The Boston Celtics dominated on their way to an NBA Championship last year. Peter Klein wonders if they can do it again as he previews the entire Eastern Conference. He wonders if the New York Knicks and Philadelphia 76ers did enough to challenge them as he goes through every team's win projections.
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SportsTranscript
00:00It is NBA preview time.
00:12First, we're going to run through the Eastern Conference and do the win picks for each of
00:18them.
00:19And then it will be on to the Western Conference, running through and doing the the win total
00:25plays for for for each of them.
00:28So I do have my handy notebook here.
00:32I don't have a lot of room for it.
00:34So just quickly doing this.
00:35And now we are back.
00:36Okay, so NBA, Eastern Conference.
00:41It's funny.
00:42I'm gonna break these up by division.
00:43God, I don't even know if I should be doing that.
00:46But I think it'd be good to break them up by division.
00:48Just because, you know, there are a couple division props that you might want to look
00:52at if you are going to do that.
00:55And none of this is to be construed as gambling advice.
00:59This is all just what I think will happen and just picks.
01:03This isn't a I think you should do it or anything like that, that this is just where where I
01:07kind of come down on on all this while ESPN doesn't even break their thing up.
01:13Is there even an option to break this up by division?
01:16There isn't.
01:17That's crazy.
01:18Okay, moving on.
01:19Well, let's just begin.
01:20And I will find the divisions at some point here because honestly, divisions mean so little
01:25in the NBA.
01:26I don't even I don't even know who's in each division anymore.
01:31But we still have an opportunity to to get, you know, division picks and division odds
01:36and stuff like that.
01:37So there we go.
01:38All right.
01:39In the Atlantic division, the Atlanta Hawks coming in their total sits at 35 and a half.
01:49They were one of the teams that I put as an overvalued team this year.
01:53I just, I just think that this is done.
02:01I know that they made the trade, DeJounte Murray, they got a couple of decent guys back.
02:06They had the first overall pick, Reese Ashay is there, Trae Young, all of it.
02:10This is a chance for Trae Young to prove me wrong and to go out and really show that he
02:16can be that superstar who can lead teams to victories and lead teams to championships
02:21and all of that.
02:22I just don't think he is that guy.
02:25I think he would be a much better number two on a team.
02:28I think he'd be a much better number three on a team.
02:30I don't think he is a number one.
02:33I just I don't see it with this group.
02:35I really, really don't.
02:37So I am going under 35 and a half, and that is going to be one that we lock in this year.
02:45For the Boston Celtics, they were also on one of my overvalued teams for the upcoming
02:49year.
02:50And this is not a comment on the talent.
02:51I think that this is still going to be a team that is going out and dominating and
03:00competing for championships and all of that.
03:02I do think, though, the total at 58 and a half is really high.
03:08They got around to that last year, and they basically bring back the same team.
03:13But Chris Apstra-Zingas is going to be banged up.
03:15He's not coming back until the calendar flips to 2025.
03:17I know this because I have him in Fantasy.
03:19But I think that that being that way, and this team coming off of playing a lot of basketball,
03:26going to NBA Finals for a couple of years, and now going out winning that championship.
03:31And while they not all of them really played a ton in the Olympics, a couple of them still
03:36at least made the trek over and interrupted their offseason a little bit.
03:39And so I just think from a regular season standpoint, it's going to be tough for this
03:43team to get all of those wins.
03:46I still, again, don't think that they're going to be bad.
03:48I don't think that this is going to be a falling off or anything like that.
03:51I think they are going to be there at the end, and all of those things.
03:55I just don't view them as a regular season dominant team at this point.
04:02The Brooklyn Nets.
04:03They are at 19 and a half right now.
04:07It is just such a low number.
04:11I almost have to go over because that is so low.
04:16Counterpoint.
04:17This team is so bad.
04:19Cam Thomas is their number one option.
04:21They got a bunch of picks for Mikkel Bridges, but there wasn't anything coming back that
04:25was going to help this team out.
04:27There's just, there's nothing, there's nothing there for this team to think they're going
04:30to be good.
04:31And so, I just can't in all good conscience say anything good about this basketball team.
04:35I am going to go again under 19 and a half on Brooklyn.
04:39That's not going to be one we lock in, but they're just, they are so bad that it would
04:44pay me to take the over, and I get that that is not a sharp way of thinking, but could
04:50this be a team that gets 17 wins this year?
04:52Definitely.
04:53I think they're closer to that than they are a team that wins 22.
04:56Like I think if I was going to take the over, I probably wouldn't, you're only taking it
05:03for a couple of games.
05:04Well, under, they could go by a few.
05:05Toxic.
05:06I know hindsight is 20-20, but what a horrible trade Luka for Trae Young is.
05:10Holy cow.
05:11You're not wrong there, Toxic.
05:12You are not wrong.
05:13That is looking like an all-timer.
05:16I do think that Sacramento and Phoenix get a little bit of, they, because they didn't
05:25just directly trade him away, they I don't think get nearly criticized enough for how
05:30awful it was that they had two picks there as well, and they didn't take Luka with either
05:36of those picks.
05:37Like it was, Aiton went first overall, right?
05:40And then Sacramento, I think it was Fox, who did a fine player, Aiton helped Phoenix in
05:44a NBA Finals.
05:46But how's that helping now?
05:48It's not.
05:49And Luka would obviously be the best player of that draft, he would be the best player
05:53of most drafts.
05:55And so for those teams to have passed up on Luka Doncic is, in fact, certifiably insane.
06:03And so yes, that is one of the all-time, I think, draft blunders in NBA history, really.
06:10Moving on, the Charlotte Bobcats, Hornets, sorry, they play more like the Bobcats.
06:17Their total is at 29.5, and they were another one that we had as overvalued coming into
06:22this season.
06:23I just, I don't see it at all.
06:26You get Ball back, that's great, Miller seemed to have a pretty good year.
06:31What else?
06:32Oh my god, you're right, it was.
06:33It was Marvin Bagley.
06:34Holy hell, that's even worse.
06:36Completely forgot about that, that's my bad for missing on that one.
06:39Trying to go off of memory, and just giving Sacramento the benefit of the doubt on that.
06:42No, you're right, it was Bagley.
06:44Holy shit, that's an awful pick.
06:46But yes, back to Charlotte.
06:48I just, I don't see anything with this team.
06:50I don't know where the better is coming from with this group, and I just think they are
06:57remarkably untalented.
06:58So they get an under at 29.5 for me.
07:01For the Bulls, at 27.5, it's an under.
07:05A lot of unders in this thing to start out.
07:11You know what, I, again, I thought they had this broken up by division, they didn't.
07:17That is completely my bad.
07:19I had, oh yeah, Atlanta and Boston are in the same division, they're not, that was horrendous
07:23of me.
07:24So, going to have to, again, re-kind of track this on the fly.
07:27None of this I don't think affects any of you, I just, I was breaking it down wrong.
07:31I was like, I don't think I have this right by division, and I don't.
07:35They have an alphabetical order on NBA.com, and they had a line in the middle, and I was
07:38like, oh yeah, these are the two divisions, because my brain went to hockey.
07:41And it's not, it's three divisions in each conference.
07:43And again, none of them matter, but I think from a, looking at value standpoint, and looking
07:48at a couple of different plays you could make, I think that it's good to know where these
07:53teams stack up, because you can still get some division odds, and things of that nature,
08:00so brief interruption there.
08:03I feel like I'm getting this wrong, there's no way Boston and Chicago are in the same
08:07division.
08:08And they're not!
08:09But Chicago, at under 27 and a half, it's a bad basketball team.
08:12Again, there's just, it's not the most in-depth analysis, I get it.
08:17It's just a not-talented group.
08:19They are so bad.
08:21Ball coming back for the first time since 2022 would be awesome, and really sweet, and
08:27I think him being out really did affect things greatly with how they wanted to construct
08:33this team, but it shouldn't have sent you in the tailspin that it did.
08:38I think no DeMar DeRozan, they are going to realize how much more difficult scoring the
08:43basketball is without DeMar there to bail out this offense.
08:48And I think that there is the potential for trades, there's the potential for just guys
08:53giving up, this just has all the makings of being just a horrendous basketball year for
09:02them this year.
09:03I think it's going to be a disaster, I think that there is a chance they get bailed out
09:07and get the number one overall pick, maybe Giddey comes in and lights the world on fire,
09:11I don't see it, and I think Caruso being gone hurts a bit of identity for this team as well.
09:16So it is such an easy under for me at 27 and a half.
09:21That one is going to be one that we circle as well.
09:23So it's a lot of unders to start.
09:26Some of those wins gotta go somewhere, and they go to the Cleveland Cavaliers.
09:32Also, just a quick note, it's interesting how things can shift so quickly, and just
09:40how, oh well, Cleveland, they gotta trade everybody, he's not gonna want to stay, they're
09:45gonna blow it up, it's gonna be whatever, and now it comes back and it's basically the
09:48same team.
09:49And I don't know if I view that as a positive or a negative, necessarily.
09:54But for Cleveland, I do think that the regular season, they're gonna be fine.
09:58I think their issues show up in the postseason, but I think regular season, this is a 50-win
10:04team.
10:05And we saw last year, even if they don't stay healthy, this is a 50-win team.
10:11Because of the different moving parts that they have, and the different depth that they
10:14have built up.
10:15The big key here, and not doing Difference Makers this year, just ran out of time for
10:19that, but if we were doing an X Factor, it's Mobley.
10:22If he can find that shooting range, that everyone thought he was going to have coming
10:26out of college, then this actually becomes one of the scarier teams in the league.
10:30Because they can defend, and they got guys who can score.
10:33The spacing has been a bit of an issue with this whole thing, and if Mobley can develop
10:38that long-range shot, then it just opens up a world of possibilities with this team.
10:45And I am not banking my hopes on that actually happening.
10:50I do think that this will still be a good basketball team, though.
10:54And so I do like Cleveland over 47-and-a-half.
10:58The Detroit Pistons, they were one of my undervalued teams this year, and so I am going over 25-and-a-half.
11:07I think they went out and acquired some actual real-life NBA players, which I think will
11:11help.
11:12And one of the things that we talked about for the theme of the year, what we saw last
11:16year, is that we are now at a point with the talent in the NBA where the young players
11:21take more than just one step at a time.
11:23And that's going to come up in the West as well, but with this team, I think Cade Cunningham
11:29is ready to have his breakout season.
11:31I think they have just enough around him that this team is going to take those steps.
11:35And so I think that we're going to get down to it with the play-in teams and all of that.
11:43This is a conference that has nine teams that feel like playoff teams, and so just
11:46one of them has to get into the play-in just based on how it needs to play out.
11:53I think they have a real opportunity to get up into that play-in round, so to speak.
12:02So I think Cade Cunningham really gets them going.
12:05This one is really tough.
12:06Indiana at 46-and-a-half.
12:09They had a fantastic season a year ago.
12:11They now have a full season with Pascal Siakam and everything they can do with this group
12:16offensively.
12:19My one worry is that they don't defend for shit, and the whole everything's crazy on
12:25offense thing can catch teams off guard even for a season.
12:30But now that all these coaches have had a full offseason to adjust, see what it looks
12:35like, okay, what should we do actually against?
12:38I think there could be a bit of a step back here with Indy, and so again it's a lot of
12:42unders in the East, but I'm going to go under 46-and-a-half on the Indiana Pacers.
12:48Not one I'm going to click on, but we're going to go under there.
12:51Miami, 44-and-a-half.
12:54This one was a stone-cold under for me for a bit, and I think they were one of the teams
12:59that made the playoffs last year that might not this year, but it does really feel like
13:03Jimmy Butler has come in and been really motivated.
13:06Eric Spolstra is still an amazing coach, and so I again find myself buying into Miami.
13:14What we said in terms of guys who are going to decide the season, if Rozier and Butler
13:18can stay healthy and actually gel, and you have Adebayo, Butler, and Rozier all playing
13:25really good basketball together, this is going to be a team that is going to be a difficult
13:29out, and so I am going to go over 44-and-a-half for the Miami Heat.
13:35Milwaukee, 51-and-a-half.
13:37This is an easy under for me.
13:40I think their time has kind of come and gone.
13:43I think that you are relying on a full, uninjured season for Damian Lillard, for Chris Middleton,
13:51you are banking on Brooke Lopez just being awesome and ageless and being able to control
13:58things even as he gets into his late 30s as a big dude.
14:02Giannis is amazing, and he is one of the best players in the league still, but this
14:07just does not feel like a competitive team in the Eastern Conference anymore in terms
14:13of the upper echelon.
14:15And so for this team to get to 52-and-30 on the year, I just, I simply don't see it.
14:21So they are an under to me at 51-and-a-half.
14:25The New York Knicks, their total is at 52-and-a-half.
14:28I'm taking it.
14:29I'm taking the over on it.
14:31I am all in on this Knicks team.
14:33I loved what they were able to do last year.
14:35And we did kind of talk about some of the things that we're worried about, where you
14:39have a team that has built up an identity, and Dee Vincenzo was such a big part of that,
14:43and he is gone, and Towns doesn't seem like he fit it, or fits it, and he's there.
14:49And so there is the potential story that this just doesn't work.
14:54With Bridges who's used to getting all the touches in Brooklyn, um, Katt who still views
14:58himself as a number one, and Brunson who's actually the best player on this team, and
15:02again the only one basketball to go around thing.
15:05In its best form, it can win a championship.
15:08I just, I do have a couple of concerns about it, but we know they can defend, we know that
15:13they can absolutely battle, and um, with Bridges now, and with Towns, you have the ability
15:22to spread out some of that scoring as well.
15:25And so I think this Knicks team is going to be awesome.
15:27Even if OG only plays 50 games, I think this Knicks team is going to be great.
15:31I have them at 52.5.
15:32The Orlando Magic, I have them as an undervalued team this year, so we gotta go over the 47.5.
15:39Scoring the basketball was difficult for them last year, and that could be something that
15:41I think again comes up in the playoffs, but I think the effort they have defensively on
15:45a night-in-night-out basis, and it is a bit of a statement on where the NBA is, that effort
15:50on a nightly basis is enough to win you basketball games, but the Knicks did it, I think they're
15:54going to do it again this year, and this team is going to do it.
15:57I think they are going to be...
15:59I think they're going to be just motherfuckers to play against.
16:02And defensively, they are going to be able to lock a lot of teams down.
16:05I think KCP fits what they do defensively, and is upgrade enough that the offense should
16:10take a bit of a step, um, a couple of the kids look good at the Olympics, so, and given
16:15a little bit more progression for Wagner and for Bankero, I think this team again continues
16:21to improve.
16:22I think Orlando gets there at over 47 and a half.
16:27Uh, Philadelphia, 52 and a half.
16:29This may shock you, we're going under.
16:32Um, 52 and a half.
16:34They have said, we're not a regular season team.
16:36Everything now is focused on the playoffs.
16:38So it's not going to be about Embiid playing 65 games to get an MVP.
16:41It's not going to be about, um, really grinding out win after win after win, they are going
16:46to just get into the tournament, hope that Maxi, Embiid, and PG13, PG whatever, uh, Paul
16:53George is healthy at the right time, and they can go and run in the postseason.
16:57That does not equal regular season wins.
16:59So again, this isn't a statement on their overall health as a team, although I have
17:04some issues about that, but in terms of just what they can do in the regular season, I
17:08don't, I think they are going to be sitting it out a little bit, um, and so I like them
17:14under 52 and a half.
17:17Finishing strong in the East, out in Toronto, 30 and a half is the total.
17:22It's, you can see a world where it is over.
17:26Where Scotty Barnes continues to progress, um, quickly now with a full year, fits perfectly
17:33with what Scotty Barnes can do and those two just mesh, and RJ Barrett finds again the
17:39Olympics of him, version of him, and this team actually puts up some points and can
17:45actually win.
17:46On the flip side of it, this offense can get bogged down in the mud a lot, and there isn't
17:50a whole lot of depth there, and so I do think that now, and you hear the talk like Pirtle
17:56saying like, look it's not about this year, we know that, um, like I just, I feel like
18:00they are already kind of defeated before the season even gets going, and so I think they
18:03are an under at 30 and a half for the Raptors.
18:07We're going to do a more in-depth Raptor season preview coming up on the show tomorrow.
18:11And lastly in the East, it's the Washington Wizards.
18:14This one's an easy under at 30 and a half as well.
18:17I don't know where you're getting 30 wins from this team from.
18:19I think that anything that can be moved by the trade deadline will be moved.
18:23I think that it is a basketball team that just has a few pieces that look intriguing
18:28that aren't any good together, and I think it is going to, I think it's going to be one
18:34of the worst teams in the league.
18:35I think they have a real opportunity again to get a high draft pick.
18:38So, now, where does everybody line up?
18:41Well firstly, for division winners, we, man I don't know if the Knicks are going to go
18:47so far over as they get Boston, um, sorry, that they catch Boston for that division,
18:55but let's look at some of the division prices here real quick for some of the teams that
18:58we have in some of these spots here.
19:02Let's go NBA, let's go Futures, show odds, divisions, um, Atlantic.
19:11So the Knicks are plus 300 to win the division.
19:14That's actually, that's actually not bad, I actually don't mind that one.
19:18We're going to, um, going to do a little bit of a highlight on that to make sure we remember
19:23that.
19:24Um, well we'll pick the Knicks to win the division, so that inherently means we have
19:27to have the Knicks ahead.
19:28Man, I did not realize how much the white background on my Google lit me up a little
19:32bit.
19:33Um, so, okay, we're bouncing around with a couple of things here.
19:36We got to, got to make sure we got the play-in bracket all right.
19:42And then we go here, and again none of you can see me doing this, and I should definitely
19:46figure out how to do these on a screen, so y'all can kind of, uh, follow along with me
19:52as well here.
19:53Uh, but just setting up the playoff bracket for the Eastern Conference, ba-boom, ba-boom,
20:04took up way too much room on this page, um, so we're going to have to go to a different
20:08page now for the next one.
20:10None of this matters to you guys.
20:11Apologies, I should have this, uh, organized by now.
20:14But, uh, we're going to put these teams now in the orders that I think they're going to
20:17go.
20:18Oh, we did not, did I put Charlotte?
20:19I did put Charlotte.
20:20I'm sorry for me.
20:21At 29 and a half, uh, and that's a, uh, a circle as well.
20:25So, uh, we have the Knicks to win the Atlantic Division, and that I do think means they will
20:33be your one seed.
20:35Boston, I think, will be right there as the number two seed.
20:40For our Central Division winner, the odds are Milwaukee are the favorites at minus 125.
20:48Get wrecked with that.
20:50Cleveland at plus 200 to win the Central Division.
20:53I like it.
20:54I actually like that quite a bit.
20:56Uh, so we will go Cleveland there to, uh, to win the Central.
21:00And again, the highlighter comes out for that particular play as well.
21:05Um, and then in the Southeast, who do they have winning it?
21:08I'm assuming, yeah, Orlando minus 161.
21:11Miami might be a bit of a value play there, but I just, I don't see that necessarily happening
21:16there.
21:17Uh, so Cleveland we do have as our three seed.
21:19We do have Orlando coming in as our four seed.
21:24Uh, Philadelphia seems like they would be the next ones up.
21:27Actually, I think, well, I did take under on Indy at 46 and a half.
21:32That's might be a little bit low.
21:34So I do think that it is going to be Philly coming in as the five seed.
21:39We will have Indy coming in as the six.
21:44So that means it will be Miami as our seven seed.
21:50Coming in at the eighth seed is going to be Milwaukee.
21:55Holy crap.
21:56Uh, our ninth seed, oof.
21:59This is, this is where it gets tough.
22:01Is there an obvious one here?
22:03I don't think so.
22:04Um, Atlanta might get it.
22:06I just, I don't think they're it.
22:07So the teams that are left for this, I, I have Detroit getting in, so I'm putting Detroit
22:13as my nine and then God damn, maybe it is Atlanta.
22:18Yeah.
22:19Atlanta is getting in as a play in team.
22:21That is just gross.
22:23Oh, I hate that so much.
22:24Uh, but Atlanta is it they're, they're a play in team.
22:27So now let's play this thing out.
22:28Uh, Milwaukee probably beats Miami.
22:30Well, no, you know what?
22:31Miami beats Milwaukee.
22:33So we get a rematch, Miami, Boston, uh, Milwaukee.
22:36I don't think it mattered.
22:38I think Detroit probably went, well, no, Atlanta has the experience.
22:40Atlanta wins the play in, but Milwaukee kicks the tar out of them.
22:44And so they go onto the garden to face the Knicks.
22:47So the Knicks, they move on, Boston moves on.
22:50Um, I think Indy gives Cleveland problems in the, the East and that's what happens there.
22:56And then I do think Philly probably gets by Orlando in the next round.
23:00So Philly comes into the five seed.
23:01They move on to the second round at least.
23:03Um, then we get, uh, the, the reseeding.
23:07So it would be the Knicks.
23:10No, it's not reseeding.
23:11It's just full bracket style.
23:12Sorry.
23:13I keep screwing all this up.
23:14It would be the Knicks against Philly and it would be Boston against Indiana in the
23:20conference semifinals.
23:22And so you would get Knicks, you would get Boston, New York Knicks versus Boston Celtics
23:28in the NBA's Eastern Conference Final.
23:31And that is where I think this gets really interesting.
23:33And I think that is where Kristaps Porzingis being back and healthy presumably gets them
23:39the win.
23:40And so I have the Boston Celtics winning the Eastern Conference.
23:44Um, so those are the plays there out East.