The NBA season has officially hit the half-way point of games played and the All-Star break has just ended. 

After the exciting all-star game that occurred with Team Lebron winning it, fans are excited for the games to resume as teams inch one step closer to another NBA Finals.

The Brooklyn Nets recently signed Blake Griffin and now seem to be the front runners to win the Eastern Conference and even win the Finals. Their only job now is to figure out minutes and chemistry, but they seem well on their way to a great finish of the season. 

Teams such as the Lakers, Bucks, Heat, 76ers, and Jazz look to maintain their hold on the top of the league, but many think it’s a two team race between the Lakers and Nets to see who will be the champions this year.

One team that has shocked everyone this year is the Phoenix Suns, who actually have a better record thus far than the Lakers and sit second in the Western Conference standings. With the addition of Chris Paul the Suns look to make the playoffs for the first time since 2009.

Joel Embiid seems to be the front runner for MVP this year, but Lebron James and Steph Curry will always be in the mix.

The Celtics look to bounce back this second half of the season after a subpar first half, and trades may be on the horizon for the Celtics.

The surprise of the year thus far is the New York Knicks having a winning record and a playoff chance. Who knows if they’ll keep up the good pace, but it does look promising thus far. 

Lamelo Ball seems to be a clear favorite to win the Rookie of the Year award and has been playing amazing basketball heading into the All-Star break; the question is will he keep it up for the rest of the year. 

With covid-19 still being around, it has been challenging to conduct this season after last year’s “bubble”, but the NBA has made it work thus far and it’s been a pleasure to watch as a fan. Adam Silver has taken the reins of this league and progressed it forward in a time where so much regression is still occuring.

With all this being said, I predict a Nets-Lakers Finals with the Nets winning in 6 games. I don’t see any team beating a trio of James Harden, Kyrie Irving, and Kevin Durant 4 times out of 7. With the addition of Blake Griffin as well, this Nets team looks poised to take down Lebron’s Lakers in the Finals.