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The 2022-23 NBA season is finally here and we’ve got predictions from the DK Nation staff on how things will play out. First, let’s take a look at our panel.
Ben Zweiman - Senior Managing Editor
Collin Sherwin - Deputy College Sports Editor
Chinmay Vaidya - Sports Editor
Nick Simon - Staff Writer
Grace McDermott - Staff Writer
Teddy Ricketson - Staff Writer
Pete Hernandez - Newsdesk Writer
Christian Crittenden - Newsdesk Writer
We start with awards predictions first. Our panel makes picks for Rookie of the Year, Sixth Man, Defensive Player, Most Improved and MVP.
Awards Predictions
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Our panel has Ivey, Banchero and Murray competing for Rookie of the Year. Herro and Poole seem to be the consensus picks for Sixth Man, although there’s one vote each for Hyland and Brogdon. Adebayo and Gobert are the favorites to bag Defensive Player, although Antetokounmpo and Embiid are getting some love there.
Most Improved has the most diversity. Haliburton and Maxey each have two votes, but Edwards, Williams, Porter Jr. and Williamson are all getting a mention. MVP has some variety as well, with Doncic and Embiid leading the way.
Next up, we had the panel make season predictions. This involved picking one team to bust (fall short of expectations), one sleeper team (outperforming expectations), the East and West champions, the NBA champion and Finals MVP. Here’s what they picked.
Season Predictions
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There’s a lot of diversity for which team will flop. The Phoenix Suns have two votes, but the Lakers are good candidates as well after last year. The Nets, Nuggets, Heat, Cavaliers and Clippers also appear here. Cleveland and Denver are also in the sleeper column, where New Orleans has the most votes with three. The Sacramento Kings are also getting some love with two votes here.
The most consensus category is East champion, where six panelists have the Milwaukee Bucks making it back to the Finals. Collin has picked the Brooklyn Nets to go all the way, while Ben has the Philadelphia 76ers making it.
The West is much more of a mixed bag. Half of our panel has the defending champions Golden State Warriors going back to the Finals. However, the Mavericks, Nuggets, Clippers and Suns also make an appearance here.
Of the six panelists having the Bucks in the Finals, only Teddy has them winning that matchup. Three panelists have Golden State repeating, but the Nets, Nuggets, Clippers and Mavericks are also being picked.
The panelists who picked Golden State to win have Stephen Curry repeating as Finals MVP. Ben has Doncic winning everything this year, so it could be a huge season in Dallas. Nick is taking Jokic to add Finals MVP to his regular season triumphs. Collin, Grace and Teddy are tabbing previous Finals MVPs to win the award again, selecting Durant, Leonard and Antetokounmpo respectively.