Same-old, same-old In The West.

The NBA season starts tomorrow and while it seems to be shaping up as an exciting season, there really isn't anything new out West.

The power players are still the same and the cellar-dwellers, well, there doesn't seem to be any breakout teams among the West's few truly mediocre teams.

In fact, the top two teams in the West remain the same, but I have a surprise pick for the third. Without further ado, the three teams to watch out for in the Wstern Conference.

Golden State Warriors - Whaaaaaaat? You mean after a second championship, they're still the favorites? The loss of the likes of Javale McGee and David West has been totally negated by the signing of DeMarcus Cousins. Yes, he's still injured but the Warriors without a traditional center is actually more dangerous than the Warriors with one.

So the Warriors will hum along, with the same Fab Four outgunning everyone else. And when Cousins finally joins them, the Warriors may just be the most unbeatable team in the NBA's history.

The Significance Of Game Three

Game Three is going to be very important. So important that it will dictate whether Lebron James leaves the Cavs this summer or not.

Don't get me wrong. I don't think the Cavs will win the series. The Warriors are just too darned good. But if the Cavs can win Game 3, then they make the series respectable. Win Game Four and we'll have a proper series.

The Unfortunate Thing About Game One...

Do you know what's quite sad about Game 1 of the 2018 NBA Finals between the Golden State Warriors and the Cleveland Cavaliers?

That its biggest talking point isn't Lebron James' singular dominance, scoring 51 points, grabbing 8 rebounds and 8 assists in an almost triple-double effort, while playing 48 minutes.

Rockets Fall Back To Earth, Warriors March On

We always knew that Rockets needed to be near perfect to beat the Warriors. And when Chris Paul went down with that hamstring injury near the end of Game 5, that window for perfection just went from small to infinitesimal.

Add to that a flurry of unexpected areas of momentary incompetence that helped sink that (Rocket) ship, including:

Rockets Hang Tough, Proves Point.

Until Game 4, the Rockets haven't really proven that they can win against the Warriors when the going gets tough.

But why is that so important?

It goes to that great intangible mental toughness. It speaks to the ability to shut out the screaming crowd, the score, the fatigue, the person guarding you and make that shot you'd make 10 times out of 10 during practice.

Four Is Still Better Than Two.

When your soon-to-be-MVP star scores 41 points on 14-24 shooting and above 50% in 3 pointers, you should win.

When your soon-to-be-HOFer All Star guard scores 23 points and grabs 11 rebounds, you should win.

Except the Houston Rockets didn't.

NBA FINALS: Predictions for Game 3

Yes, it's 1-1. The Cavs stole homecourt advantage from the Warriors with a pulsating win in overtime (again) 95-93.

This time, Lebron James notched a triple double, with a god-like stat line of 39 points, 16 rebounds and 11 assists. Matthew Dellavedova delivered on some key free throws and spot on defense, forcing Steph Curry into an airball with 4.4 seconds left in overtime.

So does this spell the end for the Warriors?
A championship (finally) for the Cavs?
The start of a Cavaliers dynasty?