Ranking NBA teams by tiers for the 2017-18 season
The Legitimate Title Threats: Cleveland Cavaliers, Houston Rockets
The biggest threats to the Warriors running it back in 2018 are the Cleveland Cavaliers and Houston Rockets. Though the Spurs can never be classified as an “easy out” in the playoffs, they might not be the second-best team in the West anymore.
With the additions of Chris Paul, P.J. Tucker and Luc Mbah a Moute, the Rockets are set to drastically improve their below-average defense. Though Tucker and Mbah a Moute can be one-dimensional players at times, as long as one of CP3 and James Harden is always on the floor, Houston’s historically high-powered offense will be as potent as ever.
Cleveland Cavaliers
Do the Rockets have the right combination of 3-point shooting, defense and leadership to seriously challenge a powerhouse like Golden State? Only time will tell, but whatever ground they lacked on the Spurs last year, the more than made up for it this summer.
More than likely, the Warriors will be advancing past either Houston or San Antonio to reach their fourth straight Finals, and more than likely, they’ll be heading for a fourth straight meeting with the Cavs.
Trading Kyrie Irving takes away the franchise’s closest thing to a LeBron successor in the event King James leaves in free agency next summer, but that outcome became inevitable when the All-Star point guard requested a trade.
In that regard, new general manager Koby Altman did even better than could be expected, netting Isaiah Thomas and Jae Crowder to preserve another title run in 2018, while also adding Ante Zizic and a potentially valuable first round pick from the Brooklyn Nets to ground a possible rebuild.
Crowder gives Cleveland a more capable wing to throw at Kevin Durant in another Finals rematch, sparing LeBron the physical toll of defending him on one end and carrying the offense on the other. Assuming IT can get healthy, he should replace Kyrie’s heat checks and 3-point shooting.
Unfortunately, even with the Rockets getting significantly better and the Cavaliers getting marginally better, they’re just not quite on the same tier as the unstoppable, invincible and inevitable reigning champions.