The dust has mostly settled on the NBA offseason, which means we more or less know what each team’s roster will look like, as well as where they stack up compared to the rest of the league. It’s been a summer of transformation for the Phoenix Suns, who took a step back by trading Kevin Durant and waiving-and-stretching Bradley Beal in order to take steps toward the future.
This team is no longer a contender, and expectations should be tempered. In the loaded West, they will be hard-pressed to make the play-in, let alone the playoffs. The ill-fated Big 3 era is over, and in its place is a collection of young talent and rookies trying to prove they can contribute to a winning team in the desert.
The question is, where do the Suns actually stack up to the rest of the teams in the Western Conference? And do they have a puncher’s chance of surprising some people with a play-in (or even a playoff) spot? Here are some way-too-early NBA Power Rankings for all 15 teams in the West, including where Phoenix lands after their very busy offseason.
15. Utah Jazz
2024-25 regular-season record: 17-65 (15th in West)
2025-26 regular-season win total over/under: 18.5
Key additions: Ace Bailey, Walter Clayton Jr., Jusuf Nurkic, Kevin Love, Georges Niang, Kyle Anderson, John Tonje
Key losses: John Collins, Collin Sexton, Jordan Clarkson, Drew Eubanks, Patty Mills
The Jazz were dead-last in the West last season, and that was with more established players like John Collins, Collin Sexton and Jordan Clarkson. Utah aligned with its youth movement even more this summer, but that means their vets have been replaced with rookies like Ace Bailey and Walter Clayton Jr., along with unathletic role players who don’t move the needle like Jusuf Nurkic, Kevin Love, Georges Niang and Kyle Anderson.
Barring drastic second-year leaps from guys like Cody Williams, Isaiah Collier and Kyle Filipowski, this will be one of the worst teams in the West yet again in 2025-26…and that’s without even considering the inevitability that Lauri Markkanen and Walker Kessler’s names resurface in trade rumblings.
14. New Orleans Pelicans
2024-25 regular-season record: 21-61 (14th in West)
2025-26 regular-season win total over/under: 29.5
Key additions: Jordan Poole, Kevon Looney, Jeremiah Fears, Derik Queen, Saddiq Bey
Key losses: CJ McCollum, Bruce Brown Jr., Kelly Olynyk
Does anyone understand what the Pelicans are cooking down there in New Orleans? Because it sure as hell ain’t gumbo, or anything that Pels fans should be excited to digest over a full season.
For some reason, Jordan Poole is now in CJ McCollum’s place. The Pelicans got nothing for Bruce Brown Jr. after adding him at the trade deadline in the Brandon Ingram deal. And after a solid first season from rookie Yves Missi, NOLA clogged up the center spot by signing Kevon Looney and trading a potentially highly valuable 2026 first-round pick just so they could draft Derik Queen.
Maybe Queen and fellow rookie Jeremiah Fears quiet the ample concerns about their games, but unless Zion Williamson stays healthy enough to play 65-70 games at an All-NBA level while Herb Jones and Trey Murphy both make major strides, this team seems poised to be one of the worst teams in the West yet again.
13. Sacramento Kings
2024-25 regular-season record: 40-42 (9th in West)
2025-26 regular-season win total over/under: 35.5
Key additions: Dennis Schroder, Nique Clifford, Maxime Raynaud, Dario Saric, Drew Eubanks
Key losses: Jake LaRavia, Jonas Valanciunas
Speaking of WTF teams…what on earth are the Kings trying to build? Who in Sacramento thought that reassembling the Chicago Bulls’ duo of Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan was a good idea? Why have the Kings reportedly been so willing to move Malik Monk and Devin Carter? And will this post-De’Aaron Fox era have to completely crumble before this front office recognizes that Domantas Sabonis is their best remaining avenue to pushing the reset button?
The “Light The Beam” days were a blast, but that door is closed now, and this current team probably isn’t going to light many beams this year. LaVine is almost underrated at this point, but replacing Fox with Dennis Schroder won’t bode well, losing Jake LaRavia hurts, and the center depth behind D-Mo feels suspect between Dario Saric and Drew Eubanks.
The Kings have become of those middling teams that’s not good enough to reach the playoffs but not bad enough to tank. Even if this newer group will now have their first full season together, this feels like the year where the bottom falls out in the loaded West.
12. Portland Trail Blazers
2024-25 regular-season record: 36-46 (12th in West)
2025-26 regular-season win total over/under: 33.5
Key additions: Damian Lillard, Jrue Holiday, Yang Hansen, Caleb Love
Key losses: Anfernee Simons, Deandre Ayton
The Blazers were on to something down the stretch of last season, putting together the league’s fourth-best defense after the All-Star break. With all the talented youth on their roster between Deni Avdija, Donovan Clingan, Toumani Camara, and rookie Yang Hansen, this is a sleeper team in the West that could surprise some people, especially if they hang onto Jrue Holiday as a one-year stopgap until Damian Lillard’s healthy again.
However, we should also pump the brakes a bit on Portland being a playoff team just yet. Their defense was formidable once things clicked, but the Blazers still went 13-14 after the break because they had the NBA’s 20th-ranked offense. Who is stepping up to fill the scoring void that Anfernee Simons left behind? Looking at their personnel, it may take a collective effort, which is hard to do at the NBA level without star-caliber scorers.
The Blazers won’t have a guy like that until a 36-year-old Dame returns to action next season, and as much as Deandre Ayton was a disappointment, the brunt of the center minutes now fall on a second-year big in Clingan and a rookie big in Hansen (Robert Williams III is too injury-prone to rely on at this point). Portland’s defense seems poised to reach new levels of stinginess as long as Holiday remains on board, but this team is going to have to win quite a few rock fights in order to pick up Ws.
11. Phoenix Suns
2024-25 regular-season record: 36-46 (11th in West)
2025-26 regular-season win total over/under: 31.5
Key additions: Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, Mark Williams, Khaman Maluach, Rasheer Fleming, Koby Brea, Nigel Hayes-Davis, Jordan Goodwin, Isaiah Livers, CJ Huntley
Key losses: Kevin Durant, Bradley Beal, Tyus Jones, Cody Martin, Mason Plumlee, Monte Morris, Bol Bol, Damion Lee, Vasa Micic
I sincerely hope that I’m wrong, and there is a path for the Suns to be the surprise team in the West. Now that he’s been handed the reins again, if Devin Booker goes back to playing like a top-10 player; if Jalen Green tweaks his game to fit alongside Book; if Mark Williams stays healthy enough to build on a skill-set that is much-needed in Phoenix; if Ryan Dunn and Oso Ighodaro make strides in Year 2; if Dillon Brooks adds perimeter defense, shooting and swagger; and if rookies like Khaman Maluach, Rasheer Fleming or Koby Brea find ways to contribute, maybe they could reach the playoffs!
This scrappy group might have the right blend of defense, athleticism and youth to put a more complementary team with a real identity around Booker.
With that being said, that’s a lot of “ifs,” and most of them would have to hit in order for Phoenix to be a playoff team in this Western Conference bloodbath. A good number of those prerequisites also depend on first-year head coach Jordan Ott exceeding expectations and finding ways to balance out this lopsided roster, all while developing young players who may still be a year or two away from being ready.
Realistically speaking, with so many new faces and so many of them being on the younger side, it’s going to take a season or two for Phoenix to right the ship, and that’s assuming they have the right pieces to begin with. It’s not out of the realm of possibility that everything comes together in Year 1, but it’d take a Coach of the Year type of effort from Ott, a return to First Team All-NBA form from Book, and question marks like Green and Williams becoming exclamation points. More than likely, this group will be fighting for a play-in spot.
10. Dallas Mavericks
2024-25 regular-season record: 39-43 (10th in West)
2025-26 regular-season win total over/under: 40.5
Key additions: Cooper Flagg, D’Angelo Russell
Key losses: Spencer Dinwiddie
On the one hand, the Mavs remained surprisingly feisty last season after the Luka Doncic trade and injuries to both Anthony Davis and Kyrie Irving. They have a nice mix of high-end role players that will surprise some teams, like Naji Marshall, PJ Washington, Dereck Lively II, Daniel Gafford, Max Christie and the newly acquired D’Angelo Russell. Throw in the No. 1 overall pick who’s as NBA-ready as anyone in this year’s draft class, and Dallas should absolutely be in the play-in hunt.
But to actually get there, they’ll need Anthony Davis to stay healthy and play with that pissed off post-trade energy he showed in his very first half in Dallas…right up until he got injured. That’s been the tale of his career and his early stint in Big D so far, since AD only managed 9 appearances for the Mavericks after the break.
If he can stay healthy, this team has a decent shot to make the playoffs. If not…they’ll be asking quite a lot from role players, D-Lo and the leading Rookie of the Year candidate in Cooper Flagg.
9. San Antonio Spurs
2024-25 regular-season record: 34-48 (13th in West)
2025-26 regular-season win total over/under: 43.5
Key additions: Dylan Harper, Carter Bryant, Luke Kornet, Kelly Olynyk, Lindy Waters III
Key losses: Chris Paul, Sandro Mamukelashvili, Malaki Branham
The Spurs seem poised to make a jump in the win column this year, but will it be big enough to launch themselves into the playoff picture again? It’s only a matter of time before Victor Wembanyama claims the “best in the world” mantle, but will it be in his age-21 season, just his third year in the league, after he only managed 46 games last season due to blood clots in his shoulder?
It’s entirely possible, since Wemby still put up a mammoth 24-11-4-4-1 stat line and would’ve been the heavy favorite to win Defensive Player of the Year had he remained healthy. But even if Wembanyama reaches those Herculean levels again, he’ll need more help from a younger, unproven supporting cast this time around, and Chris Paul is no longer around to point everyone in the right direction.
Granted, a full season of Wemby and De’Aaron Fox could easily catapult San Antonio back into the playoff picture. The Spurs were only 6-11 in the 17 games Fox appeared in, but none of those featured Wembanyama. They should form a formidable duo, but it may take some time to build chemistry, especially since they’ll be depending on guys like Devin Vassell, Jeremy Sochan and Keldon Johnson to prove they can contribute to winning basketball.
Stephon Castle seems like the real deal, and getting both Dylan Harper and Carter Bryant in this year’s draft was a coup for San Antonio. But those three players have one year of NBA experience combined, and the Spurs certainly could’ve used more shooting in the offseason. This team will be better than last year. But until they actually prove they’re significantly better than last year, it’s hard to project them much higher than this in the loaded West.
8. Memphis Grizzlies
2024-25 regular-season record: 48-34 (8th in West)
2025-26 regular-season win total over/under: 40.5
Key additions: Ty Jerome, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Cedric Coward, Jock Landale
Key losses: Desmond Bane, Jay Huff, Luke Kennard, Marvin Bagley III
Losing Desmond Bane hurts. As much as Ty Jerome is a solid pickup, and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope will probably (maybe?) have a bounce-back shooting year, and Cedric Coward is a rookie I was personally high on, this team has been hovering around this territory for a few years now. They’re only two seasons removed from being the 2-seed in the West in back-to-back years, but in the two seasons since then, they’ve finished 13th and 8th. Injuries have obviously played a role there, but maybe that’s just who they are now?
In order to climb higher than play-in territory, the Grizzlies will need a much better year out of Ja Morant, Jaren Jackson Jr. to quickly move past that turf toe, Ty Jerome to have another Sixth Man of the Year type of season, and KCP to shoot better than the 34.2 percent from 3 that he shot last year. And that’s just the starting point.
None of those things seem impossible, but the Grizz lost quite a bit of shooting between Bane, Luke Kennard and Jay Huff. Do they have the personnel to make it up?
7. Golden State Warriors
2024-25 regular-season record: 48-34 (7th in West)
2025-26 regular-season win total over/under: 45.5
Key additions: De’Anthony Melton(?), Al Horford(?)
Key losses: Kevon Looney
We’re getting closer to the “sure things” in the West, but until the Warriors actually, ya know, start their offseason, we can’t really say for sure what the finished product looks like. More than likely, they’ll bring back Jonathan Kuminga either on the qualifying offer or with an extension, and at that point, they can finalize their long-awaited plans to sign Al Horford and De’Anthony Melton.
Both of those will be terrific additions to a Dubs team that went 23-8 after acquiring Jimmy Butler — the third-best record in the league over that stretch, behind only the Oklahoma City Thunder and Boston Celtics. Melton got off to a terrific start to last season as a starter for the Warriors before his season-ending injury, and he’s a great perimeter defender who’s really progressed as a reliable 3-point shooter. Horford gives the Dubs a high-IQ, two-way big with 3-point range, and he should fit in perfectly.
At the same time, Butler, Stephen Curry and Draymond Green are all getting older, and Butler has routinely missed 20-30 games a year, every year, for the last eight seasons in a row. Melton is injury-prone, Horford is no spring chicken, and depending on how this Kuminga situation resolves itself, speculation and discontent over his contract could become a distraction.
The Dubs could very easily be another great team in a great conference, but there are enough questions here to drop them to No. 7. They’re neck-and-neck with the next 2-3 teams on our list, though, which makes sense when one remembers that the 3-8 seeds in the West were separated by a grand total of two games last year.
6. Minnesota Timberwolves
2024-25 regular-season record: 49-33 (6th in West)
2025-26 regular-season win total over/under: 49.5
Key additions: Joan Beringer, Rocco Zikarsky
Key losses: Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Luka Garza
Maybe this feels disrespectfully low for a team that’s coming off back-to-back Western Conference Finals appearances, but at the same time…this most recent run felt buoyed by a pair of lackluster opponents. In the wake of the Luka Doncic trade, the Lakers’ cobbled-together roster barely had a center, and Steph Curry’s injury in the second round obviously tanked Golden State’s chances.
And even if the Wolves didn’t benefit from that favorable slate of opponents, their only meaningful additions this offseason were two rookies, while losing a key piece of their bench rotation. Nickeil Alexander-Walker isn’t some devastating loss, but his absence puts more strain on the Wolves’ need for quality rotation minutes out of unproven youngsters like Rob Dillingham and Terrence Shannon Jr. Rudy Gobert will be anchoring top-10 defenses until the day he retires, but he’s also 33 years old.
Naz Reid could be primed for a breakout year, and continuity is certainly on Minnesota’s side, but matchups are everything in the West, and the Wolves undoubtedly benefitted from that last year. They may not be so fortunate this time around. Gobert and Mike Conley are another year older, that offensive leap may never come for Jaden McDaniels, and the Julius Randle experience has soured at some point at every stop he’s been on. Plus, in fairness to our own rankings, sixth is where Minnesota literally just finished last season.
5. Los Angeles Lakers
2024-25 regular-season record: 50-32 (3rd in West)
2025-26 regular-season win total over/under: 48.5
Key additions: Deandre Ayton, Jake LaRavia, Marcus Smart, Adou Thiero
Key losses: Dorian Finney-Smith, Jordan Goodwin, Shake Milton
Los Angeles has one of the highest ceilings in the West…and one of the lowest floors as a contender. Luka Doncic plus LeBron James sounds great on paper, but will it actually translate to the court in their first full season together? And did the front office do enough this summer to give them the supporting pieces they need?
Jake LaRavia is undoubtedly an upgrade over Dorian Finney-Smith, and he represents one of the most underrated signings of the offseason. Marcus Smart and Adou Thiero are tough, defensive-minded pickups, and flawed as he may be, Deandre Ayton was one of the best center options they could’ve realistically acquired this summer. Getting him on a cheap contract that’s closer to his actual value is good work in a vacuum.
But Smart has played a grand total of 54 games over the last two seasons, Thiero is a rookie, and between Luka, LeBron and JJ Redick, this is the ultimate make-or-break season for Ayton’s ability to lock in and do what’s expected of him. The Lakers will either get the best anyone’s gotten out of him since Chris Paul, Devin Booker and Monty Williams, or DA will be getting benched down the stretch of tight games by Christmas.
Because of that uncertainty, and because we still need to see what LeBron and Doncic look like together for a longer stretch, this is as high as we can put the Lakers for now. But if those two do click, and if the supporting cast can keep pace, this team has the firepower to give anyone problems in a series. They just might not have the defense to keep up.
4. LA Clippers
2024-25 regular-season record: 50-32 (5th in West)
2025-26 regular-season win total over/under: 49.5
Key additions: Chris Paul, Bradley Beal, John Collins, Brook Lopez, Yanic Konan Niederhauser
Key losses: Norman Powell, Drew Eubanks
The Clippers low-key had one of the best offseasons in the league. This was a 50-win team last year, and they turned Norman Powell into John Collins, added one of the games best floor generals in Chris Paul, snagged Bradley Beal at a bargain bin price, and addressed their need for a quality backup big behind Ivica Zubac with Brook Lopez. LA was already one of the league’s deepest teams, and now they’ve added four high-end players who are too good to be labeled as “role players” to their ranks.
At the end of the day, this team’s playoff prospects will still lean heavily on Kawhi Leonard’s health and James Harden’s playoff performances — neither of which is a good bet. But Harden is still one of the game’s best table-setters, and Leonard is still borderline elite when he actually plays. He only managed 37 games last year, but that didn’t stop the Clips from winning 50 games regardless.
If CP3 can help protect against some of Harden’s playoff deficiencies, and if Beal finds a way to fit in and replace Powell’s scoring bursts, the Clips have a lot of firepower and the right coach to fit all those pieces together.
3. Houston Rockets
2024-25 regular-season record: 52-30 (2nd in West)
2025-26 regular-season win total over/under: 55.5
Key additions: Kevin Durant, Dorian Finney-Smith, Clint Capela, Josh Okogie
Key losses: Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, Cam Whitmore, Jock Landale
Houston may only be third on these rankings, but make no mistake about it: They had one of the best offseasons in the NBA, they were as well-insulated as anyone to trade for Kevin Durant without having to gut their roster, and they are legitimate title contenders.
No offense to Jalen Green, but it was glaringly obvious how badly the Rockets needed an offensive engine in the playoffs. KD can be that, and he won’t be required to defend opponents’ best wings like he was in Phoenix, since plus-sized wings like Jabari Smith Jr. and Tari Eason have that covered. Alperen Sengun’s playmaking will be an intriguing complement for Durant, and while Fred VanVleet’s contract is still pretty large, we’ve seen him contribute on some high-caliber playoff teams in the recent past.
But Durant wasn’t the only upgrade Houston made this summer! While going from Dillon Brooks’ 3-and-D skill-set to Dorian Finney-Smith is still a downgrade, DFS is a good pickup on the margins. Going from Jock Landale to Clint Capela gives Houston another high-caliber option at backup center alongside Steven Adams, and Josh Okogie can clearly still wreak havoc on the defensive end.
If the remaining young pieces take a step forward and a soon-to-be 37-year-old Durant stays healthy, this team could hit the ground running under Ime Udoka and cement themselves as a legitimate threat to win the West.
2. Denver Nuggets
2024-25 regular-season record: 50-32 (4th in West)
2025-26 regular-season win total over/under: 53.5
Key additions: Cam Johnson, Jonas Valanciunas, Bruce Brown Jr., Tim Hardaway Jr.
Key losses: Michael Porter Jr., Russell Westbrook(?), Dario Saric
The Nuggets would already be in this range by couresty of having the best player on earth right now. But they climb all the way to No. 2 because nobody did a better job of tailoring their roster to their franchise star this summer than Denver.
Replacing Michael Porter Jr.’s shooting and repeated playoff shortcomings with Cam Johnson’s shooting and significantly higher basketball IQ is a major win. Coming off a career year, Johnson’s movement shooting is going to be a match made in heaven when paired with Nikola Jokic’s passing and court vision.
Denver also made sure to stop the bleeding whenever Jokic sits by landing Jonas Valanciunas, which means the backup center minutes won’t be such a glaring issue. Throw in the return of Bruce Brown Jr. and Tim Hardaway Jr.’s shooting, and you’ve got a significantly improved supporting cast for a trio of Jokic, Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon that just won a title a few years ago.
Christian Braun made a small leap last season, and if the Nuggets get something similar out of Peyton Watson or Julian Strawther, or if DaRon Holmes II can make an impact in his first season, Denver becomes even more dangerous. Don’t forget, this is the same team that took the eventual NBA champs to seven games a few months ago, and that was before they drastically upgraded their depth chart.
1. Oklahoma City Thunder
2024-25 regular-season record: 68-14 (1st in West)
2025-26 regular-season win total over/under: 62.5
Key additions: Thomas Sorber, Brooks Barnhizer
Key losses: Dillon Jones
The Nuggets and Rockets feel like legitimate threats to topple OKC’s reign in the West, but make no mistake about it: The Thunder didn’t really play all that well during their most recent postseason, and they still won it all. They’ll have to be a lot sharper during their title defense, because the competition at the top of the conference is a lot stiffer now.
But if they do improve — and common sense dictates that they will as this young core continues to gain playoff experience together — they’re still the heavy favorites to win the West and repeat as NBA champions.
The scariest part is management learned from the last time they had a young superstar trio, and instead of taking the cheap way out, they extended all three of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren in the same summer. The only piece from their championship core that they lost was rarely-used rookie Dillon Jones, and they drafted two more rookies in Thomas Sorber and Brooks Barnhizer to add to their never-ending stream of youth.
Oh, and Nikola Topic — who would’ve gone top-five in last year’s draft if he hadn’t been injured — will be making his debut this season. If he’s actually good, God help the rest of the West.
