Sports

The Scout: NBA Futures Preview

Posted on | Posted by The Scout

Championship

Los Angeles Lakers – $3.60*

The defending NBA champions are the rightful favourites to go back-to-back off the back of a bevy of offseason additions… and LeBron James and Anthony Davis.

LeBron and AD were the first duo ever to average 25 points per game on 50% shooting in the same postseason. And with just one full season together, you’d imagine there’s still room for improvement. Scary!

The Lakers were the big winners this offseason, adding last season’s Sixth Man of the Year, Montrezl Harrell,  runner up in that award, Dennis Schroder, plus Wesley Matthews Marc Gasol.

Out went Danny Green, Rajon Rondo and Dwight Howard, but this was a big win overall, and more importantly none of their major competitors made any significant roster upgrades.

Harrell and Schroder give the Lakers energy and scoring off the bench, while Matthews provides three point shooting, and Marc Gasol brings playoff experience, great passing and high IQ.

The Lakers bench is now arguably the best in the league and their starting five boasts two of the best five players in basketball. It’s hard to make a case against them.

MVP

Giannis Antetokounmpo – $5.50*

Like most years, there are only a few viable candidates here, and the biggest thing going against the two-time MVP is (the dreaded) ‘voter fatigue.’

It’s extremely rare that the MVP goes to a player whose team isn’t top two in their conference. For this reason I’ve put a line through Stephen Curry, Damian Lillard, Jimmy Butler and Luka Doncic.

James Harden is a no for obvious reasons while LeBron James & Anthony Davis will steal votes from each other, and likely miss too many games with load management.

On the topic of load management, it’s hard to imagine Kawhi Leonard or Kevin Durant playing enough games to factor here.

The Bucks have improved their roster and should stroll their way into the top two seeds in the east. Jrue Holiday is nice addition, but will take none of the shine (or stats) away from Giannis.

Defensive Player of the Year

Ben Simmons – $15*

Playing just 57 games, Simmons finished 4th in DPOY voting last season. He was first team All-Defense, leading the league in steals and defensive ball recovers, while third in deflections per game.

What makes Simmons so special is his ability to guard multiple positions; he might be the most versatile defender in the NBA, and generally gets the job on the opposition’s best player.

New coach Doc Rivers will push Simmons to become an even better defender, much like he did when transforming a raw and inconsistent DeAndre Jordan into a perennial DPOY candidate.

*Odds correct as at 8pm, 17th December 2020.

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