At last, the 2024-25 NBA season is here.

It’s been four months since the Celtics were crowned NBA champions and after a busy offseason, they’ll raise their 18th banner to tip off a new year in the NBA. While Boston sits on the throne, several teams are capable of putting an end to the C’s title defense.

With contending in mind, the 76ers signed Paul George, the Knicks moved to acquire Karl-Anthony Towns, and the Thunder added Alex Caruso and Isaiah Hartenstein to a roster that finished first in the West last season. But will that be enough for any of those teams to make a run for the Larry O’Brien Trophy?

There are countless storylines to follow this season, including another intriguing race to win MVP, a sneaky rookie class and a handful of up-and-coming stars poised for a breakout campaign.

Six members of The Sporting News’ global staff gave their opinions on the upcoming season, making picks for the NBA Cup, end-of-season awards and the 2025 NBA Finals.

Below, find a breakdown of each pick and an explanation for the selections.

SN’s NBA HQ: Live NBA scores | Updated NBA standings | Full NBA schedule

MVP prediction

Winner: Luka Doncic (3)

Others receiving votes: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Anthony Edwards, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

The case for Luka Doncic: You don’t need to look much further than Doncic’s role in leading Dallas to the 2024 NBA Finals to understand his case to win MVP.

As he enters his seventh NBA season, Doncic is a five-time First Team All-NBA selection, indicating just how special a performer he is during the regular season. Last year, Doncic led Dallas to 50 wins with averages of 33.9 points, 9.8 assists and 9.2 rebounds over 70 games.

With an improved roster from Day 1, is it that unrealistic to think Doncic could average a 30-point triple-double? As evidenced by the other candidates, it will be yet another tough competition to win the award, but Doncic putting forth such gaudy stats for a Mavs team that finishes at or near the top of the West could give him an ironclad case to win his first MVP.

Rookie of the Year prediction

Winner: Zach Edey (3)

Others receiving votes: Reed Sheppard (2), Stephon Castle

The case for Zach Edey: This year’s draft class may be somewhat unorthodox, but if preseason is any indicator, Edey is ready to make an immediate impact on a winner.

Look no further than Edey’s 23-point, nine-rebound performance in 19 minutes of preseason action to get an idea of what you’ll see from him throughout his rookie season. It’s unclear how much playing time he’ll see but there’s no denying that he will be extremely impactful and efficient when he is on the floor.

Edey will benefit from the playmaking of Ja Morant, the floor-spacing of Desmond Bane and is a much-needed presence on the boards for Memphis. As The Sporting News’ Steph Noh outlined, Edey’s unique potential is something many critics may have overlooked or overthought. Don’t overthink this.

MORE: What NBA Draft analysis missed about Zach Edey’s unique potential

Defensive Player of the Year prediction

Winner: Victor Wembanyama (5)

Others receiving votes: Chet Holmgren

The case for Victor Wembanyama: Wembanyama is the best defender in the league and has the tools to be the best defender of all time. It’s really that simple.

After earning All-Defensive First Team honors as a rookie, Wembanyama is almost certainly destined to make the next leap to becoming the league’s Defensive Player of the Year as a sophomore.

At 20, Wembanyama has only scratched the surface of his defensive potential. So long as he meets the threshold for games played, the conversation for the next few years may shift to who will be his runner-up. DPOY feels like Wembanyama’s award to win for each season in the foreseeable future.

RANKING NBA’S BEST DEFENDERS: 100-11 | 10-1

Scoring champion prediction

Winner: Luka Doncic (5)

Others receiving votes: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

The case for Luka Doncic: Is it possible that scoring could get easier for Doncic after he averaged a shade under 34 points per game in 2023-24? With more offensive threats for opposing defenses to worry about, Doncic really may have his way in 2024-25.

Doncic has one of the deepest bags in the NBA and can build upon what he showed last season to take home a second consecutive scoring crown.

Most likely first-time All-Star prediction

Winner: Victor Wembanyama (6)

The case for Victor Wembanyama: There’s a reason why this was unanimous. He’s the best young player in the league and will skip the line to earn a much-deserved All-Star spot in 2025.

Wembanyama’s rookie averages of 21.4 points, 10.6 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 3.6 blocks per game were All-Star numbers but his team didn’t win much. His numbers will be even better this season and the Spurs will be much better, too. Case closed.

POSITIONAL RANKINGS: PG | SG | SF | PF | C

Eastern Conference winner prediction

Winner: Boston Celtics (5)

Others receiving votes: New York Knicks

The case for the Celtics: Boston is the class of the East and essentially every move that Eastern Conference contenders made was to catch the Celtics. Still, it won’t matter.

The gap between the Celtics and the rest of the conference remains incredibly wide and they should cruise back to a second consecutive Eastern Conference crown.

Western Conference winner prediction

Winner: Oklahoma City Thunder (6)

The case for the Thunder: Another unanimous pick among the staff.

After finishing first in the West last season, Oklahoma City is essentially running it back with two important additions: Alex Caruso and Isaiah Hartenstein. 

Gilgeous-Alexander is expected to perform at an MVP level again, rising stars Holmgren and Jalen Williams will take another leap, and the Thunder have one of the league’s deepest and most talented rosters. After learning the hard lesson of what it takes to win in real-time last year, OKC is primed to get over the hump to make a Finals run in 2025.

MORE: Win totals and best bets to make for 2024-25 NBA season

NBA champion prediction

Winner: Boston Celtics (4)

Others receiving votes: New York Knicks, Oklahoma City Thunder

The case for the Celtics: After a historically dominant run to the NBA title in 2024, the Celtics are running it back and may even be better than they were the year before.

Gone is the pressure of breaking the franchise’s championship drought. And while the team is now targeted as the defending champions, that pressure appears to be welcomed across the board, from head coach Joe Mazzulla to the All-Star duo of Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum, and the rest of Boston’s roster.

With every rotational piece from the championship run returning, the C’s will look to replicate last year’s success on a similar, but different journey. Based on what we saw last year, it’s hard to envision anyone beating this team four times in seven games.

Other NBA predictions this season

Best record: Boston Celtics, Oklahoma City Thunder (3 out of 6 votes each)

Top fantasy player: Nikola Jokic (4 out of 6 votes)

NBA Cup winner: Six different answers

2023 All-Star most likely to take step back: Kawhi Leonard (3 out of 6 votes)

Most impactful new acquisition: Alex Caruso, Paul George (2 out of 6 votes each)

Team most likely to exceed Vegas: New Orleans Pelicans, 46.5 wins (2 out of 6 votes)

Team most likely to fall short of Vegas: Minnesota Timberwolves, 52.5 wins (2 out of 6 votes)

Full voting results

Team predictions