With the 2019-2020 NBA season quickly approaching, now is a good time to place your bet on which team will win the championship. Last season the Toronto Raptors overcame the Golden State Warriors 4-2 behind the heroics of Kawhi Leonard. It is important to mention that the Dubs did lose two core pieces, Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson, which does put an asterisk on Torontos victory.
Winning the championship largely consists of three things; individual player skill, team cohesion, and injuries. Nonetheless, the Raptors claimed their first NBA Finals trophy, regardless of how it happened. But now that same Toronto Raptors team no longer exists because their most important player, Kawhi Leonard, signed with the Los Angeles Clippers during a crazy offseason.
Making matters worse, their second key player, Kyle Lowry, will be 34 before the 2020 Playoffs begin. Center Marc Gasol will be 35. Sure, Toronto still has their impressive core of young players in Pascal Siakam, Fred VanVleet, and Norman Powell. This pales in comparison to the loss of Kawhi and another year of age on the already-slowing Lowry and Gasol.
Putting all of this into perspective means that it is extremely unlikely that the Raptors repeat in this years Finals. As a matter of fact, they probably wont even be the team representing the Eastern Conference. William Hill has them at +4000 to win the championship this year, placing them behind 12 other teams in odds to win it all.
To reach last years Finals, the Raptors had to play the league-leading Milwaukee Bucks in the Eastern Conference Finals. The Bucks were led by soon-to-be MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo. Toronto actually had their backs against the wall in the series because the Bucks jumped out to a quick 2-0 series lead. It took overtime for the Raptors to avoid a 0-3 series deficit in Game 3.
Despite losing the first two games of the series, Toronto did win the next four in a row to finish the series 4-2 and advance to the NBA Finals. Much of this had to do with how Toronto played defense on Giannis, essentially making anyone but him make the offense happen for the Bucks. They formed a wall around the league MVP, rendering him ineffective in comparison to how he dominated during the regular season.
One small thing to say about Antetokounmpo is that this was his first real deep run during the postseason. Since Giannis entered the league in the 2013-2014 season, the Bucks have made the playoffs four times. They missed out entirely during his rookie year and the 2015-2016 season, but they were bounced in the First Round in each of the three other years the Bucks made the playoffs (2015, 2017, and 2018). This is certainly no fault of the Greek Freak considering that the phenom is just 24 years old. For reference, Miami Heat legend Dwayne Wade was just 24 when he led the Miami Heat to their 2006 championship, but hes also the third best shooting guard of all time.
Giannis is certainly no slouch though, considering that he won Most Improved Player for the 2016-2017 season and improved that to MVP last season. The Greek Freak has steadily improved his statistical averages and play almost every season he has been in the league. This culminated in the Bucks best playoff run during his tenure a trip to the Eastern Conference Finals.
Now that Giannis has some actual deep playoff experience, hell be sharper than ever and prepared for the 2020 Playoffs. Considering that the Raptors got significantly worse over the offseason, the Bucks have become the de facto favorites to represent the East in the 2020 NBA Finals. A majority of their core from last season has carried over to this season, with Malcolm Brogdon being the lone exception.
William Hill has the Milwaukee Bucks at +500 to win the 2020 NBA Championship, behind only two other teams (both LA squads). Behind them, the Philadelphia 76ers are tied with the Houston Rockets at +800 to win it all themselves. This means that a 76ers-Bucks matchup in the Eastern Conference Finals is quite likely. Its also what basketball fans really want to see.
Weve gone over the Bucks already, but its important now to take a look at Philly. The 76ers did lose star Jimmy Butler to the Miami Heat, but they received Josh Richardson in exchange. Richardsdon had a fantastic season with the Heat last year, averaging 16.6 points and 4.1 assists.
They also lost JJ Redick to the New Orleans Pelicans, but Redick had a terrible habit of shooting the ball every single time he touched it. Redick did average 18.1 points for the season, but he will definitely decline this season now that he is 35. Horford did just turn 33, but he is still one of the leagues best defensive players. He was Joel Embiids biggest nemesis during last years playoffs, but hes now paired alongside him instead.
So the 76ers lost Jimmy Butler and JJ Redick, but they replaced them with Josh Richardson and Al Horford. Butler and Redick did have better statistical averages, but they both wanted a lot of touches. In actuality, the 76ers massively upgraded during the offseason because Richardson and Horford will be much better fits for the team.
On top of having a more-cohesive roster, Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid will both be a year older with more experience now. Simmons biggest flaw was his lack of an outside game, but hes been working on his jumper and is now being encouraged to shoot the three. Embiid is primed for an MVP season after improving his diet and losing weight. Hes also focusing in by avoiding trash talk on social media. Put all of this together and you have a downright terrifying Philadelphia 76ers squad.
Giannis and the Bucks definitely came close to advancing to the Finals last year. Had they held on in Game 3 of the ECF, they would probably be the reigning champions going into this season. Instead, they lost four in a row and will need to go through a tougher Eastern Conference this year. Giannis did have an impressive MVP season and is still favored at +300 to win another one for the 2020 season, but its hard to fathom how he can improve statistically from averages of 27.7 points, 12.5 rebounds, 5.9 assists, 1.3 steals, and 1.5 blocks on 57.8% shooting.
On the other hand, you have Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons leading a new and improved Philadelphia 76ers team. In just his third season, Embiid averaged 27.5 points, 13.6 rebounds, 3.7 assists, and 1.9 blocks on 48.4% shooting. Unlike Giannis, Embiid has plenty of room to grow. Dont be surprised to see a 30ppg/13rpg season from Embiid on above 50% shooting this year. Playing next to Horford will likely inspire him to be a force on the defensive end as well.
Then theres Ben Simmons. Simmons averaged 16.9 points, 8.8 rebounds, 7.7 assists, 1.4 steals, and 0.8 blocks on 56.3% shooting in just his second season, all of this without a jump shot. As a true 69 point guard, Ben is dominant on the defensive end and absolutely unstoppable as a creator on offense. If Simmons jump shot really improved during the offseason, a 20ppg/8prg/8apg season is entirely plausible.
This means that the Philadelphia 76ers at +800 are the much better choice to win the Eastern Conference Finals, and as a result, the 2020 NBA Finals.
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