The NBA season is just around the corner and with training camps opening up this week, here is a look at the Pacific Division and how things could play out for the Los Angeles Clippers, LA Lakers, Golden State Warriors, Phoenix Suns and Sacramento Kings for the 2015-16 season. The Pacific has plenty of intrigue and big names, as the Warriors are NBA champions and players like DeMarcus Cousins, Kobe Bryant, Eric Bledsoe, Chris Paul, Blake Griffin and Klay Thompson all make their bones in this group.
The Warriors obviously are the heavy favorites to win the division again after winning the NBA title last season and that is one of the best bets in all the NBA this season. It's not a knock on the other teams in the Pacific, even the Clippers, as they could challenge for the title, but it's Golden State's to lose at this point. The team brings back all of their key players from the championship run last season and they only have the Clippers as a real challenger in the group.
The Warriors are the top team and the Clippers are next, as they made a run in the playoffs last season and also made numerous improvements this year. The team is keeping Jamal Crawford for now and they also retained DeAndre Jordan after that whole mess. The team added Lance Stephenson in a trade and also signed Josh Smith, Pablo Prigioni, Wesley Johnson and Paul Pierce to deals. Doc Rivers made his team deeper and adds a lot of help for Chris Paul and Blake Griffin.
The Lakers may not be a good team yet, but they should be better than last season. The team has a young star in D'Angelo Russell and he joins Julius Randle and Jordan Clarkson as the young core of this team. The Lakers also brought in Roy Hibbert, Lou Williams and Brandon Bass and if Kobe Bryant can stay healthy, the team should be much improved. The team also signed Metta World Peace and that should add to the fun for the Lakers.
The Suns reached high for LaMarcus Aldridge and struck out, but they have talent and the team also added Tyson Chandler in the offseason. Chandler is still a good rebounder and an ace defender and his veteran leadership should be huge. Markieff Morris is okay with being back with the Suns for now and that could help get things going early in the season. The Kings made moves by adding Marco Belinelli, Rajon Rondo and Kosta Koufos, but they still are rebuilding. The season could hinge on the relationship between George Karl and DeMarcus Cousins.
Prediction: Warriors win division, Clippers, Suns, Lakers, Kings finish in that order. Clips make playoffs, Suns and Lakers compete for 7/8 spots but fall short.
