Sir Charles in Charge
Fansided

NBA: 2022-23 Western Conference pre-season playoff projections

By Michael Saenz

NBA Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray (Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports)
NBA Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray (Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
2 of 10
Next
Luka Doncic
NBA Dallas Mavericks Luka Doncic (Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports) /

Western Conference Play-In Teams

10. Portland Trail Blazers

9. Dallas Mavericks

Look for the Portland Trail Blazers to sneak into the Play-In Tournament and that’s mostly due to the greatness of Damian Lillard. The Blazers are still a move away from being a true player in the Western Conference and I don’t think that’s a big surprise.

The big story here is the Dallas Mavericks. I believe that this team is going to take a step back this season, if that wasn’t clear enough. The loss of Jalen Brunson will hurt and I’m not sure Christian Wood is a move that will remedy that alone.

Unless the Mavs have another move coming at some point this season, I believe the Mavs will not make the playoffs. They’ll make the Play-In Tournament and then lose. It will be back to the drawing board next offseason for this franchise.