The NBA is gearing up for its first normal season (hopefully) in years. The regular season starts on October 19 with a bang, having the Los Angeles Lakers facing the Brooklyn Nets. The Lakers had a big offseason, acquiring Russell Westbrook, Carmelo Anthony, Kendrick Nunn, among many more. The Nets still have Kevin Durant, James Harden, and Kylie Irving, although Kyrie Irving may not play due to COVID-19 vaccination concerns.

How will the Timberwolves perform?

The Minnesota Timberwolves off-season was pretty quiet, but they still made some moves. They acquired some decent players such as Taurean Prince and Patrick Beverley but lost role players like Juancho Hernangomez, Ricky Rubio, and Jarrett Culver.  But with a starting 5 of D’Angelo Russell, Malik Beasley, Anthony Edwards, Jaden McDaniels and Karl Anthony-Towns, I expect the Wolves to finish in the playoffs if they can stay healthy. With Anthony Edwards and Jaden McDaniels hopefully improving and KAT and D’lo, the Timberwolves should finish around the 5-7 seed range.

Who will contend for the O’Brien this season?

These are the odds for the Championship as of now:

All Odds by NBA.com

As you can see, the Lakers and Nets are each favored at 1/3 odds with the last seasons champions Bucks at 1/9 followed by the Warriors.

With many contenders and teams to watch, this should be a fun season.