Predictions: How NBA Western Conference Standings Finish
PHOENIX -- The NBA season is set to return on Thursday after a week-plus off across the league for the All-Star break.
The looming question is where the Phoenix Suns will finish in the standings two months down the road - they currently hold a narrow lead on the fifth seed and trail the Denver Nuggets by three games for the number four seed.
The positive development for the Suns is the on-court product has been tangibly great the last month, as well as getting a crack at every team ahead on multiple occasions to close the regular season.
Our prediction on how the West's top 10 will shake out:
1. Minnesota Timberwolves
The Timberwolves very well may be the most disrespected team in the league, even after months of playing consistent basketball.
Minnesota is finally playing basketball to the level that was expected when the franchise acquired Rudy Gobert in the summer of 2022.
The Wolves would also be on a 62-win pace if Mike Conley had played every game thus far. Conley has only missed 5 contests thus far - that's a testament to the overall consistency this team has shown through nearly 60 games.
The Timberwolves don't relinquish the hold on the top spot.
2. Oklahoma City Thunder
The Thunder are quite possibly the team with the most question marks among those considered title contenders.
Between lack of playoff experience, employing Josh Giddey in the starting lineup, and a lack off depth behind Chet Holmgren, Oklahoma City could be a year or two away from making a serious playoff push.
The concerns of playoff viability doesn't keep the Thunder from securing the two-seed in the bracket, however.
The Thunder finish north of 55 wins behind a relatively soft schedule, the addition of wing Gordon Hayward, and the strong pushes for MVP/MIP behind stars Shai Gilgeous-Alexander/Jalen Williams, respectively.
3. Phoenix Suns
The Suns make up four games to pass the Clippers and three games to pass the Denver Nuggets - as unlikely as it currently seems.
The Suns have been playing like a top five team in basketball since the Christmas loss to the Dallas Mavericks - and they finish the season strong behind better health and more rotational flexibility.
The Suns ultimately finish in the ballpark of what was expected, even after the tumultuous start to the year
4. Los Angeles Clippers
The Clippers have been the most impressive team in basketball since mid-November, at least according to many players and media within the league.
L.A. certainly has a chance to climb to the number one position, this final prediction is based around the assumption that certain players on the team will experience regression to the mean, and the lack of confidence in Kawhi Leonard finishing out the season without injury issues - just due to previous history.
5. Denver Nuggets
The Nuggets falling to the five spot might be the most shocking development of the season.
The defending champs have been good, not great this season - and the overall regression of players such as Aaron Gordon, along with the questions surrounding the bench are big catalysts behind the slight drop in play.
The Nuggets still could very well be favorites in the West regardless of seeding, but the drop in play could coincide with the recent surges by Phoenix and Los Angeles.
6. Dallas Mavericks
The Mavericks rise one spot higher than they currently sit - particularly behind the acquisitions of Daniel Gafford and P.J. Washington.
Dallas is unquestionably a better team today than they were two weeks ago and have a very strong big-man rotation to compliment their two stars and sixth-man of the year candidate.
Dallas still has some clear flaws, but they appear to be a team that can escape the play-in tournament now.
Play-In Territory
7. New Orleans Pelicans
This is the best Pelicans squad in years.
New Orleans will also be cursed by a lack of a consistent go-to option, along with the strength of the conference as a whole.
The Pelicans fall from the six seed to the seven and have to play their way into the playoffs for the third time in four seasons.
8. Sacramento Kings
The Kings were a pleasant surprise last season, finishing third place in the West after nearly two decades of missing out on the playoffs.
Sacramento gets a chance to make the playoffs again, but the strength of the conference and the inconsistency of the squad force them to win a game in the play-in tournament to earn the spot.
9. Golden State Warriors
The Warriors pass the Lakers up in this scenario.
Two of the titans of NBA history have been playing great basketball the last three weeks, but the Warriors' trajectory feels more sustainable - especially if Stephen Curry continues the breakneck pace he's currently on.
The Warriors have a prime chance to sneak into the playoffs and get a shot to make a run yet again.
10. Los Angeles Lakers
The Lakers wrap up the strongest top 10 in the West that there's been in a decade.
The premier NBA franchise has seen a recent resurgence due to improved play of D'Angelo Russell and Austin Reaves, while the star duo of LeBron James/Anthony Davis give any team a chance come postseason time.
The Lakers have the ability to make noise, even as a 10-seed.
The NBA regular season concludes on April 14 and the playoffs start on April 20.
