It’s time for a heat check at the start of the season on the contenders and contenders in the NBA.
Teams like the Milwaukee Bucks, Brooklyn Nets, Los Angeles Lakers, and Phoenix Suns are expected to be close at the tip end of the season, but who’s in the chasing pack?
Kane Pitman and Benyam Kidane got together to discuss some of the other teams in the race for the 2021-22 NBA championship.
Unlock live out-of-market games with the NBA League Pass and try it for free for 7 days.
Utah Jazz
Kane Pitman (@KanePitman):The jazz are contenders for mine. Much like the Milwaukee Bucks, I think Utah will have learned some hard lessons from previous playoff mistakes that can help them move forward. The Jazz should be back near the top of the tree with their nightly defense.
Donovan Mitchell was suspended in the postseason and is still maturing into the star player most believe can become. While Mike Conley Jr. struggled with injuries throughout the campaign. You need a ton of luck to win an NBA championship, and if the Jazz are healthy in the playoffs, I see no reason to believe they won’t be an incredibly tough team in a series of seven games.
Benyam Kidane (@BenyamKidane):I’ve got jazz as a contender this season, but after knocking out the playoffs early in recent years, they still have a lot to prove.
In today’s NBA, continuity is hard to come by, and the Bucks proved the value of that last season when their core group brought them to the NBA title. This jazz team is a big squad with multiple offensive weapons, and as Donovan Mitchell continues to develop into a superstar, they will be in the top tier of teams in the west.
Chicago Bulls
Kane Pitman:I need more time before I can place the cops in the combat group to the east. As of this writing, Chicago is currently 4-0. It’s the first time they’ve been 4-0 since the 90s and I’ve heard it was a pretty successful time for the franchise.
My biggest reason for taking a break is because they just haven’t played against a significant team. The four wins include two wins against the Detroit Pistons, which are likely the worst team in the Eastern Conference, the Zion-less New Orleans Pelicans and the Toronto Raptors, which appear to be a play-in team at best.
The Bulls have enough talent to deal with the edge playoff teams in both conferences. It remains to be seen how they’ll fare against the high-profile competition. The Bulls have the Knicks and Jazz next. That sounds like some fun pairings.
Benyam Kidane:It’s only been four games, but I’ve been sold as a contender in the East for the Chicago Bulls in the new look.
Her improvement on the defensive with Alex Caruso and Lonzo Ball is instantly noticeable, but the fact that the offensive no longer relies on Zach LaVine makes her incredibly dangerous.
DeMar DeRozan and Nikola Vucevic as additional goalscorers mean it can be someone else who gets hot any night and their chemistry will only grow as the season progresses.
intense heat
Kane Pitman:I have the Miami Heat in the group right behind the Bucks and Nets. My great concern is health, given the age and kilometers on some of their stars. Another problem will be depth if one or two of their best players are out for long periods of time.
Tyler Herro looks like a real contender for sixth man of the year and Marcus Morris is a solid banker, but after that there are question marks. In full health, the Heat are a contender. Let’s see how they navigate the regular season to keep themselves in the best possible shape.
Benyam Kidane:In our season preview, I made the bold prediction that the Heats would end with number 1 in the east and so far they looked like one of the best teams in the league, beating the Boston Celtics and Milwaukee Bucks.
If Tyler Herro continues to play like the best banker in the league, playing around the 20-point mark on average, the offensive potential of this team of Jimmy Butler, Kyle Lowry and Bam Adebayo will be a problem for opponents, especially when the heat can keep their league defense upright.
Atlanta Hawks
Kane Pitman:I buy the hawks. If I had to bet on a team from Atlanta and Miami, I’m pretty confident about the Hawks.
Last season’s early chemistry fights are looking good for Atlanta in the rearview mirror, with John Collins in particular looking like he’s ready to take the next step as a two-way force. De’Andre Hunter, Cam Reddish and Bogdan Bogdanovic struggled with injuries last season but with everyone in the lineup, this is arguably the deepest team in the league.
And of course we don’t need to worry about Trae Young’s performance on the big stage.
Benyam Kidane:I’m as big a Trae Young fan as there is, but I don’t quite have the Hawks as contenders …
Given the talent at the top of the Eastern Conference, let alone in their own league, the Hawks are likely still in the second line of teams behind the Bucks, Nets and Heat.
In the Southeast Division, are you closer to the Charlotte Hornets than the Miami Heat? We’re only here for a week, but it will take a lot of time to match the performance from last season.
Dallas Mavericks
Kane Pitman:I’m out in Dallas.
To be fair, I was out and about in Dallas pretty soon after Jason Kidd was appointed head coach, but there seems to be something wrong with that lineup. Postponing the development of Kristaps Porzingis feels like a hammer blow to this team. A man this tall just isn’t meant to withstand lower body problems, and Porzingis is a shadow of the player who seemed to tear the league apart in New York.
Doncic is a wizard so in theory they could win any night, but you need more than one man in the playoffs and I’m just not sure they have him.
Benyam Kidane:Could the Mavericks actually be worse off than last season?
The redesigned medium rage-focused offensive doesn’t seem to blend in with Luka Doncic’s strengths as a goalscorer and playmaker, and it will take time to find her identity under new head coach Jason Kidd this season.
Unless Kristaps Porzingis rediscovered his all-star form at both ends of the floor, the Mavericks won’t be among the top four in the Western Conference for the foreseeable future.
