The Phoenix Suns face a formidable challenge, but what can be expected from the next 23 games?

The Phoenix Suns face a formidable challenge, but what can be expected from the next 23 games?

NBA regular season action is returning! Along with its return is an unavoidable, very enjoyable duty: providing one prediction for each team, along with our MVP and championship selections.

Report on Bleachers We’ve asked NBA staff writers Grant Hughes and Dan Favale to use their best psychic abilities to finish this exercise by looking into a crystal ball. There will be no team left out. Triple-double assurance.

These forecasts are not intended to be irrational. (Warning: There will be spoilers.) Not that they’re meant to be “Well, duh,” either.

Rather, we are trying to share noteworthy ideas and viewpoints that we hope will become facts, whether they are favorable or not.

Let’s move on to the logical, yet creative, forecasts!

It’s not sultry to choose the Denver Nuggets to win the NBA championship again. It is clever, though.

It’s hazardous, no question, to lose Bruce Brown and rely more on Christian Braun and a group of inexperienced young guys like Peyton Watson, Hunter Tyson, possibly Julian Strawther, and Jalen Pickett. However, last year’s bench wasn’t all that impressive.

The Nuggets relied on seven players when it counted most. They are still no worse than the NBA’s second-best top six, whose standing is expected to improve.

As it stands, Nikola Jokić is the greatest player alive. Jamal Murray may be—should be—better because he isn’t recuperating from an ACL tear this season. Godspeed if Michael Porter Jr. can rebound and defend like he did during the playoffs. Braun might get better as he starts his second year.

The Phoenix Suns, Milwaukee Bucks, and Boston Celtics are integrating big stars while facing depth concerns of their own. Likewise with the Golden State Warriors, who are perhaps too diminutive.

James Harden’s uncertain future is weighing the Philadelphia 76ers down to the point that they seem ready to collapse. Cleveland’s Cavaliers are a youthful team. The Miami Heat made no moves to strengthen their group. The Los Angeles Lakers continue to be totally dependent on LeBron James, who is 39 years old, and Anthony Davis, despite his availability issues. The Los Angeles Clippers are who they are.

Denver is the best and safest option available.

—Favale.

Looking back at the past is usually a smart approach for projecting future MVPs. You should definitely start with a man who has won two of the previous three MVP awards and hasn’t been outside the top 10 in the vote since 2017–18.

Apart from historical precedent, Nikola Jokić also benefits from a number of other significant variables.

First off, the Denver Nuggets are arguably the most reliable team in the West to win 50 games. MVP voting still takes into account team success, and the Nuggets appear certain to check that box.

Second, the MVP must be the most obvious force behind the success of their team. When Jokić was not on the court last season, the championship-winning Nuggets were outscored by 11.7 points per 100 possessions, a differential.