1. HOU
2. DEN
3. UTA
4. LAC
5. POR
6. LAL
7. GSW
8. SAS
9. SAC
10. NOP
11. DAL
12. MIN
13. OKC
14. PHO
15. MEM
It's so close at the top. Every game counts.
Utah is a deep team with better offensive players and closers this season so they should win a ton of close games and have a number of winning streaks.
HOU should still do well. Despite his weaknesses Westbrook plays hard every game and Harden is no different, so they'll have a strong regular season.
POR will exceed the expectations as usual. They have Nurk back and McCollum looks better each season. Poor roster construction and club management will stop LAL from having HCA. I'm not a fan of coach Vogel's in-game decision making either, so it should cost them a couple games too. Both GSW and SAS should still make the playoffs while SAC, DAL and NOP will lose a ton of close games. I can see SAC taking SAS's spot and sneak into the playoffs. They probably will find a way to screw things up anyway. OKC is the most unpredictable team in the West, they still have an underrated squad that can surprise people. I expect them to trade their veterans before the deadline and eventually fall in the rankings.