Bold Prediction

Corpuel: The 2021 rookie class will be in the GOAT class conversation a few years down the road 

This is more of a long-term bold prediction, but I’m dead serious when I say this rookie class has a good chance to be one of the greatest of all-time. Allow me to explain. 

The number of guys from this draft that I believe will be impactful players and will still be in the league in a decade is far higher than any one in recent memory. You’ve got potential franchise cornerstones (Cade Cunningham, Jalen Green, Evan Mobley, Jalen Suggs), elite scorers (Cam Thomas, James Bouknight, Bones Hyland, Josh Christopher), all-around guys that’ll find roles on championship teams (Davion Mitchell, Trey Murphy III, Quentin Grimes, Miles McBride), sharpshooters (Corey Kispert, Chris Duarte, Moses Moody, Jared Butler, Joe Wieskamp), lockdown defenders (Scottie Barnes, Usman Garuba), guys budding with potential (Jonathan Kuminga, Alperen Sengun, Jalen Johnson) and a whole lot of solid role players. Don’t be surprised when fans rank the 2021 class among the likes of 1985, 1996 and 2003. 

Kotelanski: John Wall has an epic comeback season

Fans were taking big shots at Wall last year after his performance looked nothing like that of his old self. When he was ruled out with a heel injury in the 2018⁠–19 season, Wall was widely considered a top five point guard in the league, one of the best passers in the league and one of the most athletic players in the league. Sure, his dropoff from star player to solid starter on the Rockets was pretty drastic, but people don’t give him the credit he deserves. He still managed to average 20.6 PPG and 6.9 APG in 40 games played. He was also nowhere near fully recovered last season, and if he takes the time to gain back his athleticism, he could be an All-star on an improving Rockets team.

Weinstein: Ja Morant will dethrone DeAndre Jordan for the greatest poster dunk of all-time

Ja Morant is my favorite player in the league. He’s been a thrill to watch since he entered the league. The one facet missing from his game, however, is his inability to finish a poster dunk to save his life. His situation is similar to Dennis Smith Jr.’s: The guy jumps 40 inches in the air, bodies the defender and blows the dunk off the back of the rim. If he could just finish, he would have some of the most exciting and highlight-worthy plays every season. We’ve all seen the dunk where he almost ended Kevin Love’s career. This offseason, Morant has honed his dunking skills, and we’re going to see something amazing this season.

Rice: For the first time since 2011, the WCF won’t feature a 1 or 2 seed. 

The West is, without a doubt, stacked with teams that can contend for a championship. However, no team compares to the Lakers. The Lakers are my three seed due to the fact that I believe they’ll struggle early on with another ball-dominant star in Russell Westbrook. Anthony Davis has never completed a full season and will almost certainly deal with some injuries throughout the season. The Warriors, again, are my other WCF team. The Warriors with a normal Klay Thompson this year, and a second year player in James Wisemen ⁠— who can only improve from last year ⁠— help round out an incredible starting lineup with Curry, Green and Wiggins. They have an improved roster; however, depth and lack of any big man talent keep them from being a top seed. I still like their chances of beating the Jazz or Suns in the second round.