2024-25 NBA Season Preview: Key Players, Championship and MVP Contenders

The 79th Season of the National Basketball Association (NBA) will begin on 22nd October with a match between the Boston Celtics, the current champions, and the New York Knicks.

The last season brought a lot of excitement, but not in the Grand Finals, in which one team was dominant and reached the NBA title.

When does the NBA season and playoff start?

The regular season starts on October 22nd, local time, and ends on April 13th, 2025.

Thirty teams will play 82 games each, and we will get the champion in June next year.

NBA 2024/25 major dates:

• 22 October: Start of the 2024-25 NBA regular season
• 6 February: NBA trade deadline
• 14-16 February: NBA All-Star 2025
• 13 April: NBA Regular Season ends.
• 15-18 April: SoFi Play-In Tournament
• 19 April: NBA Playoffs 2025 begin
• 5 June: NBA Finals 2025 begin

Major summer NBA stories

An exciting summer is behind us, with some big transfers and major signings. LeBron James signed a new two-year, $104 million contract with the LA Lakers. He will play in the club with his son, Bronny, which is one of the stories for this summer.

Karl-Anthony Towns strengthened the Knicks in a big trade, and Minnesota got Julius Randle, Donte DiVincenzo, and a protected 2025 first-round pick​.

Longtime Golden State Warriors shooter Klay Thompson came to Dallas to try to win a new NBA ring with Kyrie Irving and Luka Doncic.

Another veteran, Paul George, changed clubs and joined Joel Embiid in the Philadelphia 76ers, and DeMar DeRozan went from Chicago Bulls to the Sacramento Kings.

Who are the favourites for the NBA 2024/25 title?

The Boston Celtics cruised to the title last season. Their young head coach, Joseph Mazzulla, and his team swept the Dallas Mavericks in the final with 4:1.

If it is not broken, there is no need to fix it. Celtics were led by this well-known statement, so the team did not experience changes in the roster and had no need for that.

They have depth in the team and stars in the prime of their careers (Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Jrue Holiday, Derrick White...), and Celtics will also be the main favourites to win the title this season.

If we look by conference, in the East Conference, New York is the best of the rest, with a combination of players who are born leaders and those who are a supporting cast.

Karl Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges will need to adjust quickly and pull Tom Thibodeau's team toward greatness. In the East, former NBA MVP Joel Embiid will have to stay healthy first and foremost to pull off a team that isn't given much of a chance, even in its Conference.

Teams like the Cleveland Cavaliers have great talent on their roster, while the Indiana Pacers have great offensive potential, but the question is how good they will be defensively.

We can't forget the Milwaukee Bucks either, with Doc Rivers having Damian Lillard, Khris Middleton and Giannis Antetokounmpo.

Clash in the West

A bigger fight is expected in the Western Conference. The Oklahoma City Thunder enter as the number 1 seed team.

All-NBA First Team guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had an excellent 2023-24 season, and they are expected to repeat the previous season's success when they finished first in the West.

They brought in Alex Caruso and Isaiah Hartenstein. They are projected for first place with 60+ wins!

This Conference could also have the MVP title winner, with the Minnesota Timberwolves, Dallas Mavericks, and Denver Nuggets ready to fight for the top spots.

The 2023 champions, the Nuggets, have NBA MVP Nikola Jokic. Still, for the three-time NBA MVP to do what he does, he will need to be healthy first and foremost but also have the support of Jamal Murray, who disappointed for Canada at the Olympics in Paris.

Anthony Edwards became the new leader of the Minnesota Timberwolves after Anthony Towns's departure in a mega trade.

It won't be easy for "Ant" because the team has undergone significant changes but hopes for Edwards are high.

It's hard to expect a fairly old LA Lakers team to be able to do much more despite everyone's respect for LeBron James and Anthony Davies.

On the other hand, the Mavericks will try to go one step further than the previous season. Luka Doncic is certainly among the top five players in the world, and since coming to the NBA in 2019, he has been an All-Star and All-NBA First Team member every season.

Boston showed last season that it is too big a challenge for Dallas, but the new season means new hope.

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NBA MVP candidates in the 2024/25 season

According to bookmakers and fans, Luka Doncic is currently the main favorite for the MVP title in 2024/25.

Last season, he led the entire league in scoring 33.9 points per game, the highest tally of his career. In addition, he had 9.2 rebounds and 9.8 assists, all while shooting 48.7% from the field and a career-best 38.2% from 3-point range.

With just a slight increase in rebounds and assists, he could be the second player in over 60 years to average a triple-double over an entire season. Russell Westbrook accomplished the feat four times from 2016-2021.

The Mavericks brought in former NBA champion Klay Thompson, who will add to an already strong Dallas roster led by Doncic and Kyrie Irving.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, predicted to have a great season in Thunder, and previous MVP winners Nikola Jokic, Joel Embiid, and Giannis Antetokounmpo are at the top of the NBA MVP projections.

Jayson Tatum, from the best team of the previous season and a big favourite this season, cannot be ruled out either. Anthony Edwards, Jalen Brunson, Jason, and Victor Wembanyama are also in the narrow circle for NBA MVP.

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