Las Vegas released its predictions for the 2014 NBA season. In this book, it projects how many games each NBA team will win in the upcoming season. While the top 12 are littered with teams from the West, the top team is the Cleveland Cavaliers, projected to win 58.5 games. Let us break down some teams that stick out from the Vegas book.

The biggest surprise in this writer's eyes is that the Toronto Raptors are projected to win fewer games than only the aforementioned Cavaliers and the Chicago Bulls. While they are an improved team from last season, it's odd that Vegas would project them to do so well. The book has them above the Washington Wizards and Miami Heat, who despite losing LeBron James, are still the four-time defending champs of the East.

The Raptors are certainly a dark-horse team in the NBA, with a young backcourt that really developed in 2013, as both Kyle Lowry and Demar DeRozan found their stride on their way to big seasons. The latter averaged 24 points per contest, while the former became an elite floor general, while averaging around 21 points and 5 assists. Youngsters Greivis Vasquez and Jonas Valanciunas emerged as key role players, and the team hopes to get them both more involved this year. The team traded away John Salmons to the Hawks for speedy guard Lou Williams, which will add depth to a team that already has a strong bench. The starting frontcourt figures to be Amir Johnson, Jonas Valanciunas, and Terrence Ross, with Vasquez, Williams, Patterson, and Hansborough off the bench. Toronto is a team that finished 48-34 last year and locked down the third seed in the Eastern Conference. The team hopes to build off of Lowry and DeRozan as a top-tier backcourt. Speaking of elite guard combos, the Washington Wizards, with Bradley Beal and John Wall, figure to be a top four team in the conference, and this author sees them finishing ahead of the Raptors in total wins.

What about Miami? We cannot completely stick a fork in them, seeing as they still have Norris Cole and Chris Bosh, drafted UConn sensation Shabazz Napier, and picked up veteran swingmen Luol Deng and Danny Granger, who at one point were both considered elite small forwards, but have battled injuries the past four seasons. If those two, along with Dwyane Wade, can stay healthy, the Heat could surprise some fans and pull out a number three finish in the conference. However, those “ifs” are too big to bet on, as the Heat will probably finish sixth in the conference.

A team that is being underestimated is the Orlando Magic. The East is weak and with teams such as the Knicks, Heat and Celtics facing uncertainty, the young Magic may surprise people. The trio of Victor Oladipo, Tobias Harris, and Nikola Vucevic, paired with veteran forward Channing Frye and young hustle player Aaron Gordon could form a strong nucleus for the future.Orlando will win more than their projected 28.5, and to finish ahead of the Celtics and Knicks.

This writer's predictions are unlike Vegas’s logic. The Wizards will finish third in the conference, with the Raptors at fourth, Hawks at fifth, Heat at sixth, Pistons at seventh, and Magic at eighth. Atlanta is a team that could make noise in the conference. They should be able to control the southeast division, especially after adding defensive specialist Thabo Sefolosha in the off-season. Along with Teague at point and Korver, Milsap and Horford filling out the frontcourt, the Hawks have a strong starting five. We will just have to see how well Brand, Carrol, Mack and Scott can work together as a second unit for a Hawks team that is hoping to keep up with the Wizards and Raptors in the East.