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Over/Under? Vegas Projected Win Totals Released for 2016-17 Regular Season

By Matthew Medley

Jun 13, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (23) and Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) during the third quarter in game five of the NBA Finals at Oracle Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 13, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (23) and Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) during the third quarter in game five of the NBA Finals at Oracle Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports /
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Feb 27, 2015; Portland, OR, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Russell Westbrook (0) drives on Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard (0) during the first quarter at the Moda Center. Mandatory Credit: Craig Mitchelldyer-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 27, 2015; Portland, OR, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Russell Westbrook (0) drives on Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard (0) during the first quarter at the Moda Center. Mandatory Credit: Craig Mitchelldyer-USA TODAY Sports /

Northwest Division

Oklahoma City Thunder 45.5 wins

Over. Despite the loss of Kevin Durant, the Thunder have a great all-around team left in tact. The trade for Victor Oladipo addresses a major hole in their roster from previous seasons. Russell Westbrook is a favorite to win MVP.

Steven Adams and Enes Kanter exploded onto the scene in the 2016 Playoffs. Although I don’t expect OKC to win 55 games like they did in 2015-16, anything below 50 would be a surprise.

Portland Trail Blazers 46.5 wins

Over. The rivalry between Portland and Oklahoma City will be fun to watch this season. Damian Lillard vs. Westbrook is as great a point guard dual as most and the Trail Blazers upgraded their roster to become a legitimate threat to win the division.

Portland won 44 games last season, added Evan Turner and Festus Ezeli, and still have one of the most dynamic backcourts in the league. C.J. McCollum is only getting better. Look for the Blazers to challenge OKC for the top seed from the Northwest.

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Utah Jazz 47.5 wins

Under. Utah has plenty of upside. They are a young team with potential to contend down the road, but I feel like Vegas is jumping the gun on this one. George Hill is solid, but not great compared to the point guards he’ll be facing.

Gordon Hayward, Derrick Favors, and Rudy Gobert have been a good combination, but never quite enough to get the team over the hump. My prediction is the Jazz will make the playoffs as a seven or eighth seed and win somewhere around 42-45 games.

Denver Nuggets 34.5 wins

Under. Nuggets fans have reason to be excited about Emmanuel Mudiay, Nikola Jokic, Will Barton, and Gary Harris, but the rest of the roster is on the decline.

The time it will take Mudiay and Jokic to develop, combined with the lack of star players among its veterans, will keep the Nuggets far away from contention and they’ll be trading veterans like Kenneth Faried and possibly Danilo Gallinari at the deadline.

Minnesota Timberwolves 41.5 wins

Under. Too soon. It’s just too soon. It’s easy to get caught up in the potential of these young, talented players, but the reality is the Timberwolves have growing pains to go through still.

They should be in the playoff race, but would need somewhere around 42 wins to get there and I feel that they will come up just short. The best days are in the next two or three years for this promising squad.