What a season! An unexpected team took home the championship after a wild in-season trade. You can watch the playoffs here: https://www.twitch.tv/videos/1239215895. Our off-season has gone on for a while, and we've mostly settled into new rosters for the upcoming season. Without further ado, here's the preseason power rankings.
Tier 1: Legit contenders
1. Portland Trail Blazers - Portland returns essentially the exact same squad that brought them to the Finals last year, but the team that beat them in the Finals lost its second-best player. Though Klay might be aging, the rest of the roster is young and only getting better, so if anything, the Blazers should be an even better team this year. They've got multiple stars, and no holes. All the makings of a #1 title contender. And with the Magic self-imploding (and every other team flawed in some major way), they're really in a tier all by themselves.
2. Los Angeles Lakers - KD is still KD, and Chris Paul and Norman Powell are nice acquisitions to add some complementary scoring. This deep team adds good role players like Tyrese Haliburton. Draymond Green, Christian Wood, Brook Lopez, and Cedi Osman to the fray as well. There's not one particular area where they really lack, other than maybe rebounding, but even that isn't a huge problem. A WCF matchup of the Lakers and the Blazers might very well be a battle for the championship.
3. Toronto Raptors - After a surprise run behind Dejounte Murray and Scottie Barnes last year, the Raptors reallllly leveled up. They swapped out Murray for Steph freaking Curry, and added Bradley Beal, giving them easily the best backcourt in the league. Scottie Barnes is already up to an 86 as well, giving them a frontcourt partner that adds defense, rebounding, and a good bit of scoring and playmaking too. If they had even an average cast around these three, they'd be contenders. Buuuuuuut they might be the shallowest team in the league. The rest of their players would probably barely crack the rotation on some of the worst teams in the league. Still, any team with Steph Curry and another 90+ has to be considered a threat to steal the chip, especially considering how weak the East is right now.
Tier 2: Should make the playoffs
4. Dallas Mavericks - This team got a major facelift from last season. Jimmy Butler, Tobias Harris, and Jarrett Allen make up a frontcourt with a balanced skillset, and they have a good combination of youth and experience. The depth behind them with Kuzma and Zubac is solid as well. However, the backcourt is a different story. Trae Young leads the charge, and Derrick Rose is an excellent piece as well, but there's a lot of question marks. Do they start Rose at the SG and go all-offense, leaving the bench unit to flounder? Or do they promote one of Elfrid Payton, Quentin Grimes, Payton Pritchard, or Cody Martin to a starting spot when their overall is really not up to it? If the Mavs can find a good 3-D wing while being able to keep Rose as a 6th man, they'll jump up to being a real contender. But with a hole that big in the starting lineup, they're not there yet.
5. Detroit Pistons - This team might have the clearest cut between stars and non-stars: AD and Dame are both above a 90 overall, and the rest of the team is below an 80. If they had a few other solid starters, the decent depth on this team (with two superstars) would be enough to make them a serious contender. But until they either make a trade or get some favorable development, it's just too much of a load for their two stars to handle.
6. Houston Rockets - They moved Giannis for Ayton and assets, which keeps them from being a contender like they were last year. But they still have a dynamic backcourt in Jamal Murray and Tyler Herro, and Mikal Bridges' defense complements them well on the wing. Ayton and Chet Holmgren make for a very talented and young frontcourt, but whether or not they'll fit successfully remains to be seen. Still, a good offense and a decent defense (especially on the glass) should be enough for them to keep themselves above the play-in games.
7. New York Knicks -
The Knicks have a team similar to the Raptors, but less extreme. They have a good big three of Tatum, SGA, and Randle, and then some not-so-great depth around them. The Knicks' depth is a little better, but they don't have anyone near Steph's level either, so they're a decent bit lower than the Raps.
8. Brooklyn Nets - Getting Giannis is huge for this team, no matter how much he struggled in the playoffs. Giannis is a player that any team would like to have as their first option, and Garland isn't bad as a second option either. However, even though they have a few other decent pieces like Richard Holmes and Terry Rozier, their depth still leaves a bit to be desired, though that's expected after swinging a trade for a megastar like Giannis. They don't quite have the multiple stars of the Raps or Mavs, nor the balance of the Lakers or Rockets. Still, there's no way Giannis misses the playoffs on a decent team.
9. Baltimore Bananas - This team was in the play-in last year, dragged solely by Zion's massive body, but even he couldn't get them into the playoffs. Pretty much every other member of last year's team is gone though, and Team Duke has taken its place. Kyrie was a huge offseason signing, and he joins a familiar trio of Zion, R.J. Barrett, and Cam Reddish on the wings, as well as Marvin Bagley at center. Unfortunately, the team has zero depth at all. Zion and Kyrie might be able to take this team to a solid playoff seed by themselves, but until they get more than 5 capable rotation players, we've got to dock them in these rankings a bit.
10. Charlotte Hornets - They're not reinventing the wheel down in Charlotte. They've got two young stars in LaMelo and Ingram, and they tinker aroun the edges to upgrade around them. The team isn't great, but with LaMelo now in the 90s (and with a pretty solid supporting cast), they could be a first-round upset lurking that some of the higher-seeded teams won't want to face.
11. Miami Heat - Embiid is a monster, and your reigning MVP. Anunoby is a good two-way wing, though he didn't produce super well last year. Sabonis was a quality pickup, even if I am a bit dubious of his fit with Embiid (one of the few bigs that post up more than him). But it's in the backcourt that it really seems that the Heat have an odd team. Jrue Holiday, C.J. McCollum, and Kyle Lowry are all making big bucks, but only McCollum is on a decent deal relative to their overall. The Heat would have a miniscule lineup if all three started together (though Embiid could clean up a lot of mistakes at the rim), and if one comes off the bench, that seems like a big waste of resources. This team lost to a far inferior squad in the first round last year, and adding McCollum to be the new second-best player is nice, but I don't know how much it changes. The depth the Heat relied on is gone, they don't have a starting-caliber PF, and their backcourt is aging (and regressing) fast. Still, having an MVP in their prime does help cover up many sins.
Tier 3: Right on the bubble
12. Orlando Magic - This might be criminally low. They just won the title! They still have LeBron James! However, Kyrie is gone, Russ and LeBron are regressing, and their other starters are Steven Adams, Evan Fournier, and Franz Wagner. Meh. You can never count LeBron out, but at 37 and with a very weak supporting cast, I don't see him being able to carry this team very far by himself. Maybe this will be a lost season for the Magic; bathing in the afterglow of their championship win, while trying to move at least one of the contracts of Russ or LeBron and preparing for a new era of Orlando basketball.
13. Mexico City Aztecs - This team underperformed last year even with #1 overall pick Nikola Jokic on the squad. Now DeRozan has regressed even further, and no one else has taken a big step forward. Still, this team is deep and talented around Jokic, and even if they move on from the Serbian, they should get enough back to retool immediately and make a run.
14. Vancouver Grizzlies - They still have the three defenders that made them so great in Paul George, Alex Caruso, and Mo Bamba. Unfortunately, George is regressing, and Caruso and Bamba are still just average starters at best. More importantly though, Bradley Beal is gone. He was top-5 in the league in scoring, nad balanced out the rest of the defense-centric roster. They might still be good at defense, but if their offense tanks, they'll struggle to stay above .500.
15. Minneosta Timberwolves - An inverse of the Vancouver Grizzlies, this team will put up serious points with a backcourt of Lonzo Ball, Zach LaVine, and Anthony Edwards. However, with a bad starting frontcourt and even worse backups, it's clear that defense and rebounding will be an issue. Still, this team will get into a lot of shootouts, and has the talent to win on any given night.
16. New Orleans Pelicans - This team isn't bad. They have good complementary starters, and solid young talent off the bench. The problem is that while KP and Jaylen Brown are both good, they're not GREAT. Good enough to make the play-in game, but not great enough to get homecourt advantage in a playoff series.
17. Chicago Bulls - Kawhi Leonard is still great, but an old Mike Conley is the only other player above an 80, and he's on the trade block. With such a shallow roster, they'll only go as far as Kawhi can personally carry them, and that's just not something he's great at historically. If he's moved, expect his new team to jump a lot, and the Bulls to fall all the way down to tier 5.
18. Phoenix Suns - Ja Morant is a stud, and they have some solid young talent. The problem is that other than their young frontcourt of Patrick Baldwin and Isaiah Stewart, all of their young talent are also guards like Morant. Jordan Poole and the Kentucky twosome of Immanuel Quickley and Tyrese Maxey are all nice pieces, but two have to come off the bench due to their size limitations. If they even out their positional distribution with a trade though, this team could make some noise in the playoffs.
Tier 4: Not in the play-in, but not horrible
19. Philadelphia 76ers - On paper, this team simply isn't that good. Booker is great, but not as great as a first option. Go down the roster, and you'll see that their players' overalls are pretty low based on what you'd expect given their role. Capela is worse than most second options, Wiggins is worse than most third options, etc. The depth is nothing special either. Yet somehow, this exact same team was the top seed in the East last year, and made the conference finals. I'm putting them here because that's where they belong, but I already know they'll find a way to miraculously win 50 games again.
20. Milwaukee Bucks - This team has a decent roster, but after moving Steph, it doesn't really have an identity. A starting lineup of Jalen Brunson, Dejounte Murray, Lauri Markkanen, John Collins, and Wendell Carter Jr. is fine, but I don't think anyone would be too scared to play that team even if they managed to reach the playoffs. Luckily, the whole core is young, and they have a few young guys like Bones Hyland and Caleb Houstan off the bench too. I expect this team should win at least 30 games, and maybe can sneak into the playoffs, but I doubt they'll make much noise this year.
21. Sacramento Kings - This team is balanced, and it's deep. Everyone in the starting lineup is at least an 80. However, it lacks a true star; the Kings' best player is Jonas Valanciuas. If that's the case, it's tough to see Valanciunas carrying a roster to the playoffs, no matter how talented the supporting cast.
22. Cleveland Cavaliers - This team has had 3 GMs already, and that sort of front office instablity has prevented them from pursuing a defined course yet. They still have Towns, but the rest of this team is completely blah. A few okay starters, a few okay backups, and mostly their own draft assets. Just your run-of-the-mill, below average team right now.
23. Denver Nuggets - The Nuggets got great value when they offloaded Sabonis, and he really never fit with Adebayo anyway. Still though, most of the assets they got back were rookies or draft picks, and so that trade won't begin to pay serious dividends for another year or two.
24. Golden State Warriors - They signed T.J. Warren! They drafted Paolo Banchero! Mobley progressed!!! After a year of being by far the worst team in the league, there's actually some signs of life in Golden State.
25. Memphis Grizzlies - Jalen Green and Cade Cunningham are developing well so far. These Grizz have added a few other pieces around the edges, and still have 28M in cap space to play with. They're on a great trajectory, but still aren't really in the playoff picture just yet.
Tier 5: Let's hope next year is better
26. Seattle Sonics - Ben Simmons and MPJ are a nice young defense/offense pairing, and the team has some decent young guys, but there's not much else going for it right now. Neither of their "stars" are nearly good enough to win games by themselves, and especially not with a mediocre cast around them. To make matters worse, their third best player is also a forward, meaning he might be forced to come off the bench. Some trades are definitely in order here.
27. Utah Jazz - Gobert is their only "good" player, but he doesn't really raise a bad team's floor very much. They might have a solid defense, but no one on this team is fit to be a primary scorer, and I'm not even sure if they have a good secondary scorer. I expect Gobert to be moved, but even if he's not, this team could struggle to win more than 25 games.
28. Los Angeles Clippers - De'Aaron Fox is decent, and Vooch... still exists. But this is otherwise a pretty young roster that is still a long ways from contention. Not much to see here.
29. San Antonio Spurs - The Spurs almost made a cinderella run behind a wild playoff performance from James Harden, but that doesn't look replicable. Harden is a year older and on the trade block, and the rest of the roster has been gutted to the bone. As soon as Harden is moved, this team will be one of the worst teams in the league.
30. Indiana Pacers - The Pacers have a lot of picks and young talent that they got, especially in the Jimmy Butler trade. However, they don't have any true blue chippers yet, and they have a lot of bad contracts that they need to move. If they can get off some of that long-term money and let their plethora of first rounders cook, it'll be a successful season, regardless of their record.
31. Boston Celtics - Josh Giddey and Cole Anthony are an interesting young backcourt, but everyone else on this team is a good backup at best. It ain't pretty, but they have more first round picks than I have fingers and toes, so they probably aren't complaining too much.
32. Baltimore Bullets - This team's best player is JJJ, but unfortunately he is much better as a super-role-player on a good team than a featured star on a bad one. Still, they have a lot of assets, and are in on every trade conversation; maybe they cash in to land a big fish and speed up the rebuild.