With the NBA offseason in full swing, basketball news has been relatively light as of late. The NBA news is dominated with questions like "Would Michael Jordan beat Lebron James in a 1-on-1 Game?" and "Who will represent the USA in 2016?". With the recent release of the NBA schedule and the end of free agency however, fans can now speculate as to how their respective teams will do in the season. 

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In the West, there are certianly a lot of storylines to follow. 

While the defending champions the Golden States Warriors have stood pat and kept their key players, teams like the San Antonio Spurs, Houston Rockets, and the Los Angeles Clippers have added new pieces in hopes of solving the championship puzzle. The Oklahoma City Thunder will show whether or not they can bounce back from injuries, and perrenial playoff teams like the Dallas Mavericks and the Portland Trail Blazers are going to try and see if they can stop the rise of young teams like the Utah Jazz and the New Orleans Pelicans. 

Standings:
1. Golden State Warriors (62-20)
2. San Antonio Spurs (60-22)
3. Houston Rockets (57-25)
4. Oklahoma City Thunder (55-27)
5. Los Angeles Clippers (53-29)
6. Memphis Grizzlies (52-30)
7. New Orleans Pelicans (45-37)
8. Utah Jazz (43-39)
9. Dallas Mavericks (41-41)
10. Phoenix Suns (40-42)
11. Portland Trail Blazers (36-46)
12. Los Angeles Lakers (34-48)
13. Sacremento Kings (32-50)
14. Minnesota Timberwolves (28-54)
15. Denver Nuggets (21-61)

Key questions for the Western Conference this 2015-2016 season:

Is the West too deep for the Warriors?

Last season, the Warriors destroyed competition, posting up a 67-15 record (which is tied for the 6th best regulard season record in the league ever). With MVP Steph Curry, Finals MVP Andre Igoudala, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green all returning for another season with the Warriors, there's no reason not to expect for them to have another dominant regular season. There are still lingering questions regarding their post season, however. Some critics question whether the Warriors would still be as dominant had their opponents not experience the injuries that they did.

In the first round against the Pelicans, starting PG Jrue Holiday was out for several games. In the semifinals, Memphis Grizzly Mike Conley, who is known for his defense, was also out a couple games. In the Western Conference Finals, the Houston Rockets were playing without defensive stalwart Patrick Beverly and Donatas Motiejunas, and in the Finals, the Lebron-led Cleveland Cavaliers played without all-star PG Kyrie Irving and PF/C Kevin Love for most of the playoffs. With the Spurs, Rockets, and the Clippers all adding new pieces to the puzzle and with players returning from their injuries, will the Warriors still come out on top?

Will the Spurs return to the Championship stage?

Last season did not go the way the 5x NBA Champion Tim Duncan wanted it to go. They faltered against the Los Angeles Clippers in a heated 7 game matchup which was regarded to be one of the best series in the playoffs last year. This year, they added all-star PF LaMarcus Aldridge into the fold, a player they have defeated time and time again in the playoffs, without losing any key pieces whatsoever. 

With Duncan entering the twilight years of his career, adding Aldridge will lessen the load the veterans had to carry in the regular season, and help them remain fresh for the playoffs. The Spurs have one of the deepest teams in the league, with newly-acquired foward David West, Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard, All-Star PG Tony Parker, and sharpshooter Danny Green (to name a few) playing alongside Duncan and Aldridge, the Spurs are in for another successful season. But will it be enough for them to get Duncan his 5th ring?

Are the Rockets criminally underrated?

Last season the Houston Rockets widely exceeded expectations. Generally seen by most as a team that got weaker due to the lost of now Dallas Maverick Chandler Parsons, the Rockets climbed their way to a a Western Conference Finals match up against the Golden State Warriors. They did this without key players like Beverly, who would have defended Stephen Curry, and Motiejunas, their starting PF. 

While they may have lost Josh Smith to the Clippers, they added PG Ty Lawson, who hopes to take some of the ball-handling duties from James Harden. Ty Lawson may have had a couple issues with the law, but he is still widely regarded to be one of the best PGs in the league. Last season James Harden had to take up a majority of the ball handling duties, so with Ty Lawson in the fold, do they get better? Are they being underrated by other people?

Who wins the bottom 2 seeds?

In the West, the battle for the last seeds has always been entertaining. This year, the New Orleans Pelicans, Dallas Mavericks, Utah Jazz, Phoenix Suns, and the Sacremento Kings are all gunning for a chance in the playoffs. Some teams (like the New Orleans Pelicans) have a greater chance of making it than others (like the Sacremento Kings), so in the end the battle for the 8th seed comes down to 3 teams: the Mavericks, Jazz, and the Suns.

The Suns have more or less lost their starting PF Markieff Morris, so it's hard to see them doing well until we know what pieces they get in return for him. The Mavericks, took a chance and lost out on DeAndre Jordan, and in the process let SG Monta Ellis and C Tyson Chandler walk to other teams. They made up for it by adding players like PG Deron Williams, who hopes to rejuvenate his career, and C Javale McGee, whos on-court antics are laughable. This leaves the Utah Jazz, a young and upcoming team who won 15 of their last 24 games. Can they capitalize on their success? Who comes out on top?

Tags NBA news, Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Clippers, New Orleans Pelicans, Utah Jazz, Portland Trail Blazers, Los Angeles Lakers, Sacremento Kings, Minnesota Timberwolves