NBA 2016-17 Western Conference Roundtable: Favs, Trades And More

Rank These Western Conference Teams: Jazz, Grizzlies, Rockets

Michael Saenz: Grizzlies, Rockets, Jazz – assuming health, of course, I believe the Grizzlies have the highest ceiling. I also really think people are sleeping on the Houston Rockets. Don’t. James Harden is an NBA MVP candidate this season.

Jacob Little: Grizzlies. Jazz. Rockets. The Grizzlies biggest concern is health. If they stay healthy, they could be dangerous. The addition of Chandler Parsons addressed the lack of shooting, however one player won’t fix a large problem. The Jazz upgraded at guard with George Hill and Joe Johnson, and also with forward Boris Diaw.

The Jazz will finish as one of the top defensive teams in the NBA. The Rockets added a lot more offense in Ryan Anderson and Eric Gordon, however they will continue to struggle defensively. With James Harden as a MVP candidate, the Rockets will be lethal on the offensive end.

Christina Merrion: Rockets, Grizzlies, and Jazz…I’ll be very surprised if the Jazz even make the playoffs.

Zach Blochlinger: Jazz 2 Rockets 3 Grizzlies

Thomas Jenkins: Jazz, Rockets, Grizzlies. Lots of people are picking the Jazz to make a huge leap this year, largely due to their young players and offseason additions. While Utah still has a lot to do before cracking the upper tier of the West, they seem like a much safer bet this season than either Houston or Memphis. While the Rockets still have a porous defense, and the Grizzlies have age and injury problems, the Jazz are fielding a complete, deep team every night.

Brady Rippon: Rockets, Jazz, Grizzlies. With D’Antoni now on the Houston payroll, James Harden and company will surprise many this season. Remember, these Rockets are only one season removed from a 57-win performance. Expect more of that and less of the 2016 Houston chemistry tire fire. The Jazz may have overtaken the Rockets if not for Gordon Hayward’s broken finger. Utah will put out 10 quality players every night. The Grizzlies will fight tooth and nail when healthy, but age and injuries puts this iteration of Memphis basketball on Death’s doorstep.

Michael Moeller: Grizzlies, Rockets, Jazz. I think the Grizz have the best starting lineup out of any of these teams even though it’s a bit tenuous because of age and injury history. David Fizdale hasn’t given anyone any reason to think that he won’t do a really good job after his time in Miami. Plus, the Grizzlies always seem to just win games because their roster is so idiosyncratic. There’s always the chance that the Rockets completely implode with D’Antoni at the helm, but I think just by virtue having James Harden they’ll win more games than the Jazz, who might be the better team but the Hayward injury and Derrick Favors’ nebulous knee issue are more than a little concerning.

Nikolas Donadic: Houston and Utah are going to compete for low playoff seeds in the West, with Houston likely finishing with a better record due to the Gordon Hayward situation which has yet to reach a conclusion. James Harden, with new head coach Mike D’Antoni, will run a fast-paced and high octane offense which could find them winning the NBA’s consolation prize (also known as the 8th seed in the West). Memphis is a squad which typically overachieves, but I believe that in their first year under David Fizdale they will perform the worst of the three due to their typical offensive struggles.

Alex Eddy: Rockets, Grizzlies, Jazz