NBA杯前瞻：5胜0负的火箭与掘金、太阳、独行侠、爵士同处西区A组

This week, NBA Cup action kicks off. This will be the fourth edition of the league's annual in-season tournament, and the Houston Rockets are slotted in West Group A with the Denver Nuggets, Phoenix Suns, Dallas Mavericks, and Utah Jazz.

Starting off this season with a strong 5-0 run, the Rockets have the pieces to establish themselves as juggernauts in the Western Conference and win an NBA Cup title in the process. With the likes of Kevin Durant, Alperen Sengun, Amen Thompson, and Jabari Smith Jr. as the main contributors, Houston currently has the second-best offensive rating in the league.

Houston already had a decisive double-digit victory over the Mavericks in their season opener, and the Jazz and Suns are quickly falling to the bottom of the standings. This leaves the Nuggets, who are off to a 2-2 start, as the most challenging matchup in the group.

Based on Denver’s consistency from year to year, Nikola Jokic is likely to continue to perform at an MVP-caliber level, and the Nuggets are likely to regain their footing in a few weeks' time. Houston can be expected to take, at most, one loss during group play and advance to the knockout stage.

Here are the opinions of other writers from OnSI.

Tre Allen

“The Rockets have looked pretty good being one of the few undefeated teams in the league. With the NBA group stage games around the corner, they’ll have a few interesting tests with the Dallas Mavericks, Utah Jazz, Phoenix Suns and Denver Nuggets as their group opponents. Between injuries and on court presence, I would expect the Rockets to take care of the Jazz and Suns but you never know. It’s the NBA. The Mavericks are the best team record-wise among the three but have already lost to Houston that was pretty one sided and couldn’t keep up with the Rockets’ offense. The Nuggets obviously have Nikola Jokic and the offense to keep up with Houston, but there have already been things that have been said about their poor defense that can hold them back. With the way the Rockets have been playing I wouldn’t be surprised if they swept the group.”

Ethan J. Skolnick

"This appeared to be a favorable bracket when it was released.... and even more so now. The Suns are scuffling without a true point guard; the Jazz have lost Jaren Jackson Jr. for several weeks; and while the Nuggets are a little slow out of the gate. The Rockets have seen the Mavericks already, in preseason and the regular season, so there won't be any surprises, even if Dusty May's team is moving the ball well with Cooper Flagg leading the way. Houston has the most overall talent in the group and, if they take it seriously (some teams don't over-emphasize it), they should get a spot in Las Vegas."

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