We’ve almost made it! With the new NBA season just days away, there’s no better time to dive through all 30 franchises and their projected win total for the upcoming campaign. Keeping it brief, here’s a short synopsis on how your favourite basketball team will fare in season 2024-25.

All over/under odds were taken from Sportsbet – and please remember to gamble responsibly.

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Atlanta Hawks

36.5 wins – UNDER
I can’t see Atlanta winning more games than last season after trading away their second-best player. They got lucky in the lottery, landing the No. 1 pick which handed them Zaccharie Risacher and adding depth pieces in Larry Nance, Dyson Daniels and David Roddy will help. Unless Trae Young goes nuclear though, they’re destined to fight for a play-in spot.

Boston Celtics

58.5 wins – UNDER
This one is tricky. The Celtics are coming off a 64-win regular season culminating in the franchise’s 18th championship banner and they’re the favourites to repeat according to most bookmakers. However, when you factor in the growth of East contenders around them and consider Porzingis’ injury issues, I’m leaning towards the under for Boston.

Brooklyn Nets

18.5 wins – UNDER
Brooklyn is forecasted to win the fewest games in the entire league, with little optimism that they’ll even reach 19 wins. Sure, Cam Thomas will jack up enough shots to flirt with a 25+ PPG average and Ben Simmons might play 50 games for the first time since 2021-22. Still, that’s not enough for the Nets to hit the over.

Charlotte Hornets

31.5 wins – OVER
Is there enough talent on this roster for the Hornets to win 10 more games than last season? I believe so, as long LaMelo Ball can stay on the court. We know that’s far from a certainty, although I’m anticipating a strong season from Ball and continued growth from young prospects such as Brandon Miller, Tre Mann and Mark Williams should help the franchise record the extra wins they need.

Chicago Bulls

28.5 wins – OVER
We aren’t sure if Chicago wants to win this season or if they’ll be happy chalking up losses while attempting to revitalise their team by adding pieces with promise. They lost Andre Drummond, DeMar DeRozan and Alex Caruso and effectively replaced them with Josh Giddey, Chris Duarte and Jalen Smith – woof! Expect them to slide in the East standings, but the Bulls should find a way to win ≈30 games.

Image from nba.com

Cleveland Cavaliers

48.5 wins – OVER
Cleveland has won 65% of their games in the last two seasons when Donovan Mitchell plays. Should he appear in 70 games this season, that translates to a 53-29 record, which feels about right for the Cavs. Health was the only roadblock that stopped them last year and I’m banking on them challenging for a top-4 seed in their conference and hitting 50+ wins without much fuss.

Dallas Mavericks

48.5 wins – OVER
There is no way the Mavericks go backwards this season, right? They made moves around the edges after falling short in the NBA Finals and their form in the second half of the season makes me believe they can reach at least 49 wins. As long as Luka is healthy (MVP szn incoming?), they can challenge for the West crown.

Denver Nuggets

49.5 wins – UNDER
I hate to say it, but I think this is the season the window starts to close for Denver. That doesn’t mean they can’t win the 2024-25 championship and I may be one of the few people out there who believes Russell Westbrook will positively contribute to their squad. With all that said, I won’t be stunned to see them lose a few more games this year in an ultra-competitive Western Conference.

Detroit Pistons

24.5 wins – OVER
Death, taxes and a crappy Detroit Pistons team. For five consecutive seasons, they’ve failed to reach 24 wins – however, that could all change in the upcoming campaign. Decent veteran additions in Malik Beasley, Tim Hardaway Jr and Tobias Harris will raise their floor and J.B. Bickerstaff as the new head coach is an underrated hire in my eyes.

Golden State Warriors

42.5 wins – OVER
As Steph Curry enters his 16th NBA season, it’s clear the cliff is coming for Golden State. Naysayers will point to Klay Thompson’s exit as a reason why they won’t win 44 games, but I think they got slightly better this offseason as Buddy Hield, De’Anthony Melton and Kyle Anderson joined Dub Nation. Couple that with the expected growth from Jonathan Kuminga and Brandin Podzemski, the Warriors should be good enough to hit their over.

Houston Rockets

42.5 wins – OVER
In year one under Ime Udoka, the Rockets improved by 19 wins to finish with a .500 record at 41-41. Entering the new season, I can’t see them taking a backward step buoyed by the expected development from their up-and-coming players and (hopefully) a healthy Alperen Sengun. Predicting their seeding in the West is a more difficult task, and yet, Houston should be in the mix for a playoff berth.

Indiana Pacers

47.5 wins – UNDER
Effectively running it back with the same squad, Indiana has a chance to surpass their expected win total in the new season. While there’s confidence they can improve from 2023-24, I still have them as a second-tier contender in the East and as a result, they’ll probably spend the bulk of the year fighting to stay out of the play-in race. I don’t say it with conviction, but I’m picking the Pacers to fall short of 48 W’s.

Los Angeles Clippers

37.5 wins – UNDER
For 13 straight years, the Los Angeles Clippers have recorded a winning record. That seems destined to change this year with Paul George departing and Kawhi Leoanrd’s injury issues prevalent as the 33-year-old prepares for year 13. There isn’t enough talent to pick up the slack, leaving the Clips in a bad, BAD place if anything were to happen to James Harden…

Los Angeles Lakers

42.5 wins – UNDER
Call me a hater, but I don’t think the Lakers will be competing for much this season. Yes, there’s optimism that JJ Redick can shake things up and recharge the franchise for another title run. However, they probably won’t get 76 games out of Anthony Davis again this season and there is only so much heavy lifting LeBron James can do in his 22nd season.

Memphis Grizzlies

46.5 wins – OVER
The Grizzlies’ catastrophic run with injuries last year derailed any chance they had of putting together a worthwhile campaign. Here’s a list of how many games Memphis’ key players missed during the 2023-24 season – Brandon Clarke (76), Ja Morant (73), Marcus Smart (62), Desmond Bane (40), Jaren Jackson Jr (16). Even if you halved the number of games those players missed, I think they’re a strong bet to beat their win total in the new season.

Image from x.com

Miami Heat

43.5 wins – UNDER
It’s hard to get a read on Miami’s upcoming season. Their leading scorer Tyler Herro only played half of the previous season and if he’s firing close to 25 PPG, then the Heat will challenge for a top-6 place in the East. I’m not convinced there are enough pieces outside of their big-3 (Herro, Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo), which has them vying for another play-in spot.

Milwaukee Bucks

49.5 wins – UNDER
Even if Damian Lillard returns to the peak of his powers this year, age isn’t on the Bucks’ side. Giannis Antetokounmpo would need to hit career-best areas for Milwaukee to keep up with the rest of their rivals and keep their championship window open. In my opinion, the under feels like a certainty, but I’m ready to be proved wrong.

Minnesota Timberwolves

51.5 wins – OVER
Some are predicting a tough year ahead for Minnesota in the ruthless West after they opted to trade Karl-Anthony Towns. I don’t think they’ll be five games worse than last season, especially with Anthony Edwards predicted to take another leap and entrench himself in the MVP race. Instead, they’re a real threat for the No. 1 seed in my opinion.

New Orleans Pelicans

45.5 wins – UNDER
Perhaps the hardest over/under on the entire board, I have no idea what we’ll see from NOLA. Brandon Ingram’s status with the team remains up in the air and it’s impossible to predict what type of season we’ll get out of Zion Williamson. If clubs like Golden State, Sacramento and Houston rise around them then the Pelicans may slide a few rungs.

New York Knicks

53.5 wins – OVER
Set to challenge the Celtics for the Eastern Conference crown, New York has overhauled their roster this offseason. Star acquisitions Karl-Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges are expected to contribute greatly to the Knicks’ chance of winning 54+ games and after finishing as the No. 2 seed last year, they’ll be in the thick of it once again. Give me the over for this on-paper juggernaut.

Oklahoma City Thunder

57.5 wins – OVER
Cracking the playoff field for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic, the popular belief around the league this season is that OKC will once again claim 1st spot in their conference. Trading for Isaiah Hartenstein and Alex Caruso has certainly raised the floor of the team, although they’ll have to fight off a strong crowd in the West. I fully believe they can lead the league in W’s for season 2024-25 and clear their over.

Orlando Magic

47.5 wins – OVER
It’s crazy to think last season marked the first time Orlando won multiple playoff games since Dwight Howard was in uniform! One of the biggest risers a year ago, they only need to improve their record by one win in the upcoming season to hit the over. Adding Kentavious Caldwell-Pope to their up-and-coming core should make that a near formality.

Philadelphia 76ers

50.5 wins – OVER
I understand not every team in the East can improve, but after landing Paul George in the offseason the Sixers should once again be pushing for homecourt advantage in the playoffs. Don’t get me wrong, PG8 and Joel Embiid’s inability to play back-to-back games could jeopardise this bet. However, when the pair do suit up with Tyrese Maxey, they should win their fair share of games.

Phoenix Suns

48.5 wins – UNDER
Choosing the under for the Suns is more of a knock on the health problems and age of their star players. Devin Booker, Bradley Beal and Kevin Durant played together in exactly half of Phoenix’s games last year – reeling off a 26-15 record. I’m not convinced they’ll get 75 games out of a now 36-year-old KD, and as a result, the Suns will fall out of the guaranteed playoff spots.

Portland Trailblazers

20.5 wins – UNDER
While all the teams around them get ready to rise, Portland appears content with staying anchored to the bottom of the West standings. Having Donovan Clingan slide to their pick on draft night could benefit the franchise in the long run and sophomore guard Scoot Henderson should produce at a higher level in year two. Still, there isn’t enough on the roster to give me hope they’ll improve their 21-61 record from a season ago.

Image athlonsports.com

Sacramento Kings

46.5 wins – OVER
Two seasons into the Mike Brown experiment, the Kings have won 48 and 46 games respectively and ended an unwanted NBA record of 16 consecutive seasons without a playoff appearance. Effectively swapping Harrison Barnes with DeMar DeRozan in the offseason, I can’t see why they won’t at worst repeat their exploits from the past few seasons. Plus, there is a Keon Ellis breakout season incoming – you heard it hear first.

San Antonio Spurs

35.5 wins – OVER
We assume that Chris Paul’s presence in San Antonio is going to help Victor Wembanyama take his game to new heights. Honestly, after watching Wemby during the Olympics I think he’ll reach lofty heights in his second season regardless of who is throwing him lobs. Unless their otherworldly talent gets hurt, the Spurs should waltz their way to a near .500 record.

Toronto Raptors

30.5 wins – UNDER
Toronto’s 2023-24 season spiralled once Scottie Barnes was ruled out of action with a broken finger. In the final 22 games without Barnes in uniform, the Raptors reeled off a miserable 3-19 stretch, culminating in the 6th worst record in the NBA. Even with their future star healthy, Toronto was on track to accumulate just 30-31 wins and after handing their valuable lottery pick to the Spurs in the offseason, I think another dreary season is on the cards for Canada’s lone ball club.

Utah Jazz

27.5 wins – UNDER
Full credit to Utah’s head coach Will Hardy, he’s got almost everything he can out of this hodge-podge Jazz roster. They still remain a bit of a rudderless ship without a player to build around for the future – making it tempting to embrace the tank in the new season and give themselves the best chance possible to find that future superstar. As other teams in the Western Conference climb around them, I won’t be shocked to see Utah auction off their better players as they stockpile L’s.

Washington Wizards

21.5 wins – UNDER
Let’s keep this brief. The Wizards suck, and if their preseason form is anything to go by then Washington fans are going to be in for a serious slog this season. Unless Alex Saar wows as a rookie, or Jordan Poole/Kyle Kuzma emerges as an All-Star contender then we should expect another year with their win tally in the teens.

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