Disclaimer: Do NOT use these predictions for gambling. Gambling is still illegal.

These predictions are based off of Las Vegas' over/under of each NBA team and compared to reporter Adam Fromal's personal predictions. If you care to post your own predictions, you're more than welcome to. The number beside "Vegas over/under" is the predicted number of wins each team will have at the end of the 2017-2018 season.

---

Vegas over/under: 25.5
Fromal's record projection: 24-58

Try to name the Atlanta Hawks' best five players after the offseason departures of Millsap and Howard. The Atlanta roster might have some upside, but it's almost entirely devoid of established talent. Talent wins out in the NBA and the Hawks don't have any of it.

---

Vegas over/under: 56.5
Fromal's record projection: 52-30

The prediction operates under the same assumption that led Vegas to set the over/under at 56.5 wins: Kyrie Irving is now a member of the Boston Celtics, since the onus is on the Cleveland Cavaliers to veto a trade that's already close to processing.

Boston went through too much turmoil this offseason to enjoy roster continuity. Few members of last year's squad remain, which is always problematic in a league that has so many benefits gleaned from preexisting chemistry. Talented as Gordon Hayward, Irving, Jayson Tatum and the other newcomers may be, they'll go through an inevitable adjustment period that prevents them from running away with the Eastern Conference's No. 1 seed.

---

Vegas over/under: 28.5
Fromal's record projection: 28-54

The Nets may be surprisingly competent with a healthy Jeremy Lin, an improved D'Angelo Russell and new wings appearing in the forms of Allen Crabbe and DeMarre Carroll. Should everyone gel immediately, they could even surprise the basketball-watching world and break past the 30-win barrier.

---

Vegas over/under: 42.5
Fromal's record projection: 42-40

Expecting a bigger leap from the Hornets, who went just 36-46 last year with a largely similar roster, would be possible if the team had addressed its biggest issue.

Dwight Howard will help, though he'll also keep the tremendously underrated Cody Zeller off the floor. The Hornets' net rating improved by 10.4 points per 100 possessions when the incumbent center played in 2016-2017. Malik Monk should also provide a nice scoring punch off the bench.

---

Vegas over/under: 21.5
Fromal's record projection: 20-62

The Bulls boast plenty of young talent who could break out in amazing fashion, whether Zach Levine returns from his ACL injury to average 20 points per game or Lauri Markannen immediately proves he belongs in an NBA starting lineup. One of the point guards could even turn into a legitimite asset and make everyone's lives easier. But the Dwayne Wade problem persists in the organization.

---

Vegas over/under: 53.5
Fromal's record projection: 55-27

The Cavaliers are somehow in an enviable position. If the blockbuster deal goes through, they'll have a point guard in Isaiah Thomas who's coming off a year in which he outperformed Kyrie Irving (by a substantial amount) during the regular season; even if the new acquisition's hip remains problematic, Lebron James will be capable of shouldering more responsibilities while Kevin Love and Jae Crowder team up to keep the 2016 champions playing at a high level. Let's not overlook the impact of adding Ante Zizic as frontcourt depth, either.

---

Vegas over/under: 35.5
Fromal's record projection: 36-46

Dennis Smith Jr, Seth Curry, Wesley Matthews, Harrison Barnes and Nowitzki makes for a potent starting lineup, and the Mavs can mix and match to get Yogi Ferrell and Nerlens Noel on the floor. That's far more talent and upside than the team possessed during the 2016-2017, and it went 33-49.

---

Vegas over/under: 45.5
Fromal's record projection: 48

Paul Millsap is a perfect fit next to Jokic, gracing the Nuggets with his defensive acumen and versatile offensive play. He gives the Mile High City a second top-25 player, and his presence immediately creates one of the NBA's most dangerous frontcourt pairings. How will opponents handle passing coming from so many different locations in 2017-2018? How will they counteract the offensive excellence when a legitimate defensive stalwart is making Jokic's life easier?

Losing Danilo Gallinari hurts, and the Nuggets largely failed to consolidate their many assets. But this is a deep team overflowing with talent at so many different positions.

---

Vegas over/under: 38.5
Fromal's record projection: 41

Everything went wrong during the Pistons' 2016-2017 campaign, and the Pistons still managed to squeeze out 37 wins from their troops. Now, they get to work with another year of improvement from Andre Drummond, Stanley Johnson and other young players, add perfect fits in Luke Kennard and Avery Bradley, get deeper in the frontcourt with the addition of Anthony Tolliver and should have a healthier version of Reggie Jackson leading the charge.

---

Vegas over/under: 67.5
Fromal's record projection: 70-12

After bringing back all their key pieces and adding Jordan Bell, Nick Young and Omri Casspi into the mix, they may well be the most talented team in NBA history. They can even be comfortably projected them to break past the 70-win threshold yet again. But this high on the scale, no margin for error exists; one or two major injuries would make reaching 68 victories impossible. One stretch of cold shooting could wreck their chances.

---

Vegas over/under: 55.5
Fromal's record projection: 60-22

Don't have any concerns about Chris Paul and James Harden's fit in the same backcourt; though it's an undeniable truth that only one basketball exists during any given game, both guards are tremendous shot-creators who also thrive as spot-up weapons. Even though the Houston Rockets parted with some crucial pieces to land Paul, they managed to replace them and add even more depth to their coffers. Acquiring P.J. Tucker and Luc Mbah a Moute shouldn't be overlooked, and the same is true of the decision to re-sign Nene for the next few seasons.

---

Vegas over/under: 31.5
Fromal's record projection: 30-52

Spoiler alert: losing Paul George is a big deal. Of course, the Pacers bought into these youngsters for their long-term potential; they should improve throughout the 2017-2018 campaign, and the same is true of Myles Turner, who's a solid bet to become a first time All-Star during the upcoming season. This roster does have some upside, especially when factoring in Cory Joseph and T.J. Leaf. But is that enough to overcome the departures of Paul George and C.J. Miles?

---

Vegas over/under: 43.5
Fromal's record projection: 42-40

The Los Angeles Clippers did an utterly fantastic job reloading after learning that Paul desired a departure to the Houston Rockets; not only did they manage to pry some assets away from his new home in a trade after he opted in, but they also convinced Blake Griffin to re-sign before adding Danilo Gallinari and Milos Teodosic into the fold. This is a talented roster with current ability and upside at just about every position. It's far deeper than it's been in previous years, though head coach Doc Rivers surely didn't want to acquire depth at the expense of his team's best player.

---

Vegas over/under: 33.5
Fromal's record projections: 31-51

The Lakers just aren't ready yet. Adding Brook Lopez will make this team better, so too will the addition of Lonzo Ball in the starting five and continued improvement from Brandon Ingram, who looked so much better during the second half of his rookie campaign than he did during his first. We also can't overlook the upside of Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Josh Hart, Julius Randle, Larry Nance Jr., Kyle Kuzma, Ivica Zubac, and Thomas Bryant.

---

Vegas over/under: 37.5
Fromal's record projection: 37-45

Vince Carter and Zach Randolph have departed to the Sacramento Kings, Tony Allen and JaMychal Green remain free agents, and there's no telling whether they'll return to their old stomping grounds for 2017-2018. The roster feels more depleted than it has in previous years. Mike Conley and Marc Gasol are still present; so long as the team's two best players remain in the same uniform, they'll be undeniably competitive on both ends of the floor. With the Western Conference improving, is that enough? Can Memphis supplement the two stars' efforts with a healthy Chandler Parsons?

---

Vegas over/under: 43.5
Fromal's record projection: 43-39

Head coach Erik Spoelstra showed off his coaching acumen yet again with a midseason shift to a drive-and-kick offense, and his team reaped the rewards to the point that it nearly vaulted back into the Eastern Conference playoffs. It should almost assuredly make the postseason this time around, but at what level can we expect the team to play?

---

Vegas over/under: 47.5
Fromal's record projection: 45-37

Upside pervades this roster. Just imagine how good the core of Malcolm Brogdon, Khris Middleton, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jabari Parker and Thon Maker could become. Now throw D.J. Wilson, Tony Snell and Greg Monroe into the equation.

---

Vegas over/under: 48.5
Fromal's record projection: 44-38

The Timberwolves are going to be vastly superior to previous iterations this year. They can count on internal improvement as Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins learn how to fill defensive roles more efficiently. They're bringing Jimmy Butler into the fold after engaging in a blockbuster trade with the Chicago Bulls. Replacing Ricky Rubio with Jeff Teague is, at worst, a lateral move. Taj Gibson and Jamal Crawford are in town to provide more depth, and any production from Justin Patton, the team's first-round selection, would be gravy on top.

---

Vegas over/under: 39.5
Fromal's record projection: 37-45

The New Orleans Pelicans are now one of the greatest examples of the strategy taking root in reality, because they're surrounding Anthony Davis, DeMarcus Cousins and Jrue Holiday with practically nothing. Rajon Rondo remains a shell of his old self -a useful shell but a shell nonetheless- and Solomon Hill's torn hamstring could keep him out for up to eight months.

---

Vegas over/under: 30.5
Fromal's record projection: 28-54

Rinse and repeat.

---

Vegas over/under: 51.5
Fromal's record projection: 52-30

Improving much beyond the 51-win benchmark is a difficult task as the Thunder try to weave in new players seamlessly. But after watching Russell Westbrook serve as a one-man show throughout his MVP-winning campaign, they now get to place so much more talent around him. Expect big things.

---

Vegas over/under: 33.5
Fromal's record projection: 31-51

During the 2016-2017 campaign, the Orlando Magic made 32.8 percent of their three-point attempts, which left them ahead of only the Oklahoma City Thunder (32.7 percent). They also took just 26.1 treys per contest, once again finishing in the league's bottom half (No. 16).

---

Vegas over/under: 42.5
Fromal's record projection: 40-42

The 76ers appear to be on track to one day become the best team in the Eastern Conference. But let's not create an air of disappointment by expecting too much, too soon. Joel Embiid isn't guaranteed to stay healthy, Markelle Fultz and Ben Simmons have played in a combined zero games, the rest of the roster is laden with upside, but they're by no means guaranteed to break through and produce strongly positive results in 2017-2018.

---

Vegas over/under: 28.5
Fromal's record projection: 26-56

Collectively, the Suns' ability to exceed expectations is scary. Marginal improvement across the board could make the win projection laughably low, regardless of how tough it may be to compete in the Western Conference.

---

Vegas over/under: 42.5
Fromal's record projection: 43-39

The Western Conference is brutally difficult, and the Trail Blazers' previous cap missteps will end up costing them, as they didn't have too many routs with which they could improve their roster. They even had to give up Allen Crabbe as part of a cost-cutting sequence, trading him to move closer to luxury-tax penalties and future interactions with the dreaded repeater tax. But Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum are still in Rip City, and they'll team up with Jusuf Nurkic to keep this squad in playoff contention.

---

Vegas over/under: 28.5
Fromal's record projection: 28-54

ESPN.com's Kevin Pelton:
"Despite adding veterans Vince Carter, George Hill and Zach Randolph as free agents, the Kings are projected as the league's second-worst offensive attack by RPM. Although this isn't part of the projection, few teams will have more incentive to improve their draft pick, as Sacramento won't have its first-rounder in 2019 due to trade."

---

Vegas over/under: 54.5
Fromal's record projection: 55-27

The Spurs feel more vulnerable than they've been in quite some time. Tony Parker and Rudy Gay are both working their way back from major injuries, while Pau Gasol and Manu Ginobili re-signed for an opportunity to continue their fights against Father Time in the same uniforms. With LaMarcus Aldridge moving further away from stardom, Kawhi Leonard is the lone player who enjoys true celestial status, and he doesn't actually have the luxury of too much depth around him.

Never bet against Popovich. Just don't.

---

Vegas over/under: 48.5
Fromal's record projection: 48-34

Though the Toronto Raptors' offseason could be deemed a positive because they managed to retain Kyle Lowry and Serge Ibaka, they didn't escape scot-free. Cory Joseph and DeMarre Carroll were traded away to new locations, which puts a lot more pressure on Delon Wright and new-signee C.J. Miles to fill the shoes of the departed contributors. Fortunately, they should be able to. Toronto should still finish near the top of the Eastern Conference; the projections have them at No. 4.

---

Vegas over/under: 40.5
Fromal's record projection: 44-38

The Utah Jazz went 51-31 last season. So how in the world are they expected to win just 7 fewer games after losing their best player? Well, the answer is simple: they didn't actually lose their best player. Gordon Hayward's departure to the Boston Celtics certainly stings, and the Jazz will have a tough time replacing his versatile production. Even a dynamite rookie season from Donovan Mitchell can't possibly fill the void, and the small-forward depth chart looks a bit more uninspiring with Joe Ingles and Joe Johnson leading the charge.

---

Vegas over/under: 47.5
Fromal's record projection: 50-32

The three-headed monster of John Wall, Bradley Beal and Otto Porter Jr. is still trending up. Each man is moving towards his athletic prime and building chemistry with the other members of his triumvirate while seeking to assert himself as premier talents at his respective position. Wall is already there, and the other two aren't far behind. And if you're concerned about the bench, don't be.

---

Source:
[ Register or Signin to view external links. ]

Feel free to make your own predictions about where teams will stand in the 2017-2018 season and also make predictions about how the Playoffs will stack off, even though it's way too early to start making concrete predictions.

There's always a team that comes out of nowhere to surprise the whole NBA world, who do you guys got being the surprise underdog this year?