On Monday, ESPN revealed the over/under win totals for the 2018-19 season for each NBA team according to the Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook. The Golden State Warriors have the highest over/under win total at 62.5 while the Atlanta Hawks have the lowest at 23.5.
Here are predictions on four of the teams as to whether they will go over or under their projected win totals.
Teams predicted to go over
- Los Angeles Clippers 35.5 wins (Last season's record: 42-40)
Yes, the three former stars of the Clippers are now all gone in Chris Paul, Blake Griffin, and DeAndre Jordan.
They will have Patrick Beverley returning from injury though, and Avery Bradley will look to rebound from his disappointing 2017-18 season. Danilo Gallinari also hopes to play more than 21 games. Luc Mbah a Moute and Mike Scott are nice, inexpensive players they signed that help add to their depth. They also used two late lottery picks on Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jawun Evans. Clipperholics of FanSided agrees that this should be an over, calling the 35.5 projected wins a complete joke.
- Portland Trail Blazers 41.5 wins (Last season’s record: 49-33)
The Trail Blazers were the surprise three-seed out West in the Western Conference playoffs last season. They subsequently got knocked out in the first round by the Pelicans, courtesy of a sweep.
In order to go under their projected win total, they would have to finish .500 or worse. That would be a steep drop for a team that regained most of their core pieces (other than Ed Davis and Shabazz Napier, both of whom signed with the Nets). They still sport one of the more dynamic backcourts in Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum.
Adding Seth Curry and Nik Stauskas probably doesn’t move the needle much for them, but they should still finish with a winning record.
- San Antonio Spurs 42.5 wins (Last season’s record: 47-35)
Since Gregg Popovich took over full-time as the Spurs’ head coach in the 1997-98 season, San Antonio’s 47 wins last season were their least in an 82-game schedule.
The Spurs did lose Kawhi Leonard by trading him to the Raptors, but he only played in nine games last season. They still were able to win 47 games. Now they added four-time All-Star DeMar DeRozan to last year’s roster in the Kawhi Leonard deal. Signing Marco Belinelli and Dante Cunningham soften the blow a little at least of losing Kyle Anderson to the Grizzlies.
Team predicted to go under
- Memphis Grizzlies 34.5 wins (Last season’s record: 22-60)
The Grizzlies should definitely be improved from their disastrous 2017-18 season. Mike Conley, arguably the best current player to never play in an All-Star Game, was limited to just 12 games. Jaren Jackson, selected fourth overall in June’s draft, was the Defensive Player of the Year in the Big Ten at Michigan State as a freshman last season.
Signing Kyle Anderson away from the Spurs and trading for Garrett Temple gives Memphis two more defensive presences.
Still, they lost Tyreke Evans who was their best player last season. Marc Gasol has begun showing signs of regression as he will turn 34 in January. The Grizzlies still seem to be towards the bottom of the pecking order in the Western Conference.