Wednesday 16 October 2019 16:01, UK
Sky Sports NBA analyst Mike Tuck previews the NBA’s Atlantic Division, offers his prediction for division winners and invites you to have your say in our poll.
Tuck's take
Nikola Jokic is coming off an exciting season last year and I think he will continue to get better and better. He is so effective with what he does. It's not like he plays crazy amounts of minutes but he still packs the stats sheet. He is one of those guys who is wise beyond his years - he's only 24 but he knows when to expend and save energy.
Michael Porter Jr has been looking really good for the Nuggets in preseason and workouts. He's a super-exciting player for them. And he could also be a great trade piece.
There have been trade rumours about Denver trading Gary Harris, Juan Hernangomez and Porter Jr to Washington for Bradley Beal. If they made a trade like that, it would impact their roster depth but their starting five would be immensely skilled.
Denver have got that year of playoff experience under their belt now and I can see them having an even better season than they had last year.
Portland are a little bit stagnant. I don't know if they've made the right kind of moves. Jusuf Nurkic remains a long-term absentee and summer signing Hassan Whiteside is no Nurk!
Whiteside is an out-and-out shot blocker but that desire to swat shots often leaves him out of position under the basket. I don't know if he is the right guy for them but another big body in the paint won't hurt with all the guard-play that they have.
In Utah, seeing Mike Conley on a contending team is super-exciting. He's very experienced, he can do everything and he is a proven leader. Donovan Mitchell is really coming into his own now.
He'll benefit from the experience he gained with Team USA at the FIBA World Cup and will take confidence from being the go-to guy on that team. Bojan Bogdanovic is a gritty, tough player too.
The Jazz will be deadly from outside with Conley, Mitchell, Joe Ingles and Bogdanovic firing away. They'll be a fun team to watch too. And, with the defense of Rudy Gobert, who has every chance of winning a third successive Defensive Player of the Year award, they have the best starting five in the division.
With Conley, he offers a scoring threat as well as being a facilitator so that will take some of the weight off of Mitchell's shoulders. But I think Mitchell is ready to step up to the plate. With all the Team USA withdrawals, he was able to step up into a more responsible role. This could be a breakout season for him.
After the Thunder lost Russell Westbrook and Paul George over the summer, a lot of people have already written them off. I think OKC are interesting, though.
A starting five of Chris Paul, Danilo Gallinari, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Steven Adams and Andre Roberson is pretty tough. Beyond that, they definitely lack depth.
Gallinari was playing great for the Clippers last year, Roberson is coming off an injury but is a great role player willing to do the dirty work and Adams is solid.
Everyone has forgotten about them really, but they could make some noise.
Who am I picking to win the Northwest? Denver, with Utah right behind them
