Which Western Conference team will face the Celtics in the Finals? NBA executive #1: “The team to beat in the West is Phoenix, believe it or not. I think their top-end talent is just ready to make a move. KD [Kevin Durant] and Book [Devin Booker] are really, really good. They had an outlier year last year with trying to get everything working together. I think Mike Budenholzer and Tyus Jones are great additions. I think they will figure out a way to use some draft compensation and Jusuf Nurkic contract to get even better [in a trade]. I think the team that emerges from the West in Phoenix. I believe in Kevin. I believe in Booker. I believe in Budenholzer. Denver, Dallas, Oklahoma City are options. But I think the one-two punch in Phoenix is better than the one-two punch anywhere else.