My preview of the 2027 NBA season continues with a look at the Southwest Division, home to the 2026 Finals runner-ups, multiple very intriguing young teams, and the laughingstock Pelicans.

San Antonio Spurs

Additions: Tobias Harris, Jayden Quaintance (20th pick in 2026 Draft), Tarris Reed (26^th pick in 2026 Draft)

Subtractions: Kelly Olynyk, Lindy Waters III, Bismack Biyombo, Mason Plumlee

Other: Signed Victor Wembanyama to a five-year max extension, Re-signed Harrison Barnes, Re-signed Julian Champagnie, Re-signed Jordan McLaughlin

Outlook: The Spurs are one of the teams I was most wrong on last season. I did not foresee Victor Wembanyama becoming probably the best per-minute player in the NBA in year three, nor did I expect a massive second-year jump from Stephon Castle, nor did I think Dylan Harper would immediately be a starting-level player in his rookie season. The scariest thing for the rest of the NBA is that all of those players are still at the points in their careers where further major leaps are quite possible if not likely. The only thing holding the Spurs back from being a lock to win 65+ games is the health of Wemby: players of his size are just always going to be more prone to missing time, and the Spurs have (rightfully) been extremely cautious with him throughout his career. Even so, the Spurs have enough talent on their roster to make up for some Wemby absences, and I like what they did in the offseason and the draft in adding big man swings as well as strengthening/retaining their forward depth. I currently have the Spurs as title favorites as well as favorites to lead the Western Conference in wins. They are terrifying.

Prediction: 63-19 (Last year predicted 39-43, actually 62-20)

Houston Rockets

Additions: Marcus Smart, Bogdan Bogdanovic, Julian Phillips, Bruce Thornton (31^st pick in 2026 Draft)

Subtractions: Josh Okogie, Aaron Holiday, Dorian Finney-Smith, Jeff Green

Other: Signed Amen Thompson to a five-year extension, Signed Tari Eason to a four-year extension

Outlook: The Rockets are one of the teams I feel more confident in this season: to me, they are the definition of a solid playoff team without true championship upside. Kevin Durant is still great on the court, Alperen Sengun is a fine second option (I think he’s probably better suited as a third banana), Amen Thompson is one of the best perimeter defenders in the sport, and there are a bunch of complementary role players to fill in gaps. A lot depends on Fred VanVleet, who missed all of last season due to injury and is a very undersized guard getting close to his mid-30s. If he can return to a sub All-Star level of play the Rockets will be much more dangerous. If not, it’s hard to see this team having enough offensive firepower to be a contender, barring leaps from their young guys. The Rockets’ defense and rebounding should be top-tier, and that should be enough for them to easily secure a playoff spot.

Prediction: 51-31 (Last year predicted 56-26, actually 52-30)

Dallas Mavericks

Additions: Morez Johnson (9^th pick in 2026 Draft), Santi Aldama, Zaccharie Risacher, Sergio de Larrea (25^th pick in 2026 Draft), Marcus Sasser, Tarik Biberovic

Subtractions: Klay Thompson, Marvin Bagley III, Brandon Williams, Khris Middleton, Ryan Nembhard

Other: Re-signed Moussa Cisse

Outlook: This offseason the Mavs continued to reshape their roster around reigning Rookie of the Year Cooper Flagg and move on from the remnants of the short-lived Anthony Davis era. The Mavs do have a lot of talent, but it is an ill-fitting roster that features a large proportion of forwards and very few guards. If Kyrie Irving, who is in his mid-30s and missed all of last season while recovering from knee surgery – does not look like star-level Kyrie, this team probably won’t have enough creation juice to be very good. The other swing piece is fourth-year center Dereck Lively II, who looked like a future star after his rookie year but has barely played the last two seasons due to injury. There is real upside for the Mavs: a big second-year leap from Flagg plus healthy-ish seasons from Kyrie and Lively could place them in the upper tier of the play-in race in the Western Conference. I’m not quite that high on the Mavs, but I do think they have significantly more overall talent than the teams below them in the Conference, and should ultimately place in the back half of the play-in.

Prediction: 36-46 (Last year predicted 44-38, actually 26-56)

Memphis Grizzlies

Additions: Cam Boozer (3^rd pick in 2026 Draft), Jerami Grant, Quinten Post, Isaiah Stewart, Karim Lopez (21^st pick in 2026 Draft), Kris Murray

Subtractions: Ja Morant, Santi Aldama, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Brandon Clarke (RIP), Rayan Rupert

Other:

Outlook: The Grizzlies finally pulled the plug on the Ja Morant era this offseason, sending the former superstar to Portland for a return bereft of draft assets or young players. The minimal return for Ja has to sting much, much less considering the Grizzlies’ fortune in drafting Cam Boozer at 3^rd in the loaded 2026 Draft. Boozer (to me, anyway) is a true franchise foundational piece that can be a lodestar for the Grizzlies for the next decade. Add in Cedric Coward, Zach Edey, Jaylen Wells, and some competent veterans and you have a very promising young team. I do think the Grizzlies will be bad this year just due to how young their team is, and especially because I need to see Edey stay healthy for a full season before penciling in the leap that many are predicting. Still, they should be league pass darlings, and it would not surprise me at all if Boozer is good enough right away to drag this team into the bottom of the play-in race.

Prediction: 29-53 (Last year predicted 42-40, actually 25-57)

New Orleans Pelicans

Additions: Bennedict Mathurin, AJ Johnson, Taj Gibson

Subtractions: Kevon Looney, Jordan Hawkins, Micah Peavy

Other: Re-signed De’Andre Jordan

Outlook: One of the worst teams in the NBA last year, the Pelicans, shockingly, made almost no moves this offseason outside of retaining veteran locker room presence DeAndre Jordan and buying low on restricted free agent Bennedict Mathurin. Even though I’m not a fan of Mathurin, he’s a good upside swing for the Pelicans, who need as much talent as they can get. Dejounte Murray will be healthy to start this season, unlike last year, which will help, and Derik Queen and Jeremiah Fears having a year of NBA play under their belt could also make them more impactful. But, at the end of the day, this team was awful last year, and even if they’re a bit more competent this season, there’s not much to indicate they will be anything other than bottom-dwellers yet again.

Prediction: 25-57 (Last year predicted 27-55, actually 26-56)

2027 NBA Season Preview: Southwest Division
Robert Flom

Dr. Shap and I got together last night and somehow recorded an hour-long podcast about the Clippers here in late September 2026. We started off covering the news of Clippers’ legend Nic Batum retiring before moving on to examining the team before training camp, debating potential starting lineups, and discussing the key X-factors to the season.

Check out the podcast embedded below on Spreaker, or listen on whatever platform you like, including Spotify, Apple Podcasts, iHeart, and more.

TLTJP: Nico Retires & the State of the Clippers Roster
Robert Flom

Our player preview series for the 2027 Clippers continues with veteran guard Kris Dunn.

Basic Information

Height: 6’3

Weight: 205 pounds

Position: Shooting Guard/Point Guard

Age: 32

Years in NBA: 10

Regular Season Stats: 7.3 points, 3.3 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 1.6 steals, and 1.4 turnovers in 27.2 minutes per game across 82 games played (68 starts) on 47.6/37.4/76.5 shooting splits (2.6 3PA, 1.0 FTA) with 58.1% TS

Contract Status: In the last year of a 3 year, $16.3M deal, making $5.7M

Expectations

Much like the last two seasons, Kris is coming into the season with expectations of being a bench guard that plays significant rotation minutes for the Clippers. However, the last two years, Dunn frequently ended up in the starting lineup due to injuries and underperformances elsewhere; he’s started 126 of his 156 games as a Clipper. I wouldn’t expect Dunn to start this year, but it’s not impossible, and he certainly should be expected to be a key part of the rotation. From a production perspective, a handful of points, secondary ballhandling, and excellent defense are what Dunn should be able to provide in the minutes he receives.

Strengths

In just two seasons, Kris has rightfully earned recognition as one of the best perimeter defenders to ever don a Clippers jersey. He’s fantastic at the point of attack against both guards and wings, and is a terrific help defender that forces a ton of turnovers and deflections. His defense slipped last year from 2025, when for my money he was maybe the most impactful per-minute perimeter defender in the NBA, but he was still really good last season. Kris will probably slow down as he heads into his mid-30s, but I think it’s fair to assume he should remain a significant plus on defense this season.

By modern NBA standards, Kris has been quite durable as a Clipper, logging 74 games played in 2025 and appearing in all 82 contests last season – a rarity in today’s league. Kris doesn’t log huge minutes, but he’s mostly been available when the Clippers have needed him, and that availability has been part of the reason he’s started so consistently.

Kris is also a locker room leader and positive behind the scenes by all accounts. He seems to be beloved by teammates, coaches, and everyone in the organization, and that has real value. Even though the Clippers are shifting younger, they will need veterans to maintain order, and that seems like something Kris can offer.

While not a good offensive player, Kris at least has the ballhandling capabilities to help get the offense into sets to relieve the primary ballhandler, and is capable of making quick reads in the halfcourt. For his career he has an assist to turnover ratio of well over 2:1, so despite some ugly turnovers when put under pressure, he’s relatively surehanded. That little bit of extra ballhandling has been useful for the Clippers in the past, and it should still be of value this season when Dunn is paired with Darius Garland or Keaton Wagler.

Weaknesses

While Kris’ three-point shooting numbers look decent (37.6% last year), he’s a well below-average shooter considering volume (2.6 attempts per game) and defensive intensity (always left wide open). Even though he makes threes, defenders consistently sag off Kris, and that really damages offensive spacing when he’s on the court. Dunn’s ability to handle and pass has made him viable as a screen setter in the pick and roll and then as a playmaker in the short roll, but it’s just not a great use of an off-guard. Ultimately, the gumming of spacing that happens with Kris on the court has made it tough to play him big minutes against the best NBA teams, even with his defensive excellence and other positives.

Kris is unfortunately also not much of a threat to score inside the arc, as he’s a below-the-rim attacker that can’t score over defenders and does not have a midrange bag outside of a useful floater. Kris did get to the line a lot more last season than before, showing a greater deal of aggression in attacking closeouts and going to the rim, but he’s just not an effective scorer almost anywhere on the court at the NBA level. Despite his ballhandling and playmaking, that deficiency as a scorer makes him a negative offensive player in almost every context.

Summary

Kris is a personal favorite of mine, largely due to his defensive prowess, intensity, and consistent availability. That said, he’s heading into the back part of his career and is a veteran who could help contending teams, so considering he’s only a very reasonable, expiring deal, I think he’s one of the most likely trade candidates on the roster. The Clippers might well want to keep Dunn as a veteran presence and as a cheap, consistent role player moving forward, but there’s a good chance he gets moved this season. If he does, I will remember him fondly and root for him at his next destination.

2027 Clippers Player Preview: Kris Dunn
Robert Flom

My preview of the 2027 NBA season continues with the stacked Northwest Division, home to perennial MVP candidates Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Nikola Jokic.

Oklahoma City Thunder

Additions: Aday Mara (12^th pick in the 2026 Draft), Bennett Stirtz (17^th pick in the 2026 Draft)

Subtractions: Lu Dort, Isaiah Joe, Aaron Wiggins, Branden Carlson

Other: Re-signed Isaiah Hartenstein, Re-signed Kenrich Williams

Outlook: It’s hard to say that the Thunder had a disappointing season last year, as they won 64 games and made it to Game 7 of the Western Conference Finals… but considering they were massive favorites to win the championship, not even making the NBA Finals has to count as a bit of a disappointment. It was even more difficult for the Thunder, as their increasing salaries made it likely they would have to shed money this offseason. That’s exactly what the Thunder did, more or less dumping three rotation players (including a starter in Lu Dort) for nothing to get them under the second apron and enable them to have room to bring back starting center Isaiah Hartenstein. The Thunder should still be excellent, as they have the two-time MVP in SGA, All-Star caliber players in Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams, and competent role players with Alex Caruso, Cason Wallace, and Jaylin Williams. But the Thunder are certainly less deep, and are now actually reliant on inexperienced youngsters like Nikola Topic, Thomas Sorber, and the two rookies Mara and Stirtz to fill in playable minutes. If those guys step up, the Thunder could be more dangerous than ever.

Prediction: 59-23 (Last year predicted 63-19, actually 64-18)

Denver Nuggets

Additions: Marvin Bagley III, Trevon Brazile (35th pick in 2026 Draft), Alpha Diallo

Subtractions: Peyton Watson, Tim Hardaway Jr., Jonas Valanciunas, Bruce Brown, Jalen Pickett

Other: Re-signed Spencer Jones, Re-signed Tyus Jones

Outlook: Denver had a much-reviled offseason, letting most of their bench walk in free agency due to being over the second apron of the cap. The losses of Watson and Hardaway were particularly brutal, as Watson’s perimeter defense and athleticism and Hardaway’s shooting have not really been replaced on the roster. Bagley should be a fine backup big man to fill in for Valanciunas, and Bruce Brown was pretty bad last year, but the Nuggets are still worse than they were last season. It’s hard to imagine them falling too far with Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray, and Aaron Gordon still being roughly in their primes, but any injuries will be harder to recover from. The Nuggets should still win in the upper 40s at the least and be a solid playoff team; their days as an actual contender, however, might be over.

Prediction: 50-32 (Last year predicted 54-28, actually 54-28)

Minnesota Timberwolves

Additions: LaMelo Ball, Jonathan Kuminga, Trey Lyles, Cody Williams, Isaiah Evans (33rd pick in 2026 Draft)

Subtractions: Julius Randle, Naz Reid, Mike Conley, Kyle Anderson, Joe Ingles, Julian Phillips

Other: Re-signed Ayo Dosunmu, Re-signed Bones Hyland

Outlook: The Wolves have strung together three successful seasons in a row, by far the best three-season stretch in franchise history. However, last season’s defeat in the second-round to a less-than-100% Spurs team seems to have persuaded the Wolves brass that the team was not in position to actually win the title. Thus, a remarkable overhaul, with the team completely shifting its style by shipping out two of its big men for a dynamic point guard in LaMelo Ball. Ball is extraordinarily talented, and should make Anthony Edwards’ life easier on offense. They are probably going to be the highest octane backcourt in the NBA. However, the Wolves’ size, once such a strength, is gone, and if Rudy Gobert (who is 34) has injuries or slips at all, their rebounding and defense might not be viable. I don’t mind the swing on Kuminga, despite his lack of positive impact in the NBA so far, but there’s no question the Wolves are shallower than last season, especially with Donte DiVincenzo still out with a torn Achilles. If Edwards, Ball, and Gobert are mostly healthy the Wolves still seem like a playoff lock, but I worry about their defense and Ball’s ability to hold up.

Prediction: 46-36 (Last year predicted 48-34, actually 49-33)

Utah Jazz

Additions: Darryn Peterson (2^nd pick in 2026 NBA Draft), Josh Okogie, Josh Green, Jaxson Hayes, Mo Bamba

Subtractions: Walker Kessler, Cody Williams, John Konchar, Kevin Love, Elijah Harkless

Other: Re-signed Jusuf Nurkic

Outlook: After several seasons of tanking the Jazz seem like they’ll finally try to win games in 2027. They traded for Jaren Jackson Jr. at the trade deadline last year, but he barely played before being ruled out with an injury. Combine JJJ with dynamic scorer Lauri Markkanen, young guard Keyonte George, and number two pick Darryn Peterson and you have a ton of talent, especially on offense. If the Jazz’s center rotation was better I’d probably have them as a legitimately good team, but having Jusuf Nurkic, Jaxson Hayes, and Mo Bamba as your centers in today’s day and age is just a tough look. A lot rides on Peterson – if he’s the player he looked like in high school two years ago, he could help the Jazz rocket up the standings. There are also other young players on the roster whose improvement could keep the Jazz moving into more of a true playoff team, like second-year Ace Bailey, reserve big Kyle Filipowski, and bench scorer Brice Sensabaugh. There’s talent, but it’s young and offensively-focused, so I think the Jazz are one year away from truly breaking through.

Prediction: 37-45 (Last year predicted 18-64, actually 22-60)

Portland Trailblazers

Additions: Ja Morant, Jeremy Sochan, Micah Potter, Branden Carlson

Subtractions: Jerami Grant, Kris Murray, Matisse Thybulle, Caleb Love

Other: Re-signed Robert Williams, Hired Micah Nori as head coach

Outlook: The Blazers were one of the most middling teams in the NBA last season, and I don’t see that changing much this year. The only major move the Blazers made in the offseason was acquiring Ja Morant, which is a pure talent play that I don’t love considering Ja’s on-court and off-court issues as well as his questionable fit in Portland. If Ja returns to his 2022-2023 level of play he will be a major talent upgrade, but the sheer lack of shooting in Portland plus his and Dame’s awful defense limits Portland’s ceiling. On the other hand, if Ja combusts, it could sink the whole enterprise. Split the difference and you have a fine season with a deal of variance. The Blazers are also a major trade candidate, including veterans like Jrue Holiday (for a contender) and youngsters like Scoot Henderson (change of scenery).

Prediction: 35-47 (Last year predicted 38-44, actually 42-40)

2027 NBA Preview: The Northwest Division
Robert Flom

Over a week and a half of silence from the Clippers organization was broken Sunday night, when owner Steve Ballmer released a statement that he and the team have accepted the NBA’s punishment for salary cap circumvention and will not be moving forward with legal action. In the statement (on his and the Clippers’ Twitter page in full), Ballmer acknowledged the Clippers had been in the wrong (without going into any specifics), reiterated that the NBA investigation got some things wrong, and apologized to the fans and other stakeholders for poor decisions.

Not even a full day later, on Monday afternoon, Shams Charania of ESPN reported that the Clippers were proceeding with the Kawhi Leonard trade to the Raptors now that they’d accepted the punishment and had set their house in order. The terms of the trade are unchanged, with the Clippers received Brandon Ingram, Gradey Dick, two first round picks, a first round pick swap, and two second rounders.

These are all good developments, in my opinion. The Clippers threatening legal actions against the NBA in response to the punishment seemed shortsighted and emotional at best, with almost no chance of anything positive coming from it for the Clippers and the possibility of enraging the NBA even further. Sueing the NBA was not going to work, and I’m glad that the Clippers/Ballmer came to their senses and stepped back. At this point, the evidence laid out in the Wachtell report seemed impossible to satisfactorily answer, and the Clippers just taking the punishment and moving on appeared to be the smartest course of action.

One of the biggest pluses with accepting the punishment is that the Clippers could proceed with the Kawhi deal. For as awful as Kawhi’s tenure now looks, the trade return for him remains incredibly strong. I don’t like watching Brandon Ingram play basketball, but he can help keep the team competent the next year or two. Gradey Dick is an interesting flier (though the team just has way too many 2s and 3s right now). But most importantly, getting those picks back to at least somewhat offset the punishment for cap circumvention is more important than ever. The Clippers are not in a position to trade those picks for players now, but they could be in a couple of years, and having those assets to trade (or just use as picks) will be hugely important.

This should hopefully conclude Kawhi Leonard’s tenure with the Clippers. The Clippers will still be eating the NBA’s punishment for the next seven years, and the sting of being caught cheating will haunt them as well. But the team can finally move on and focus on their young players that are the future of the team, especially Keaton Wagler. I, for one, am interested to see how this post-Kawhi era develops for the Clippers. It would be hard to be more disappointing than the Kawhi era, at the very least.

Clippers and Ballmer Accept NBA Punishment, Proceed with Kawhi Leonard Trade
Robert Flom

Our player preview series for the Clippers’ 2027 season starts with their third-string point guard, Jalen Pickett.

Basic Information

Height: 6’2

Weight: 202 pounds

Position: Point Guard

Age: 26 (turns 27 in a month)

Years in NBA: 3

Regular Season Stats: 5.2 points, 2.3 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 0.3 steals, and 0.7 turnovers in 16.1 minutes per game across 50 games played (18 starts) on 42.2/38.6/78.9 shooting splits (2.5 3PA, 0.4 FTA) with 54.1% TS

Contract Status: Signed a two-way contract in August

Expectations

As Pickett was signed to a two-way deal towards the end of the usual NBA offseason transaction cycle, there are not huge expectations on him this year. However, Pickett is both older (almost 27) and has more experience (three years in the NBA) than most two-way players, and is at a position (point guard) where the Clippers don’t have a lot of depth. Thus, it’s quite reasonable to expect that Pickett, as the third point guard, will get rotation minutes this season – Darius Garland has historically not been the most available player, and Keaton Wagler is a rookie that the Clippers will be very closely monitoring. A fair expectation for Pickett will be that he is a competent backup point guard when called upon that can play up to 20 minutes in a pinch without hurting the team much on either end.

Strengths

Pickett’s biggest strength is his surehandedness as a ballhandler. He has an assist to turnover ratio of nearly 4:1, which is fantastic for a backup guard. Positive ratios at that level can sometimes be associated with an aversion to risk (which can be a bad thing), but there’s almost nothing more harmful than having ballhandlers that cough up turnovers all the time, so Pickett’s ability to get offenses into sets and limit giveaways is huge, especially for a Clippers team that has struggled with turnovers for years.

It’s on a small sample size (more on that in a bit), but Pickett has been a pretty good three-point shooter in the NBA, making 38.7% of his shots from deep. The volume is not there (253 total attempts across three years), but Pickett was a good shooter in college and there’s no reason to think he wouldn’t be a capable three-point shooter on more attempts. Pickett’s shooting enables him to play off-ball, which means that he could pair with Keaton Wagler in the backcourt (on offense) to add some additional ballhandling and playmaking if the Clippers decide they want to relieve the burden on Wagler a bit. Of course, the preferential partner for that particular need would be Garland, but if some of the Clippers’ backup wing options are injured or don’t pan out, Pickett should be able to fit alongside Wagler on offense.

Weaknesses

For someone who has been in the NBA for three years and started 22 games, Pickett has not actually played that much. He has logged just 1595 regular season minutes, and a lot of those have been in garbage time. Therefore, Pickett isn’t as experienced as one might think, and even in a backup role there isn’t a huge track of Pickett being successful. It’s not that he’s been bad, it’s just that he could be less dependable if called upon on a regular basis.

On the court, Pickett’s size makes him a target on defense. He’s not awful on that end of the floor, but like any other sub 6’3 guard he can get bullied by larger players. Pickett does fight on defense, and has a bit more heft than other players of his height, but playing him together with either Garland or Wagler would probably result in really poor defensive units.

On offense, Pickett is not a huge threat to score the basketball, especially from two-point range. Well over half of Pickett’s shot attempts in the NBA have come from deep, and he’s taken just 31 free throw attempts across his career. That means he rarely ever gets downhill as a scoring threat, which also limits his playmaking capabilities. Don’t expect huge scoring games from Pickett if he is called upon – the Clippers would need to get scoring juice from elsewhere on the bench if he is in the rotation.

Summary

Pickett was a quietly good signing for the Clippers in a very turbulent summer. I don’t think he will have a major role with the Clippers this year barring injury (knock on wood), but he is slightly overqualified to be the third point guard on what looks to be a middling team. I imagine there’s at least a few games this year where Pickett fills in well in the rotation and helps the team win, and that’s all you can ask for from a down-the-bench two-way player.

2027 Player Preview: Jalen Pickett
Robert Flom

The final Eastern Conference division covered in my preview of the 2027 NBA season is also probably the strongest division in the entire NBA, featuring four championship contenders and the woeful Brooklyn Nets.

New York Knicks

Additions: Andre Drummond

Subtractions: Mitchell Robinson, Ariel Hukporti, Jeremy Sochan

Other: Re-signed Landry Shamet, Re-signed Jose Alvarado, Re-signed Jordan Clarkson, Re-signed Mohamed Diawara

Outlook: The Knicks had one of the greatest playoff runs in recent NBA history last year, dropping just three games in the postseason on their way to an NBA championship. Unsurprisingly, the Knicks are mostly running their championship squad back this year, with the only losses being to their center rotation. Losing Robinson is definitely a blow, but he wasn’t even that effective in the postseason, and Andre Drummond is at least a fine regular season stopgap. The Knicks have a team composed of players nearly entirely in their prime, and were able to re-sign almost all of their key bench pieces to cheap long-term deals. They weren’t a regular season juggernaut last year and probably won’t be this season, but the Knicks are primed and loaded for bear to repeat as champions in the 2027 season.

Prediction: 54-28 (Last year 53-29, predicted 53-29)

Philadelphia 76ers

Additions: Jaylen Brown, LeBron James, Dean Wade, Anfernee Simons, Labaron Philon (20th pick in 2026 Draft), Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Ariel Hukporti

Subtractions: Paul George, Quentin Grimes, Kelly Oubre, Andre Drummond, Trendon Watford, Johni Broome, Dalen Terry

Other: Replaced Daryl Morey as GM with Mike Gansey

Outlook: The Sixers added a little player this offseason by the name of LeBron James. You may have heard of him. LeBron is very, very old by NBA standards, but he’s still a highly effective player, and more importantly, his playmaking and rebounding are exactly what this Sixers team needed. The Sixers paid a lot to get Jaylen Brown, and it will be interesting to see how he settles into more of a secondary role after being the head of the Celtics’ snake last year, but he’s an undeniable talent upgrade over the departed Paul George. The Sixers’ starting unit of Tyrese Maxey, VJ Edgecombe, Brown, LeBron, and Joel Embiid has a strong case for the most talented in the entire NBA, while Dean Wade, Anfernee Simons, and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope are solid veterans to bolster the Sixers’ bench. The main reason to be skeptical of the Sixers is Embiid’s health – as good as the rest of the roster now is, Philly will need the big fella to make a championship run, and at this point it’s jut hard to imagine Embiid staying healthy for most of a regular season much less a grueling postseason. Still, the Sixers should be very good and will be must-watch television.

Prediction: 51-31 (Last year 45-37, predicted 42-40)

Boston Celtics

Additions: Paul George, Mitchell Robinson, Chris Cenac Jr. (27th pick in 2026 Draft), Mike Conley

Subtractions: Jaylen Brown, Nikola Vucevic, Dalano Banton, Charles Bassey

Other: Re-signed Ron Harper Jr.

Outlook: The Celtics were one of the teams I (and most NBA pundits) was most off on last year. The Celtics shocked the league by winning 56 wins despite missing their best player, Jayson Tatum, for most of the season. Well, Tatum should be back healthy, but his long-time running mate Jaylen Brown is gone in a controversial trade, and the much older Paul George is in. George is a downgrade from Brown, but if Tatum is healthy and back to his 2021-2024 levels, the Celtics should still have more starpower than they did last season. Mitchell Robinson will help shore up the center position despite his injury and free-throw shooting issues, while Chris Cenac Jr. should add a pop of athleticism in a deep bench role. Overall, the East’s improvements and the lingering effects of Brown’s departure have me feeling the Celtics will take a step back this year, but underestimate the regular season winning of coach Joe Mazzulla at your peril.

Prediction: 48-34 (Last year 56-26, predicted 38-44)

Toronto Raptors

Additions: Kawhi Leonard (probably), Kyle Anderson, Allen Graves (19^th pick in 2026 Draft)

Subtractions: Brandon Ingram, Sandro Mamukelashvili, Gradey Dick, Garrett Temple

Other:

Outlook: It might seem odd to people that I’m only projecting the Raptors to win one more game than they did last year considering that they are (most likely) getting a superstar in Kawhi Leonard in exchange for Brandon Ingram (meh) and Gradey Dick (back of rotation player). The answer is simple: the Raptors were incredibly healthy last year, with 6 of their top 9 rotation players logging at least 70 games played. The Raptors probably won’t be as healthy this year as last year, and that combined with Kawhi’s own long-standing injury issues make them a less likely bet to win 50 games, even if they’re a far, far more dangerous postseason team with Kawhi. However, if Scottie Barnes and second-year Collin Murray-Boyles make further jumps, it’s possible the Raptors’ defense will be good enough to make it to the top-tier of the East in the regular season. I think the Raptors will be quite good, and if healthy, nobody will want to see them in the playoffs.

Prediction: 47-35 (Last year 46-36, predicted 35-47)

Brooklyn Nets

Additions: Mikel Brown Jr. (6^th pick in 2026 Draft), Julius Randle, Mo Wagner, Keon Ellis, Joshua Jefferson (28^th pick in 2026 Draft)

Subtractions: Nic Claxton, Ziaire Smith, Jalen Wilson, Ochai Agbaji, Tyrese Martin

Other: Re-signed Day’ron Sharpe, Re-signed Josh Minott

Outlook: I think the Nets are one of the easiest teams to predict this season – they are going to be very bad. Yes, they won’t tank because they don’t control their pick. And yes, they did have an influx of talent this offseason, including adding a floor raiser in Julius Randle. But the entire NBA, especially the East, has also gotten better, and tanking disincentives will mean even the bottom feeders are trying harder. Even with Randle, Wagner, and Ellis, plus holdover vets like Michael Porter Jr. and Terance Mann, the Nets remain really young, with most of their roster being first, second, or third-year players. Those types of teams are normally bad, especially since none of the youngsters are blue chip prospects (I like Mikel Brown Jr., but very, very few NBA guards impact winning their rookie season). The Nets might be more competent than last year, but I don’t know how much that will translate to winning.

Prediction: 25-57 (Last year 20-62, predicted 21-61)

2027 NBA Preview: The Atlantic Division
Robert Flom

It’s now been over a full day since the NBA brought a hammer down on the Clippers for cap circumvention, which meant Lucas Hann and I did an hour-long podcast giving our thoughts on all angles. Do we think the Clippers did it? What was the most interesting part of the report released by the NBA? Who should take most of the blame for the circumvention? Where do the Clippers go from here? All these questions and more were discussed.

As always, you can find the podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, iHeart, and any other major podcast distributor.

TLTJTP: Clippers Get Crushed by NBA for Cap Circumvention
Robert Flom

The NBA finally handed out their punishment to the Clippers for the Kawhi Leonard Aspiration saga, and it was a big one, with the Clippers getting something close to the maximum penalty. The Clippers are losing five first round draft picks (one each from 2029 to 2033), Steve Ballmer is getting fined $30M, and Ballmer, Lawrence Frank, and Gillian Zucker are all getting suspensions of various lengths.

The full summary report of the lawfirm’s investigation can be read here, and it is quite, quite damning if accurate (there’s no reason it wouldn’t be). The Clippers not only introduced Kawhi Leonard to sponsors illegally, but even negotiated the contracts that Kawhi was set to receive from said sponsors in return for future business. There’s a whole lot in there, and the evidence seems quite ironclad.

The Clippers have responded with a statement that they will fight the penalties, and I’m sure they will do so, but based on the report things look quite grim for them. For now, we should assume this penalty is what will actually take place, plus or minus some stuff around the margins.

The first round picks punishment is what fans will care about, and I won’t lie, this punishment is close to a death knell for the Clippers in the next few years barring some truly miraculous developments or brilliant team building. The Clippers will not have any firsts to trade for players, nor will they be able to draft youngsters to put around Keaton Wagler. They can, of course, trade the players currently on their roster for picks, and they will probably do so, since contention in the next couple of years seems very unlikely.

I don’t really have much to say about the whole situation, other than it’s really, really unfortunate for fans of the team. It seems fairly clear that the Clippers did what they were accused of, and did so for a team that made one Conference Finals a half-decade ago. Steve Ballmer and the executives are getting off relatively lightly on a personal perspective, as is Kawhi, but the franchise losing those picks will just make fans miserable for years to come. It seems unfair for fans, but cap circumvention is really bad, and punishments must be made.

I think it’s totally understandable for fans to jump ship over this. Not just because the team seems destined for a very difficult next 3-5 years, but because from ownership on down the organization seems to be rotten. Now, fans root for the players, and that’s always been the case, but this is a mighty tough pill to swallow.

Here at 213 Hoops, we will still be covering the Clippers as an on-court basketball team (for the time being, at least), so don’t expect any changes there. We will keep you all posted as the story develops further; Kawhi’s lack of punishment should mean that the trade will officially go through at some time, anyway. At least now we can all move on.

Clippers Hammered by NBA for Kawhi Leonard Cap Circumvention
Robert Flom

The Central Division is one of the most stacked in the NBA, featuring a 60-win team, a conference finalist, and an NBA Finals runner-up from 2025, all of whom are gearing up for contention in 2027.

Cleveland Cavaliers

Additions: Peyton Watson, Mario Hezonja, Cam Whitmore, Meleek Thomas (34^th pick in 2026 Draft)

Subtractions: Max Strus, Dean Wade, Dennis Schroder, Keon Ellis, Larry Nance Jr.

Other: Re-signed James Harden, Extended Donovan Mitchell to a supermax, Re-signed Thomas Bryant

Outlook: The Cavaliers finally broke through to the Conference Finals last year only to get swept in unceremonious fashion by the eventual champion New York Knicks. Despite all the public attention being on the perceived flaws of the “Core Four” of Donovan Mitchell, James Harden, Evan Mobley, and Jarrett Allen, the real issues with the Cavs in the playoffs was that nobody else on the roster looked remotely ready for the moment on an even semi-consistent basis. Those guys all have real flaws and limitations, but the lack of a fifth option that could be relied upon for big minutes was the biggest downside to the team. As a response, the Cavs went out and acquired Peyton Watson (just last week) from the Nuggets on a big deal to fill that last starting spot. They also turned over much of their bench, looking for internal development from guys like Jaylon Tyson, Craig Porter Jr., Tyrese Proctor, and second-round rookie Meleek Thomas to replace the departures in the rotation. The depth could be an issue, but the top 5 should be good enough to carry the Cavs to yet another 50+ win season.

Prediction: 51-31 (Last year predicted 58-24, actually 52-30)

Detroit Pistons

Additions: John Collins, Isaiah Joe, Taurean Prince, Gary Harris, Ebuka Okorie (18^th pick in 2026 Draft)

Subtractions: Tobias Harris, Isaiah Stewart, Caris Levert, Marcus Sasser, Bobi Klintman

Other: Jalen Duren remains a restricted free agent, Re-signed Javonte Green, Re-signed Kevin Huerter

Outlook: The Pistons were one of the best stories of the 2026 season, securing the 1 spot in the Eastern Conference with room to spare. The Pistons won a playoff series for the first time since the 2000s, and saw star guard Cade Cunningham get down-ballot MVP buzz. It was objectively a huge success for the franchise, even with a disappointing second-round loss to the Cavaliers. However, the offseason has been a bit shakier, with two pillars of the revamped Pistons culture (Tobias Harris, Isaiah Stewart) departing, and breakout big man Jalen Duren still in a standoff with the Pistons in restricted free agency over his next contract. This outlook could change completely if Duren is not on the team next year, or is sign and traded for someone else, but all signs are that he will be back on the team in some capacity. Even with somewhat lesser depth, the combination of Cade, Duren, and Ausar Thompson will likely anchor an excellent defense and decent offense. The question is whether their offense is enough to make a deep playoff run, and the answer right now seems like no. Still, I’d expect the Pistons to once again be quite good in the regular season.

Prediction: 50-32 (Last year predicted 49-33, actually 60-22)

Indiana Pacers

Additions: Kelly Oubre, Larry Nance Jr.

Subtractions: Micah Potter, Taelon Peter

Other:

Outlook: I’m not sure any team in the NBA made fewer offseason moves than the Pacers, who only really added one player (Oubre) in free agency and did not make a first-round draft pick selection. The reason they did not have a first round pick was, of course, because of the Ivica Zubac trade; the Pacers’ offseason move was really made at the trade deadline. It’s hard to know where to place the Pacers. As good as Zu is, he’s a very different player and fit than the Pacers’ previous starting center (Myles Turner), and it might take the Pacers a while to adjust their playstyle to adjust for a non-shooting big. Combine that with Tyrese Haliburton coming off a lost year due to Achilles injury and you have a team that might need some time to gel, despite much of the roster being the same as their 2025 Finals squad. It’s hard not to imagine their offense being very good, the questions will come on defense – Pascal Siakam is two years older than the 2025 version, and he was really their lynchpin on defense. I think the Pacers will be pretty good in the regular season, and could be very scary once again in the postseason if Haliburton has fully rounded into shape by then.

Prediction: 46-36 (Last year predicted 40-42, actually 19-63)

Chicago Bulls

Additions: Caleb Wilson (4^th pick in 2026 Draft), Norm Powell, Nic Claxton, Dailyn Swain (15^th pick in 2026 Draft)

Subtractions: Collin Sexton, Anfernee Simons, Guerschon Yabusele, Nick Richards

Other: Hired Bryson Graham as lead front office executive, Hired Tiago Splitter as head coach, Re-signed Zach Collins

Outlook: The Bulls finally, finally were bad enough last season to get a good draft pick (they still had to jump up in the lottery to do so) and got rewarded with Caleb Wilson at pick four. I don’t know if Wilson will be helpful to winning right away (most rookies aren’t) but he should be exciting and produce highlights in a way that the Bulls have not had in a long, long time. I also liked the Swain pick at 15, even though he was awful in Summer League. Bulls fans weren’t super happy with the Norm Powell signing or Nic Claxton trade, but I think both guys will help stabilize the starting lineup and make life easier for their youngsters. The Bulls probably won’t be very good this season (especially on defense), yet this is the best I’ve felt about the direction of their franchise since the early Derrick Rose days well over a decade ago. Wilson, Swain, Matas Buzelis, and Noa Essengue is a legitimately interesting young core. Now they just need to develop and continue providing hope of one day being the core to an actually good team.

Prediction: 26-56 (Last year predicted 30-52, actually 31-51)

Milwaukee Bucks

Additions: Tyler Herro, Kel’el Ware, Jaime Jaquez, Kasparas Jakucionis, Brayden Burries (10^th pick in 2026 Draft), Nate Ament (13^th pick in 2026 Draft), Caris Levert, Bogoljub Markovic

Subtractions: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Bobby Portis, Gary Harris, Andre Jackson Jr., Cole Anthony, Thanasis Antetokounmpo, Taurean Prince, Cam Thomas

Other: Hired Taylor Jenkins as head coach, Re-signed Gary Trent Jr., Re-signed Ousmane Dieng, Re-signed Jericho Sims

Outlook: The Bucks finally ended the Giannis era this offseason, moving him for a massive haul of players and picks from the Miami Heat. Honestly, I thought their return was solid considering Giannis’ age, injury history, and clear desire to be traded, but the Bucks’ roster is now a complete mishmash of Giannis-era holdovers, the newly acquired players, and freshly drafted youngsters. The best player on the roster is probably Tyler Herro, followed by Ryan Rollins, and that makes for a bad, bad team in the rejuvenated Eastern Conference. Rookie guard Brayden Burries looked terrific in Summer League, but he is behind those two veterans for now, and I was not a fan of the Nate Ament pick at all. If the Bucks’ young guys look good, that will be a far bigger success for the franchise than the team being competent in the regular season. I’d expect the Bucks to be one of the worst teams in the NBA this season, one of the few true “easy wins” in an NBA that has made tanking less profitable.

Prediction: 22-60 (Last year predicted 43-39, actually 32-50)

2027 NBA Preview: Central Division
Robert Flom