Predicting the 5 best offensive teams in the 2021-22 NBA season

#3 Portland Trail Blazers

Can Dame Lillard and McCollum finally clinch an elusive NBA title?

On the shoulders of Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum, the Portland Trail Blazers have consistently been an elite offense for years now. Last season, they finished second in offensive rating. The year before that, they were third, and just as they were in 2018-19.

The deadly backcourt's offensive capabilities are apparent from the moment you turn on a Portland game. Lillard's 2020-21 averages were 28.8 points and 7.5 assists on 45.1 percent from the field and 39.1 percent from three on 10.5(!) attempts per game. McCollum, meanwhile, tallied 23.1 points and 4.7 assists while shooting 45.8 percent from the field and 40.2 percent from three.

The counting stats between them are absurd, and it's even more ridiculous when you consider the degree of difficulty for a majority of their shots. Creating space off the dribble is the name of the game for both of these guys and that may be the most valuable skill in basketball.

It doesn't stop at that duo... Norman Powell will have an offseason with this group and has shown the ability to have some big scoring nights. Jusuf Nurkic was scarcely available the last two seasons and his playmaking from the post/elbow unlocks even more for the aforementioned guards.

None of their offseason departures should change the fact that Portland is consistently elite on offense. We will see if new head coach Chauncey Billups is able to maintain the offensive success of Terry Stotts.

#2 Phoenix Suns

The Phoenix Suns are expected to have another strong NBA season

The Phoenix Suns finished last season tied for the sixth-best offensive rating in the NBA, 116.3. Chris Paul and Devin Booker are the undisputed one-two punch for the Valley but there is room for both Deandre Ayton and Mikal Bridges to expand their capabilities on that end of the floor in 2021-22.

The pairing of 2018 draft picks could both develop into self-creation threats in the near future, which would leave defenses confounded on who to focus on slowing down.

Adding Landry Shamet to space the floor with Cameron Johnson, Jae Crowder, and Dario Saric is all the spacing a coach could ask for in the modern NBA. Johnson and Saric are much more than catch-and-shoot threats. They have both proven to be comfortable putting the ball on the floor and either creating for themselves or their teammates.

Post the All-Star break, the Suns trailed only Portland in offensive rating. Being one of the teams with extremely minimal roster turnover should limit any sort of growing pains at the beginning of the season. The Suns should come out of the gates hot after their recent NBA Finals appearance.

#1 Brooklyn Nets

Brooklyn Nets are the NBA's premier offensive powerhouse

Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and James Harden. Do we really need to explain beyond that?

The Brooklyn Nets finished last season with the best offensive rating in the NBA at 117.3, and they didn't even acquire James Harden until the trade deadline. Irving missed 18 games and Durant was sidelined for 37! Barring substantial injuries, it's hard to see how this Steve Nash-led team isn't the NBA's best offense.

Mike D'Antoni departing for the New Orleans Pelicans could have a greater effect than anticipated, but the talent remains. The Nets also lost Jeff Green and Landry Shamet, but replacing them with Patty Mills, Cameron Thomas, and Jevon Carter is more than enough.

I still have yet to mention the three other former NBA all-stars on this Brooklyn roster. Blake Griffin, LaMarcus Aldridge, and Paul Milsap. All of them are undeniably past their prime by a few years, but their offensive understanding and diverse skillsets just add to the tool chest.

Again, with Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, and James Harden all on the same team, it would be hard not to record the best offensive rating in the NBA.