Denver Nuggets (current 1)
- Dallas Mavericks (current 7)
- Minnesota Timberwolves (current 5)
- Phoenix Suns (current 9)
- New Orleans Pelicans (current 8)
- Portland Trail Blazers (current 12)
- LA Lakers (current 13)
- Sacramento Kings (current 3)
- Houston Rockets (current 15)
- San Antonio Spurs (current 14)
- Oklahoma City Thunder (current 11)
- Utah Jazz (current 10)
Again, one correct. But in the West, things are so tight that if I did this tomorrow, it would be much different. The Clippers are moving closer to where people thought they would be, but the Kings and Jazz are huge surprises to me based on looking at my pre season picks.
Other Predictions
If I get at least 2 of these right, that’s a win.
- Memphis will have the best record in the Western Conference despite miss JJJ for part of the season. (True)
- Brooklyn will once again self implode and struggle to stay in the playoff mix. (Looked good early, but this one is a false)
- Jamal Murray is going to be top 20 in scoring. (False, currently 51st)
- Shai will be traded by Christmas. (False)
- The Lakers will trade Anthony Davis. (False)
- Gary Trent Jr. will lead the NBA in steals. (False, he is currently tied for sixth)
- James Harden WON’T quit on his team this year. (True, so far)
- Luka will win MVP although looking at my first point, it kind of has to be Ja? Nope sticking with Luka. (Still possible)
- Sacramento will almost make the playoffs. But once again disappoint. (True for the first part)
- Trae Young will lead the league in scoring. (False, he is currently seventh)
- LeBron will finally look average and instead focus on his Pickleball investment. (Waaay off. False)
- Scottie Barnes will average a triple double. (False, however he is averaging 15.7 PPG, 7.1 REB and 4.9 AST)
- Utah will win nine games. Yep that’s it. (Wow, way off. False. They have 26 currently.)
- Kyrie WILL get vaccinated. But not for reasons that make sense. (I don’t believe he ever did)
- Nick Nurse will launch a podcast. (False, but he is growing his TV career)
- Deandre Ayton will in fact smile again. (False, I could not find on image. Maybe he needs to come to Toronto?)
So there you have it. My revisit of preseason 2022-23 NBA predictions. I won’t be bragging about these. Just goes to show, this is why they still play the games.
