Ranking All 30 NBA Teams Going Into The 2027 Season

There's no way to know for sure what will happen in the upcoming NBA season, but that's never stopped anybody from trying to predict the future before. After an incredibly active offseason, most teams look very different this year, and now it's time to analyze all of those changes and judge how it makes them stack up against each other. In today's video, that is exactly what we'll be doing, as we will be ranking all 30 NBA teams going into the 2027 season. To clarify, this isn't necessarily my exact predictions for where they'll finish in the standings, or who will ultimately win the finals, but it is based on how strong I believe their roster is overall on paper, and how well I believe they will actually gel when playing together. Before we start, though, it would be greatly appreciated if you could all utilize YouTube's new Hype feature and hype this video up, as it does actually help out quite a bit. Now with that being said, let's begin! We'll start at the bottom and work our way up to the number one spot, so coming in at number 30, we have the Sacramento Kings. The Kings actually have notable names that stand out on paper, and in theory, you'd think they'd be better than they actually are, but in each of the last few seasons, they've trended back more and more towards disaster, and it stems from the fact that most of this course share the same glaring weakness, playing defense. DeMantis Abonis is one of the most skilled big men in the league on offense, but is simultaneously one of the worst rim protectors in the league. Zach Levine's another cone on the defensive end, Darius Acuff is another incredibly promising incoming rookie, but again, he was seen as arguably the worst defensive player in the entire draft class. This group also just doesn't really mesh well with a lot of score-first players that don't like to share the ball much, and it resulted in some ugly play all throughout last season. So many teams around the league got better this summer, and they weren't one of them, so after having already finished near the bottom of the standings last year, I'm not expecting much different this year. Next at number 29, we have the Brooklyn Nets. The Nets have one of the clunkiest current rosters in the entire NBA, and that combined with the fact that they're still actively tanking will result in a whole lot of losses this season. There is just way too much youth and inexperience in this rotation still to actually viably compete at a reasonable capacity, and their two leading veterans are almost preventative to winning. Michael Porter Jr. and Julius Randle are two of the bigger ball hogs in the entire NBA, and they're now teamed up on a team that should be prioritizing the usage and opportunity for their young guys. Last year, the team was the worst-ranked offense in the NBA, and I don't see much improvement coming from Julius Randle ball-stopping every time he touches it. I think they still have the starting point of a bright future, but we're still in the present where there will be copious amounts of growing Next at number 28, we have the Milwaukee Bucks. The Bucks are new to the rebuilding world fresh off of trading away Giannis Anadokoumpou, and last year they stunk even with him on the team, so there's no denying they're about to sink down the standings even further without him. As a result of the trade, they did receive quite a strong haul of young talent to begin this process with, but ultimately it's another situation where they're lacking the high-end talent to compete regularly. I also believe they will continue to sell off some of their better players like Tyler Hero and Miles Turner, who don't fit the timeline they're on, which will only result in a further plunge down the standings, and ultimately that's probably their goal anyway. Next at number 27, we have the Memphis Grizzlies. There will be a recurring theme here at the bottom of this list. A lot of these teams simply are not focused on trying to win right now, and that's okay. The Grizzlies have completed the offloading process having traded away John Morant this summer, so now they can fully focus on restarting with their young talent at the forefront of this movement. Players like Cam Boozer, Zach Eady, Cedric Coward, Jalen Wells, and many more all highlight a deep core of young talent with a lot to get excited about, but in the early years, it's more about learning than it is about winning. Next at number 26, we have the New Orleans Pelicans. The Pelicans have been terrible for the last two years, and they didn't really change anything this summer, running it back with the same group gearing up for a third straight disappointing campaign. Zion Williamson is a good paint scorer when healthy, but nowhere close to good enough to be a true number one on a playoff team, plus his health is always questionable. Trey Murphy has emerged as a strong two-way wing talent, but he might get traded at some point this year. Jordan Poole has played some of his worst basketball as a Pelican. Derek Queen and Jeremiah Fierce both have a lot of talent on offense as creators and playmakers, but neither really play a lick of defense and have turnover problems on top of that. In an offseason where a lot of teams made at minimum marginal improvements, this team didn't, so back to the basement they will go, with a potential blowing up of the roster on the horizon. Next at number 25, we have the Los Angeles Clippers. Life for the Clippers just keeps going from bad to worse. The franchise is going to be marred by the Kawhi Leonard scandal and its ramifications for years to come, and the current roster isn't good enough to keep up in the Western Conference. Darius Garland will have a bigger green light than he's had in a pretty long time, and is an all-star caliber playmaker at his best, and they're actually pretty deep with quality role-player talent at the forward spots, but Brandon Ingram is going to be out for a while after a surprise discovery of an injury a few days ago, and their rim defense, with old man Brooke Lopez and a bunch of inexperience behind him, is going to be a pretty issue too. Next at number 24, we have the Chicago Bulls. The Bulls, to me, are a team that will pull off some sneaky impressive wins against teams that may come in and underestimate them, but ultimately won't have the consistency to keep up in a now pretty strong Eastern Conference. They finished in 12th place in the conference standings last year, and every team ahead of them is still vying for a spot in the play-in tournament at minimum. Adding Norman Powell is a pretty good boost to this team's offense as a shooter, and Nick Claxton is even a notable upgrade at center, so it's not even easy for me to rank them this low because they did make upgrades. There's just so much competition this season, and their leaders aren't quite at the level where they can go head-to-head with the best of the best yet. Next at number 23, we have the Dallas Mavericks. The Mavericks are moving into year two of the Cooper flag era, with a roster that weirdly still doesn't quite reflect a rebuilding team. I don't think they're good enough to make a real run at the playoffs yet, and I also foresee them being another team that could be sellers around the trade deadline, but flag alone sets them up for potential contention in the very near future, just not necessarily right now. They won't be a group sitting at the very bottom of the standings, but they might just miss out on the play-in tournament. Kyrie Irving is returning from his torn ACL, so we still need to see how he looks post-injury. Zachary Resache is trying to rejuvenate his career here after flopping as the number one pick in Atlanta back in 2024, and under a new first-time NBA head coach, there will be some growing pains for everybody. Next at number 22, we have the Golden State Warriors. The Warriors missed the playoffs last year, and then this summer, they barely made any changes to the roster to get back into the hunt. Steph Curry and Draymond Green are only getting older. Chris Depp's Porzingis still has an illness that severely impacts his availability, and Jimmy Butler will miss most of season recovering from his injury. In order for a real bounce back to happen, they would need someone like Brandon Pajemski to take a big leap, or rookie Yaxel Lindebergh to be incredibly impactful from day one, and neither of those things are fair to expect, given that Yaxel's a rookie, and Pajemski has been pretty inconsistent throughout his career. Next at number 21, we have the Charlotte Hornets. The Hornets were one of the NBA's hottest teams in the second half of last season, making a run to the play-in tournament, so you would think they'd be carrying a lot of momentum into this year, but they made one major change that I'm not fully convinced was for the better. Trading away LaMelo Ball in exchange for Nas Reed, and moving Kobe White to the starting point guard spot gives the team a lot of shooting in their lineup, but it leaves them without any real playmaking threats. White has always been more of a score-first combo guard. Brandon Miller and Khan Kanipl will step into more prominent roles in the offense, which does admittedly excite me. They'll also have Musa Diabate starting at center from the jump, who helped solidify their defense last year. It just feels like they're missing a piece to make the leap to the playoffs in this conference. Next at number 20, we have the Utah Jazz. The Jazz are a team that I expect to finally make a leap out of the basement of the standings this year. They traded for Jaron Jackson Jr. last season to address their porous defense, and hopefully accomplish exactly that, and adding his elite-level defense to a lineup that can otherwise fill it up on offense would be a huge plus. They did lose Walker Kessler this offseason though, which I do think hurts as they lose an elite rebounder to counteract Jaron Jackson Jr.'s struggles on the glass. Laurie Markkinen will face his first real test as a go-to score on a team with expectations. Darren Peterson is a rookie coming in, that's someone that I am very high on as a prospect, but at the end of the day he is still a rookie so we need to so while they will be better, I'm not ready to anoint them as a playoff team yet. Next at number 19, we have the Phoenix Suns. The Suns were a surprise team to make the playoffs last year, and will continue to be better than the general public thinks. Dylan Brooks has helped them establish a strong defensive identity, and on top of that, he's developed into a legitimately useful secondary scoring option fresh off of a year where he averaged 20 points per game. Devin Booker is still one of the best guards in the NBA, and they're deep on the wings. There are just some notable question marks that could make or break their season. Their success came without Jalen Green last year for the most part, and fitting him back in will be somewhat tough as he's someone who is not really a good defender at all. Miles Bridges was also brought in, hoping to provide more of an offensive outlet, but he's never played in a winning environment in his entire career, so we need to see how he adjusts. They're also now weak at the center position after Mark Williams got injured, so they could be a bit higher, but there are enough red flags to fully tank their season two, which is scary, meaning that I have them on the lower end of the middle part of this tier list. Next at number 18, we have the Portland Trailblazers. Portland were another surprising playoff team last year, and in an eerily similar manner to Phoenix, they made some moves this summer that could either drastically improve themselves or tank their chances in the West. Damien Lillard's return should be positive, even if he's not the same all-star caliber guy that he was prior to his injury, because he'll still at least be a lights out shooter. John Morant, however, is fully in a make-or-break season for his career after being cast off by Memphis. Denny Avdia broke out as an all-star caliber player last year. They have pretty strong guard depth. Donovan Klingin is becoming a high-end defensive anchor, and Shumani Kamara is an elite defender in his own right, too, so they have the pieces. It's just tough to predict if they'll all fit together with all of the uncertainty. Next at number 17, we have the Orlando Magic. The Magic, over the last few years, have solidified themselves as a middle-of-the-pack group, and I fear that's where they'll max out as a team that didn't really do anything this summer to progress themselves forward. Paulo Banqueiro has yet to prove he can be a true alpha of a team with lofty aspirations, and quite frankly, he has a lot of terrible shot selection issues he needs to fix if he ever wants to reach that level. Franz Wagner might be the team's actual best player, but he's not treated like it, and they just lack enough creators on offense to keep up with other high-powered offensive units around the league. They have a great defense, and for a few years now though, they've also been the worst offense of the teams that have made the playoffs, which is just too tough to overcome. Next at number 16, we have the Washington Wizards. This will be one of the biggest leaps made from last year to this year, but it's one that I do feel strong about. Of course, they are still coming in near the middle of this list, so it's not like I'm predicting them to shoot right into contention, but the play in tournament should be attainable, and possibly sneaking into the playoffs could be had. Trey Young has his flaws, but when he's right, he is one of the most gifted passers in the whole league. Anthony Davis may not be able to hold up physically anymore, but if he does, then he's another legit all-star to Spearhead, this new era of Wizards basketball. The Young Corps here are hungry. They're now led by a star prospect in AJ de Bonsa as well, and there's a whole lot of size and length for this team to throw at opposition throughout this rotation. Next at number 15, we have the Atlanta Hawks. With the Hawks, it's difficult because I am actually a big fan of the offseason that they just had, and I do think the made will make them stronger throughout their rotation. The problem is, so many other teams in the East also had equally or stronger offseasons. They're an above-average defensive team and a pretty bang-average offensive team. Relying on 35-year-old CJ McCollum to be their sparkplug of offense when it matters is a strategy that will yield wildly inconsistent results. I still want to see how Nikhil Alexander-Walker reacts to being in this prominent of a role beyond one year, and Jalen Johnson is an incredibly well-balanced forward talent that stuffs the stat sheet, but I fear he's not the true number one type of superstar option that contending teams need. Next at number 14, we have the Detroit Pistons. This one's not going to be popular, I know. The Pistons were the one seed in the Eastern Conference last season. They're a young team on the rise, and things seemed to be trending up, but I disagree with that idea. In the NBA, if you don't take advantage of momentum like they had last year, then it can vanish in the blink of an eye. The Cavaliers, for example, were the one seed in 2025, then they slid the next year. The Miami Heat were the one seed in 2022, then slid the next year. The Pistons, this summer, made lateral moves at best, and now have to deal with Jalen Duren after his contract fiasco that indicated that he doesn't seem to really want to be there. So to me, they failed to capitalize on momentum they had last season, and will get passed up by several other groups that had stronger summers and have more upside as contenders. Next at number 13, we have the Houston Rockets. We're now in the part of the list where we reach the teams that I'm pretty confident will make the playoffs, but the Rockets are a group I'm more wary of in this tier. They traded for Kevin Durant a year ago, hoping that he would put them over the edge to contend, and instead the group regressed last season and flamed out in the first round of the playoffs. Durant's social media drama has followed him, and he's not getting any younger either. The Rockets brought in Marcus Smart this summer, and they're getting Fred VanVleet back healthy this season, but VanVleet was pretty notably regressing the last time he was healthy, and now he has an injury to deal with on top of it. Plus, Marcus Smart is kind of in the same boat as he gets up there in age. They need more growth for Next at number 12, we have the Indiana Pacers. The last time we saw the Pacers at full strength, they were one win from winning the NBA Finals, so obviously there's a lot to get excited about with Tyrese Halliburton returning to the floor this year. They also swapped out Myles Turner for Ivica Zubac since then for even more excitement and upside. However, a lot has also happened around the league over the last two years that's changed the landscape, so I can't just shoot them back up to the very top. Halliburton may not immediately return to the exact level that he was at pre-injury, and they need to readjust to playing together, which will be a work in progress, so they will make the playoffs, I just don't see them being a lock to be a top seed. Next at number 11, we have the Denver Nuggets. The Nuggets have Nikola Jokic, which guarantees them a spot in the playoffs, but there really wasn't anything to get excited about with the offseason that they just had. Bringing in DeMar DeRozan looks like a big pickup on paper, but I just don't love his fit with this group at all, as he's someone with a very isocentric, ball-dominant playstyle as a score-first guy who also doesn't move much off the ball or serve as a spot-up shooter, and he also doesn't play any defense on top of it. Getting Aaron Gordon back healthy is big for this starting lineup, and they are still great 1-5, but their depth is a nightmare. Now to start off the top 10, we have the Los Angeles Lakers. The Lakers may have lost LeBron James this summer, but don't expect them to go anywhere. The team is fully bought in on playing through Luka Doncic, and they have a squad around him now. They found their long-awaited solution at center this summer by bringing in Walker Kessler, who's a top-five rebounder and shot blocker in the NBA. Guys like Colin Sexton, Quentin Grimes, and Sandro Mamoukalishvili give them tremendous depth. Cameron Carr is a promising rookie they just drafted, and Austin Reeves is ready to prove that he can be an all-star caliber sidekick. There are some concerns about their perimeter defense, and health will need to be monitored, but they're still one of the better teams in the West. Next at number 9, we have the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Cavs are perennially a very strong regular season team, and last year they also made the conference finals for the first time in the Donovan Mitchell era, but a lot changed this summer in the conference, and I do foresee a few teams surpassing them. Their point guard position behind James Harden is particularly weak. They're placing a lot of faith in Peyton Watson being the key to elevating them, despite him only having one half of a breakout season on his resume, and even their front court depth behind Jared Allen and Evan Mobley is pretty lacking. Their starting lineup has proven to be strong, but it's been established that they're not the best in the East, and the clock is ticking on them to figure out how to make it all work at the highest level. Next at number 8, we have the Boston Celtics. The Celtics may not have as deep of a roster as years past, they may have just lost key talent this summer too, and yet I still believe the Jomezula system has proven that it deserves the benefit of the doubt. The Celtics offense will still be one of the most lethal sharpshooting lineups in the league, jacking up a ton of threes and burying teams from beyond the arc. Jason Tatum will be progressing back to his former self now that more time has been removed from his injury, and Mitchell Robinson was a big addition for the team in the middle. Paul George is the wild card here as someone who fits well into what they do on both ends of the floor, but at his age he's been regressing noticeably quite a bit, and he hasn't really been able to hold up physically in years, and could end up missing significant time again. Next at number 7, we have the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Wolves have been in the mix at the top of the Western Conference for three years now, and have gotten close to a finals berth a few times. I still don't think they're in that top tier of Western Conference contender with the last few teams we'll be discussing today still not mentioned, but the changes that they made this summer could prove me wrong. Getting rid of Julius Randle could prove to be addition by subtraction, purely so the offense could be run smoother, and they also finally found their solution at point guard that they've been looking for for a while when they traded for LaMelo Ball, who brings some much needed playmaking next to Anthony Edwards. Their bench depth is a lot more thin than it's been in recent years as a result of this, but they are hoping that players like Shannon and Baron J can take big leaps to make up for it. Next at number 6, we have the Miami Heat. The Heat made the biggest trade of the entire offseason, bringing in Giannis Antetokounmpo to try to get them back into contention. Giannis wanted to get back to competing for something meaningful, the Heat needed a big move to do that, and I absolutely see them rocketing up into the mix now that they're partnered together, but they're still not a perfect roster by any means. Giannis can cover a lot of holes, and next to Bam Adebayo in the frontcourt, that's going to be nearly impossible to score on in the paint, but their backcourt does have some big question marks. Klay Thompson is still a dangerous shooter, but the rest of his game has fallen off quite a bit since leaving Golden State, especially on defense, and their point guard position is pretty weak, so their upside is as high as anybody's in the east, but they do have more glaring weaknesses than the last few teams that we haven't discussed yet. Next at number 5, we have the Toronto Raptors. The Raptors have become a two-way juggernaut after trading for Kawhi Leonard this offseason. They were already a top 5 defensive team last year, and now they have Kawhi Leonard, who may not be as good as he once was, but he is still pretty great out on the perimeter hounding opposing ball handlers, and then you throw in the 28 points per game that he scores, and the Raptors all of a sudden have a go-to option in crunch time that they were lacking. Kawhi, of course, is also another player whose health raises red flags, as his entire Clippers tenure was marred by injury, but if all goes right, they could be as dangerous as anybody. There's also concern about Jakub Pertl's back problems holding him back, which would make their center position weak, but overall, this is a contender at full strength. Next at number 4, we have the Philadelphia 76ers. The Sixers, quite frankly, could end up dictating this entire season. They easily have the highest ceiling of anybody in the NBA with this new look squad, but the word new look is very key in that sentence, because teams like this will always need time to gel. There's a lot of star power between LeBron James, Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, and Jalen Brown, and they're all used to roles that they will no longer be in, meaning sacrifice is going to have to happen. Joel Embiid's also one of the biggest wildcards in the NBA with his health, but when he's on the floor, he nearly sleepwalks his way to 30 points most nights. They have a deeper bench than they've had in recent years too, there's an insane amount of scoring talent throughout this roster, and LeBron is on a mission to maximize his final years. It's just way too early to crown them at the very top of a list like this, so they come in below more established, title-contending entities. Next at number 3, we have the San Antonio Spurs. The Spurs were last season's runner-up, losing in the NBA Finals, and they're not going anywhere, in fact, they're just getting started. Victor Wembenyama is still just barely scratching the surface of his potential and could continue to get even better, which is frightening for the rest of the NBA. Dylan Harper with a year under his belt is another scary sight as someone who was ridiculously composed for a rookie all postseason and has all-star upside. They're loaded with shooting, their defense is as good as anybody's, and they added Tobias Harris as another useful veteran to add to their front court rotation. At the top of this list though, we need to start nitpicking, and these final two teams have proven themselves as worthy of the top two spots. Next at number 2, we have the New York Knicks. The Knicks are the defending NBA champions and will be as good as ever this year, bringing back largely the same team from last season. They don't necessarily need any reinforcements to be in contention as they proved last year either, but losing Mitchell Robinson will actually be a bigger blow than I think some are aware of. Otherwise, Jalen Brunson is as big time as it gets in crunch time, which is an edge they'll always have over most other teams. Their starting lineup is as cohesive as you could dream of, and most importantly, they all love playing together. If you want to put them at number one, I wouldn't even disagree with you by any means. I just think that there is reason that I'm buying into this next team at number one a tiny bit more. That leads us to the number one spot. The best team going into the 2027 NBA season, I believe, is the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Thunder have been the one seed in the Western Conference three straight years. They had a top five offense and top five defense last season, and they could still get better. They were the NBA champions in 2025 when everything was clicking at the right time, but last season Jalen Williams struggled a lot with injuries, which set him and the team back in the end. After a whole summer off, Jalen is coming back healthy again, and he was one of the best defenders in the league while also being an all-star second option on offense the last time he was healthy. Shea Gilgis Alexander is also still the two-time reigning MVP. Jared McCain is a player that will be on their roster full time after they traded for him last season, giving them more bench scoring, and they added more talent in the draft. Plus, they retained all of their key free agents this summer, so this team is as deep and as strong as ever, and have proven that they can be champions before. And with that being said, that's all I have for you today. Make sure to like the video, subscribe to the channel, and comment down below how you think the teams stack up going into the new season. Thanks for watching, and I'll see you all next time.