For three seasons now, the NBA Finals have been the exclusive domain of Steph Curry’s Warriors and LeBron James’ Cavaliers. After Curry, Durant and their Golden State teammates won the 2017 championship in June, the NBA went through one of its wildest offseasons in memory. Would the shakeups and player moves alter the power structure in the NBA for the upcoming season?

In the east, we may have what boils down to a referendum on the biggest NBA bombshell of the offseason, namely Kyrie Irving’s sudden trade request. In a blockbuster move, the Celtics acquired Irving from the Cavs in exchange for Isaiah Thomas and a package of players and picks. The NBA Swarm, made up of fans from across the country, thinks that LeBron and his squad will come out of that deal ahead at least in the short term and win the Eastern Conference this year.

In the West, the song remains the same as well. The Rockets improved themselves by freeing Chris Paul from the Pacers. The Thunder snagged Carmelo Anthony from the Knicks. The Nuggets and Wolves look much-improved as well. And the thing is…none of that may make any difference. The swarm still predicts that the road to the West goes through Steph Curry and Kevin Durant and their Warrior teammates.

And so if the NBA Swarm is accurate, we’re due for round four of what has become a regular springtime rivalry. This year, though, the windows may be starting to close a little bit for both Cleveland and to a lesser extent, Golden State. Can the Cavs win one more for Believeland? It’s a nice story maybe, but the swarm thinks there’s just too much firepower by the bay for anyone to mount a serious challenge to the Warriors this year.

Every week, Unanimous AI publishes predictions made by its Swarm AI platform. Want to have those picks delivered to your inbox? 

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