The NBA’s 80th season is starting up soon.
The Oklahoma City Thunder come into the season
as defending champions. They are led by last
season’s MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, All-Star Jalen
Williams, and defensive force Chet Holmgren. Other
players to watch from the Thunder are veteran
Luguentz Dort and rookie Nikola Topic. They look to
repeat as champions with the best odds to win the
2025-2026 NBA Championship.
The Orlando Magic come into the season
as my most likely to breakout team. They finished
last season losing in the first round to the 1-seed
Boston Celtics. They return their young core of
Wendal Carter Jr, Paolo Banchero, Anthony Black,
Franz Wagner, Jonathan Isaac, and Jalen Suggs
supplemented by major offseason additions
Desmond Bane and Tyus Jones.
Another reason for the breakout is the
weakened Eastern Conference in 2025-2026. 3 of
the top teams in the conference are projected to
have down years after losing star players—Jayson
Tatum from the Boston Celtics, Tyrese Haliburton
from the Indiana Pacers, and Damian Lillard from
the Milwaukee Bucks—in the 2024-2025 playoffs
that will miss most of the season due to ruptured
Achilles injuries. This will leave a lot of room for
teams such as the Magic to shoot up the standings
and control the Eastern Conference. Some players
to watch: rookies Cooper Flagg, Dylan Harper, and
VJ Edgecombe who are looking to make their mark
in the NBA as the top 3 draft picks in this year’s NBA
Draft.
Returning stars, such
as the aforementioned Shai Gilgeous-Alexander,
Nikola Jokic, Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Anthony
Edwards, look to continue to play at a high level.
Other players to watch are veterans LeBron James,
Steph Curry, and Chris Paul as they near the end of
their careers.
It will be fun to watch what records these players
can break before hanging up the shoes in the near
future. The first games of the season are on Tuesday
October 21 with matchups between the Houston
Rockets at the Oklahoma City Thunder at 6:30 pm
being played at the Paycom Center and the Golden
State Warriors at Los Angeles Lakers at 9:00 pm
being played at the Cyrpto.com Arena. It will be fun
to watch how the 80th season of the NBA turns out!
