The NBA has seen a big shake-up this season. Teams who missed the playoffs last season (the Los Angeles Lakers and the Miami Heat) are now at the top of the NBA standings. With Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, the Los Angeles Clippers have are competing for a title as well. The road to a title is wide open this season with the Golden State Warriors dealing with plenty of injuries. Here are some of the hottest takes of the year and whether they are legit or just going to flop.

 The Miami Heat are real contenders – Buy

The Miami Heat are a legitimate finals contender. This team was not the glamorous pick to come out of the Eastern Conference; however, this team has never backed down to doubters. Led by Jimmy Butler, the newest Heat members have made a point to fit in to the Heat’s hardworking culture by showing up to practice six-and-a-half hours early. Bam Adebayo is putting himself in the Most Improved Player conversation, arguably leading it. He is able to finish around the rim at a high level and find his teammates at all times, offensively. Defensively, he is able to guard the best at every position. Undrafted rookie Kendrick Nunn has been the biggest surprise this season and is making a huge case early for the league’s Rookie of the Year with his astounding shooting from distance and his knack for scoring. This Heat team has a whole lot of depth and each player plays their role to their fullest, as seen in the demolition of the Houston Rockets and the recent win over the Hawks in overtime. This team will have some growing pains, such as their horrible loss in Denver, along the way due to their youth, but expect this Butler-led Heat to make a big run at the finals. 

The Phoenix Suns are decent – Buy

The Phoenix Suns have actually become somewhat relevant! Led by the stellar play of Devin Booker, the Suns have set themselves up as a top four seed in the stacked Western Conference. Do not expect this to continue, but it is a good look for the Suns to maybe fight for a seven or eight seed. The young guys, especially Booker, need to get high-level experience. With last year’s first overall pick Deandre Ayton out for a quarter of the season due to violating the NBA’s anti-drug policy, backup center Aron Baynes has taken full advantage of his newfound starting role. The Suns will be somewhat good this year, but wait for the front office to fill out the bench with more experience and this is a contending team for first round home court advantage. 

The Sacramento Kings are bad – Sell

The Kings have had some bad losses, but also some close games. This team has loads of talent, starting with point guard De’Aaron Fox and forward Marvin Bagley III. This team was decent last season and many expected them to take that next step and reach the playoffs following a 39 win season. However, this doesn’t look to be the case if they continue their bad play from the first 24 games of the season. With Bagley’s return, expect this team to turn it around and fight for that eighth seed in the Western Conference. 

Brandon Ingram and Bam Adebayo lead Most Improved Player conversations – Buy

The Duke product Brandon Ingram had not lived up to his potential leading up to this season; however, that has all changed with his recent outburst, averaging 26 points, seven rebounds, and four assists per contest. In his first three seasons, Ingram has been inconsistent behind the three point line, but this season he has hit on 47 percent so far. Ingram has been able to knock down jumpers all over the court as well as get to the rim at will, where he uses his incredible length to make tough finishes. 

Bam Adebayo has taken a new role in the Miami offense. He has become a threat whenever he is inside the arc and has proved to be a versatile player who can handle the ball from the center position. He is averaging 15 points, 10.5 rebounds, and four and a half assists, all while shooting 59 percent from the field. Malcolm Brogdon has made a big jump in his assist per game, but Ingram and Adebayo have turned themselves into offensive forces which will put them at the top of the Most Improved Player rankings. 

Luka Doncic is an all-star and will lead the Dallas Mavericks to a 5 or 6 seed – Half Buy/Half Sell

It’s crazy to think that at one point scouts were uneasy with taking Luka Doncic with the top pick because he is “too slow.” Well, now he is leading the Mavericks to be competitive in every game, including a crazy overtime loss to the Lakers. Doncic is almost averaging a triple-double with 28 points, 11 boards, and 9 assists per game. The half-sell is that the rest of this Mavericks team is just not good enough to make a 5 or 6 seed in the competitive West. Kristaps Porzingis is a star, but he’s just one more guy. Should either one of these guys get hurt for an extended period of time (Porzingis is known to be injury-prone), this team will slip from playoff contention as just one of Doncic and Porzingis is just not enough with the supporting cast Dallas has. The Mavericks need to make a big move if they want to make any sort of run in the playoffs, so pay attention in February. 

The Utah Jazz are overhype – Sell

The Utah Jazz was a team that was looked at as a title contender going into the year, but the team has had its struggles to start the season. The team has not looked locked-in for a title with their 14-11 record to start the year; however, they have had flashes and have improved every aspect of their roster from last year. The Jazz need to see an improvement from their bench. Sixth-man sharpshooter Joe Ingles is shooting just 32 percent from beyond the three point arc and averaging just seven and a half points per game. The bench does not consist of one double digit scorer per game, and this is causing serious issues because Donovan Mitchell and Bojan Bogdonvic simply cannot take over the scoring load by themselves. This team will put it together by the all-star break and will compete for a championship. 

The Toronto Raptors are legit – Sell

The Toronto Raptors are sitting in fifth place in the Eastern Conference with 16 wins in 24 games. Fourth-year forward Pascal Siakam has taken over the scoring load from Kawhi Leonard with 25 points per game and also leads the team with eight rebounds. It is very difficult to maintain these averages while shooting 46.5 percent from the field. It should be expected for the shooting numbers to drop as Siakam has just never seen this volume of shots before. Teams will figure out the best way to guard him with more film. Additionally, Fred VanVleet has been playing strong with 18.5 points and seven and a half  assists. Look for this Raptors team to fall when the injury bug hits or when they play the league’s top teams. 

The Los Angeles Lakers are the best team – Buy

Any team with LeBron James is going to be a top team in the league. Now with Anthony Davis, the Lakers have a league’s best dynamic duo, and the bench has been playing much higher than the expectation. Most NBA fans were looking at the Lakers as a team that would underachieve due to their “lack of depth”; however, Rajon Rondo, Dwight Howard, and Kyle Kuzma have been playing great. Avery Bradley has been hurt for most of the beginning of the season, so the team will be getting a boost at the guard position when he returns. This team is competing for a title, and anything short of one will be viewed as a disappointment for this season. 

The Golden State Warriors are bad – Buy (but not for the future)

The Warriors do not have a very good rotation this season. With two-time MVP Steph Curry and all-star Klay Thompson out for almost the entire season, as well as all-stars Draymond Green and D’Angelo Russell dealing with lingering injuries, the Warriors starting five consists of three rookies on some nights, none of which were lottery picks. This has led to the Warriors losing 21 of their first 26 games. However, this season is just what the dynasty needed. This is not a reset, rather a reload. With the all-stars on the bench, second round pick Eric Paschall has been able to shine in his rookie season. He is able to play his game and dominate around the rim with his size as Curry and Thompson are not their to take all the shots. Additionally, with a terrible record, the Warriors will be in the running for a top pick in the loaded 2020 draft. With that, the Warriors could have four all-stars and two potential all-stars in Paschall and their top pick. The dynasty is not over!

Karl-Anthony Towns for MVP – Sell

Karl-Anthony Towns is helping to redefine the center position. He has averaged 26 points, 12 assists, and four and a half assists. He is also shooting 42 percent from deep. These do look to be MVP-type numbers; however, the Timberwolves hold a sub 500 record. When looking at the MVP list, one sees LeBron James, Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Luka Doncic, all of which combine for less losses than Towns. Towns has done this for short stretches before and is a perennial all-star, but he has not been able to sustain this level or win enough games to take home the hardware. 

LeBron James for MVP – Buy

LeBron James is out for revenge this season. He knows that his last season was a disappointment with his injuries and missing the playoffs, so he stayed quiet all offseason and just went to work. Now, he is looking like his best self on the court. He is definitely putting up MVP numbers averaging 26 points, 11 assists, and 7 rebounds. His 11 assists per game leads the entire NBA. On top of that, he’s leading his team to the best record in the league with 21 wins against just three losses. This is definitely LeBron’s year to dominate the league, take home the MVP, and then win a title.