Last time on The New Millennium, the Lakers and Heat got new franchise players in Luke Doncic and Trae Young, while the Charlotte Hornets made the biggest moves, trading away Tony Parker to acquire Eric Bledsoe and picking DeAndre Ayton fourth overall. There's one final regular season left, one final chance for 16 different teams to make the playoffs and give themselves a chance to claim the last Larry O'Brien Trophy. What lies ahead in the 2018-2019 regular season?
Western Conference
1. Denver Nuggets(54-28)
2. Dallas Mavericks(51-31)
3. Phoenix Suns(49-33)
4. Sacramento Kings(45-37)
5. Utah Jazz(43-39)
6. San Antonio Spurs(42-40)
7. Minnesota Timberwolves(42-40)
8. Golden State Warriors(42-40)
9. Houston Rockets(40-42)
10. Vancouver Grizzlies(40-42)
11. Los Angeles Lakers(35-47)
12. Seattle SuperSonics(35-47)
13. New Orleans Pelicans(32-50)
14. Portland Trail Blazers(31-51)
15. Los Angeles Clippers(26-56)
Led by the trio of Tyreke Evans(16.7 ppg, 6.6 apg), Dion Waiters(18.4 ppg) and Thaddeus Young(16 ppg, 6.4 rpg) the Denver Nuggets reign supreme in the most competitive season in The New Millennium's history. Right behind them are the defending champion Dallas Mavericks, as Stephen Curry(24.7 ppg, 11.1 apg) wins his fourth MVP, tying Wilt Chamberlain in real life. Behind them you find a lot of the usual suspects, and I'll give a shout-out to Devin Booker(20.6 ppg, 5.3 apg) who I'm pretty sure led the Kings to their best record in this series. And hey, Minnesota is back in the playoffs, as Kevin Durant(28.3 ppg, 7.7 rpg, 5.2 apg) leads his old squad into the postseason for one more run. The Lakers improved massively thanks to Rookie of the Year Luka Doncic(15.7 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 5.9 apg), though the other LA was nowhere near as lucky, as the Clippers fell off a cliff.
Eastern Conference
1. Atlanta Hawks(53-29)
2. Toronto Raptors(51-31)
3. New York Knicks(51-31)
4. New Jersey Nets(49-33)
5. Indiana Pacers(48-34)
6. Detroit Pistons(48-34)
7. Milwaukee Bucks(46-36)
8. Washington Wizards(45-37)
9. Cleveland Cavliers(43-39)
10. Boston Celtics(41-41)
11. Charlotte Hornets(35-47)
12. Chicago Bulls(34-48)
13. Philadelphia 76ers(30-52)
14. Orlando Magic(30-52)
15. Miami Heat(19-63)
Atlanta remains atop the East, looking for redemption after being swept in the Finals last year, but they faced an extremely tough test in the Toronto Raptors. Toronto features the incredible Big 3 of Kyrie Irving(20.8 ppg, 5.4 apg), Paul George(18.8 ppg, 5.8 rpg) and Giannis Antetokounmpo(19.5 ppg, 9.9 rpg, 6.3 apg), who looks to deliver glory to all of Canada once more. The Eastern Conference is absolutely stacked, and resulted in absolute heartbreak for the poor Cavaliers, who had their first winning season in absolutely forever but still didn't make the playoffs. The Hornets still can't get their act together, with star James Harden(22.3 ppg, 7.4 apg) about ready to leave, though Charlotte still has one other future superstar in DeAndre Ayton(14.2 ppg, 8.1 rpg). The Bulls finally missed their first playoffs since 2002, and with an aging, subpar roster, might be ready to completely rebuild. And the Miami Heat remained awful, but at least the future is now bright with Trae Young(16.9 ppg).
Awards
MVP: Stephen Curry, Dallas Mavericks
Rookie of the Year: Luka Doncic, Los Angeles Lakers
Sixth Man: Isaiah Thomas, Dallas Mavericks
Defensive Player: Willie Lewis, Boston Celtics
Most Improved: C.J. McCollum, Vancouver Grizzlies
Coach of the Year: Michael Malone, Denver Nuggets
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