TPain's 2026 Preseason Power Rankings
Posted: June 8th, 2025, 1:45 am
TPain's 2026 Preseason power rankings:
***Note: I listed the teams in order on Friday and started filling in the blurbs before we saw any preseason or opening day sims. So these do not reflect the latest but I still think it will be fun to give me some grief. At the very least some teams will have some bulletin board material! Sound off where you think I missed compared to your own preseason expectations!***
29.) Lakers: this team is completely devoid of talent. Currently as it stands, there is 0 centers, 1 power forward, 0 small forwards, 7 shooting guards, and 1 point guard. I haven’t scoured the leftovers thread but I’m assuming GX picked up some bigs and a PG to avoid the Nav rule. Jared McCain could be interesting, like a Buddy Hield mold. Isaac Okoro probably has some value on that contract, the rest of this team would struggle to go .500 in the NDL.
Biggest strength – Okoro should have value on his contract
Biggest holes – see paragraph above
28.) Utah Jazz – some poor lotto luck kept this team from landing a top 5 pick but Jalen Harelson looks to be a super fun consolation prize. After trading Jah, Jaylen Brown looks like the only player of value when contract is taken into consideration. However, FVV / Brown and the lack of Henry Ellenson in this year’s Jazz DC should prevent them from being at the bottom of the cellar.
Biggest strengths - starting guard / wing play
Biggest weakness - Having 1 center and 1 PF on the roster, both of whom suck ass
27.) Cleveland Cavaliers – the Cavs finally had some lotto luck and added a real nice piece in AJ Dybantsa. He looks like a future two way star and we know how Manty feels about two way guys. Perfect fit here in Cleveland… Ausar Thompson is the biggest X factor on this squad. Will the pick em shooting camp make him efficient? Bam is a low risk add that should be a step in the right direction. I wouldn’t be too surprised if 27 is too low from this team and they end up higher in the midseason power rankings edition, just dont have the guard play to win many games this season.
Biggest strength - athletic two way youngin’s
Biggest weakness - point guard / shooting guard
26.)Minnesota Timberwolves - KAT carried a 36 win team to the playoffs last season and fled for greener pastures in San Antonio. Just kidding, there is nothing green about SA. Just the underwhelming Alamo and a riverwalk that is cool for about 10 minutes and then you realize its 107 degrees and humid and your swamp ass is starting to chafe. Giannis will win this team some games and maybe Ja pops off for few hard carries when he’s not playing losing basketball the other 80% of the time. Ace Bailey is a great piece that the Wolves should be excited to build around.
Biggest strengths - Ace Bailey is a blue chip prospect
Biggest weaknesses - Giannis and Ja’s salaries will be hard to move to create cap space to flip the tanking switch so Pankin will have to rely on savvy drafting.
25.) Portland Trailblazers – Shabazz, Lauri, Jerian Grant… all core pieces of a Blazers team that was a perennial playoff team and threat for homecourt in the West… the formula seemed to melt down last year with the loss of some key front court pieces (Gobert, Trez Harrell). I expect the blazers to be a better than last year as this team could win some games in the weak west, however I think they are a far cry from a playoff team. VJ Edgecombe looks worthy of the 2nd overall pick though.
Biggest strength - wing play from Lauri / Bazzy
Biggest weakness - Jerian Grant’s game manager play won’t cut it without an elite supporting cast
24.) Dallas Mavericks – They just got Chet and had a surprisingly awesome preseason so maybe this is a tad low for the Mavs. I dont want to rewrite this though. I am a Paolo stan and MPJ is still a plus player imo. Dash Daniels was a great value snag but I don’t think he can be counted on to consistently win games in SLN as a rookie. Nate Ament looks awesome.
Biggest strength - prime aged studs that should continue organically improve and can always feed Kris Dunn minutes if Hoff wants to tank a little deeper.
Biggest weakness - rebounding. The best rebounder on this squad is a B… I think it will be impossible to make the playoffs unless there is a front court rebounding addition.
23.) Los Angeles Clippers – Fun offseason for the Clips! Bobby’s picked jumped from the 7th odds to #1 in a historically stacked draft. He snagged my cousin Darryn Peterson at #1 and he looks to be a surefire HOFer. Add King Bron in FA with a team that already had Josh Hart and rookie sensation Danny Wolf and I think this team could be frisky. I like them to make a push for the 8 seed out west.
Biggest strength - The oldest player in the file who is a still a star and a couple rookie and sophomore stars to compliment.
Biggest weakness - Sandro Mamukelashvili / Joan Beringer / Henry Ellenson front court is booty cheeks
22.) Vancouver Grizzlies – this team should improve a ton organically just by no longer giving Kris Dunn minutes. Will the Goga and Dyson additions be enough to restart the tank clock? That I’m not sure but I think both players fill large needs for a squad that needed rebounding and point guard play. The West is weak and this team is trying to win to avoid tanking penalties so I expect Josh to cook up optimal DCs and make a push for the playoffs.
Biggest strength - Front court – Goga is a really solid butt, Blake Griffin refuses to die or play bad basketball and Kel’el had a super nice TC.
Biggest weakness - Turnovers / wing play - Desmond Bane is a walking talking turnover and Goga has been known to cough it up a time or two. Kon / Patrick Williams might need to ascend to give this team some firepower.
21.) Miami Heat – Scoops got married and Sengun came back on a discount. Losing Bonga hurts but pales in comparison to saying “I do”. Harden certainly aint dead, Sully is still Suly (not great but not bad?). This tier in the rankings gets super messy and I dont know where to rank people, but I’m trying Jennifer.
Biggest strengths - fairly well rounded across the board
Biggest weaknesses - ages and pieces don’t really mesh so I expect some parts to be shuffled in South Beach this year
20.) Denver Nuggets – This team is fresh off a WCF appearance and playoff run after beating yours truly in the first round. However, it appears Denver is headed towards a tear down after selling Chet for a frenchman and a sack. Kawhi is due a whopping $26M but is still pretty incredible on the wing. D Lo has found a way to stop handing the ball to opponents, Chriss is still stock, Thybulle is still thy bull. RJ Barrett is such a weird player but I am starting to think he is valuable on his contract.
Biggest strengths: still has good players to command more sack
Biggest weaknesses: Can it be torn down fast enough to hit the top lotto odds?
19.) Philadelphia 76ers - The Mad King is in his bag, dealing a future for Nerlens, Ingram is still a bucket and Suggs is rock solid. This team was super solid last year, competing for the 8 seed in a brutal eastern conference and hitting the .500 mark to reset the tank monitor. I still don’t know how they were so good but there must be something in the water in Philly. The Mad King is cookin and I’m here for it.
Biggest strengths: Young bloods - foreigner Maluach looks elite and Suggs does not Sugg.
Biggest weaknesses: Missing a superstar
18.) Charlotte Hornets: The fighting Semi Ojeleyes and Jonathon Isaacs. Lou Williams retirement and Jamal Murray being shipped out at the deadline, make this team a lot less intimidating than prior years.
Strengths -- have one of the best butts and top 5 players in the league
Weaknesses - guard play
17.) Atlanta Hawks - Cam Bam right in the Clam. This guy is finna be good. I think he can be a Rui type player sooner rather than later. Great value at the 3rd slot in the draft. This team already had pieces in place and had some tough luck with the Scottie Barnes injury but I expect them to bounce back. SGA needs to get his turnovers in order, Kuminga needs to be viable and D Mitch needs to strap the fuck up.
Biggest strengths: star power – SGA and Spida might be able to hard carry
Biggest weaknesses: Bol “Bowl Bowl” Bol is starting center for this team
16.) Boston Celtics – after an unfortunate series of events that lead the Celtics to a hard cap penalty, I think this team was in position to compete for the playoffs. Reed Sheppard legit looks like Joe’s bastard son, Jeff McInnis (who was casted away for Chauncey Billups). The HC penalty could force this team to sell off talent for value but I like this roster sans Morant. Looney / MGK / Sheppard / and Parker is a very nice core.
Biggest strength: strong core, must do a lot of sit ups
Biggest weakness: Hard cap penalty
15.) Indiana Pacers – Drummond, Fox, J-Will raise the floor of this team and will always make them feisty. I am curious to see how this team sims without Podz and Goga. Tonger has big faith in Obi Toppin, who I am less bullish on. I know this middle of the pack ranking will surely be posted in the Indiana locker room bulletin board.
Biggest strengths: Bookends at point guard and Center
Biggest weakness: rebounding, how will this team hold up with a C rebounder at SF, B- rebounder at PF in garuba, and D+ rebounder at PG. I think this is what may hold back the Pacers from
14.) Sacramento Kings – Ridin a black Camara while rippin’ my bonga toppin out at 90 mph, puffin into the wind slowly. Yeah I am in my bag, man. This team is WIERD and they need a center to effectively implement an inside or balanced offsense. Right now they are relying heavily on rookies Koa Peat and JJ Toppin for front court contributions. However, Camara, Bagley and Winslow is a super sick trio with some stocky pieces in Bonga and Black to drum up extra possessions. The bones are there but this team feels incomplete.
Strengths: Winslow and Bagley will feast together
Weaknesses: no viable center option
EDIT I FORGET THEY STILL HAD OUBRE
13.) Detroit Pistons – After making the playoffs last season in the East, this squad is poised to take the next step. It feels like RB unlocked something with Cade at the 3, Hali at the 1. Gafford / Bazley / Mobley is an elite front court that compliments each other well. Perhaps this team is getting a bump from what Hali is dssdoing IRL, but I am here for it.
Strengths: front court trio and Cade is a star
Weaknesses: wing / guard depth
12.) Milwaukee Bucks – Tyus for Kyrie is definitely a downgrade in firepower but it gives the Bucks a more long option at point guard. KP is a top 5 big in the league but this team really seemed to be reliant on the Kyrie hard carry so I don’t think their ceiling is as high as last year as currently constructed. Caleb Fartin, Dillon Brooks, Capela, Willie Cauliflowerstein, Time Lord (finally learned who this is) is a well rounded supporting cast but I think this team will miss another certified bucket getter.
Strengths: elite power forward and point guard play
Weaknesses: needs a third banana
11.) Golden State Warriors – a 50 win team who hasnt changed construction in years. Tatum, Dipo, Holiday, Zu Bat, you know the lads. Rock solid but has yet to breakthrough to elite status. Could this be the year the Warriors get hot, dont have bad injury luck and win the west? Time will tell.
Biggest strength: Zubac might be the best player on this team. B+ inside, A defense, A rebounding. If he can truly be a two way force, that could break this team through to winning the Pacific.
Biggest weakness: Jrue Holiday D- rebounding and B- defense puts a lot of pressure on his offense game in and game out to perform
10.) New Jersey Nets – I liked the Nets offseason, they added Sabonis, retained Zion on an expiring, and the real Cooper Flagg had an awesome TC and looks like he will be a star on the rookie deal. You couple that with prime AG, you got yourself a party in the swamp. Or as the laymen say, a swamp party.
Biggest strengths: Inside scoring – this team should be able to draw fouls at a high rate, score a bunch of points in the point, and knock down free throws at a high clip.
Biggest weaknesses: Jose Alvarado is a fine backup PG but a bottom tier starter.
9.) Houston Rockets: Embiid and Ayton should eat but this team isn’t fully baked. Clingan and Gobert are traditional butts that may struggle in inside. Jarrett Culver was a nice leftover FA who should help defend the wing. I wonder if they can pry Bag man or Winslow off the Kangs to give them an additional front court scorer.
Strengths -- front court scoring
Weaknesses -- team isn't fully constructed for inside just yet
8.) Seattle Supersadness: This team is stocky as all hell. DJJ, Bell, Maker, Harrell. STONKS on STONKS. With Brunny and Lavine knocking down 3s, this team should be a wrecking force and they should get more volume this year with Sabonis going to da swamp.
Strengths: STONKS and BUCKETS
Weaknesses: No A- or greater rebounders
7.) Phoenix Suns – Switching to an outside offense, we sent Bag man to the kings for Mitch and Duncan Robinson. Swapped Ayton for Okogie and added Okafor in the front court. The switch to outside is underway! We are definitely missing a wing scorer but the Fultz/Okogie combo should be deadly. Rebounding wont be as good as last year, we wont get to the foul line anymore, so there is some uncertainty here but I am feeling good about the new look squad heading into the season.
Strengths: Best two way punch at guard in the league
Weaknesses: Dylan Harper isn’t starter ready on a contender yet pre super camp so I’ll be forced to fudge some DCs. Need another wing scorer.
6.) Washington Bullets: The title winning core and ECF team is still in tact. Maxey / Ant / Reaves / Udoka / AD. AD is so damn good and somehow still underrated. Always wins DPOY, top 3 in rebounding every year. Has turned into an efficient offensive player. Ant appears ready to break out and Maxey is officially better than Langston Galloway.
strengths -- starting 5,4,2, and 1
weaknesses -- starting 3
5.) San Antonio Spurs – What an offseason in San Antonio! Dump sack for the former MVP Lamelo, snag KAT in free agency after snagging KP last year and flipping him for cheap two way stud McDaniels. Add in the 4x time champ KD and you got yourself a mighty formidable squad. I HAVEN’t EVEN MENTIONED DICK. There is a lot of pressure on Derick Queen to elevate his game this season but there is a lot to like about this team.
Strengths – Two way stars at 1-4.
Weaknesses – front court depth
4.) Chicago Bulls – Luka is still the best player in the league and I am assuming he wont be as injured this year. The bulls are back to big butt, chuck 3 ball with Booker, Porter, I Jax and the man who refuses to retire but loves to randomly resign, Larry Sanders. I think this team finds a DC but it needs Marcus Smart to be “smart” with the ball and not pass to the other squad. If that happens, he can be a nice defensive piece to compliment the other scorers.
Strengths – best player in the league resigned with the hometown
Weaknesses – Without a scoring big, this team is very reliant on Marcus Smart performing on both ends of the floor.
3.) Orlando Magic – A full season of Murray and Scoot finally coming up to the big leagues after being a “sorry kid” free point merchant, should be the punch this team needs to get back to their 60 win ways. Brandon Clarke was a nice addition and upgrade from Trez. KD got shipped to San Antonio for peanuts so I will be curious to see how Merv fills that hole. If Rui could play the 3, it would simply be GGs for the atlantic (besides the knicks maybe).
Strengths – Amazing rebounding
Weaknesses - Pascal Siakam cant start for them all year, right?
2.) New York Knicks – The defending champs look to repeat with a stacked roster. Their scorers are as potent as any the league has ever seen. Myles Turner, Jay Allen Green, and Kyrie Irving are OP AF. Cheap butts like Walker Kessler and Bismack Biyombo should fuel the possesion battle. This team could certainly go back to back and I wouldn’t blame Nav if he feels like I am disrespecting them at 2.
Strengths: insane scoring 1-3, best the league has ever seen
Weaknesses: the kyrie trade left this team pretty shallow and susceptible to injury
1.) Toronto Raptors – Jokic / Wemby / CMB front court is downright terrifying and the league should be shaking in their boots. Combine that with Amen Thompson on the wing, they should be better than last year with a full year of joker and another TC under the young bloods’ belt. Trey Murphy is an underrated player on this squad and they should be back at the top of the East once again.
Strengths – Wemby / Joker say less
Weaknesses - point guard play. Lonzo Ball has made a ton of conference finals but he has to take a team over the top managing the game. His efficiency is sub par but he makes up for it on the defensive end. If he suffers an injury, this team has no second resort.
***Note: I listed the teams in order on Friday and started filling in the blurbs before we saw any preseason or opening day sims. So these do not reflect the latest but I still think it will be fun to give me some grief. At the very least some teams will have some bulletin board material! Sound off where you think I missed compared to your own preseason expectations!***
29.) Lakers: this team is completely devoid of talent. Currently as it stands, there is 0 centers, 1 power forward, 0 small forwards, 7 shooting guards, and 1 point guard. I haven’t scoured the leftovers thread but I’m assuming GX picked up some bigs and a PG to avoid the Nav rule. Jared McCain could be interesting, like a Buddy Hield mold. Isaac Okoro probably has some value on that contract, the rest of this team would struggle to go .500 in the NDL.
Biggest strength – Okoro should have value on his contract
Biggest holes – see paragraph above
28.) Utah Jazz – some poor lotto luck kept this team from landing a top 5 pick but Jalen Harelson looks to be a super fun consolation prize. After trading Jah, Jaylen Brown looks like the only player of value when contract is taken into consideration. However, FVV / Brown and the lack of Henry Ellenson in this year’s Jazz DC should prevent them from being at the bottom of the cellar.
Biggest strengths - starting guard / wing play
Biggest weakness - Having 1 center and 1 PF on the roster, both of whom suck ass
27.) Cleveland Cavaliers – the Cavs finally had some lotto luck and added a real nice piece in AJ Dybantsa. He looks like a future two way star and we know how Manty feels about two way guys. Perfect fit here in Cleveland… Ausar Thompson is the biggest X factor on this squad. Will the pick em shooting camp make him efficient? Bam is a low risk add that should be a step in the right direction. I wouldn’t be too surprised if 27 is too low from this team and they end up higher in the midseason power rankings edition, just dont have the guard play to win many games this season.
Biggest strength - athletic two way youngin’s
Biggest weakness - point guard / shooting guard
26.)Minnesota Timberwolves - KAT carried a 36 win team to the playoffs last season and fled for greener pastures in San Antonio. Just kidding, there is nothing green about SA. Just the underwhelming Alamo and a riverwalk that is cool for about 10 minutes and then you realize its 107 degrees and humid and your swamp ass is starting to chafe. Giannis will win this team some games and maybe Ja pops off for few hard carries when he’s not playing losing basketball the other 80% of the time. Ace Bailey is a great piece that the Wolves should be excited to build around.
Biggest strengths - Ace Bailey is a blue chip prospect
Biggest weaknesses - Giannis and Ja’s salaries will be hard to move to create cap space to flip the tanking switch so Pankin will have to rely on savvy drafting.
25.) Portland Trailblazers – Shabazz, Lauri, Jerian Grant… all core pieces of a Blazers team that was a perennial playoff team and threat for homecourt in the West… the formula seemed to melt down last year with the loss of some key front court pieces (Gobert, Trez Harrell). I expect the blazers to be a better than last year as this team could win some games in the weak west, however I think they are a far cry from a playoff team. VJ Edgecombe looks worthy of the 2nd overall pick though.
Biggest strength - wing play from Lauri / Bazzy
Biggest weakness - Jerian Grant’s game manager play won’t cut it without an elite supporting cast
24.) Dallas Mavericks – They just got Chet and had a surprisingly awesome preseason so maybe this is a tad low for the Mavs. I dont want to rewrite this though. I am a Paolo stan and MPJ is still a plus player imo. Dash Daniels was a great value snag but I don’t think he can be counted on to consistently win games in SLN as a rookie. Nate Ament looks awesome.
Biggest strength - prime aged studs that should continue organically improve and can always feed Kris Dunn minutes if Hoff wants to tank a little deeper.
Biggest weakness - rebounding. The best rebounder on this squad is a B… I think it will be impossible to make the playoffs unless there is a front court rebounding addition.
23.) Los Angeles Clippers – Fun offseason for the Clips! Bobby’s picked jumped from the 7th odds to #1 in a historically stacked draft. He snagged my cousin Darryn Peterson at #1 and he looks to be a surefire HOFer. Add King Bron in FA with a team that already had Josh Hart and rookie sensation Danny Wolf and I think this team could be frisky. I like them to make a push for the 8 seed out west.
Biggest strength - The oldest player in the file who is a still a star and a couple rookie and sophomore stars to compliment.
Biggest weakness - Sandro Mamukelashvili / Joan Beringer / Henry Ellenson front court is booty cheeks
22.) Vancouver Grizzlies – this team should improve a ton organically just by no longer giving Kris Dunn minutes. Will the Goga and Dyson additions be enough to restart the tank clock? That I’m not sure but I think both players fill large needs for a squad that needed rebounding and point guard play. The West is weak and this team is trying to win to avoid tanking penalties so I expect Josh to cook up optimal DCs and make a push for the playoffs.
Biggest strength - Front court – Goga is a really solid butt, Blake Griffin refuses to die or play bad basketball and Kel’el had a super nice TC.
Biggest weakness - Turnovers / wing play - Desmond Bane is a walking talking turnover and Goga has been known to cough it up a time or two. Kon / Patrick Williams might need to ascend to give this team some firepower.
21.) Miami Heat – Scoops got married and Sengun came back on a discount. Losing Bonga hurts but pales in comparison to saying “I do”. Harden certainly aint dead, Sully is still Suly (not great but not bad?). This tier in the rankings gets super messy and I dont know where to rank people, but I’m trying Jennifer.
Biggest strengths - fairly well rounded across the board
Biggest weaknesses - ages and pieces don’t really mesh so I expect some parts to be shuffled in South Beach this year
20.) Denver Nuggets – This team is fresh off a WCF appearance and playoff run after beating yours truly in the first round. However, it appears Denver is headed towards a tear down after selling Chet for a frenchman and a sack. Kawhi is due a whopping $26M but is still pretty incredible on the wing. D Lo has found a way to stop handing the ball to opponents, Chriss is still stock, Thybulle is still thy bull. RJ Barrett is such a weird player but I am starting to think he is valuable on his contract.
Biggest strengths: still has good players to command more sack
Biggest weaknesses: Can it be torn down fast enough to hit the top lotto odds?
19.) Philadelphia 76ers - The Mad King is in his bag, dealing a future for Nerlens, Ingram is still a bucket and Suggs is rock solid. This team was super solid last year, competing for the 8 seed in a brutal eastern conference and hitting the .500 mark to reset the tank monitor. I still don’t know how they were so good but there must be something in the water in Philly. The Mad King is cookin and I’m here for it.
Biggest strengths: Young bloods - foreigner Maluach looks elite and Suggs does not Sugg.
Biggest weaknesses: Missing a superstar
18.) Charlotte Hornets: The fighting Semi Ojeleyes and Jonathon Isaacs. Lou Williams retirement and Jamal Murray being shipped out at the deadline, make this team a lot less intimidating than prior years.
Strengths -- have one of the best butts and top 5 players in the league
Weaknesses - guard play
17.) Atlanta Hawks - Cam Bam right in the Clam. This guy is finna be good. I think he can be a Rui type player sooner rather than later. Great value at the 3rd slot in the draft. This team already had pieces in place and had some tough luck with the Scottie Barnes injury but I expect them to bounce back. SGA needs to get his turnovers in order, Kuminga needs to be viable and D Mitch needs to strap the fuck up.
Biggest strengths: star power – SGA and Spida might be able to hard carry
Biggest weaknesses: Bol “Bowl Bowl” Bol is starting center for this team
16.) Boston Celtics – after an unfortunate series of events that lead the Celtics to a hard cap penalty, I think this team was in position to compete for the playoffs. Reed Sheppard legit looks like Joe’s bastard son, Jeff McInnis (who was casted away for Chauncey Billups). The HC penalty could force this team to sell off talent for value but I like this roster sans Morant. Looney / MGK / Sheppard / and Parker is a very nice core.
Biggest strength: strong core, must do a lot of sit ups
Biggest weakness: Hard cap penalty
15.) Indiana Pacers – Drummond, Fox, J-Will raise the floor of this team and will always make them feisty. I am curious to see how this team sims without Podz and Goga. Tonger has big faith in Obi Toppin, who I am less bullish on. I know this middle of the pack ranking will surely be posted in the Indiana locker room bulletin board.
Biggest strengths: Bookends at point guard and Center
Biggest weakness: rebounding, how will this team hold up with a C rebounder at SF, B- rebounder at PF in garuba, and D+ rebounder at PG. I think this is what may hold back the Pacers from
14.) Sacramento Kings – Ridin a black Camara while rippin’ my bonga toppin out at 90 mph, puffin into the wind slowly. Yeah I am in my bag, man. This team is WIERD and they need a center to effectively implement an inside or balanced offsense. Right now they are relying heavily on rookies Koa Peat and JJ Toppin for front court contributions. However, Camara, Bagley and Winslow is a super sick trio with some stocky pieces in Bonga and Black to drum up extra possessions. The bones are there but this team feels incomplete.
Strengths: Winslow and Bagley will feast together
Weaknesses: no viable center option
EDIT I FORGET THEY STILL HAD OUBRE
13.) Detroit Pistons – After making the playoffs last season in the East, this squad is poised to take the next step. It feels like RB unlocked something with Cade at the 3, Hali at the 1. Gafford / Bazley / Mobley is an elite front court that compliments each other well. Perhaps this team is getting a bump from what Hali is dssdoing IRL, but I am here for it.
Strengths: front court trio and Cade is a star
Weaknesses: wing / guard depth
12.) Milwaukee Bucks – Tyus for Kyrie is definitely a downgrade in firepower but it gives the Bucks a more long option at point guard. KP is a top 5 big in the league but this team really seemed to be reliant on the Kyrie hard carry so I don’t think their ceiling is as high as last year as currently constructed. Caleb Fartin, Dillon Brooks, Capela, Willie Cauliflowerstein, Time Lord (finally learned who this is) is a well rounded supporting cast but I think this team will miss another certified bucket getter.
Strengths: elite power forward and point guard play
Weaknesses: needs a third banana
11.) Golden State Warriors – a 50 win team who hasnt changed construction in years. Tatum, Dipo, Holiday, Zu Bat, you know the lads. Rock solid but has yet to breakthrough to elite status. Could this be the year the Warriors get hot, dont have bad injury luck and win the west? Time will tell.
Biggest strength: Zubac might be the best player on this team. B+ inside, A defense, A rebounding. If he can truly be a two way force, that could break this team through to winning the Pacific.
Biggest weakness: Jrue Holiday D- rebounding and B- defense puts a lot of pressure on his offense game in and game out to perform
10.) New Jersey Nets – I liked the Nets offseason, they added Sabonis, retained Zion on an expiring, and the real Cooper Flagg had an awesome TC and looks like he will be a star on the rookie deal. You couple that with prime AG, you got yourself a party in the swamp. Or as the laymen say, a swamp party.
Biggest strengths: Inside scoring – this team should be able to draw fouls at a high rate, score a bunch of points in the point, and knock down free throws at a high clip.
Biggest weaknesses: Jose Alvarado is a fine backup PG but a bottom tier starter.
9.) Houston Rockets: Embiid and Ayton should eat but this team isn’t fully baked. Clingan and Gobert are traditional butts that may struggle in inside. Jarrett Culver was a nice leftover FA who should help defend the wing. I wonder if they can pry Bag man or Winslow off the Kangs to give them an additional front court scorer.
Strengths -- front court scoring
Weaknesses -- team isn't fully constructed for inside just yet
8.) Seattle Supersadness: This team is stocky as all hell. DJJ, Bell, Maker, Harrell. STONKS on STONKS. With Brunny and Lavine knocking down 3s, this team should be a wrecking force and they should get more volume this year with Sabonis going to da swamp.
Strengths: STONKS and BUCKETS
Weaknesses: No A- or greater rebounders
7.) Phoenix Suns – Switching to an outside offense, we sent Bag man to the kings for Mitch and Duncan Robinson. Swapped Ayton for Okogie and added Okafor in the front court. The switch to outside is underway! We are definitely missing a wing scorer but the Fultz/Okogie combo should be deadly. Rebounding wont be as good as last year, we wont get to the foul line anymore, so there is some uncertainty here but I am feeling good about the new look squad heading into the season.
Strengths: Best two way punch at guard in the league
Weaknesses: Dylan Harper isn’t starter ready on a contender yet pre super camp so I’ll be forced to fudge some DCs. Need another wing scorer.
6.) Washington Bullets: The title winning core and ECF team is still in tact. Maxey / Ant / Reaves / Udoka / AD. AD is so damn good and somehow still underrated. Always wins DPOY, top 3 in rebounding every year. Has turned into an efficient offensive player. Ant appears ready to break out and Maxey is officially better than Langston Galloway.
strengths -- starting 5,4,2, and 1
weaknesses -- starting 3
5.) San Antonio Spurs – What an offseason in San Antonio! Dump sack for the former MVP Lamelo, snag KAT in free agency after snagging KP last year and flipping him for cheap two way stud McDaniels. Add in the 4x time champ KD and you got yourself a mighty formidable squad. I HAVEN’t EVEN MENTIONED DICK. There is a lot of pressure on Derick Queen to elevate his game this season but there is a lot to like about this team.
Strengths – Two way stars at 1-4.
Weaknesses – front court depth
4.) Chicago Bulls – Luka is still the best player in the league and I am assuming he wont be as injured this year. The bulls are back to big butt, chuck 3 ball with Booker, Porter, I Jax and the man who refuses to retire but loves to randomly resign, Larry Sanders. I think this team finds a DC but it needs Marcus Smart to be “smart” with the ball and not pass to the other squad. If that happens, he can be a nice defensive piece to compliment the other scorers.
Strengths – best player in the league resigned with the hometown
Weaknesses – Without a scoring big, this team is very reliant on Marcus Smart performing on both ends of the floor.
3.) Orlando Magic – A full season of Murray and Scoot finally coming up to the big leagues after being a “sorry kid” free point merchant, should be the punch this team needs to get back to their 60 win ways. Brandon Clarke was a nice addition and upgrade from Trez. KD got shipped to San Antonio for peanuts so I will be curious to see how Merv fills that hole. If Rui could play the 3, it would simply be GGs for the atlantic (besides the knicks maybe).
Strengths – Amazing rebounding
Weaknesses - Pascal Siakam cant start for them all year, right?
2.) New York Knicks – The defending champs look to repeat with a stacked roster. Their scorers are as potent as any the league has ever seen. Myles Turner, Jay Allen Green, and Kyrie Irving are OP AF. Cheap butts like Walker Kessler and Bismack Biyombo should fuel the possesion battle. This team could certainly go back to back and I wouldn’t blame Nav if he feels like I am disrespecting them at 2.
Strengths: insane scoring 1-3, best the league has ever seen
Weaknesses: the kyrie trade left this team pretty shallow and susceptible to injury
1.) Toronto Raptors – Jokic / Wemby / CMB front court is downright terrifying and the league should be shaking in their boots. Combine that with Amen Thompson on the wing, they should be better than last year with a full year of joker and another TC under the young bloods’ belt. Trey Murphy is an underrated player on this squad and they should be back at the top of the East once again.
Strengths – Wemby / Joker say less
Weaknesses - point guard play. Lonzo Ball has made a ton of conference finals but he has to take a team over the top managing the game. His efficiency is sub par but he makes up for it on the defensive end. If he suffers an injury, this team has no second resort.