We are two weeks into the NBA season and while we’re only at the start of what will be a marathon campaign, there are interesting plot points across the association.
Whether it’s stars at new franchises, teams underperforming to date, injuries already bobbing up, signs of a new star emerging or whatever else, we’ve put together our early first thoughts on each team.
See them all below!
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Los Angeles Lakers
The optimism around the Lakers pre-season has quickly soured. The depth it appeared they had has not panned out, with the heavy reliance on Cam Reddish not ideal. LA likely has a big trade to make at some point, but they are putting a heavy load on LeBron James and Anthony Davis early.
Denver Nuggets
Jamal Murray’s hamstring injury is disappointing, he will miss a month, but the reigning champions have already established themselves as the team to beat. Nikola Jokic is the best basketball player on the planet. Michael Porter Jr has seemingly made a leap defensively. They just need to be healthy in June once again.
Phoenix Suns
The Suns have had to make do without Bradley Beal and Devin Booker for majority of the first fortnight meaning they have put a heavy workload on Kevin Durant, who is averaging nearly 36 minutes per game. That simply isn’t sustainable for the veteran, particularly given his history of lower body injuries.
Golden State Warriors
Steph Curry’s numbers are better in the first fortnight of this season than they were in his unanimous MVP season. You could also argue 2022-2023 was a career-best year for him too. The Warriors have a nice roster – Kuminga and Moody have seemingly made a little leap – and nobody has been punched in the face. They are on the path to 50+ wins once again.
Minnesota Timberwolves
The Anthony Edwards ascent is happening. Edwards looks like a future NBA MVP and he already looks ready to lead the Timberwolves into relevancy. They have been one of the best defensive teams in the league, Rudy Gobert looks back to his best and they have knocked off Boston and Denver despite Karl-Anthony Towns’ early struggles. Keep a close eye on Minnesota.
Los Angeles Clippers
The Clippers have pushed their chips all-in, trading for James Harden. They now have to work out how to balance four ball dominant players in their 30s, two of which add nothing on defence. Forget about the fact that the Clippers will barely have a draft pick until 2030, forget about the fact that all four of these guys won’t be there in four years – they have to keep these guys healthy, work out the rotation and hope it all clicks come playoff time.
New Orleans Pelicans
Any chance this team can get some luck? After being ravaged by injuries last season, the Pelicans have already lost CJ McCollum (lung), Trey Murphy (knee), Jose Alvarado (ankle) and Naji Marshall (knee). Zion Williamson is fitter and playing, at least.
Oklahoma City Thunder
The Thunder are ready to make the leap into the playoffs. They have looked excellent early in the season with Chet Holmgren immediately looking like a star big of the future. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is one of the 10-12 best players in the NBA, Cason Wallace is having an impact as a rookie and Jalen Williams’ upside is enormous. Can Josh Giddey find his place amongst them after a slow-ish start? He hasn’t quite made the leap as a scorer many hoped, but he is still only 21.
Dallas Mavericks
Dallas has had a fantastic start to the season. Luka Doncic has been maybe the best offensive weapon in the league, Kyrie Irving is happy and not causing trouble, they’re shooting the lights out and their role players are getting the job done. They’ve had a softer schedule and are hitting threes at a historic rate. Let’s give them another month or two before saying anything definitive.
Memphis Grizzlies
To quote Bill Simmons, this might just be the ‘year from hell’ for Memphis, who have started 1-7. Ja Morant will still miss another 17 games, Steven Adams is out for the season and they have lost others as well. They will surely rally and settle their rotation once everyone bar Adams is back, but they will need an almighty run to cut through a stacked Western Conference.
Sacramento Kings
The Kings have lost De’Aaron Fox to an ankle injury for a week or two, making it tougher to make early impressions on a team that looks quite similar to last season. It’s hard to see them once again being a top four seed in the West, but they have proved doubters wrong for 12 months.
Houston Rockets
Houston has won four games in a row, beating up on Charlotte, Sacramento twice and killing the Lakers at the time of writing this and they look shockingly good. Jalen Green has excelled as a scorer, Alperen Sengun looks like an All-Star and the veterans they’ve added have done their job. Ime Udoka did not come here to tank. The Rockets will be an intriguing watch.
Utah Jazz
Utah feels like the team quickly slipping into irrelevance already. They’re 2-7, have two nationally televised games this season, and fans likely aren’t tuning in to watch Lauri Markkanen, Jordan Clarkson and John Collins. They could be a seller at the deadline and one of the leading tank candidates.
San Antonio Spurs
Victor Wembanyama has been fun … when the Spurs give him the ball. Their clear lack of a starting point guard has made it tough to get the ball in his hands, which is frustrating given he is clearly their best offensive weapon. It’s been nice to watch on ESPN, but I think we’ve all seen enough of the Spurs losing by 18 now.
Portland Trail Blazers
The Trail Blazers looked like a likely tank candidate after the Damian Lillard trade and that appears to be where they are headed. Robert Williams has already suffered a knee injury and they will surely find trades for Malcolm Brogdon and Jerami Grant before the deadline. Shaedon Sharpe is fun and looks like a point guard of the future.
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Boston Celtics
Boston’s off-season moves are looking masterful. The concerns that Kristaps Porzingis wouldn’t fit alongside the Celtics’ stars were put to bed almost immediately, with the centre averaging a ridiculously efficient 20 points per game as the third option. Then you get to Jrue Holiday, who looks like the perfect two-way guard to round out this starting five. The Celtics are looking scary.
Milwaukee Bucks
For a team that is sitting quite comfortably near the top of the conference, there are certainly plenty of concerns. Why has the Damien Lillard-Giannis Antetokounmpo pick-and-roll been so ineffective? Has replacing Jrue Holiday with Lillard ruined their defensive system? With the talent on this team, these issues will almost certainly be resolved, but in the early stages the Bucks haven’t quite been as convincing as many expected.
Cleveland Cavaliers
It’s clear that Cleveland really can’t afford to have players miss significant time. While Donovan Mitchell is having a stellar solo season, the Cavaliers’ overall offence has been brutal to start the campaign, with Darius Garland’s absence through nearly half the games so far being felt heavily. Meanwhile, defensive anchor Jarrett Allen has also missed time in the early stages, causing Cleveland to be underwhelming on both sides of the floor.
Philadelphia 76ers
With the cloud of James Harden no longer hanging over the city of Philadelphia, these 76ers look like the real deal. Tyrese Maxey is living up to his sky-high potential, and Joel Embiid is continuing is MVP-winning play. The question about this squad will always be if they can do it in the playoffs, but for now they look like the team to beat in the East.
New York Knicks
What on earth has happened to Julius Randle? The Knicks’ star forward has had a brutal start to the season, averaging 10 less points than last year and boasting eye-wateringly brutal shooting splits. It’s honestly impressive that New York has been able to win half their games considering their best player has been a non-factor.
Miami Heat
It really feels like Miami doesn’t care about the regular season as long as they somehow make their way into the playoffs. Their stars have all been performing, however the team itself hasn’t exactly been mind-blowing. Yet sitting right in the middle of the East standings, they’re exactly where they want to be.
Toronto Raptors
Figuring out what the Raptors are is one of the great challenges so far this season. They’ve been horrendous in some games, but they’ve also taken down some of the league’s top teams. Their offence is brutal, but their defence is phenomenal. Scottie Barnes has taken a leap into stardom, but it may have come at the cost of their existing star Pascal Siakam. This is going to be a rollercoaster season for the Toronto faithful.
Indiana Pacers
Flying under the radar in the early stages, Indiana has been playing some strong basketball so far, marred only by a pair of truly dreadful showings. Tyrese Haliburton is every bit the star that the Pacers need him to be, and while the talent around him is solid, Indiana is missing that second star. It wouldn’t be a shock to see the Pacers make a move before the trade deadline.
Atlanta Hawks
This is the best the Hawks have looked since their surprise run to the Eastern Conference Finals in 2021, and that’s despite a slow start from their primary option Trae Young. Their offence has been dominant, and their defence has been good enough to get by. Most impressive has been the breakout of young forward Jalen Johnson, who is proving to be a dynamic force on both sides of the floor.
Brooklyn Nets
After a few years spent chasing superstars, the Nets have finally returned to being a team centred around vibes. Much like the fondly remembered 2018-19 Brooklyn squad led by D’Angelo Russell, these Nets lack the big names, but they’re playing immensely fun basketball and winning some games along the way. Mikal Bridges is thriving as a primary option, while Cam Thomas continues to build his legend as a pure hooper after already putting together a 45-point game. Plus, Ben Simmons is back and contributing!
Orlando Magic
Whenever you watch an Orlando game, you can guarantee that you won’t see the ball go through the hoop too often. The Magic aren’t too flash on offence, but defensively they’re a menace, consistently frustrating opponents with their high work rate and stellar rotations. If they can figure things out on the offensive side of the ball, Orlando is a real shot at being a playoff team this season.
Chicago Bulls
It wasn’t a good sign when the Bulls held a players-only meeting after the very first game of the season. From then it’s only gotten worse. The bulk of Chicago’s squad already looks checked out, and neither the offence or defence is functioning as it should be. With established players like Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan and Nikola Vucevic on the roster, teams should be calling the Bulls about trades immediately. At least Alex Caruso has been good though.
Charlotte Hornets
The Hornets mightn’t be very good, but there have been plenty of bright spots in the early stages. LaMelo Ball has been effective as their focal point despite some woeful shooting numbers to start the season, and Brandon Miller looks every bit the pure scorer that Charlotte wanted out of their newest prospect. Most surprising however has been the arrival of Mark Williams, the second-year centre that has been a revelation as a rim-runner.
Washington Wizards
At least we know one of the teams who will be fighting for the best draft lottery odds at the season’s end. The Wizards have been truly dreadful, rolling out a below-average offence to go alongside with the worst defence in the league. They’ve had more blowout losses than they do wins, and quite often just don’t even look competitive.
Detroit Pistons
This has been an encouraging start from the Pistons. Wielding a strangely constructed roster that features plenty of big-men and a lack of playmaking aside from Cade Cunningham, Detroit wasn’t exactly set up for success. Yet they’ve been able to function in spite of this, playing league-average basketball that hasn’t really translated into wins. They’re still a long way off, but this is already a better product than their last two seasons.