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The NBA season is young, but already so much has happened — particularly on the injury front. Anthony Edwards, Jalen Williams, Ja Morant and Tyrese Haliburton are a few of the many stars expected to miss substantial time. Those injuries have created an unexpected power void, especially as the reigning champs from New York stumble out of the gate.
Let's update our NBA power rankings accordingly:
The Rockets check damn near every box. This is an elite defense — the one Ime Udoka has long envisioned — with real signs of an offensive breakthrough, too. Fred VanVleet's return has massively improved Houston's basic execution; he's making life easier on Alperen Sengun and Kevin Durant, and former No. 2 pick Jabari Smith Jr. is finally stepping up to the plate. It's easy to forget Smith is only 23 years old. Also: Marcus Smart was one of the summer's best value signings.
Detroit is weathering the storm without Jalen Duren. It has not been the smoothest of sailing, but the Pistons' elite defense remains the ultimate equalizer — at least when it comes to regular season hoops. The Pistons are bullies, out-muscling and out-hustling opponents on a nightly basis. Cade Cunningham still has another level to reach.
Boston's mathball approach comes with its share of lulls and vulnerabilities, but Jayson Tatum is back in All-NBA form and the Paul George trade has paid off nicely so far. Boston does not play the most beautiful nor evocative brand of basketball, but it's highly effective in a regular season forum. Their defense is on equal footing with a prolific, 3-point driven offense.
Victor Wembanyama dropped 43 points with six blocks against the Gobert-less Timberwolves over the weekend, punctuating a rapid early turnaround for the Spurs. Their sluggish start is a thing of the past, and with OKC rattled by injuries, the seas are parting for another dominant San Antonio run. The Spurs aren't turning the ball over and their incessant paint pressure mitigates concerns over their creaky spacing.
Luka Doncic sure looks like the MVP so far. He's cooking on high heat, and the Lakers are coming up with enough defense — with special credit to Walker Kessler and Matisse Thybulle — for Doncic's heliocentric offense to shine through. Los Angeles' supporting cast is not without its warts, but you'd struggle to find more synergistic co-stars for Doncic than Kessler and Austin Reaves.
The Sixers continue to tax their stars heavily to overcome early deficits. This might be the best clutch team in the NBA, with an incredibly active defense that sparks overwhelming transition offense late in games. Philadelphia has also shown remarkable ball security for a team with so many high-usage stars trying to figure each other out. That said, Nick Nurse needs to inject the offense with more movement and deception, lest Philadelphia turn every game into a fist fight.
As expected, the Grizzlies are the NBA's last unbeaten team two weeks into the season. Wait, that wasn't expected? Ty Jerome has cooled off after a blowtorch start to the campaign, but Memphis has skill and depth across the positional spectrum. Cam Boozer's processing skills are lightyears ahead of most 19-year-olds; Cedric Coward and Cam Spencer are two of the best role players in the NBA. Memphis plays an admirably selfless and collective brand of basketball. It's fun to watch!
Is Cooper Flagg going to compete for the MVP award in his age-20 season? It sure feels like it. Flagg is taking a massive shot-making leap while playing the most impactful defense in the NBA, give or take Victor Wembanyama. Kyrie Irving remains a dream second banana for a big, playmaking wing, while head coach Dusty May has made the transition from college ball to the NBA look seamless.
Portland is top-six in both offensive and defensive efficiency, with Micah Nori emerging as an early candidate for Coach of the Year (maybe he deserved more than a one-year contract). Ja Morant is out for four weeks with a hamstring injury, which is a setback, but frankly the drop off from Morant to Scoot Henderson shouldn't be too steep. Portland's backcourt depth — their speed, scalability and activity — are strengths. Both Henderson and Damian Lillard aren't even off to the best starts.
Cleveland has one of the best wins in the NBA this season — a 127-125 shootout victory over the Wolves, before Anthony Edwards' unfortunate injury designation. That said, the Cavs are still in an uneasy period of discovery. Donovan Mitchell and James Harden are shaking off the rust, while the early returns on Peyton Watson are pretty dire. Cleveland has a high regular season baseline judging from recent history, but the East is unforgiving.
In the span of a week, OKC lost Jalen Williams, Cason Wallace and Chet Holmgren for extended periods. Suddenly, the Thunder's oft-acclaimed depth is under the microscope. This team lacks size and versatility on the wing. After a 4-0 start, OKC has lost two straight by more than 20. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is wanting for help, and it's unclear if Jared McCain and Ajay Mitchell are truly ready to meet the moment.
For a little while there, it felt like the Wolves might be the best regular season team in the NBA. Anthony Edwards underwent surprise knee surgery last Thursday, however, which leaves the snake without its head. LaMelo Ball looks deeply uncomfortable as the focal point offensively; Rudy Gobert is something of a mess at the moment. Jonathan Kuminga and Jaden McDaniels are trying to pick up the slack, but the Wolves are in for a rough few weeks potentially.
Toronto joins the long list of teams impacted by injuries out of the gate. Scottie Barnes has struggled as the focal point in lieu of the injured Kawhi Leonard, which comes as a mild disappointment. R.J. Barrett and Immanuel Quickley can pick up some of the slack, but not all of it. Still, the Raptors are a top-five defense with a strong foundation. Once Leonard returns, their fortunes should turn around.
It has been a brutal start for the Knicks, who look oddly out of sync on both ends. This early in the campaign, it's easy to chalk it up to a championship hangover. The Knicks will almost certainly turn it around in some capacity. That said, Mikal Bridges' struggles are becoming a five-alarm fire, and the Knicks' depth is a real point of concern. Andre Drummond just is not going to replace Mitchell Robinson's impact.
Nikola Jokic has never looked this uninspired, particularly on defense, which is a grave statement. The Nuggets are going to win games on talent alone, but Denver ought to play with more inspiration and intent — especially when there's so much ground to gain in the Western Conference right now. The Nuggets have a bad habit of coasting through the regular season; recent history has taught us that switch is hard to flip.
It's hard to stomach double-digit losses to the Heat and the Pelicans, although New Orleans is quietly performing much better than its record suggests. But that's beside the point. Atlanta is entrenched in the middle of the pack right now. Dyson Daniels is doing nutty things on defense and Jalen Johnson is stuffing the stat sheet, but the ingredients behind last season's second half surge are curiously absent. Atlanta needs more from CJ McCollum.
Golden State started the season 0-3. My words at the time: "the Warriors are dead upon arrival." Lo and behold, the Dubs are very much alive, almost by sheer force of will from Stephen Curry, who's producing MVP-caliber impact on the precipice of his 39th birthday. Yaxel Lendeborg has also soared well beyond expectations, even for a 24-year-old rookie with National Player of the Year pedigree. He led Golden State past the Clippers on Sunday without Steph, scoring an efficient 37 points with six assists. We have a clear frontrunner for Rookie of the Year.
AJ Dybantsa's return means Washington — for now — has its full battalion on hand. Anthony Davis and Trae Young continue to produce. Dybantsa slots in nicely between them, but depth is the real (potential) superpower for this Wizards squad. There are so many malleable chess pieces, specifically on the wing. Washington's top-10 defense feels sustainable, so long as Davis is on the floor.
Orlando finds itself in a dark place without Paolo Banchero, one of many NBA stars sidelined due to injury. Jalen Suggs is also out for a while. The Magic's inability to generate consistent offense is almost a given at this point, but the defense has also underperformed to date. Sean Sweeney was touted as the mastermind behind San Antonio's top-ranked defense last season; Orlando's new head coach is already facing intense scrutiny.
Miami has turned it around with back-to-back wins after an 0-4 start. Bam Adebayo looks a heck of a lot more comfortable next to Giannis than he did early on; it also helps when Klay Thompson buries seven 3s, as he did in Saturday's 145-125 rout of Indiana. The Thompson thing is not going to happen — at least, not consistently — but if Giannis and Adebayo can figure out their spacing and establish an offensive flow, there's still hope for the Heat.
The Hornets miss LaMelo Ball desperately. It also does not help that Kon Knueppel and Coby White are out, which leaves the backcourt perilously thin. Brandon Miller has stepped into a featured role with admirable confidence, but not necessarily with consistent success. He's struggling to create quality offense for himself, much less for others.
Despite their poor record, New Orleans ranks 14th in net rating (+1.7), with a surprisingly stout defense. That is a staple of Jamahl Mosley's coaching, so New Orleans is primed to get the most out of its misfit roster. Zion Williamson remains an absolute beast; most surprisingly of all, Dejounte Murray also looks suspiciously like himself. Regression from Trey Murphy and especially Herb Jones is cause for concern, but the Pelicans might have the sheer talent to outperform expectations, even if not all the pieces make sense together.
Utah's decision not to pay Walker Kessler could age poorly, especially since the only viable alternative on their roster — Jusuf Nurkic — is slated for an extended absence to begin the year. The Jazz defense is a saloon door right now. There's talent on this roster, no doubt, but shockingly little connectivity or intentionality. All their problems are amplified with Jaren Jackson Jr. hurt. Will Hardy has looked the part of a great coach in the past, but if the Jazz can't take the next step toward contention as planned, his seat will warm up quickly.
The Suns haven't held a players-only meeting yet, but the vibes are in that realm. There is reportedly frustration in the locker room over the lack of a point guard to complement Devin Booker. Simply starting Collin Gillespie over Jalen Green would probably solve that issue, but Phoenix appears bound, heart and soul, to the latter, much to their detriment. The Miles Bridges trade looks especially disastrous. That was never a logical fit, beyond the front office's Michigan State ties. Phoenix has the look and feel of a massive disappointment.
The Clippers just don't have the personnel to do much this season. Ty Lue is a great head coach, but Darius Garland is overburdened as the offensive No. 1. Keaton Wagler, their acclaimed top-five pick, has put some compelling flashes on tape, but he's struggling to score efficiently, like all rookie guards. The Clippers are a ragtag bunch, and the current NBA landscape does not favor a team in a period of transition.
The Pacers are stuck in neutral without Tyrese Haliburton and Ivica Zubac. The latter shouldn't be out too long, but Indiana's defense was a sieve even before he went down. Now, without Haliburton's steady hand, the Pacers' offense largely resembles last season's product. Pascal Siakam is doing everything he can, but Aaron Nesmith and Andrew Nembhard are both over-indexed.
Julius Randle and Michael Porter Jr. are one of the more preposterous tag-team duos in the NBA this season. Porter is a tough shot-maker by nature, while Randle's wrecking ball style demands a certain disregard for offensive flow. Both will put up numbers, and are doing so currently, but the roster around them is a dumpster fire. Egor Demin is hurt; Mikel Brown Jr. is shooting sub-30 percent from the field. This will be another long season in Brooklyn.
As expected, the Bulls are a miserable offensive team and not especially coherent on the defensive end either, despite their length and individual reputations. Caleb Wilson has free reign of the castle, which is fun, but this will be a season of patient development and several blowout losses.
This was always a gap year for the Bucks after the Giannis trade. There's plenty of praise to sprinkle on the individual pieces — each of Tyler Herro, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Kel'el Ware and Kasparas Jakucionis have impressed in expanded roles — but Milwaukee is operating at a constant, pretty much purposeful talent deficit.
Darius Acuff Jr. leads the NBA in shot attempts, and contrary to the popular narrative, he's doing a lot with them. He is inefficient, like most 19-year-olds asked to carry a team, but Acuff's command of tempo and ability to attack his comfort zones should give Sacramento fans hope for the future. The team around him is, unfortunately, a mess. Domantas Sabonis is clearly unhappy with ceding so much volume to a rookie. The Kings will probably want to trade him sooner than later.
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