NBA Southwest Division futures: Looking upside down with San Antonio an also-ran

If New Orleans can get their young star, Zion Williamson, on the floor they might be just as good, too. There might not be much intrigue at the bottom of the division but there is great competition at the top and should be all season long. It should be a fun race. 

Here's a look at the Southeast Division futures market.

Southeast Division Futures

Memphis Grizzlies +105

The Grizzlies won the division last year and finished with the second-best record in the NBA too, all with Morant missing a significant chunk of time. This season they are going to start the year testing their depth with big man Jaren Jackson Jr. hurt. He is an important defender and shooter for the Grizzlies, but I think they can play well without him. Memphis has good depth, though with Kyle Anderson gone they are younger than they were last year.

Futures Take: Memphis seems to value the regular season more than other franchises so they are hard to fade in this spot. 

Dallas Mavericks +145

The Mavs made it all the way to the Western Conference Finals last year. Luka was leading the way but he did get some help from Jalen Brunson. Brunson is now with the Knicks so there is a lot of interest in how this team adapts this season. Their top addition this offseason was scoring big man Christian Wood. If you let him go he can put up some numbers but they lose some of the defensive edge that made them so competitive last season.

Futures Take: Doncic is not going to let the team slide, but being so dependent on one player is risky. Memphis is the better play and the payoffs are not that different. 

New Orleans Pelicans +350

The Pelicans seem to have enough of everything to have another successful season. Their biggest question is one of health, with Williamson, sadly, anything but a guarantee. Last year, without him they were feisty, especially with the addition of CJ McCollum at the trade deadline. Brandon Ingram can be an elite scorer but his thin frame makes it hard to rely on him so heavily throughout the course of the season, and the playoffs too. They need Zion, not just for his talent but because it reduces the burden on others.

Futures Take: This is the play to make if you want to bet on health. Their depth is solid too and at that price, it is worth a shot. 

Houston Rockets +24000

Ever since trading James Harden the Rockets have been bottoming out, looking to collect as much raw talent as possible. I love the forwards they drafted this year in Jabari Smith and Tari Eason but I am not sold on last year's top pick Jalen Green, or that Kevin Porter is the kind of lead guard to bring it all together. The rookies this year are going to immediately be the best defensive players on the team. They were awful on defense last season, but they have more tools to work with this year. If they improve defensively, a few more wins could come with it, though not enough to challenge.
 
Futures Take: There are still going to be a lot of nights where it looks like rec league ball, but the plan is coming into shape, I hope. 

San Antonio Spurs +24000 

It is hard to look at this roster and not see the worst team in the NBA this season. That might have even been the case before they traded Djounte Murray to Atlanta, ridding themselves of an intense and very capable two-way player (he was an All-Star last year).

Now, it is hard to see who is going to take over the role of bucket getter, when they need one. Murray was not a born scorer but his ability to get into the lane and force defenses to adjust was high level. There are going to be a lot of nights where this team is not competitive and they are going to be playing small a lot.

Futures Take: While the Rockets have some upside that is tough to see with the Spurs. Their price should be higher than Houston's.