Here is The Republic's top 10 predicted order of finish for 2024-25 in the NBA Western Conference.

The start of the NBA season is here, so let’s predict one breakout player from each Western Conference team ahead of the 2024-25 campaign.

The Oklahoma City Thunder are set up to be successful for a long time, but the veteran teams in the Western Conference are going to try to delay their ascent.

New coach Mike Budenholzer already has the Suns looking different through preseason play, and with new starting point guard Tyus Jones in the mix, Phoenix hopes to be organized an

The Thunder are young and precocious enough to need and value the No. 1 seed, and the still-untapped upside of so many of their players makes this quite reachable. Just when we were getting to enjoy the Timberwolves’ two-big throwback approach, they changed it up. But coach Chris Finch and team president Tim Connelly know what they’re doing.

There are 12 teams — 13 if you believe in the San Antonio Spurs — who expect to make the playoffs but just eight spots. There is no margin for error, injuries that keep a star out for just a couple of weeks could tip the scales, and some coaches will feel their seats getting warm early in the season.