3 NBA Teams Ready To Make A Big Jump This Season

The NBA has as much parody as we've had in years. Sure, Golden State won another title, but this was not the 73-win Warriors from a few years ago.

Last season, ten teams won at least 43 games in the East, while the West had eight. Heading into the 2022-23 season, BetMGM has 18 teams with win totals of at least 42.5, signaling the potential for another spread out, hard-to-handicap year.

We have a strong idea who will compete for an NBA title, but what about those other teams ready to take the next step?

New Orleans Pelicans - 44.5 Wins

New Orleans started off 1-12, and that record continued to fall to ugly numbers like 3-16, so you can pick whatever part you think was their "worst start".

Things turned around though, enough for them to not only squeak out 36 wins but get through the play-in tournament and take the Suns to six games in the first round.

Now, Zion Williamson is expected back and fully healthy after missing all of last season, which, if he can stay on the court, can propel this team into the conversation of not only going over their win total, but possibly winning a playoff series too.

Cleveland Cavaliers - 42.5 Wins

Doubling their win total from 22 to 44 last year really deserved more attention than it got, but this Cavs team is ahead of schedule, has a strong young core, and could take big strides again this season.

A starting lineup of Darius Garland, Caris LeVert, Lauri Markkanen, Evan Mobley, and Jarrett Allen may not be a title contender, but can certainly push the Cavs up past the play-in and into a fifth or sixth seed type of record.

Mobley has a chance to be a multi-time Defensive Player of the Year (+2500 on BetMGM), while Garland has already become an All-Star.

Denver Nuggets - 49.5 Wins

Denver had back-to-back playoffs where Nikola Jokic had to carry this team by himself, hence the back-to-back MVPs. Jokic sits fifth right now to win a third straight, but getting Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr. back is the key here.

If those two can pick up where they left off, added to an already tough playoff team, the Nuggets might be worth a long-shot bet to win the whole thing (+1800).