11-18-2025, 04:37 AM
Tough blow for Spurs. I don't think they can stay competitive without Wemby, so they might fall in the standings a bit.
As tough as West is, the race for a play-in spot is still wide open. 10th place is currently surprisingly held by Utah, who only have one more win than three other teams. Clippers are surprisingly bad at the start of the season and they still have Kawhi "under the table" situation threatening. However, I see them as a team most likely to turn it around at some point. Phoenix is also surprisingly good at the season start, I would expect them to drop in the standings a bit.
I think the fight for 6 playoff spots will be between the current top 7 teams (OKC is imho a lock for first place, Denver, Houston, LAL, SA, Minny and GSW will battle it for remaining five spots), unless injuries derail one of them. Portland has a nice story going on, but I believe they have limitations on offense that will keep them a notch below. Memphis does have talent but they are obviously a mess and it doesn't look it will get sorted out.
Sacramento and Pels are just ultimate sad stories. Zero incentive for Pels to be tanking but it might still be smart to sell off some of their vets, because they suck anyway. I would assume their FO will be hoping they can turn it around once Murray and Poole return, but I am far from optimistic that is possible. I don't think Zion can ever stay healthy for a longer period of time. It looks like Sacramento will just blow it up rather sooner than later. Bunch of overpaid second or third options that don't play defense, so not sure if they can even get anything valuable for any of them. That team has no future and situation can't be imho solved by swapping a piece or two. Sabonis is not a number one guy on a contender and very difficult to build around on any team due to his limited defense. LaVine is still greatly overpaid and he doesn't look even like a secondary scorer on a good team. Monk and DeRozan are likely 6th men on a good team at this stage. It is beyond me how someone can construct a team of such ill-fitting pieces. They even overpaid Murray. I would keep him and trade everything else for anything of value and expiring contracts. Tank hard, hope for top pick and start from scratch (again). Do it right this time. Accumulate young talent, add some culture setting vets that will make them play defense.
As tough as West is, the race for a play-in spot is still wide open. 10th place is currently surprisingly held by Utah, who only have one more win than three other teams. Clippers are surprisingly bad at the start of the season and they still have Kawhi "under the table" situation threatening. However, I see them as a team most likely to turn it around at some point. Phoenix is also surprisingly good at the season start, I would expect them to drop in the standings a bit.
I think the fight for 6 playoff spots will be between the current top 7 teams (OKC is imho a lock for first place, Denver, Houston, LAL, SA, Minny and GSW will battle it for remaining five spots), unless injuries derail one of them. Portland has a nice story going on, but I believe they have limitations on offense that will keep them a notch below. Memphis does have talent but they are obviously a mess and it doesn't look it will get sorted out.
Sacramento and Pels are just ultimate sad stories. Zero incentive for Pels to be tanking but it might still be smart to sell off some of their vets, because they suck anyway. I would assume their FO will be hoping they can turn it around once Murray and Poole return, but I am far from optimistic that is possible. I don't think Zion can ever stay healthy for a longer period of time. It looks like Sacramento will just blow it up rather sooner than later. Bunch of overpaid second or third options that don't play defense, so not sure if they can even get anything valuable for any of them. That team has no future and situation can't be imho solved by swapping a piece or two. Sabonis is not a number one guy on a contender and very difficult to build around on any team due to his limited defense. LaVine is still greatly overpaid and he doesn't look even like a secondary scorer on a good team. Monk and DeRozan are likely 6th men on a good team at this stage. It is beyond me how someone can construct a team of such ill-fitting pieces. They even overpaid Murray. I would keep him and trade everything else for anything of value and expiring contracts. Tank hard, hope for top pick and start from scratch (again). Do it right this time. Accumulate young talent, add some culture setting vets that will make them play defense.