The latest strength echelon in the West: Rockets take the lead in blocking the champions, the Lake Boat and the Elderly Kayak

(The original article was published on July 8, and the author is Zach Kram of ESPN website. The content of the article does not represent the translator's views)

Although the Eastern Conference is competing for many heroes due to the injury wave of star injuries in the new season, the Western Conference has shown a completely different scene. Many ambitious challengers in the West must catch up with the defending champion Thunder, a team that dominated the West with a record 16-game victory this season is aiming for a row of championships with a sustainable lineup configuration. Which opponents in the West are most likely to shake the Thunder Throne? Which teams with veterans still maintain their vitality to reach the deep rounds of the playoffs? What young troops may achieve rapid growth in their rankings? In order to comprehensively examine and analyze the initial pattern of the Western Conference in the new season, we divide the 15 Western Conference teams into five echelons.

First Echelon: The unique favorite to win the championship

Oklahoma City Thunder

In addition to welcoming last year's first round pick Topic, the Thunder has not yet introduced any new players through trading or free markets, but why do they need to strengthen? This defending champion already has the most in-depth rotation lineup in the league. With Caruso, 31, and Kenridge Williams, 30, the only two players over 27 years old in the Thunder lineup, and Homegren has only played 32 games due to injury this season, this youth team is bound to be stronger in the new season. What is more terrifying than the 68 wins in the regular season and the best net win in history and the championship? There is indeed a possibility of further realization for this team. When the Thunder tried to be the first team in a row after the Warriors of the Durant era (which would end the longest record in NBA history without a row), they were already the top.

2nd Echelon: The pioneers who blocked the defending champions

Houston Rockets

The Rockets this season can be called "paper tigers": they won second in the Western Conference with their unremitting efforts in the regular season, but were eliminated by the Warriors in the first round due to their lack of playoff-level star quality. But with the deal coming to Durant and signing Finney Smith, as well as Amen Thompson, Ethan and Shepard, this team with a complete lineup depth and star quality already has the ability to threaten the Thunder. Although the Rockets' lineup's top talent is still slightly inferior to the champion Thunder, their lineup has no fatal shortcomings. It would be no surprise if the Rockets locked in second place in the West again in the new season and this time with a more mature playoff posture. The tiger has peeled off the paper and revealed its true appearance. The core structure of the Denver Nuggets lineup continues for many years: Jokic is in the center, and Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon provide fire support. But the Nuggets have also experienced many changes recently: the new coach takes office and the management is reorganized. With the addition of Bruce Brown, Tim Hardaway Jr. and Valanciunas (if they do not return to the European League), the Nuggets' bench finally found depth. After transferring this summer, Cameron Johnson also replaced Michael Porter Jr. as the deadly shooter in the starting lineup. If it weren't for the unexpected three-point rain of Dortmund, the Nuggets would have expected to overturn the Thunder in the second round of this year's playoffs. The Nuggets, who have now completed reinforcement, are preparing for revenge in the new season.

Minnesota Timberwolves

Edwards' continued evolution will determine whether the Timberwolves can reach the division finals for the third consecutive year, and ideally, they will go further than the previous two times - to advance to the finals. The team's backcourt configuration is also key: With Alexander Walker away from the Hawks, the Timberwolves' backcourt rotation is only left for Mike Conley, who will turn 38 before the start of the season, Divincenzo, who is in a state of ups and downs, and sophomore Dillingham and Terrence Shannon - the rookie combination has played a total of 81 games this season, averaging only 8.8 points per game. The Timberwolves have the potential and risks in the new season. Although the team maintains the stable lineup by renewing Randall and Naz Reed, it is hard to say that they have improved. On the other hand, other teams in the same echelon have made indisputable reinforcements on the road to catching up with the Thunder, and may have surpassed the Timberwolves in the process.

The Third Echelon: The Elderly Kayaking

Los Angeles Clippers

The Clippers should have been in the higher echelon. Since Leonard's return this season, the Clippers ranked second in the West with a net efficiency of +7.2. Even though he lost to the Nuggets in seven games in the first round, the Clippers still had the advantage in their total score. The sluggish performance of two-point defeat and tiebreaker games in two games ended up ruining the journey of this potential team. The good news is: Lopez, the Greater one, made a low-key shot from the Bucks, solved the problem of substitute center behind Zubac; except for Powell (who was traded for John Collins), all the core lineups of this season remained in the team. The bad news is: the double-star Leonard and Harden, along with the lineup puzzles such as Lopez, Batum, Chris Dunn and Bogdan Bogdanovic, are all over 30 years old, which makes people wonder whether the Clippers have missed the best win window of the season.

Los Angeles Lakers

Any team with Doncic or James will automatically become a competitor, not to mention that the Lakers have double stars, but is the team's supporting role lineup strong enough? Several key questions remain unresolved: Can the lineup composed of Doncic, James and Reeves defend the defense? Can the new starting center Ayton, who has just been bought out, regain his strength and stop his years of decline? Can Laravia replace Finney Smith? Is this team's outside firepower sufficient? Before answering these questions clearly, the plot of the Lakers' new season will continue to be full of suspense. The Golden State Warriors are extremely quiet this offseason, and they are on the wait-and-see state: waiting for free agent Horford's decision while trying to solve Kuminga's restricted free agent problem. They are in a similar situation as they were at the end of the season: a good but not dominant team, even after owning Butler. Based on subsequent developments in the offseason, the Warriors may jump to higher echelons. Don't forget that if Curry hadn't been injured in G1 in the second round of the playoffs, the Warriors would have a high chance of reaching the division final this season. But as of now, their operations are not enough to support a higher ranking. Although this year's draft No. 1 pick Flag, Flag, is not in the category of "older" and the 18-year-old talented player, is the most exciting existence of the Mavericks, but led by Davis and Irving (when his ACL injury recovered), supplemented by Clay and Russell in the backcourt starting lineup, still meets the definition of "older kayak". The biggest question about the Mavericks is organizational ability: Can Flag be competent for the responsibility of controlling the striker as a rookie? Can Russell, who is in a state of ups and downs, maintain a hot feel? The most important thing is whether Irving can return with full health, or it may take the entire season to recover?

Fourth Echelon: The hungry youth army

Memphis Grizzlies

Trading Bain is more like the beginning of a one-time adjustment rather than a complete reconstruction. After this surprising deal, the Grizzlies quickly signed Ty Jerome, selected Koward (potential Bain replacement) through a draft night upward trade, and completed a contract renewal with Jaren Jackson Jr. and Aldama. This lineup still has considerable lineup depth and talent. But after losing Bain, the Grizzlies' core combat power is now concentrated in the point guard and center position. To avoid a decline in record performance, the Grizzlies need Coward to plug and play in the rookie season, sophomore Jaylen Wells makes a leap, or Pope regained his vitality after a downturn in the Magic.

San Antonio Spurs

Fox and Vinbanyama have only played side by side for five games this season, a brief window between the former being traded to the Spurs and the latter being diagnosed with deep venous thrombosis (the early end of Vinbanyama's shining sophomore season). Coupled with this year's draft second Dylan Harper and Rookie of the Year winner Castle, the Spurs are obviously still in the exploration stage of the lineup running-in. Therefore, the new season is likely to be a transition period for the Spurs to establish the team style and optimize player adaptability. After winning the second draw, the Spurs did not seek quick success and instant success to chase Durant. But with the existence of Wenban Yama (the biggest favorite + strong contender for the best team in the new season), this team may actually achieve a rapid rise in ranking.

Portland Trail Blazers

This season, the Trail Blazers only achieved 13 wins and 28 losses in the first half, but as Avdia and Kamala grew into wings with both offense and defense, their record in the second half soared to 23 wins and 18 losses. This summer, Anthony Simmons was exchanged for Ju Holiday and promoted Klingen to the starter (and bought out Ayton at the same time), and the Trail Blazers further strengthened the team building concept of defense first. It is still unknown whether the Trail Blazers who lost Anfini Simmons can have enough offensive firepower to hit the playoffs. They need Scudt Henderson and Shetton Sharp to make greater progress in the backcourt. For this team that has suffered the second longest playoff drought in the Western Conference (only shorter than the Spurs), the Trail Blazers' future is clearing.

Fifth Echelon: The Lost Division

Sacramento Kings

According to the data from the Cleaning the Glass website, when Sabonis, DeRozan and Laven were on the court at the same time this season, the Kings' offensive efficiency reached 117.4 in 1121 rounds (more than 72% of the league's lineup combination), but their defensive efficiency was as bad as 120.9 (only better than 11% of the league's lineup). Although this team has stars and is quite interesting, it lacks a realistic path to continue winning. Perhaps the king can compete for the top six seeds in the east, but obviously he is not strong enough in the west.

Phoenix Suns

"Where is the direction of team building?" has become a reasonable question that has plagued the Suns for a long time, and no clear answer has been given this offseason. The Suns had limited gains in the Durant trade, and they stocked up two centers at the same time on the draft night, but the rotation lineup still lacked pure point guards and power forwards. In addition, the compatibility of Booker and Jaylen Green in the backcourt is worrying. Under the leadership of his boss Matt Ishbiya, the Suns are destined to continue to overdraw the future in exchange for current competitiveness, but the actual number of winnings in the new season may be difficult to match this ambition.

New Orleans Pelicans

Considering the enterprising spirit shown by the Pelicans in the offseason, the most eye-catching thing is to sacrifice 2026's unprotected first-round picks to trade this year's rookie Quinn, which was selected. The Pelicans may think they should belong to the higher echelon. This optimism is indeed based on the premise that Zion, Murphy and Herbert Jones can stay healthy, with the three playing in total only 103 games this season. But with McCollum and Ingram leaving the team, Dezhangtai Murray was absent due to a torn Achilles tendon. The Pelicans' lineup is full of variables, and there is also a lack of clear long-term plan to build a winning lineup. Even in the short term, the Pelicans are not invincible during a rare healthy roster this season. Zion played 10 wins and 20 losses in 30 games, and the team's net efficiency was as low as -4.3 when Zion and Murphy were on the court at the same time.

Utah Jazz

On the one hand, Markkanen is still in the team, and the Jazz also introduced Nurkic. The new president of basketball operations Austin Angie made a clear statement at the inaugural press conference: "The new season will never be bad." But on the other hand, the Jazz sent away John Collins, Clarkson and Sexton this summer, and selected 18-year-old potential player Es Bailey, and is expected to send the league's youngest backcourt combination in the new season. Considering the lineup's own shortcomings and the overall strength of the West, even if the Jazz refuses to play badly, they may still lose more than 60 games in the new season.

Original text: Zach Kram

Compiled by: Li Taibai