The NBA season is HERE and there has been a lot of movement this offseason. Some teams made moves that can put their franchise into championship contenders while others seemingly got worse. Today, we are going to be talking about five teams that will improve and five that will be worse this season.
Improve: Houston Rockets
The Houston Rockets took the next step in their rebuild and seem to be ready to march forward. They signed coach Ima Udoka to lead the team and with this young core, they added Fred VanVleet and Dillon Brooks. They also were able to do wellin this year’s NBA draft as they were able to select Amen Thompson and Cam Whitmore with their two first round picks. This team may not be a play-in team but the potential is definitely there to compete for a spot now.
Decline: Philadelphia 76ers
The Philadelphia 76ers are dealing with some issues and the biggest one is James Harden. He opted into his contract during the offseason and reportedly was told they would trade him. However, that was not the case as he has not been traded yet. Disgruntled James Harden can stop caring, just ask the Brooklyn Nets. This team seems to have a ceiling and reigning NBA MVP Joel Embiid is expected to slow down a bit more here. Expect the 76ers to struggle and be closer to the play-in this season than they want to believe.
Improve: Phoenix Suns
The Pheonix Suns were able to trade for Kevin Durant at last year’s Trade Deadline but injuries kept them from reaching their true potential. They pushed their chips into the center of the table now as they traded away Chris Paul as well as lost a lot of depth. However, they were able to add shooting guard Bradley Beal to pair with Durant, Deandre Ayton and Devin Booker. They have some solid depth with players like Bol Bol, Yuta Watanabe, Eric Gordon and re-signing Josh Okogie. If they can stay relatively healthy, this team can give the Denver Nuggets a run for their money.
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Decline: Portland Trail Blazers
It’s hard to improve when your franchise star Damian Lillard wants to join the Miami Heat. In addition, they lost Cam Reddish and Kevin Knox but they were able to re-sign Matisse Thybelle and Jeremi Grant while drafting Scott Henderson and Kris Murray in the first round. It feels like this Blazers team is ready to hit the reset button officially and it only is complete when they trade away Lillard. Will it be to the Heat or somewhere else?
Improve: San Antonio Spurs
While I am not as high as everyone else on Victor Wembanyama as his expectations are just too high right now, I’d be foolish not to include them here. The Spurs were 22-60 last season and definitely should improve this season. They were able to draft Wembanyama while also getting Sidy Cissoko and Sir’Jabari Rice in the draft class. They also were able to add Reggie Bullock, Cedi Osman and Cameron Payne through trades for depth. This team is still young but getting to 30+ wins feels attainable this season.
Decline: Memphis Grizzlies
Let’s get the elephant out of the room here: Ja Morant being suspended 25 games is going to hurt the team significantly. He’s an All-NBA talent that will miss almost one-third of the year. They did improve on the defensive side of the ball as they also had a sign-and-trade to get rid of Dillon Brooks. However, they added Marcus Smart, Isaiah Todd, Josh Christopher and Derrick Rose this offseason. This team is not going to win 51 games like they did last season and be closer to the play-in in a tough Western Conference. They still will likely be a top-five team but the West has improved significantly this offseason.
Improve: Indiana Pacers
While improvement does not always mean they will be a title contender, Indiana did a great job of progressing the franchise. They added Bruce Brown, Obi Toppin, Isaiah Wong, Jarace Walker, Oscar Tshiebwe and Ben Sheppard this offseason. Their losses are not that huge as well as the biggest loss was Chris Duarte. However, with a team having Tyrese Haiburton, Benedict Mathurin and Myles Turner as their core with these additions, they should be able to make the play-in tournament at the very least.
Decline: Golden State Warriors
While not everyone is going to agree with this, the Golden State Warriors feel like they took a step back this offseason. They chose re-signing Draymond Green over keeping Jordan Poole and that means the core stays together but remains old. Instead of trying to get young players to help the team around Curry, Thompson and Green, they traded for Chris Paul. They were able to draft Trayce Jackson-Davis and Brandin Podziemski but this team does not feel like a contender this season.
Improve: Utah Jazz
Surprisingly enough, I like what the Utah Jazz did this offseason to continue their rebuild. Is this team going to make the playoffs? Likely not but they were able to do well as they traded for John Collins and drafted Keyonte George, Taylor Hendricks and Brice Sensabaugh with their three first-round picks. This will be interesting to see how the team does as they did not lose any significant pieces.
