Complex Sports 2019-2020 NBA Predictions

The NBA season is finally here. After an insane summer where we saw numerous star players switch teams, the games are finally about to begin. Kyrie Irving is in Brooklyn. Anthony Davis is a Laker. Kawhi Leonard and Paul George are on the Clippers. And that's only a little bit of what went down this summer. The Warriors lost Kevin Durant and won't have Klay Thompson until after the All-Star game. The NBA that we've come to know over the past few years is gone. Duos are now running the league and at least 10 teams probably feel like they have a legit shot to win a championship.

That's a crazy shift after the Warriors dominance over the past few years. But it's fun. This NBA season has a unknown factor to it. You have an idea who will be good, but there's no foregone conclusion who will win it all this season. With the season set to kick off this week, the Complex Sports team got together and shared some predictions for the upcoming season. These might look wild in a few months, but we gave it our best shot.

The top of the East will be really good this season. The bottom of the East will be, ugh, yeah. Our team is a bit all over the place with the eight teams that will make the playoffs in the conference, but are solidly set on the Bucks and Sixers leading the way.

Eastern Conference Playoff Teams -

Chopz:

1. Bucks

2. Sixers

3. Pacers

4. Nets

5. Celtics

6. Heat

7. Bulls

8. Hawks

Adam Caparell:

1. Bucks

2. Sixers

3. Nets

4. Pacers

5. Celtics

6. Raptors

7. Heat

8. Pistons

Zion:

1. Bucks

2. Sixers

3. Celtics

4. Nets

5. Pacers

6. Raptors

7. Pistons

8. Heat

Angel Diaz:

1. Bucks

2. Sixers

3. Celtics

4. Pacers

5. Heat

6. Hawks

7. Pistons

8. Nets

The West is stacked. It's wide open. It's hard to pick out the eight teams that will make the playoffs. There are some key questions that need to be answered, like how long will it take the Clippers to gel? Or could the Warriors actually miss the playoffs? It's going to be a wild season out West, that's for sure.

Western Conference Playoff Teams -

Chopz:

1. Nuggets

2. Lakers

3. Jazz

4. Clippers

5. Rockets

6. Blazers

7. Warriors

8. Mavericks

Adam Caparell:

1. Nuggets

2. Rockets

3. Clippers

4. Jazz

5. Lakers

6. Warriors

7. Blazers

8. Spurs

Zion:

1. Rockets

2. Nuggets

3. Lakers

4. Clippers

5. Jazz

6. Warriors

7. Blazers

8. Spurs

Angel Diaz:

1. Nuggets

2. Rockets

3. Lakers

4. Clippers

5. Blazers

6. Jazz

7. Mavs

8. Pelicans

This one seemed like a foregone conclusion last week, but in light of Zion Williamson's knee injury, which will keep him out a number of weeks, the race for Rookie of the Year seems wide open. Could Ja Morant step up and take it home? Maybe Zion will be able to come back and reclaim the throne? Could a surprise guy like Tyler Herro jump into the mix?

Rookie of the Year -

Chopz: Darius Garland

Adam Caparell: Ja Morant

Zion: Ja Morant

Angel Diaz: Tyler Herro

The MVP race appears to be as wide open as the race for the NBA championship this season. Of course, Giannis will be in the running to repeat, while James Harden is always a good bet. But could someone like Steph Curry, who is going to have to carry the Warriors, emerge on the scene? Our team is pretty split on MVP going into the season. Should be fun.

MVP -

Chopz: LeBron James

Adam Caparell: Joel Embiid

Zion: James Harden

Angel Diaz: LeBron James

Now we're getting to the real shit. Who will reach the NBA finals this season? Our team seems to think that the finals this year will consist of one of the LA teams and the Philadelphia 76ers. In fact, all four of us picked Philly to make it. Not much of a shock there, they'll be really good this season. But for the West, we're split on the Lakers and Clippers. Battle of LA, indeed.

NBA Finals -

Chopz: Philadelphai 76ers vs. Los Angeles Clippers

Adam Caparell: Philadelphia 76ers vs. Los Angeles Clippers

Zion: Philadelphia 76ers vs. Los Angeles Lakers

Angel Diaz: Philadelphia 76ers vs. Los Angeles Lakers

And here we are. Who is going to take home the NBA championship this season? Unlike most years, we basically know it won't be either team that made the finals last season. However, there's a chance that we see the Kawhi repeat. How crazy would that be. The only thing in Kawhi's way, according to the Complex Sports team? LeBron James and Anthony Davis. Buckle up, because this NBA season is going to be all sorts of epic.

NBA Champions -

Chopz: Los Angeles Clippers

Adam Caparell: Los Angeles Clippers

Zion: Los Angeles Lakers

Angel Diaz: Los Angeles Lakers