Former NBA player Jeff Teague gives his opinion on which team will represent the Western Conference in the 2025 NBA Finals.
This season’s Western Conference is as close to the definition of the word ‘competitive’ as it can get. Sure, the Oklahoma City Thunder sit on the top of the standings.
But even with a 64-14 record, the Thunder aren’t invincible, which was proven during their recent matchup against the Los Angeles Lakers.
Despite the Thunder being the heavy favorites, it was the Lakers who shocked them with a 27-point blowout win.
The dominant win by the Lakers was enough to remind fans that no matter how good a team is throughout 82 games in the regular season, it only takes four off nights to be sent home come the postseason.
After seeing the Lakers neutralize Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and utterly dominate the Thunder, ex-NBA player Jeff Teague gave his verdict on the potential Western Conference team that will reach the finals.
“Lakers gonna win the West. I seen LeBron describe their rotations, and I said, ‘Man, if LeBron can get them to do that for four quarters, they gonna win’.
“They got two offensive juggernauts, three really ‘cos Austin Reaves can go for 20, 30 any given night. Not everybody got a three-piece like that.
He clarified: “I like the Lakers, [but] I’m not a Lakers fan.”
Teague made a very convincing statement about the Lakers’ potential. After all, Luka Doncic, LeBron James, and Austin Reaves combined for 69 points in the 126-99 win over OKC.
After an eventful weekend, things have somewhat shaken up among the top three teams in the conference. OKC remains the clear No. 1 seed, but the Houston Rockets now have a 52-27 record, which means they are all but confirmed to be the second seed.
Moving along, the Lakers are now 48-30 and currently hold the third seed. On the other hand, following a four-game losing streak, the Denver Nuggets have now slipped to the fourth seed with a 47-32 record.
But that’s just the top four teams in the West; every team from the fifth to eighth seed currently has a 46-32 record.
With most teams left with four games left to be played, the final stretch of the regular season could bring a huge change in the standings of the West.
