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Power Rankings for NBA teams in the 2025-2026 NBA season. RotoBaller's Kevin Larson analyzes every NBA Team with Power Rankings from worst to first as of October 28, 2025.
NBA Power Rankings: Every Team From Worst to First
What a crazy first week that was for the NBA. Certainly no shortage of entertainment regardless of where you looked. The Thunder have continued their winning ways as they look to defend their title, the Warriors are showing they’re determined, the Lakers already will be missing Luka Doncic for at least a week and the Phoenix Suns may not really want to be on a basketball court right now. Figuring out these rankings this early in the season is always a bit messy but we’re here to help you see through that mess a little easier. So let’s dive into this week’s NBA Power Rankings.
30. Brooklyn Nets
We weren’t exactly expecting good basketball in Brooklyn this season and so far it hasn’t been good. An 0-3 record feels a bit spot on for this franchise. At the very least, Cam Thomas is doing his best to show anyone in the league that he still can put up points with ease, posting up 33 points against Cleveland and following that up with 40 against San Antonio. With his contract situation front of mind this season, he’s playing either for a spot with another roster after the deadline or his next contract this offseason.
29. Utah Jazz
The biggest shock the opening week was Utah absolutely clobbering the Clippers in the season opener. A franchise that clearly is tanking smoked a franchise who made moves for a title. Not quite how anyone thought it’d play out but it was a fun time in Utah. That fun time may last a bit longer as they face the Suns twice this week. Things should start to get real after that, but it’s at least going to be an interesting start for the Jazz.
28. Washington Wizards
The Wizards are running around with two vets on their roster but it’s the young guys making noise. Kyshawn George and Tre Johnson are leading the way in scoring for the Wizards. George leads the Wizards with 20.3 PPG and 9.3 RPG as a second year player. Johnson comes in at 16.3 PPG while shooting 42.9% from three. Small samples sizes, sure, but it’s enough to get Wizards fans excited about their future. Still expect Washington to position veterans Khris Middleton and CJ McCollum as trade pieces for the deadline in February.
27. Phoenix Suns
We expected a lot of points to be scored in Suns games this season but so far it’s only been a one-sided results. Coming into Monday night’s action the Suns posted the worst defensive rating in the league while the offense ranks in the bottom third. Whenever Jalen Green returns from his hamstring injury that’s going to at least help on the offensive side, but it’s not a pretty on-court product for the Suns right now. Devin Booker just signed an extension with the Suns this offseason that will keep him in Phoenix through the 2029-2030 season. Buyer’s remorse may not be kicking in quite yet, but if things get bad in Phoenix then this will end up being a situation that everyone needs to monitor.
26. New Orleans Pelicans
With so much change on the Pelicans roster there needs to be at least one familiar face in charge. That’s Zion Williamson and he’s been doing it all for the Pelicans’ offense. Coming into Monday’s action he leads the team in PPG, RPG and APG. That’s a version of Williamson that New Orleans fans have always wanted to have. But it still hasn’t amounted to much winning this season. If New Orleans is to fight for the play-in this season they’ll need Williamson to keep it up, although his health history will be freshly on the minds of everyone watching and hoping for competitive ball in New Orleans.
25. Charlotte Hornets
What if I told you the Charlotte Hornets have the best net rating in all of the NBA? Sure, it wouldn’t be accurate, but they’ve second best coming into Monday night’s action. Disregard the fact that it’s that high because of blowout wins over the Nets and Wizards. We’re still talking about blowout wins for a Charlotte team whose offense is absolutely ramped up. The defense will have its issues soon enough, but the offense is going to be able to keep up. That is if they stay healthy enough. And a shoulder injury to Brandon Miller that’s going to keep him out of the remainder of their road trip won’t help their cause. If he can stay healthy after he returns, though, we may be looking at a team that could ruffle some feathers in the East.
24. Indiana Pacers
Well, they started slow last season too so maybe this isn’t all that bad? It doesn’t help that an opening night injury to Andrew Nembhard made things tougher out the gates. Indiana’s got to figure out a way forward without him, which gives them a real lack of depth at guard without Tyrese Haliburton. But if last season taught us anything it’s that the Pacers are deep overall as a team. And that depth’s going to be tested as they likely fight for the play-in for the rest of the season.
23. Portland Trail Blazers
So Portland had an interesting opening week but not in a way that they really wanted to. Interim head coach Tiago Splitter stepped up after Chauncey Billups got himself caught up in the middle of a gambling scandal. Maybe the Blazers can at least be thankful this happened so early in the season, giving them a chance to still feel things out early. And with a tough schedule through mid-November that might be a blessing in disguise.
22. Boston Celtics
Well, the beginning of the season hasn’t gone the way Boston would like. An opening night loss to Philadelphia was made worse with a double-digit loss to the Knicks right after. The Celtics are clearly hurting from not having Jayson Tatum active. That plus the trades of Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday have given the starting five a bunch of challenges. Boston has to figure themselves out early. There’s still enough talent to make the playoffs in the East, but they’re going to have to get used to the idea that it’s likely going to be through the play-in.
21. Sacramento Kings
A 17-point halftime lead against the Suns on opening night dissipated in a somewhat embarrassing fashion, especially when you consider it happened to this version of the Suns. The Kings can’t panic too early, but their fans may not be feeling all that great about things. Their upcoming schedule won’t make any of their fans feel all that great either as it’s pretty tough. Sacramento needs to find out if it has a chance to be a playoff team this year or if the play-in is going to be their goal.
20. Miami Heat
A high scoring Miami Heat team? That’s not something we’re used to. Efficient and competitive yes, but Miami has put up 115 points or more in all three of their games this season. More impressively they’ve scored 121 or more in two of their three games. Seven players are averaging 10 PPG or more, lead by newly acquired Normal Powell with 24.0 PPG. We need to see a little more before we can shoot Miami up to a spot in these rankings that you’re used to seeing them, but the Heat are in for a competitive season yet again.
19. Dallas Mavericks
An opening night loss to the Spurs doesn’t look all that bad right now with how San Antonio’s started this season, but a loss to the Wizards doesn’t make anyone in Dallas feel good. Cooper Flagg is showing some decent flashes early on that he can be everything that’s promised as a number one overall pick, but the Mavs as a whole need to step it up. If they want fans to forget about last season’s Luka saga, they need to find themselves in a top six seed. What they’ve shown early on won’t cut it.
18. Memphis Grizzlies
You can’t say Grizzlies games won’t be entertaining to watch. Everybody’s getting points against Memphis. But they’re keeping up and then some, putting up 128 twice so far this season. The Desmond Bane trade made waves through the league and gave the appearance of a potential rebuild coming for the Grizzlies. But if they can stay competitive, their return for Bane that Orlando sent them may look incredibly good with that haul of picks they received. It’s going decent in Memphis to start this season.
17. Toronto Raptors
Toronto came into this season as one of my favorite under-the-radar teams in the East, at least to make the playoffs and create some noise. So far this season that hasn’t exactly come to fruition, leading to a 1-3 record after Monday night’s loss to the Spurs. Maybe it’s a tough schedule or maybe the Raptors’ struggles last season aren’t completely solved. Whatever it is, they’re going to go through some more struggles as the schedule stays tough over the next couple weeks. But Toronto fans are focused on the Blue Jays anyways so they’ve got at least a week before the eyes start focusing on them again.
16. Chicago Bulls
I wasn’t exactly high on the Bulls coming into this season but they’re starting the season hot and telling me that worrying about their “lack of identity” may be pretty stupid! Strong wins over the Magic and Pistons, followed by a big win against the Hawks on Monday night, shows they may be on the right track. At least for now. Production has been spread pretty much across the board for Chicago, giving them a strong “team ball” type of feel to them. Their start is at least trying to show they don’t need a rebuild and the current roster is indeed their identity. The rest of the season will be interesting for Bulls fans, that’s for sure.
15. Philadelphia 76ers
Some people may be worried about no Paul George to start the season or a version of Joel Embiid that’s on a minutes restriction. Not Sixers fans. They’ve got Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe. The two guards are absolutely cooking to start the season and have got the Sixers to a 3-0 start this season, giving plenty of hope that their disastrous 2024-2025 season is behind them. Are they going to be able to survive and entire season behind just those two? Philly fans will hope their roster’s health gets better as the season goes on, but it’s looking like a fun basketball season for Philadelphia yet again.
14. Los Angeles Lakers
Don’t ask where LeBron James is. Don’t ask what’s happening with Luka Doncic. Don’t ask why Deandre Ayton thinks he’s a confusing big to play with. The Lakers have Austin Reaves, the savior for the moment. His 51 point game against Sacramento was an incredible performance. But potentially more impressive, he’s recorded at least nine assists in each game this season prior to Monday night’s tilt against the Blazers. Los Angeles can’t survive this way forever, but for now it’s the Austin Reaves show.
13. Minnesota Timberwolves
The start to the season hasn’t been bad for Minnesota, but they’re going to be much more concerned with Anthony Edwards’ hamstring strain that forced him out of action in Sunday’s game against the Pacers. The star guard had an MRI on Monday and will be re-evaluated in a week, but that’s not going to make Timberwolves fans any less at ease. This is a big season in terms of determining whether Minnesota can make a title run with this current roster and Edwards missing time certainly would cloud judgements one way or another. If he’s out for a lengthy amount of time it will be a tough uphill climb for the Timberwolves
12. Detroit Pistons
After a strong season last year Detroit’s come out of the gates in semi-decent fashion. The losses aren’t much to complain about, outside of Monday night’s blowout loss to Cleveland, and the wins are solid. They’re doing pretty much what they need to do and that’s just fine and well for now. They’ll host the Orlando Magic, who are desperate for a win, on Wednesday before heading to Mexico City to face the Mavericks.
11. Milwaukee Bucks
I was someone who was definitely skeptical of the Bucks coming into the season but they’ve started off fairly impressively. Maybe it looks better because their wins are over the Wizards and an iffy Raptors team, but they’ve looked solid. They’ll need to keep it up, especially with the goal of keeping Giannis Antetokounmpo happy enough to stay in Milwaukee and kill the trade rumors that consistently pop up. This week starts tough with the Knicks and Warriors before hosting the Kings on Saturday.
10. Atlanta Hawks
Maybe they’ve just got early season nerves? This Hawks team was set to be a fun team that could make a strong run in the East. There’s plenty of time still to turn it around, but at 1-3 there are a lot more questions here than they’d like to have. Trae Young hasn’t had a signature scoring outburst this season, but he’s finally picked up on the assists. Jalen Johnson looks solid too, averaging 17.0 PPG and 7.5 RPG. But it’s not amounting to wins. Atlanta won’t panic yet, but it’s not the start they envisioned.
9. Orlando Magic
Speaking of a team in the Southeast division whose start isn’t what they envisioned, Orlando has struggled in the start to an incredibly hyped season for them. Opening night against Miami has been their only win and the rest has been a bumpy road. They’ve got enough talent to know that this likely isn’t who they are, but given the hype coming into this season they wanted a better start. A tough battle on Wednesday against Detroit is their last tough test before the schedule gives them a small break.
8. San Antonio Spurs
You couldn’t have a better start if your a Spurs fan. You couldn’t have a better player on your team than Victor Wembanyama if you’re a Spurs fan. He’s been incredible, averaging 33.3 PPG and 13.3 RPG. It’s going to get even better for Spurs fans once De’Aaron Fox returns from his hamstring injury. San Antonio’s been waiting a long time to be able to have Fox and Wemby paired together for a lengthy period of time. And once they’re there, if it pays off, San Antonio could be looking at a team ready to make a deep run in the West.
7. Los Angeles Clippers
So that opening night loss against the Jazz wasn’t exactly what anyone in LA wanted to see. Luckily for them they’ve corrected the course over their last two games. It wasn’t against the best competition, but they did what they needed to do. They’ll have a tough test on Tuesday against the Warriors, but luckily they’ll have the rest advantage with Golden State being on the second leg of a back-to-back. Regardless, it will be a good measuring stick for the veteran-led team that needs to make a deep run this season.
6. Golden State Warriors
Outside of a loss to the Blazers on the second leg of a back-t0-back, after an overtime win against the Nuggets, the Warriors have looked the part of a team that knows it needs to play determined basketball this season. Steph Curry is looking like vintage Steph Curry, something the Warriors will certainly need. Draymond Green is facilitating the ball at a high rate, averaging over seven assists per game. Jimmy Butler’s putting up 20+ PPG, simply doing his part for Golden State. The Warriors may be a team that everyone needs to look out for this season if they keep this up.
5. Houston Rockets
The Rockets’ start to this season certainly wasn’t what they signed up for after landing Kevin Durant in the offseason. But they finally were able to get their first win of the season Monday night after clobbering the Brooklyn Nets. It had to feel good after two straight losses to open the season, including the double-OT loss to Oklahoma City that they certainly had a chance at winning multiple times. The beating against Brooklyn can hopefully get them on the right track. Their next three games look to be more opportunities to correct the course further.
4. New York Knicks
Outside of their loss to the Heat, the Knicks have started off the season well. Opening night showed they can still compete and beat the best in the East by taking down the Cavaliers and they handled the Celtics with relative ease. It’s a bit discerning they couldn’t do the same with the Heat, but maybe Miami’s a solid team like we anticipate them to be. The Knicks are looking to win the East after being taken out by Indiana last season and this season’s start shows they’re ready to do so.
3. Cleveland Cavaliers
Donovan Mitchell is playing like a man on a mission. The 29-year-old is averaging 30 PPG on the season, absolutely smoking everyone in his way. He’s helped lead the Cavs to a 3-1 record with the only loss being at the hands of the Knicks on opening night. Cleveland is looking for revenge after being knocked out of the second round last year thanks to injuries and a solid Pacers team. Expect another solid regular season from this Cavaliers team, led by Donovan Mitchell who may contend for MVP if he keeps up this torrid scoring pace.
2. Denver Nuggets
Opening night was a great night for Aaron Gordon but the Nuggets ultimately couldn’t prevail over Golden State even with his 50 point performance. It’s not every day that you can go 10-11 from three, outshooting Steph Curry and still lose. But it happened. The Nuggets have responded with two straight wins and now get a few easy games on their schedule to buff up their record. They’re on a mission to win the West and get another title. If AG can provide like he did on opening night, and Jamal Murray can randomly drop 43 like he did on Monday night, the Nuggets will be in great shape to contend for a title.
1. Oklahoma City Thunder
Our top seed again is the Oklahoma City Thunder. They’re 4-0 on the season with two double-OT victories. Sure, they could be 2-2 if things swung differently, but they were able to do enough to come out on top. If you’re hoping they’re going to lose soon then I wouldn’t advise looking at their upcoming schedule, at least for the rest of the week. They’re in a great spot to continue winning and take our top seed yet again.
