Who will make it? The West.

[RiotPunch]

Meant those to be win total rankings as well.

[Jestor]

1. New Orleans Pelicans - Until further notice, the champs belong here.

2. Houston Rockets - Beard power. Nuff said.

3. Phoenix Suns - It sucks being in the Pacific. Young, deep, and talented.

4. Utah Jazz* - Asterisked because I think they're without HCA in winning the Northwest. I'm taking a huge gamble here, but that's a legit starting five, and I'm sure Kevin will be picking the brains of smarter strategists to figure things out.

5. Sacramento Kings - It's going to be so close between them and the Suns all year long.

6. Minnesota Timberwolves - They can still win the division if rh0xxy stays active. I would have them at 4 instead of Utah if I could guarantee his activity in fact.

7. Dallas Mavericks - Team still needs a PG, but Myles will find a way to get one. Feels like people are really sleeping on this team.

8. Portland Trailblazers - Tankland will get in because unlike the Curry/Cousins combo, the Lillard/Cousins duo has enough defenders around them that the split won't be as much of an issue. They could well move up these rankings as well.

Best of the Rest
OKC Thunder - Balanced roster with strong defense. Could well sneak in here.
San Antonio Spurs - Desperately in need of a post scorer. Or to play KD at PF. Either way, I'm not feeling that frontcourt.
Memphis Grizzlies - Legendary backcourt, but the frontcourt is quite possibly the worst in the league. Even with trades, that's not going to cut it here.
Los Angeles Clippers - The Smart pickup was stupid. He's going to kill the team's offensive efficiency and eat shots from Howard and Wade. *Way* too many scorers on this team.
Los Angeles Lakers - Looking over the rosters, I think we have an outside shot at the playoffs. We need a star player, but I feel like our balance is much better than everyone on the Best of the Rest list except for the Thunder.

Bottom Feeders
Golden State Warriors - Curry and Dawson are good, but Embiid is raw as hell, and the rest of this roster is a giant meh. They need to trade Curry, or S&T him in the offseason. Give the Lakers a call. But seriously, rebuild mode.
Denver Nuggets - GM knows nothing about how the game works. They'll finish in the bottom of the conference because of that, even with Blake.

[bt]

1. Houston - Super team with arguably the best player in the league.
2. New Orleans - Still a super team but I also think White missing will have an impact.
3. Phoenix - Young, talented and internal development will keep them right in it.
4. Minnesota - Love the Westbrook/Oladipo back court.
5. Sacramento - Unsure what impact no Parker/Parsons will have on the team. Internal growth with key players entering 3rd seasons though so should contain.
6. Memphis - Also love this back court but ugly post. Enough to stay strong though.
7. Los Angeles - Of the Clippers variety. Smart still needs work, Howard is great but not a fan of the rest.
8. Portland - Could be 7 but they should be able to hold out the others for a spot.

[bt]

Forgot Rondo and OKC. I couldn't split Memphis, LA, Portland or OKC for 6, 7, 8.

[WillyJakkz]

1. Rockets: Kept enough assets around Harden to finally rep the West

2. Pelicans: Davis is beast for sure and Cotton's development keeps champs incredibly good but feel Okaro will be missed

3. Suns: Will continue to improve around Bledsoe Wiggins very formidable young team

4. Thunder: Very nice defensive fits in Rondo Butler etc but scoring may be their downfall

5. Kings: Well rounded defensively but another young team that may struggle scoring without Parsons

6. Clippers: Fit surrounding Howard Smart Wade is suspect though I really like Anderson w Dwight

7. Mavs: Think Myles sneaks Lopez and Co into Playoffs should Brook stay healthy and Nik matures

8. Lakers: Final spot choosing fit of DeMar Matthews Tavares Taj over more talented Minnesota and Portland

[Sun Scorched]

Yeah - I LOVE Okaro, but his stellar D was really only an advantage against certain teams, namely SAS and MIA, because of his ability to lock down KD and LeBron, but those teams really were not my main challenge. I hated getting zoned and White was the main part of that problem. I'm not actually sure if his defense made up for his lack of offense.

[NuggOlesk]

Lakers, lets swap 2017 1st round picks, if you think I am worst than you

[Sun Scorched]

Lakers, lets swap 2017 1st round picks, if you think I am worst than you

Hahaha - love it - putting your money where your mouth is!

[8timechamp]

Lakers, lets swap 2017 1st round picks, if you think I am worst than you

If he won't, I will
Deal or no deal(its bulls first btw)

[NuggOlesk]

Lakers, lets swap 2017 1st round picks, if you think I am worst than you

Hahaha - love it - putting your money where your mouth is!

Yeah, if he really thinks I will suck more than him, I am ALL open swaping picks!

[NanashiWake]

1) New Orleans Pelicans - Not only is the defending MVP going to have the target on his back this season for additional motivation, but SS didn't just sip his mojito on their cruise this summer, he stole a couple key signings from the free-agent class and looks to have improved his chances of repeating as CSL Champions.

2) Houston Rockets - James Harden is getting used to this PG role because Houston looked damn good last season and they look damn good again. I found it impressive that they made moves to prepare for their future while maintaining their present championship window and think they could give New Orleans a run for their money.

3) Phoenix Suns - I know this will most likely be where I began to differ from others, but I strongly feel that Phoenix has what it takes to make another huge leap this season. Guys like Wiggins and Wright are not only young but showing their preparedness for the CSL game. They really got the best out of their players last season and if they can repeat that, they'll be extremely dangerous at every point of the season.

4) Los Angeles Clippers - I was a believer in Marcus Smart's ability to lead a team last season and I haven't changed that opinion now that he's moved to a much better roster. Some people feel that he's too inefficient to be taken seriously, but I disagree. This team has a potent inside-out threat from multiple positions and I'd say this team has probably the biggest potential to upset a favorite in the post season.

5) Sacramento Kings - My, how the Pacific Division has changed for the better, as you can tell by them taking the last 3 spots on this list. The only thing I see killing this team is that I really feel they do everything really well, but nothing great. I'd say their most established strength has been defense but it's going to be interesting to see if anyone can step up and become a reliable go-to-guy.

6) Oklahoma City Thunder - Okay this is wear it started getting extremely close to me. I absolutely love several of the players on this roster and honestly without the addition of Rajon Rondo this off-season, I don't think I have them on my list. However, they did add Rondo and they are poised to challenge other teams heavily and I feel break through for the 6th spot.

7) Portland Trailblazers - I strongly feel the Lillard - Cousins pairing with work out similar to us here in Washington and with supporting players like James McAdoo and Tobias Harris, I'm confident in saying this team will beat out Brooklyn in most improved record.

8) San Antonio Spurs - I think this team is just strong enough with Durant returning for a trial season, to make it back to the playoffs, but seeing another 1st round exit. Durant will carry this team as much as he can on offense and I like the addition of Batum, but I still see a lot of holes. I think the key factor here will be injuries. Avoided the injury should be enough to hold of Memphis, Dallas, Minnesota, Utah and Golden State.

[lakeshowak7]

Division Winners:

New Orleans
Utah
Sacramento

Other "5" in order:

Houston
Phoenix
Portland
Los Angeles Clippers
Oklahoma City

What a bloodbath. Winning your division will be key for the playoffs as HCA will be needed to advance in the West. Has the Northwest gone from being a very weak conference to being god awfully deep?