The 2024-25 NBA season is upon us!

It’s time for our annual tradition of previewing the season, division by division, by asking two very important questions for each team:

What’s the case for the Over?
What’s the case for the Under?

LET’S GET IT.

5. Brooklyn Nets — 19.5 wins

The Nets are in a familiar spot: picking up the pieces of the franchise.

What’s the Case for the Over?

It’s a really low number!

CAM THOMAS UNLEASHED. How many shot attempts can we get Cam Thomas up to this season? Infinity? Cam Johnson is still here, too, and he was ballin’ in the preseason.
Nic Claxton is a solid player. The Nets think so, paying him to the tune of a 4-year, $100 million extension. They had to pay somebody.
What if Olympic Germany Dennis Schroder takes over Brooklyn?
What if Ben Simmons turns back into All-NBA Ben Simmons!?
WHAT IF KILLIAN HAYES IS WHO KOC THOUGHT HE WAS!?! (Update: HE GONE.)

It’s worth mentioning that the Nets do have the Summer League MVP, Jalen Wilson.

And sometimes the craziest bets are the ones that hit.

What’s the Case for the Nets Under?

There’s tanking and then there’s what the Brooklyn Nets are doing this season.

The next phase of the long black road of a rebuilding process (!!) begins now, trying to give themselves the best chance at landing a franchise-altering player in a loaded draft.
In case you somehow didn’t hear about the Nets preseason Free Throw Golf Challenge, Ben Simmons still can’t shoot free throws.
Bojan Bogdanovic is already hurt. Bojan has averaged 20 points per game a few times in his career, but a foot injury has him without a timetable for return. When he returns, he’ll probably get traded at some point.
The Nets will have to play the Celtics, Knicks and Sixers in their division. What’s the Over/Under on the number of wins the Nets pull off against that Atlantic Big 3… 0.5?

History loves to repeat itself and the last time that the Nets completely bottomed out in 2008-09, they won 12 games.

Final Nets Prediction: No hesitation. Under 19.5 wins.

4. Toronto Raptors — 29.5 wins

It’s the first full season of the Raptors brand new look.

What’s the Case for the Over?

The new-look Raptors had some spice to them after acquiring Barrett and Quickley last season.

Scottie Barnes is the alpha here and had a 1st quarter in the preseason against the Celtics where he started the game 4-of-5 from 3. Preseason is certainly not everything. But that was encouraging to see.
So was RJ Barrett looking right at home in his return to the homeland last season, playing his best ball yet in a Raptors uniform.
It was in limited minutes, but the 4-man lineup of Barnes-Barrett-Quickley-Poeltl had a damn good net rating last season. That’s going to be the 4-man lineup they run with the most.
Gradey Dick was firing 3s in the preseason, starting that same Celtics game when Barnes looked so good by one upping him, draining 6-of-6 from the field to start the game. Dick made three 3s in another preseason game, too. Let it fly, Dick!
Davion Mitchell was a player in Sac that we always had high hopes for with his defensive prowess. If Davion can consistently make his 3s, Darko will have to play him.

Kelly Olynyk is back in the 6. Do you believe in the hometown kids!?

What’s the Case for the Raptors Under?

The defense and 3-point shooting.

Also, the Raptors ended last season with a record of 2-19… WOOF.
For as good as Scottie Barnes has looked so far in his career, he was previously surrounded by experienced vets prone to winning. Now it’s mostly a bunch of young guys still on the come up.
Barrett and Quickley give off some empty stats vibes. They can put up good numbers, big numbers -- but does it lead to sustainable winning basketball as your No. 2 and No. 3 scoring options? Eh. Barrett got injured in preseason as well and he still isn’t cleared for contact.
There were some comments made in the preseason by Poeltl suggesting that the Raptors don’t want to win…

That sounds like writing on the wall.

Final Raptors Prediction: Liked what we saw in the preseason but aren’t letting that sway us. Under 29.5 wins.

3. Philadelphia 76ers — 50.5 wins

No back-to-backs for Embiid and PG already dealing with a knee. Oh, Philly.

What’s the Case for the Over?

The Sixers added Paul George to a team that won 47 games last year.

Embiid has said he will probably never play another back-to-back in his career again, yes, but what if… that’s a great thing! And he stays healthy all season and plays X-number of games and has another wrecking ball MVP number season. Yeah!
PG in Philly is the headline, of course. But the result of that of which people are sleeping on: Maxey as the No. 3 scoring option. Look out.
Caleb Martin is the exact type of player the Sixers needed. Another high-energy player with grit a la Kelly Oubre who had a sneaky good season last year, primarily when Embiid missed time.
There’s depth up and down this roster. Did you see Yabusele in the Olympics!?

We know Daryl is never done tinkering and upgrading around the edges.

What’s the Case for the 76ers Under?

The health of Embiid.

And PG, who again is already dealing with a bone bruise to his knee that looked scary in the preseason.

The Sixers probably want to take the regular season with a grain of salt if it means being healthy and whole come playoff time in May.
There are some players here Philly might miss: Melton was a key perimeter defender.
1st round draft pick Jared McCain had a scary fall in the preseason.
This isn’t the youngest roster by any means. In fact, it’s one of the oldest.

It could take some time for the new pieces to gel.

Final Sixers Prediction: All signs to the Sixers taking the regular season lightly. Under 50.5 wins.

2. New York Knicks — 53.5 wins

Pushing their chips into the middle of the table, the Knicks are going for it.

What’s the Case for the Over?

The Knicks add KAT and Mikal Bridges to a team that won 50 games last season.

Jalen Brunson will have his most room to work with optimal spacing with the addition of KAT, who can stretch the floor and knock down 3s. Open lanes to the rim for Brunson is most ideal.
Towns is simply a better fit for this team than Randle. And joining a team that wasn’t his for so many years could be the perfect situation for KAT to just play ball.
A defense with Anunoby and Mikal will be lethal on the perimeter. They have an answer for those big wings in Boston.
MSG is going to be on fire for this team, we can already hear how bonkers it will be.

Thibs’ style is always to eek out every regular season win no matter the cost.

What’s the Case for the Knicks Under?

The Knicks can be a really good team and still not hit this high number.

KAT doesn’t exactly have the best injury history and Mitchell Robinson is already out for months, the reason why they brought KAT in with the departure of Hartenstein.
DiVincenzo was huge for the Knicks last season, making all those 3s. The 3-point shooting as a whole here is a little suspect.
The Knicks are built for the Celtics in the playoffs, but there are a lot of other teams in the league.
Perhaps with how injured the Knicks were by the 2nd round, Thibs will learn and actually not play his starters so many minutes in the regular season for once, keeping the long game in mind.

The ghost of the Nova Knicks could haunt this team.

Final Knicks Prediction: This number feels a tad too high with the NY tax. Under 53.5 wins.

1. Boston Celtics — 58.5 wins

Is this the first ever Revenge Tour Defending Champs?

What’s the Case for the Over?

The Celtics won 64 games last year and have the same formula in place.

They still have a chip on their shoulder, too. Tatum got benched in the Olympics and Jaylen Brown didn’t even make the team. Fuel to the fire.
Tatum’s outside shot has looked on point in the preseason. More like it did back in Game 6 in Milwaukee. (If you know, you know.)
The C’s are built to withstand injuries. More than suitable backup players who can seamlessly fill roles. They were 21-4 without Porzingis last season.
This is the most consistent team that beats you with a barrage of 3s and stellar defense from all angles. Modern day ball at its finest.

Not gonna lie, Joe Mazzulla has really grown us. Whether it’s him flying out to France to personally check on Tatum this summer, his World tour shirt, or his crazy practice dills — he’s made a believer out of this here blog.

What’s the Case for the Celtics Under?

Porzingis is already injured and being unsure of his return date is a little unsettling.

So is the fact that the team is for sale… spooky vibes.
Championship hangovers are real — even if you’re framing it differently.
They will have a target on their backs as all defending champions do.
The C’s are over in three straight and kinda feel due for an Under as the top of the East improved.

Here’s one for ya: Teams that won 60+ games are 10-4 to the Under the following season, including the last 7 straight…

Final Celtics Prediction: Better late than never. Over 58.5 wins.

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Season Preview Division by Division

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