NBA Season Preview Panel: Western Conference Champion

Welcome to the official HoopsHabit NBA season preview panel, where 32 of our writers got together to put their proverbial pens to paper, voting on the winners in each division, the conference winners, the NBA champs and each of the six major individual awards. We’ll be rolling out a new column each day throughout October to show the results of our voting and how we see the 2014-15 NBA season shaking out.

This panel covers the Western Conference, which is unquestionably the stronger of the two conferences. A year ago, the San Antonio Spurs squeaked by the Dallas Mavericks in Round 1 before running roughshod over the conference en route to their NBA Finals appearance.

This season, I don’t think anybody would be surprised to see the exact same list of playoff contenders. In addition to the Spurs and Mavs, we had the Portland Trail Blazers, Houston Rockets, Oklahoma City Thunder, Memphis Grizzlies, Los Angeles Clippers and the Golden State Warriors. The order may be different and I wouldn’t be shocked to see the Phoenix Suns sneak into the No. 8 seed, but this conference is tough top-to-bottom and it’s sure to be a dogfight for the entire season.

Our official winner, based on 32 votes:

Also receiving votes: Los Angeles Clippers (7), Golden State Warriors (1)

Adam McGee sees a repeat by the Spurs:

"The Spurs are the easy choice in many ways, but that doesn’t mean they’re the wrong one either. There’s a lot to be said for experience, and having just gone the distance last year San Antonio are surely brimming with confidence. In a summer of shifting landscapes around the league, Gregg Popovich and company stayed as rock steady as ever. Sure, age will catch up with them eventually, but there’s very little evidence to say that it will happen this season."

Matt Shantz sees the Thunder breaking through (again):

"Last season the Oklahoma City Thunder came within two games of the NBA Finals, losing at the hands of the eventual champion San Antonio Spurs.  They accomplished this despite missing Serge Ibaka for the first two games against San Antonio, before he returned for the remainder of the series noticeably limited due to a left calf injury. With a healthy trio of Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and Serge Ibaka, the Thunder are already a force to be reckoned with; but if they can get internal development from young players like Steven Adams (will Scott Brooks realize that the second year center is already better than Kendrick Perkins?), Jeremy Lamb, and Reggie Jackson, then OKC can pencil themselves in as Western Conference Champions."

Jonathan Asaad went out on a limb to pick the Warriors:

"Barring injuries, the Golden State Warriors are just as cogently capable as upper-echelon teams are in the loaded Western Conference. The Warriors encompass all of the components necessary to win a championship: a revamped bench, viable defenders on both the perimeter and the interior, a more methodical, strategic head coach, Steve Kerr, and a potent offense orchestrated by the best shooter (of all-time), Stephen Curry. It’s up to Kerr not only to maximize the abilities of this talented group of players but also to catapult them to the next level."

Bryce Olin sees a lot of improvement and believes it’s the Clippers year:

"Last season, Chris Paul missed 20 games with a shoulder injury, and the Clippers still won 57 games. This offseason, the Clippers addressed their weaknesses by signing Spencer Hawes, Ekpe Udoh, and Chris Douglas-Roberts. The Golden State Warriors will challenge the Clippers for the division but should fall short by a few games.  If Paul can stay healthy and Blake Griffin can keep steadily improving, I think the Clippers could, and probably should, win 60 games this season."