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The Los Angeles Lakers have re-tooled their roster around a new franchise point guard, and the freshly released Westgate SuperBook regular season over-under totals reflect an upward trend for the purple and gold.
The odds are finally out from Westgate, and the Lakers see a tick up to 33.5 wins next season. The team finished with 26 wins last season. This is a huge spike up from the 24.5 the SuperBook projected last offseason.
That’s a pretty strong nod of approval for what Lonzo Ball might bring to the table as a rookie point guard, as well as the potential of Brook Lopez as a floor-spacing big man stepping into a big void at center. It also speaks to belief in the development of Brandon Ingram and the rest of the young core.
The Lakers are still projected to have the third-worst record in the Western Conference even with the big boost, though. Below them are the Phoenix Suns (28.5) and Sacramento Kings (28.5), with the Dallas Mavericks edging out LA with 35.5 wins.
As far as other things of note, the playoffs out West are projected as the Golden State Warriors (67.5), Houston Rockets (55.5), San Antonio Spurs (54.5), Oklahoma City Thunder (51.5), Minnesota Timberwolves (48.5), Denver Nuggets (45.5), LA Clippers (43.5) and Portland Trail Blazers (42.5). That leaves the Utah Jazz (40.5), New Orleans Pelicans (39.5) and Memphis Grizzlies (37.5) outside of the bubble looking in.
Out East, the looming Kyrie Irving trade has the Boston Celtics leading the way with 56.5 wins. More notable, the Philadelphia 76ers are projected to win a whopping 42.5 games next season.
42. Point. Five.
For an easily-digestible look at the full odds, in proper order, here’s a solid look from Carter Rodriguez:
Here's the win totals in order of projected wins, via @golfodds pic.twitter.com/Y6ppaHhaRx
— Carter Rodríguez (@Carter_Shade) August 29, 2017