The Northwest division will be a battle

Denver Nuggets and Minnesota Timberwolves are the only two teams in the Northwest division. The Portland Trail Blazers are bringing back their MVP Damian Lillard and have added some pieces around him to replace C.J. McCollum.

Denver Nuggets are going to be a contender in the Western Conference this season. Minnesota Timberwolves are hoping Rudy Gobert can solve their defensive woes and free up Karl-Anthony Towns to wreak havoc on offense. Minnesota made a lot of changes over the summer. They traded Patrick Beverly, Malik Beasley, and bunch of young players to the Jazz in exchange for Rudy Goyet.

The Portland Trail Blazers are trying to win the Northwest division. Damian Lillard is the most important addition to the team. If he can return to his best form, and Anfernee Simons and Jusuf Nurkic can stay on the court, the Blazers can challenge for the play-in tournament at least.

Oklahoma City Thunder are playing for the future. Utah Jazz are trying to develop young players and acquire draft picks. The Northwest division will be a battle. The Thunder have a young but exciting core of players. Jazz have lost a lot of talent recently. They are not competing for championships or a playoff spot this year.

Jamal Murray is back after a year out injured. Rudy Gobert is expected to take the Timberwolves from a lower tier team to a contender. Damian Lillard is still a threat to score, but last year was a season of injury luck for him.

The Nuggets are going to win the Northwest division. They will have to deal with the Timberwolves if they have any injuries.

Nikola Jokic is going to be the MVP of the Northwest division. Rudy Gobert will be motivated to prove he's worth everything the Timberwolves traded for him. Bones Hyland is fun and can get buckets. Anthony Edwards is probably going be most Improved Player. Jalen Williams is the Rookie of Year.