After winning the Northwest Division last year, Utah was busy in the offseason trying to make sure they win it again in 2021-22. The Jazz’s biggest competition for the division crown will come from reigning NBA MVP Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets.
Minnesota and Oklahoma City are both years away from contending for the division, but Portland added what they hope will be enough to put them in the division race this season. Here’s a look at the 2021 NBA Northwest Division futures odds and picks.
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2021 Utah Jazz Team Preview and Futures Odds
Odds to Win Northwest Division: -250
The Jazz are one of the league’s best defensive teams. They also shoot three-pointers very well. In the offseason, the front office worked hard to keep their roster intact. Rudy Gobert won the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year award last season for the third time in four seasons.
Donovan Mitchell (26.4 ppg) proved he is one of the game’s best point guards. What the Jazz really need this season is a healthy Bogdan Bogdanovic (17.0 ppg) and Mike Conley (16.2 ppg). Both are outstanding shooters, especially from long range.
Utah is the most complete team in the division, which is why they are a -250 favorite to win it all again.
2021 Denver Nuggets Team Preview and Futures Odds
Odds to Win Northwest Division: +320
The Nuggets are the most intriguing team in the division and possibly the entire NBA. Jokic and his 26.4 points and 10.8 rebounds per game return, but his supporting cast is strong. That’s why Denver is listed at +320 and is the biggest threat to Utah in the division.
Jamal Murray shot 41 percent from three-point range and averaged 21.2 points a game. Michael Porter Jr. (19.0 ppg, 7.3 rpg) is a rising star and the Nuggets went out and acquired JaMychal Green to help defend in the frontcourt.
2021 Portland Trail Blazers Team Preview and Futures Odds
Odds to Win Northwest Division: +750
Portland added Robert Covington to supply the frontcourt defense the Trail Blazers lacked in the past. The Trail Blazers also added Derrick Jones Jr. which helps in the defense department too.
While Rip City still has the best backcourt in the NBA with Damian Lillard (28.8 ppg) and CJ McCollum (23.1 ppg), Portland is still probably a two-way wing short of surpassing either Denver or Utah in the division. The Trail Blazers (+750) are definitely a playoff team. They just aren’t a division champion.
2021 Minnesota Timberwolves Team Preview and Futures Odds
Odds to Win Northwest Division: +10000
The T-Wolves have one of the better young lineups in the league. Karl-Anthony Towns is one of a handful of centers that can step out and hit threes consistently (38.7 percent). Towns led the team in scoring (24.8 ppg) and rebounding (10.6 rpg) last season.
Add last year’s top draft pick Anthony Edwards (19.3 ppg) and point guard D’Angelo Russell (19.0 ppg) and Minnesota has a bright future. This year, the T-Wolves just don’t have the experience or the depth to compete with Utah and Denver for a division title. That’s why Minnesota is given +10000 odds to win it.
2021 Oklahoma City Thunder Team Preview and Futures Odds
Odds to Win Northwest Division: +50000
What the Thunder lack in talent, depth, and experience in 2021-22, they make up for in first-round draft picks. Shia Gilgeous-Alexander is a star and is really OKC’s only elite level player. The supporting cast around SGA is nowhere near ready to compete for anything. That’s why the Thunder’s odds to win the division (+50000) are so long.
Check back in a few years. OKC has stockpiled No. 1 draft picks from now until 2026. That’s when the franchise will be back in the thick of things.
2022 NBA Northwest Division Predictions
Utah finished third in points allowed last season (107.2) while also finishing fourth in points scored (116.4). They were the league’s third-best three-point shooting team (38.9 percent) and they return most of their roster from last season.
The thing is, Denver also finished in the top ten in scoring (8th) and opponent’s scoring (8th). They didn’t shoot the three as well (37.7 percent, 8th), but the Nuggets were a better overall shooting team checking in at fourth in field goal percentage (48.5).
The Nuggets play defense well enough and have the better offense compared to Utah. This is the year Denver puts it all together and wins the Northwest.
BEST BET: NUGGETS +320
Check out our 2022 NBA Eastern Conference preview and 2022 NBA Western Conference preview.
