By: Takudzwa Makoni

The NBA has never been this so full of pure talent. As a direct result of this, the NBA has never been this wide open in years.
We’re one month into the season, and bring injuries, maybe up to eight teams could win the ‘chip, and it wouldn’t be a total shock. That’s unheard of. Think back to the Lakers-Celtics trading the trophy back and forth for decade-long periods, or the Jordan ‘90’s.
Generally speaking, if one of maybe two or three teams didn’t win the ‘chip, basketball-writers could dine out for months off “Cinderella Story” copy.
With that said, here is a brief look at two of the ‘top’ contenders from the East and the West.
EASTERN CONFERENCE

Cleveland Cavaliers:
 Lebron James. End of analysis.
In this era where it seems almost every team has a star/superstar combo, this guy’s been in the last four championship series. All of them.

 Since joining the league as a teenager, James has won two NBA championships, four NBA Most Valuable Player Awards, two NBA Finals MVP Awards, two Olympic gold medals, an NBA scoring title, and the NBA Rookie of the Year Award. He has also been selected to 10 NBA All-Star teams, 10 All-NBA teams, and six All-Defensive teams, and is the Cavaliers’ all-time leading scorer.

Turns out the guy can play a little bit. When you have a guy who’s that large and that strong with those ball skills, your crew is going to win some games. Add the enigmatic talents of young point guard Kyrie Irving, and Power Forward Kevin Love’s versatility and stat-sheet stuffing skills, the Larry O’Brien Trophy- or bust- is the reality of your situation.
Lebron though, has been handling expectations since his hyped entry into the ‘pros straight from high-school. Realistically speaking, this guy was set up for the biggest fall in sports entertainment history, as there was no possible way he could have matched the hype. Here we are two Championships and four MVP title’s later.
If anyone can help this newly assembled, untested crew to meet expectations and buck the “you need to fail first’ trend, you’d bet your money on King James.

Sleeper pick:
The Chicago Bulls team with their menagerie of big men- Joakim Noah, Taj Gibson and Pau Gasol- and their hard-nosed Thibedeau-designed strong side defense, are exactly constructed to take advantage of the Cav’s weaknesses. If Derrick Rose can just stay on the floor and give them something consistent from the perimeter, then all bets are off.

WESTERN CONFERENCE

Golden State Warriors: 
OK we all know the correct answer is the San Antonio Spurs. We’ve all learnt to our detriment to never bet against the Spurs. Until Tim Duncan dies of old age, or the CIA admit that coach Gregg Popovich is still working for them and his game-plans are devised by NASA, the correct answer will always be the Spurs. As the saying goes- to be the man, you gotta beat the man, and after winning it all again last year, this squad will be fully motivated to cap this Spurs dynasty with one more ‘chip.
But the Warriors are just so darned fun to watch.
When your back-court is nick-named the ‘splash brothers’, and your big man is a shaggy haired, 7-foot tall Australian, you qualify as must-see t.v. 

Point guard Stephen Curry is guaranteed to do something that blows up twitter every single night, be it a ridiculous fall away contested triple, or a circus-shot up-and-under after breaking an ankle or two.

Conventional wisdom states that a jump-shooting team can’t win four consecutive playoff series against good defensive teams, but when both Curry and Klay Thompson are on song, the contortions defenses are forced to go through are painful to watch. Besides, reducing this squad to a ‘jump-shooting team’ does them a great disservice. When Bogut is healthy, he rivals MVP candidate Marc Gasol as a post-passer/ rim protector, and there isn’t a deeper, more versatile roster of players in the league- Curry, Thompson, Livingstone, Iguadala, Green and Barnes all can and have play game-winning roles for their teams from the perimeter, and coach Steve Kerr has shown his willingness to mix and match guys to take advantage of opponent’s weaknesses. 

The Warriors have assembled the most balanced squad in the league and paired it with a coach willing and able to put guys in positions to succeed- Just ask Maurice Speights. If the Warriors can maintain their top-ten defensive rating and get their key guys healthy come the post-season, this squad is ready to make a lot of noise, and have a lot of fun doing it.
Sleeper pick:
The West is so deep that you could justify any of up to five or six sleeper picks. The easy answer would be the OKC Thunder, but they haven’t really improved their roster since the infamous, potentially franchise-killing {2016 free-agency haunts every OKC fans’ dreams} James Harden trade.
Betting on MVP Kevin Durant and his superstar sidekick Russell Westbrook is of course a gamble worth taking, but a more interesting pick is the Memphis Grizzlies.
Their old-school grit and grind, two dedicated big-man set always felt like they were an offensive option away. Enter Marc Gasol, who seems to have sucked some of the, “offensive Pau- I’m so sorry. I couldn’t resist},” out of his big brother and is enjoying a late-career offensive rebirth to go with his non-negotiable paint protection. “Big Spain’s” quiet MVP conversation-caliber season, and Memphis’s customary D/ much improved point-guard play, all mean that absolutely no-one will be looking forward to facing Memphis in a seven-game series.