2020-21 NBA Western Conference Preview and Predictions

After an abbreviated offseason, the 2020-21 NBA Season is set to tip-off with Los Angeles Lakers looking to defend their crown in a Western Conference that’s once again loaded with talent.

Here’s a look at how each team in the West will look this year followed by some predictions about the upcoming season.

Oklahoma City Thunder

The Oklahoma City Thunder are in the middle of rebuilding their franchise, and it’s going to show this season.

Oklahoma City will begin the 2020-21 NBA season with a roster consisting of a core of young players like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Darius Bazley and Lu Dort, but with no big-name veterans after the Thunder traded them all of them for draft picks.

The Thunder could be exciting to watch at times this year with a roster filled with promising young talent, but they won’t come close to contending for a playoff spot, much less an NBA Championship. As a result, they have the worst odds to win the Western Conference at +10000

Sacramento Kings

The Sacramento Kings should be fun to watch this 2020-21 NBA season, but that doesn’t mean they’ll be a contender in the Western Conference.

The Kings will once again be led by the high-powered backcourt combo of D’Aaron Fox and Buddy Hield and will see another year of development from the young Marvin Bagley. They also added veteran center Hassan Whiteside and rookie Tyrese Haliburton, both of whom should make a positive impact this season.

Sacramento will be explosive and put up points offensively this season, but the Western Conference is just too deep for the Kings to be considered legitimate contenders, so they’re tied with the second-worst odds to win the West at +9000.

Minnesota Timberwolves

After finishing with a lackluster 19-45 record last season, the Minnesota Timberwolves made some key additions this offseason that should bring some improvement to the team, but it’s unlikely to boost them enough to contend in the Western Conference.

The Timberwolves added Ricky Rubio and rookie Anthony Edwards to a roster that already featured former All-Stars Karl-Anthony Towns and D’Angelo Russell, which should lead to a solid offense, but concerns defensively will likely keep Minnesota out of playoff and NBA title contention as the Timberwolves have the second-worst odds to win the West at +9000

San Antonio Spurs

Last season, the San Antonio Spurs missed the playoffs for the first time since the 1996-97 season, and they did almost nothing outside of the NBA Draft to improve their roster heading into the 2020-21 season.

The Spurs do have a pair of talented All-Star veterans in LaMarcus Aldridge and DeMar DeRozan making up the core of the roster. However, San Antonio really has no proven talent outside of those two players, especially compared to the talent-rich Western Conference. As a result, the Spurs are a longshot to win the West at +7000 odds.

Memphis Grizzlies

The Memphis Grizzlies are a promising team with plenty of young talent, but they still might not be quite ready to compete for a playoff spot.

The Grizzlies didn’t do much to improve their roster this offseason, but they’re still led by a talented young core of Ja Morant, Jaren Jackson Jr. and Justice Winslow. Unfortunately for Memphis, both Jackson and Winslow will be out to start the season, likely putting the Grizzlies in an early-season hole in the playoff race.

With such a young team, beginning the season without multiple key players could doom a team that already had longshot +7000 odds of winning the Western Conference.

New Orleans Pelicans

The New Orleans Pelicans are looking to qualify for the NBA Playoffs for the first time since the 2017-18 season, and with the addition of a few key veterans and a young core, they could very well do it.

Former No. 1 overall pick Zion Williamson is expected to be healthy this season, and he’ll lead a core of talented young players including Brandon Ingram, Lonzo Ball and Jaxson Hayes. The Pelicans will also have more experience on the roster this year with Steven Adams and Eric Bledsoe joining the squad and JJ Redick returning.

It’s probably a longshot to expect New Orleans to compete for the Western Conference crown with lengthy +3000 odds, but the Pelicans could be a legitimate playoff contender this season.

Portland Trailblazers

The Portland Trailblazers barely made the playoffs last season, but they should be even stronger this season after making some key acquisitions and returning their most vital players.

The Trailblazers will once again be led by one of the best frontcourt combos in the NBA with Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum leading the way and they’ll be joined by returning veterans with Carmelo Anthony, Jusuf Nurkic and Rodney Hood. Portland also adds Robert Covington, Derrick Jones Jr. and Enes Kanter this season, bringing experience, talent and depth to the roster.

Portland might not be a contender in the Western Conference, but the Trailblazers do have a strong roster and have +2200 odds to win the conference crown.

Phoenix Suns

The Phoenix Suns will likely have one of the most talented rosters it’s had in years after a few key offseason additions.

The Suns added future Hall of Famer Chris Paul and veterans Jae Crowder and E’Twaun Moore to a roster that was already full of talented young players like Deandre Ayton, Davin Booker, Dario Saric, and Cam Johnson. Phoenix also added rookie Mikal Bridges in the NBA Draft, who will likely contribute early.

It’s a strong roster with a good mix of young talent and experience that should make the playoffs this season. Still, the Suns enter the 2020-21 campaign with lengthy +2000 odds to win the Western Conference due to the talent throughout the conference.

Utah Jazz

The Utah Jazz finished last season with a strong 44-28 record, which is good news as the team returns more than 85 percent of its minutes from last season, along with the addition of Derrick Favors.

The Jazz will once again be led by high-scoring Donovan Mitchell, and he’ll be joined by a veteran-laden group including All-Star Rudy Gobert, Mike Conley, Bojan Bogdanovic, Jordan Clarkson, Joe Ingles and Royce O’Neale.

Utah has a strong and experienced group of players and is expected to make the NBA Playoffs with +2500 dark horse odds at winning the Western Conference.

Houston Rockets

The outlook for the Houston Rockets 2020-21 season largely depends on whether James Harden is traded or not.

Either way, after a few key additions, Houston will boast one of the most talented rosters in the Western Conference with John Wall, DeMarcus Cousins and Christian Wood all joining a roster already featuring experienced veterans Eric Gordon and PJ Tucker.

With or without Harden, the Rockets are a playoff team, but likely not a legitimate contender with +1500 odds to win the Western Conference.

Dallas Mavericks

The Dallas Mavericks had the top offense in the NBA last season, but a weak defense kept them from emerging as a legitimate NBA title contender. This offseason, however, Dallas did make some changes to address its defensive struggles.

The Mavericks return MVP contender Luca Doncic, who is by far the team’s top offensive weapon, and made a number of changes to help the team defensively, bringing in a pair of strong defenders in Josh Richardson and James Johnson.

Dallas is a clear-cut playoff team, but if it can improve its defense and Kristaps Porzingas is able to return to full health, the Mavericks could be a dark horse team to win the Western Conference, with +1200 odds entering the season.

Golden State Warriors

The Golden State Warriors had the worst record in the NBA last season, but they should see that swing dramatically with a few key players returning from injury and some strong additions.

The Warriors will have both Stephen Curry and Draymond Green back and healthy this season and also added veterans Kelly Oubre and Kent Bazemore as well as No. 2 overall pick James Wiseman. Golden State will be without Klay Thompson this season after he suffered a season-ending injury, but veteran Andrew Wiggins will look to fill that void.

It’s unlikely the Warriors will be able to compete for an NBA Championship this year, especially without Thompson, but Golden State still enters the season with the fourth-best odds to win the Western Conference at +1000.

Denver Nuggets

After finishing as the runner-up in the Western Conference last season, the Denver Nuggets are back this year with one of the most talented rosters in the NBA.

Denver is led by All-Star Nikola Jokic, who enters the 2020-21 season as a dark horse MVP contender, as well as potential All-Star Jamal Murray, who exploded onto the scene in the Orlando Bubble last season. The Nuggets also return Michael Porter Jr., who could be ready for a starting role, as well as Paul Milsap, Gary Harris and Will Barton.

The Nuggets were one of the most electric teams in the NBA last season and will look to carry that momentum into this season where they are legitimate contenders in the West, with +850 odds to win the Western Conference.

Los Angeles Clippers

The Los Angeles Clippers saw their promising playoff run end on a sour note last season when they blew a 3-1 series lead to the Denver Nuggets in the playoffs, but they enter the 2020-21 season as one of the best teams in the Western Conference and as a legitimate NBA title contender.

The Clippers are led by perhaps the top wing combo in the NBA with Kawhi Leonard and Paul George returning. They will have a talented core around them as well with Marcus Morris, Louis Williams, Ivica Zubac and Patrick Beverley all returning this season and veterans Serge Ibaka and Luke Kennard joining the fold.

Last season did not end the way Los Angeles had hoped, but they enter this season even more talented and one of the favorites to win the Western Conference with +300 odds.

Los Angeles Lakers

The Los Angeles Lakers are the defending NBA Champions, and they got even stronger this offseason with a few key roster additions.

The Lakers return their two stars in LeBron James and Anthony Davis, but will see changes all over the rest of the lineup, adding Dennis Schroeder, Montrezl Harrell, Marc Gasol and Wesley Matthews to the roster this offseason, giving it a noticeable boost.

Los Angeles was one of the most dominant teams in the NBA all of last season and won the NBA Championship. After only improving this offseason, they enter the 2020-21 season as the favorites to win the Western Conference at +140 odds.

Predictions for the 2020-21 Season

Most Likely to Win the Western Conference

The Los Angeles Lakers are the favorite to win the Western Conference for a reason. After winning the NBA Championship last season, the Lakers made wholesale changes to their roster and enter the 2020-21 season even more talented across the lineup.

The Los Angeles Clippers are the team most likely to threaten the Lakers this season, but the Lakers have the more talented roster top to bottom with arguably the greatest player of all time leading the way.

Most Improved Team From Last Season

The Golden State Warriors had the worst record in the entire NBA last season, but enter the 2020-21 season as a legitimate playoff contender and a dark horse in the Western Conference.

The turnaround is due in part to the return of Stephen Curry and Draymond Green from injury, but the Warriors also made a few key additions to the roster this offseason, adding veterans Kelly Oubre and Kent Bazemore as well as No. 2 overall pick James Wiseman.

The Warriors may not compete for an NBA Championship this season, but they’re expected to make the playoffs, which is a drastic improvement from the bottom of the NBA last season.

Surprise Team of the Year

The Phoenix Suns are not a team you typically expect to contend for a playoff spot in a loaded Western Conference, but this is one of the most talented Suns teams we’ve seen in years.

Between future Hall of Famer Chris Paul, young and talented players like Deandre Ayton, Davin Booker, and Dario Saric and veterans Jae Crowder and E’Twaun Moore, this is a team that will be better than a lot of people expect this season.