My 2025-26 early-season observations on all 30 NBA teams.
Atlanta Hawks
I like what Jalen Johnson, Dyson Daniels, Onyeka Okongwu, and Nickeil Alexander-Walker bring on both ends. However, I think the Hawks have to figure it out on defense and also try to get 2024 No. 1 pick Zaccharie Risacher going more. Trae Young has been inefficient through his ten games played and mentioned in recent trade rumors while Porzingis’ health continues to be a problem (could be traded as well).
Boston Celtics
Jaylen Brown and Derrick White are doing it all without Jayson Tatum (White could be more efficient though). Payton Pritchard, Anfernee Simons, and Sam Hauser can heat up/Neemias Queta, Jordan Walsh, rookie Hugo Gonzalez, Luka Garza, Baylor Scheierman, and Josh Minott have stepped up with Jrue Holiday, Al Horford, Kristaps Porzingis, and Luke Kornet now gone. The biggest question I ultimately have is how this roster performs as a whole in the playoffs when Tatum returns.
Brooklyn Nets
The combination of veterans and young players has been positive so far for a team who wasn’t expected to do much. Michael Porter Jr., Nic Claxton, and Cam Thomas could definitely help a lot of other rosters. I’ll be interested to see if any of those three veterans get traded. Also I wanna see how their five rookies progress (Egor Demin, Nolan Traore, Drake Powell, Ben Saraf, and Danny Wolf) and how consistent Noah Clowney can be.
Charlotte Hornets
What we’ve seen from LaMelo Ball, Brandon Miller, Miles Bridges, and rookie Kon Knueppel has been something to build on. Kon’s had a special impact, most notably as an elite three-point shooter. New veteran Collin Sexton and rookies Ryan Kalkbrenner, Liam McNeeley, and Sion James have fit right into the culture as well. While the health of Ball & Miller is always going to matter for Charlotte, Knueppel gives the organization some stability now as another possible star.
Chicago Bulls
After a strong start, it’s been back to fighting for a play-in spot for Chicago. Seeing continued development from young players like Josh Giddey, Coby White, Matas Buzelis, Tre Jones, Isaac Okoro, Ayo Dosunmu, and Jalen Smith seems like their only hope to me. Hopefully rookie Noa Essengue can come back strong next season after getting surgery on his left shoulder.
Cleveland Cavaliers
This is a huge year for head coach Kenny Atkinson come playoff time. Donovan Mitchell, Darius Garland, and Jarrett Allen need Evan Mobley and De’Andre Hunter to turn it up a level if they want to have any postseason success. Also the team’s physicality needs to be felt. I like what I’ve seen from Sam Merrill and Jaylon Tyson without Max Strus so far (still recovering from foot surgery).
Dallas Mavericks
Nico Harrison got fired as general manager following a rough start to 2025-26 with Kyrie Irving sidelined (recovering from a torn ACL), as Cooper Flagg is living up to No. 1 pick status. I just hope Anthony Davis doesn’t get traded, so we can see what this roster actually looks like.
Denver Nuggets
Nikola Jokic has averaged another triple-double (currently out with a left knee injury), Jamal Murray is playing like he did during the 2023 postseason, and Aaron Gordon continues to get better as a trusted third option. You also gotta love the way Peyton Watson has developed. However, will the Michael Porter Jr. for Cam Johnson trade help or hurt them in the postseason/can Jonas Valanciunas provide enough off the bench as a backup center when he returns from injury?
Detroit Pistons
The physicality of this group causes many problems for opponents. Cade Cunningham has been an MVP candidate and Jalen Duren’s scoring ability is at an all-time best. Hopefully, Isaiah Stewart can stay healthy in the playoffs to set the tone (only appeared in one game last postseason vs. the Knicks due to right knee inflammation).
Golden State Warriors
As for many seasons now, I think Golden State needs to figure out what to do with Jonathan Kuminga. Can Steph Curry, Jimmy Butler, and Draymond Green lead this average roster to a championship still? Maybe trading Kuminga for more firepower might help.
Houston Rockets
Hopefully Fred VanVleet can return (recovering from a torn ACL) because this Rockets group definitely needs him at the end of the day to compete for a championship. Adding Kevin Durant improves any offense while Alperen Sengun, Amen Thompson, Jabari Smith Jr., Tari Eason, and Reed Sheppard are valuable young players taking the right steps.
Indiana Pacers
Tyrese Haliburton’s torn right Achilles tendon suffered in the Finals last season, not to mention a bunch of other injuries, has made life difficult for the Pacers during 2025-26. Pascal Siakam hasn’t missed a beat and Andrew Nembhard’s PPG & APG are up, but Bennedict Mathurin has been up and down while being a higher option.
Los Angeles Clippers
I wouldn’t entirely give up on the Clippers as a whole, but Bradley Beal being out for the season, things not working out with Chris Paul, and Brook Lopez, John Collins (playing better as of late), and Bogdan Bogdanovic not being as effective as in the past has hurt the team (Bogdanovic injured for most of the year so far). Hopefully their role players can be better moving forward around Kawhi Leonard, James Harden, and Ivica Zubac or I’d have to think the front office looks to make some moves.
Los Angeles Lakers
Does Marcus Smart’s defense alone put the Lakers over the top? Offense comes easy to Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves, and LeBron James most of the time, so my X-factors on both ends will be Deandre Ayton, Rui Hachimura, and Jake LaRavia come playoff time.
Memphis Grizzlies
New head coach Tuomas Iisalo clearly understands the game at a high-level, but the team’s start hasn’t really convinced me that firing Taylor Jenkins was the right move (16-20 record). Jaren Jackson Jr. has been great for the franchise on and off the court and rookie Cedric Coward could become a star one day. However, Ja Morant’s poor efficiency (40.1% FG/20.8% 3-PT this season) and Zach Edey not being healthy (11 games played) could become problematic. Ty Jerome still hasn’t made his Grizzlies debut as well (recovering from a high-grade right calf strain) while Scotty Pippen Jr. is at zero games played and Brandon Clarke’s logged two total (left big toe and right knee/calf injuries).
Miami Heat
Miami’s fast-paced offense has certainly helped the roster find a groove on that end. Young players progressing was a need coming in, and that’s what has happened so far. New guard Norman Powell is playing even better than last season with the Clippers. Now let’s see if Powell, Bam Adebayo, Tyler Herro, and Andrew Wiggins can help the team make any noise in the play-in or playoffs.
Milwaukee Bucks
Despite his defensive presence, signing Myles Turner wasn’t going to move the needle for Milwaukee. Giannis Antetokounmpo has stayed loyal to the organization his whole career, so do the Bucks just keep making moves to try and get a championship-caliber team around him while Kevin Porter Jr., Ryan Rollins, and AJ Green continue to develop?
Minnesota Timberwolves
You can’t complain about starters Anthony Edwards, Julius Randle, Jaden McDaniels, Rudy Gobert, Donte DiVincenzo and Naz Reid as sixth man. However, how the roster as a whole holds up in the playoffs is a question I have with Mike Conley Jr.’s minutes down this season.
New Orleans Pelicans
Willie Green was fired as head coach early on while interim HC James Borrego is still trying to win more games for this group. Rookies Jeremiah Fears and Derik Queen flash high-level potential each game, but in my opinion, eventually trading veterans like Zion Williamson, Trey Murphy III, Herb Jones, Saddiq Bey, Jordan Poole, Jose Alvarado, and even the still injured Dejounte Murray might be the best option going forward (traded 2026 first-round pick to get Queen).
New York Knicks
I’d say there’s some postseason pressure around new head coach Mike Brown to get the Knicks to the Finals. Brown has played a deeper rotation than Tom Thibodeau, which has helped at times, but the consistency of Jalen Brunson & Karl-Anthony Towns in the postseason/how physical they can be overall will eventually determine how far they go.
Oklahoma City Thunder
The defending champs haven’t had many bad nights so far this season, and were without Jalen Williams for many of those early wins. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has a chance to win MVP again and their defense is still wreaking havoc, but there’s no doubt the West has gotten better (0-3 vs. Spurs).
Orlando Magic
Giving up multiple future draft picks and a pick swap means Desmond Bane has to have a productive tenure in Orlando. Despite shooting a career-low 35.1% from three-point land, he’s done just about everything else and fits into the culture seamlessly. Paolo Banchero, Franz Wagner, and Jalen Suggs mean a whole lot to this team, so I hope all three are on the court together more as the season goes on (all have missed multiple games). Also, I have to mention the leap Anthony Black is making as a scorer.
Philadelphia 76ers
Tyrese Maxey is playing like one of the best guards on the planet and rookie VJ Edgecombe has been special. The questions I have are how healthy Joel Embiid can stay all season and if Paul George, Quentin Grimes, and Jared McCain will be more efficient. Keep an eye on Dominick Barlow’s development, he’s been a solid addition as a two-way player.
Phoenix Suns
New head coach Jordan Ott’s culture has been super beneficial to this Phoenix roster. Everybody plays extremely hard and defends, and when you have Dillon Brooks, it’s easy to buy into that style. They’ve been impressive without Jalen Green (two games played), as Collin Gillespie has had a lot to do with their early success. Brooks’ career-high 21.2 PPG alongside Devin Booker and shooters like Gillespie, Grayson Allen, and Royce O’Neale is helping the offense thrive.
Portland Trail Blazers
The Blazers knew they weren’t gonna have Damian Lillard all season and got a surprise with Chauncey Billups’ situation, but Jrue Holiday, Jerami Grant, and Matisse Thybulle have missed time and Scoot Henderson hasn’t played yet. However, Deni Avdija, Shaedon Sharpe, Donovan Clingan, and Toumani Camara have been tremendous with players out for interim head coach Tiago Splitter.
Sacramento Kings
Inefficiency and injuries have hurt Keegan Murray from blossoming into a possible #1 option for Sacramento. At this point (8-29 record), I think going younger should be the focus. I’d be surprised if trading Domantas Sabonis, Zach LaVine, and DeMar DeRozan hasn’t come up in front office discussions so far this season.
San Antonio Spurs
The Spurs have had their ups and downs, but there’s been more positives than negatives (top three start out West). The rest of the roster has really settled in with Victor Wembanyama, De’Aaron Fox, and Stephon Castle at the helm. Unless injuries or an unexpected dropoff occurs, I believe learning in the postseason will do wonders for the team no matter the result.
Toronto Raptors
Brandon Ingram is performing like an All-Star and Scottie Barnes continues to stuff the stat sheet. RJ Barrett and Jakob Poeltl fit very well as starters, but I wanna see more consistency from Immanuel Quickley. Also I’ve got to credit head coach Darko Rajakovic for giving this mostly young roster supreme confidence every day.
Utah Jazz
Lauri Markkanen and Keyonte George are definitely players the Jazz could keep long-term to have as top options. Lauri is back to his 2023 All-Star level after somewhat of a down season last year (averaged 19.0 PPG in 2024-25/now putting up 27.7) while Keyonte’s career-high 50.5% 2-PT percentage/37.8% 3-PT percentage/7.2 free throw attempts per game have opened up his full offensive game as a three-level scorer and playmaker (6.8 APG). Also, I can’t forget about the five games of improvement Walker Kessler showed as a big man on both ends before going down with a season-ending left shoulder injury (14.4 PPG/10.8 RPG/3.0 APG/1.4 SPG/1.8 BPG/70.3% FG/75.0% 3-PT/70.0% FT). Besides those three though, I wanna see more progression from all their young guys, especially rookie Ace Bailey as he continues to learn.
Washington Wizards
If young players are developing, then the organization should be happy, and that’s what’s happening right now in DC with sophomores Alex Sarr/Kyshawn George/Bub Carrington and rookies Tre Johnson & Will Riley (Sarr’s offensive growth and improved strength have really stood out). I just wonder if defensive stopper Bilal Coulibaly will ever find an efficient jumper/how long veterans like CJ McCollum and Khris Middleton will stay on the team.
