Shams: Mavs weighing whether to trade or extend Anthony Davis (1:10)Shams Charania reports on the Mavericks’ decision ahead with Anthony Davis and which Eastern Conference teams have emerged as potential trade partners if Dallas deals him. (1:10)
The Emirates NBA Cup takes center stage this week, with Wednesday’s doubleheader capping the quarterfinal round and setting up Saturday’s semifinals in Las Vegas.
The Orlando Magic and New York Knicks have already punched their tickets, and the Oklahoma City Thunder, Phoenix Suns, Los Angeles Lakers and San Antonio Spurs will battle to join them.
Before the NBA Cup’s final four teams are set, and before the soon-to-be 26 eliminated teams resume their regular seasons on Thursday and Friday, let’s check in on the latest Power Rankings update while also diagnosing the biggest weaknesses facing every team. Who needs to step it up on the defensive end? Who has a glaring hole on offense?
Who simply needs to get healthy? And do the defending champion Thunder have a weakness at all amid a historic 23-1 start? Our NBA insiders break down all these questions and rank the 30 teams in our weekly Power Rankings.
Note: Team rankings are based on where members of our panel (ESPN’s Anthony Slater, Dave McMenamin, Jamal Collier, Kevin Pelton, Michael C. Wright, Ohm Youngmisuk, Tim Bontemps, Tim MacMahon, Vincent Goodwill and Zach Kram) think teams belong this season.
If there was ever a knock on the Pistons’ early-season run to the East lead, it’s their shooting (19th in 3-point percentage, 28th in attempts). And it was bound to bite at some point. For a stretch after their franchise-record 13-game win streak, the Pistons squandered big leads when teams switched to a zone defense — like the Bucks did last week — and weren’t able to counter. All five Pistons losses this season have featured a 3-point percentage of 33% or worse. — Vincent Goodwill
This Boston roster has always featured a heavy dose of 3-pointers combined with one of the lower free throw rates in the league. But that disparity has only grown after offseason departures and the injury to Jayson Tatum, who attempted the third most free throws in the league last season. The Celtics, last in the NBA in free throw attempts per game this season, could struggle to maintain their No. 2 offensive rating if that trend lasts through an entire 82-game season. — Tim Bontemps
The Heat’s offense has slowed down. After scoring at least 120 points in 13 of 21 games, the Heat have failed to reach that mark in four straight games — all losses. Miami will have to figure out how to continue its free-flowing, up-tempo offense when fully healthy with Tyler Herro back in the mix after being eliminated from the NBA Cup on Tuesday. — Youngmisuk
Toronto is a bottom-10 team in both free throws attempted and allowed, which equated to the Raptors spotting their opponents an extra two to three points per game. Toronto is one of just five teams that doesn’t have a single player averaging five free throw attempts per game, along with the below-.500 Wizards, Hornets, Mavericks and Kings. In Tuesday’s Cup quarterfinal loss, the Knicks shot 10 more free throws than the Raptors. — Zach Kram
The Suns are an undisputable early-season success story, hovering near the top 10 in the league in defensive and offensive efficiency under first-year coach Jordan Ott, but Phoenix can improve by sharpening its ball distribution. The Suns rank 22nd in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.62-to-1), a telling stat that highlights both Phoenix’s need for better ball protection and an offense that could be a tad too reliant on isolation play and free throws. — McMenamin
Let’s set aside the obvious question of how regularly, and effectively, Joel Embiid will be able to play. Even when that isn’t accounted for, this is still a perimeter-oriented, guard-heavy roster. That style has plenty of benefits for Philadelphia, but also a fair share of issues at both ends. That lack of size showed up in a significant way defensively in Sunday’s loss to the Lakers, when LeBron James repeatedly muscled his way inside en route to his best game of the season. — Bontemps
The Clippers are 17th in the league with 14.6 turnovers per game, fueling their rank (27th) in fast-break points allowed per game (17.5). The reason this deficiency is particularly disappointing for the Clippers is because it’s not an issue that sneaked up on them. Assistant coach Jeff Van Gundy even made T-shirts for the players to wear during training camp, reminding them to “Get the f— back,” with the profanity broken down to four tenets of their transition defense philosophy. — McMenamin
Washington averages 89.6 shots per game, while its opponents average 95.3. That deficit is the largest for any team, and it’s because the Wizards struggle to get the ball back on defense: They rank 29th in forcing turnovers and 30th in defensive rebound rate. The Wizards are on pace to set an NBA record for worst single-season defensive rating, and that inability to control opponent shot attempts is a large reason. — Kram
Defense will always be a cause of concern with this roster, as stars Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns don’t specialize on that end of the floor. New York has been better as an overall unit since Josh Hart has found his mojo, as winning eight of nine games — including Tuesday’s Cup quarterfinal in Toronto — has the Knicks feeling like the Knicks again. If Mitchell Robinson plays more minutes, that will alleviate the pressure on two-way wings OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges to make every play. — Vincent Goodwill
Though the Lakers’ anemic 26th ranking in 3-pointers made (and 17th ranking in 3-point percentage) remains a recurring soft spot for the team, the Lakers are sixth in overall offensive rating. The real issue? Their defense. In particular, the transition defense has been too porous to start the season. Opposing teams are averaging 24.3 points per game in transition against Los Angeles (18th in the league) and shooting 55% in transition (17th). L.A. is also 27th in 3-point defense, allowing opponents to shoot 38.2% from the outside — another trend that needs to change for the Lakers to be elite. — Dave McMenamin
Victor Wembanyama’s absence likely factors into this, but the Spurs are tied with Washington for 27th in opponent 3-point field goal percentage (38.3). Wembanyama’s 8-foot wingspan and ability to cover ground in a hurry provided San Antonio’s defenders the luxury of knowing he could erase most shots at the rim. In the first 12 games with Wembanyama in the fold, opponents took 42.3% of their shots from 3-point range. Since Wembanyama has been sidelined, that number has diminished (36.9%) as teams found easier paths to the rim. With the Spurs defending more drives, it appears their 3-point defense has slipped. — Wright
Rudy Gobert may not quite be the dominant force he once was, but he’s still a very good defensive player — and the Timberwolves don’t have a lot of success at that end of the court when he’s not involved. When Gobert plays, Minnesota has a 108.6 defensive rating — better than any team but the league-leading Thunder. But when he’s off the court, Minnesota falls to a 118.3 defensive rating, which would slot right between the Charlotte Hornets (24th) and LA Clippers (25th). That has to improve if Minnesota wants to make another trip to the West finals. — Bontemps
Orlando’s biggest task becomes maintaining its rhythm with Franz Wagner sidelined by a left ankle sprain — an MRI on Monday revealed no structural damage — and with Paolo Banchero coming back into the fold after missing time with a groin strain. (The Magic went 7-3 in Banchero’s absence.) Still, the Magic could be without Wagner, their steadiest player so far this season, for two to four weeks. Desmond Bane picked up plenty of the slack with 37 points in Orlando’s Cup quarterfinal win. — Ohm Youngmisuk
Last season’s No. 1 offense blitzed through the East with 68 wins. This season, the drop-off has been noticeable despite Cleveland still ranking 10th in offensive efficiency. Saturday’s loss to Golden State was the Cavs’ worst offensive showing of 2025-26, and it showcased plenty of the issues plaguing them. The Cavs were held under 100 points for the second time — that happened just once last season — and shot 24% from 3-point range with just eight fast-break points and with All-Star guard Darius Garland shooting 6-of-15 from the floor. To fully regain their contender status, the Cavs need more production from Garland, better transition offense and more 3s to fall. — Jamal Collier
Here is a list of the nine least-efficient offenses in the NBA, starting from the worst: Wizards, Mavericks, Pacers, Kings, Pelicans, Grizzlies, Bulls, Nets and then Warriors. The Jazz, Blazers, Clippers and Hornets are the next four above Golden State. So the Warriors are the only team in the bottom 13 with a record above .500. They are surviving on the defensive end but must find some better efficiency and sustainability with and without Stephen Curry on the floor to become a fringe playoff threat. The Warriors have the fifth-worst turnover percentage in the league, shoot a midtier percentage from deep (36.4%) and get the second-fewest points per game (22.1) off drives. That’s not a winning formula. — Slater
One of coach Quin Snyder’s biggest concerns is his team’s rebounding and interior defense without a ton of size. A healthy Kristaps Porzingis goes a long way for the Hawks’ rim protection, but the big man recently missed four consecutive games because of illness and is often held out of a game in back-to-backs. Jalen Johnson and Onyeka Okongwu have been the best rebounders on the team, but the Hawks have to figure out how to battle more size inside. Dyson Daniels has helped with 6.2 rebounds per game, but Johnson will have to keep carrying the rebound load at 10.5 per game. — Youngmisuk
Ja Morant has played in just 12 games. But before Morant suffered his calf strain, it was clear he and the coaching staff weren’t on the same page regarding some of coach Tuomas Iisalo’s philosophies. Iisalo’s approach employs short rotations, which some players believe negatively affects their ability to fall into a rhythm. After dropping 11 of its first 15 games, Memphis has won seven of its past nine, and it appears the Grizzlies are starting to find a comfort level. The return of Zach Edey after a 13-game absence has helped. — Wright