Highlighting Early Off-Season Teams

Daniel Waddleton

Jul 7, 2025

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Winner: Denver Nuggets

Going into the summer, Denver had one major task: figure out how to turn Michael Porter Jr. and his massive $38 million salary into more depth. Mission accomplished, sending Porter to Brooklyn and bringing back Cam Johnson, a deadly sharpshooter in his own right who can slide right into Porter’s vacated wing role for $18 million less.

With the added financial flexibility, Denver brought back Bruce Brown Jr., the sixth man from their 2023 title team who’s already proven to be a perfect fit with this core. They acquired Jonas Valanciunas, the legit backup center the team has been longing for since this championship window opened. And they picked up Tim Hardaway Jr., who brings much-needed three-point shooting to a bench that, at times, felt like nobody had a reliable jumper last season.

The core of Murray-Braun-Gordon-Jokic posted a +15.5 net rating in over 1,100 possessions last season, and in the playoffs, they nearly knocked off the eventual champion Thunder with minimal help around them. Now, with a vastly improved supporting cast, this team is right up there with anyone as a legitimate championship contender next season.

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Winner: Atlanta Hawks

In an Eastern Conference that’s certainly seen better days, the Hawks decided they weren't going to spend this school dance on the bleachers. They saw an opportunity in a wide-open conference title race and opted for an aggressive approach to the summer.

Signing Nickeil Alexander-Walker to a four-year, $62 million deal was a home run, adding yet another two-way wing to a growing collection that already included Dyson Daniels, Zaccharie Risacher, and Jalen Johnson. These are the kind of players that hypothetically should be perfect fits around Trae Young.

The addition of Kristaps Porzingis gives this team a whole new level of versatility in the frontcourt. Atlanta will have the chance to explore a true five-out offense around Young for the first time, while also giving them the option to go double-big with KP as a perimeter-centric four and Onyeka Okongwu as a rim-running five.

They also drafted Asa Newell, an athletic forward out of Georgia who’s bound to catch the attention of fans, and signed Luke Kennard -- a career 42.3% three-point shooter -- on a one-year deal.

This is, hands down, the best roster the Hawks have ever put around Young in his seven-year career. Now it’s put-up-or-shut-up time for the star point guard who, despite the big individual numbers, hasn’t been able to translate that into consistent team success -- just three playoff wins total since that Eastern Conference Finals run over four years ago, with rosters that have consistently felt like they were underachieving.

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Winner: Houston Rockets

When one of the league’s best teams from last season -- a group built on defense with half-court scoring questions -- adds one of the greatest shot-makers in NBA history… yeah, that’s a strong offseason.

I don’t have to tell you Kevin Durant (26.7 points per 75 possessions, +6.7 rTS) directly addresses Houston’s biggest flaw. Their half-court offense ranked 26th in points per possession last year, and now they’ve got a late-clock assassin whose off-ball gravity will also make life easier for his teammates.

The Rockets can surround Durant with a big, physical roster that defends at a high level, covering for some deficiencies at this stage of his career and allowing Durant to focus on solely what he does best: scoring. The Phoenix experiment didn’t work because of overlapping skill sets leading to diminishing returns. This will be the exact opposite.

It's worth noting Houston did have to part ways with Jalen Green and Dillon Brooks -- two starters from last years team -- in order to acquire Durant. However, Green became expendable with Durant coming in and Brooks -- arguably their best on-ball wing defender -- was replaced him with Dorian Finney-Smith, a lesser but still solid defender who will be a better floor spacer offensively.

They also signed Clint Capela to a two-year deal, doubling down on their double-big, offensive rebounding philosophy. The organization clearly sees a market inefficiency on the glass, a theory first put into action through Ime Udoka’s decision to lean into lineups that sacrificed spacing for size. Over the final two months of the season, the Rockets led the league in offensive rebounding percentage (36.5%), and the Adams-Sengun duo specifically pulled down a ridiculous 50.3% of their own misses when on the court together, posting a +30.0 net rating in just 334 possessions. Those lineups nearly helped Houston topple the Warriors in the playoffs, and the Capela signing makes it clear they’re leaning all the way into that identity.

This roster is deep and flexible, with the ability to go big, small, or anything in between. I do think they could use one more playmaking ball-handler, but it looks like Houston plans to give Reed Sheppard the first crack at that role rather than outscoring.

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Winner: Orlando Magic

Some of this is naturally tied to the state of the Eastern Conference falling apart at the seam, but the Magic made real moves this offseason that now put them in position to contend for a spot in the Finals.

The big one was landing Desmond Bane. His 41% three-point shooting on high volume is an instant fix for Orlando’s clunky floor spacing and lack of perimeter firepower -- ranking dead last in threes made per game last season (8.2). He’s also continued to grow as an on-ball decision-maker over the past two years, becoming a much more capable pick-and-roll player while shouldering a larger offensive load in Ja Morant’s frequent absence.

But the smaller moves mattered too. Adding Tyus Jones gives this team something it’s sorely lacked for years: a true playmaking point guard. He won’t start, but his 20–25 minutes a night will be high-value. He’s steady, takes care of the ball (4.71 AST/TO ratio, third-best among players last season with at least 20 MPG), and gives Orlando a much-needed offensive stabilizer.

The Magic were already an elite defensive team, and had offensive talent on the roster, they were just missing a few key ingredients to make the offensive recipe work: outside shooting and more natural playmaking. The front office managed to add both without stepping on the toes of their young core. Paolo Banchero, Franz Wagner, and Jalen Suggs still have plenty of room to grow offensively with no high-usage player coming in to dominate touches.

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Loser: Brooklyn Nets

If you're a fan of a team with five first-round draft picks, you might expect at least one splash on draft night. Instead, you're Nets decided to make a selection every time they were on the clock, and a lot of them being similar archetypes of players. Not great!

That’s not to say one or two of those guys can’t hit, but it felt underwhelming. Then free agency rolled around, and with the Nets being one of the only teams with real cap space there was an expectation they’d get involved. Not to go star-hunting, but to get their hands dirty, take on some money to help facilitate deals, and stack future assets in the process.

They didn’t really do that either.

Their one notable move was the aforementioned Johnson for Porter Jr. swap, which brought back a 2032 unprotected Denver first-round pick. Sure, that assets could be valuable down the road, but that’s seven years from now. For a team desperately trying to find its direction since Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving skipped town, that kind of delayed return isn’t exactly thrilling.

The Nets had flexibility, ammo, and a chance to be opportunistic. Instead, they played it mostly safe and by the book.

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Loser: New Orleans Pelicans

I’m typically pro “if you love a guy, go get him” on draft night, but what the Pelicans did felt more reckless than bold.

New Orleans gave up their own unprotected 2026 first-round pick in order to move up 10 spots and select Maryland center Derik Queen. Pairing him with Jeremiah Fears, who they selected with their own pick at No. 7, could end up being a nice draft class, but the idea that their pick next year is now floating out in the universe should be terrifying.

If you look at the Western Conference landscape, you could make a compelling case that New Orleans might not even make the play-in. Next year’s draft is shaping up to be one of the strongest in recent memory, and the Pelicans could end up looking really foolish if this thing goes sideways.

Some of the moves they made to try and avoid that kind of disaster included moving on from CJ McCollum in exchange for Jordan Poole. Ok… they got younger, maybe a little more dynamic, but he doesn’t feel like the missing piece. They also signed Kevon Looney, and when we talk about the ideal center fit next to Zion, we’re usually talking about rim protection and floor spacing. Looney doesn’t really bring either.

They’ve assembled a roster littered with interesting pieces, but whether this group can ever become something greater than the sum of its parts will remain one of the bigger questions in the league heading into next season

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Loser: Milwaukee Bucks

If the only goal this offseason was to keep Giannis Antetokounmpo from requesting a trade, then the Bucks are big winners. If the goal was anything more than that? Then it’s fair to call this offseason a failure so far.

The Bucks made the most shocking move of the summer when they signed Myles Turner to a four-year, $107 million deal despite not being a cap space team. We would shortly find out how they pulled it off: they waived and stretched Damian Lillard’s remaining $113 million over the next five years. That means Milwaukee will eat a $22 million cap hit annually through 2030… while Dame plays on a different team.

Now, they roll into next season with a strong frontcourt of Giannis and Turner, but outside of that? The roster is bleak. Ball handling and playmaking will certainly not be a strength in Milwaukee, there isn’t a single traditional point guard on the roster. We’re about to see a whole lot of Kevin Porter Jr. making live-ball decisions, and hearing that might make you queasy.

I’ll give Milwaukee credit for getting creative in finding a way to improve the roster. Yet if this was the last of their dry powder, and the team still feels this far from contention -- even in a weakened East -- you have to wonder: would they have been better off going the other way and cashing in on a historic trade haul for Giannis?

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Pending: Los Angeles Lakers

It’s been a really weird offseason for the Lakers. Hopefully for their sake, it’s not over yet.

They let Dorian Finney-Smith walk and replaced him with Jake LaRavia for half the price. While I'm willing to listen to the case that looks smart in three years, DFS is clearly the better player right now.

They also acquired Deandre Ayton, who I’d expect to have an offensive resurgence playing alongside LeBron James, Austin Reaves, and -- most importantly -- Luka Doncic. However, there's two sides of the ball, and Ayton isn't going to fix this teams defensive concerns.

First and foremost, they need a real defensive wing. I’d like to see them move off someone like Rui Hachimura -- who basically plays the same defensive position as LeBron -- for a player who fits better on that end.

They could also really use a point-of-attack defender, someone who can chase guards and navigate screens. That skill set is largely missing here, aside from Gabe Vincent, who’s just okay.

As it stands, the Lakers still feel a move or two away from being serious contenders. There’s time though, and the reason I’ve got them marked as “pending” instead of outright losers this offseason is because they did fill the massive hole at center, and they’ve still got some powder dry to make a real move that could elevate this roster.

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Pending: Los Angeles Clippers

The Clippers kicked off free agency with a savvy move, signing Brook Lopez to a two-year, $18 million deal. It’s a low-risk, high-reward play for a team that basically didn’t have a backup center last season. Despite his age and limited defensive versatility at this stage of his career, Lopez is still elite in drop coverage -- a scheme the Clippers are already comfortable and effective running with Ivica Zubac.

Then came a surprise: a three-team deal that eventually landed them John Collins in exchange for Norman Powell. It’s clear the team didn’t want to commit big long-term money to Powell despite his career year, and in return, they brought in a true four. I could see Collins fitting especially well alongside Lopez in bench units offensively, pairing Lopez’s above-the-break shooting with Collins’ vertical threat in pick-and-roll.

The flip side is the Clippers are now leaning a concerning amount on 36-year-old James Harden to be their one consistent ball handler. Kawhi Leonard and Zubac will help carry some of the scoring load, but this team badly needs another player who’s comfortable initiating offense and making live-ball decisions.

All signs currently point to Bradley Beal (if bought out), or a pivot to Chris Paul. Either one would help round out this roster and take pressure off Harden. If they can’t land one of those guys, it’s hard to view the Clippers as a serious threat to win four straight playoff series.