The sixth Sunday of the NFL season featured another fantastic performance from Carolina Panthers RB Rico Dowdle, another touchdown from Dallas Cowboys WR George Pickens, and continued development from precocious New England Patriots QB Drake Maye as a top-10 fantasy option. Oh, there were injuries, too, with excellent wide receivers Puka Nacua (ankle), Emeka Egbuka (hamstring) and Marvin Harrison Jr. (concussion) leaving games prematurely. Fantasy managers must monitor their status for the upcoming week.

Each Monday, before the current NFL week ends, we will identify players available in at least 50% of ESPN standard leagues worthy of your attention, from standard formats to deeper options. The NFL is a weekly league, and player valuation and roles seldom remain stagnant. It does not matter how you acquire players for your fantasy rosters, just that you get them.

Quarterback

Jaxson Dart, New York Giants (34.4% rostered): This is not the first time we have discussed Dart in this space, though fantasy managers remained rather tepid with interest. Dart was active in fewer than 10% of ESPN standard leagues in Week 6. That must change after Dart scored 23.6 points in a stunning win over the beleaguered Philadelphia Eagles. Although Dart remains an unfinished product as a passer, he has notably rushed for more than 50 yards in each of his three starts, scoring touchdowns in two of them. That is enough to make him relevant in fantasy. A road game in Denver this week might not be as much fun as facing Philly, but Dart boasts undeniable QB1 potential in fantasy this season and should be rostered in many more leagues.

Sam Darnold, Seattle Seahawks (23.1%): Some fantasy managers just refuse to believe in Darnold despite his solid numbers. Darnold scored 20.0 points on Sunday against the Jacksonville Jaguars, and after a rough Week 1 outing, he is averaging nearly 20 PPG over his past five games. He and the Seahawks face the Houston Texans in Week 7. Given his numbers, it is hard to suggest anything but Darnold being underrated in fantasy. He showed us his ability last season with the Minnesota Vikings, and he is performing similarly this season.

Deep-league options/streamers/random thoughts

• Although there is no shortage of veteran quarterbacks available for streaming in Week 7, the Jaguars’ Trevor Lawrence (vs. LAR) and the Panthers’ Bryce Young (at NYJ) do not have great matchups. So it is that we must recommend Pittsburgh Steelers starter Aaron Rodgers (13.7%) for a road game against the Cincinnati Bengals. The Bengals have not played great defense this season. Rodgers scored 17.5 points in Sunday’s win over the Cleveland Browns, his best game since Week 1.

• The Arizona Cardinals ruled out Kyler Murray (foot) and started longtime backup Jacoby Brissett versus the Colts. Brissett (0.5%) scored 20.7 points, more than Murray has in any of his five games this season. We’ve seen Brissett fill in before with occasional success, but if Murray is out this week, there are surely better options since the Cardinals face the Green Bay Packers this week. If one is that desperate, note that new Bengals starter Joe Flacco scored 18.76 points in his debut. He faces the Steelers this week.

Running back

Kimani Vidal, Los Angeles Chargers (27.1%): Someone had to pick up the running back duties with starter Omarion Hampton (ankle) shelved, and we had a good idea it would be some combination of Vidal and Hassan Haskins. Most sided with Haskins (49.7%), since he played at Michigan for Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh. Wrong choice! These coaches just keep everyone guessing! Vidal enjoyed a far greater performance, turning 21 touches into 138 yards and 22.8 points. Haskins had seven touches. Add Vidal for Week 7 against the Indianapolis Colts, while noting Hampton might miss more time than originally expected.

Tyjae Spears, Tennessee Titans (23.6%): Spears (ankle) made his season debut in Week 5 with little statistical consequence. In Week 6, he turned nine touches into 50 yards and 9.0 points, outpacing starter Tony Pollard, who scored 6.7 points on 12 touches. The elusive Spears does his best work catching passes, and perhaps the Titans will use him even more in Week 7 against the Patriots. For now, Pollard investors have little to worry about.

Bam Knight, Cardinals (5.6%): We featured Michael Carter in this space last week, as he appeared to be the Arizona running back of choice with James Conner and Trey Benson sidelined. On Saturday, a day before facing the Colts, rather surprising word came that the Cardinals intended to give Knight, with his third NFL organization before his 25th birthday, a chance at first-team volume. Knight scored a touchdown and notched 12.4 points on his 12 touches Sunday, but he didn’t differentiate himself much from Carter, who scored 8.4 points on 11 touches. Knight is likely to be a bit overrated this week for the game against a tough Packers team.

Deep-league options/streamers/random thoughts

Steelers starter Jaylen Warren (knee) returned from a few weeks off and scored 8.3 points against the Browns. Meanwhile, Kenneth Gainwell (56.8%) caught six passes (though for only 14 yards), but his overall output was 9.6 points. This remains a timeshare, with Warren clearly the preferred choice. Although Gainwell has reached double-digit points in only one game, he continues to matter at a weak position in fantasy.

The Vikings and Texans enjoyed the bye in Week 6, and all four of the running backs for these teams relevant to fantasy remain rostered in more than 50% of leagues. Still, check your league for Texans Nick Chubb (68.2%) and Woody Marks (59.7%), as they face the Seahawks this week. They still come preferred to Browns backups Jerome Ford (24.9%) and Dylan Sampson (14.3%), who combined for 12.4 points in Sunday’s loss.

Wide receiver

play

What to make of the Patriots WR performance in Week 6 of fantasy

Field Yates breaks down the surprising performance from Kayshon Boutte and DeMario Douglas in the Patriots’ win over the Saints.

Kayshon Boutte, Patriots (7.0%): Boutte was featured in this space after his solid Week 1 outing, in which he caught six passes for 103 yards against the Las Vegas Raiders. Then Boutte caught a measly seven passes for 105 yards over the next four games, making his opening-week output look mighty aberrant. Well, the rather inconsistent Boutte returned to relevance Sunday against the New Orleans Saints, catching all five of his targets for 93 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Does any of this mean Boutte will have a big Week 7 game against the Titans? Nope, but QB Drake Maye is terrific, and the Titans, well, are not. Pats teammate DeMario Douglas (6.7%) scored 16.1 points Sunday, and he also gets to face the Titans!

Josh Downs, Colts (41.5%): Downs has reached double-digit points in three of six games so far. Those are the ones in which he has seven or more targets from resurgent QB Daniel Jones. In the other three games, Downs has not been targeted much, so he has not done much. We can’t be sure Jones will target Downs this week against the Chargers, but at this point, fantasy managers need to trust Jones, and Downs feels a bit too available. In addition, the Colts face the Titans in Week 8.

Deep-league options/streamers/random thoughts

Harrison might not play in Week 7 against the Packers, which means more attention for Michael Wilson (3.9%), Zay Jones (0.1%) and Greg Dortch (0.2%). Yeah, it’s not exactly a Hall of Fame crew for a Cardinals QB (to be named later) to throw to without Harrison (though TE Trey McBride might see 20 targets in Week 7). Jones scored 12.9 points in Sunday’s loss, but Wilson has been involved in the offense all season, and he feels more likely to matter.

Similarly, we do not know if Buccaneers rookie star Egbuka will be available to play on “Monday Night Football” against the Lions. Tez Johnson (0.0%), a rookie selected in the seventh round from Oregon, made the highlight reels with his 45-yard, fingertip touchdown, but it was his only catch Sunday. Kameron Johnson (0.0%) played more snaps and saw four targets, converting one into a touchdown. We recommend veteran Sterling Shepard (14.8%) first, then Kameron Johnson, but while Bucs head coach Todd Bowles already ruled out Chris Godwin Jr. and RB Bucky Irving out for Week 7, for all we know Egbuka, and Mike Evans (hamstring) could still play. It is early in the week, but make plans in case neither can go.

San Francisco 49ers reserve Kendrick Bourne caught 10 passes for 142 yards while filling in for Ricky Pearsall and Jauan Jennings in Week 5, scoring a cool 24.2 points. He followed that up on Sunday with five catches for another 142 yards and a still-cool 19.2 points. Bourne, 29, has been around for a while and never surpassed 800 receiving yards in a season. At this rate of 142 yards per game, he would get there well before Thanksgiving. It is possible the 49ers QB (to be named later) will ignore Bourne when everyone else becomes healthy (including TE George Kittle), but take a chance for Week 7 against the Falcons.

Texans rookie Jayden Higgins (22.9%) caught five passes on six targets over the first four games of the season prior to the bye week, and then in Week 5 against the Ravens he caught four passes on as many targets. Perhaps star Nico Collins is the lone Texans WR worth relying on, but Higgins was a fantastic college player at Iowa State and a second-round draft pick. He should matter soon.

Tight end

Harold Fannin Jr., Browns (29.1%): This isn’t really an emerging passing game to invest in (yet), but Fannin caught 7 of 10 targets from fellow rookie Dillon Gabriel against the Steelers, and some of them came after starting TE David Njoku (knee) left early. Perhaps Njoku will miss some time. Fannin has scored double-digit points in three of six games, and the Browns face the Miami Dolphins in Week 7.

Deep-league options/streamers/random thoughts

Raiders star Brock Bowers (knee) has missed consecutive games, much to the chagrin of fantasy managers who expected another monster season. Backup Michael Mayer (3.1%) caught 5 of 7 targets for 50 yards and a touchdown on Sunday, his 16.0 points eclipsing any performance from Bowers this season. There will not be controversy for the Raiders, for Bowers is the starter when healthy, but Mayer is the only healthy one for this week.

Seahawks starter AJ Barner (10.1%) continues to produce fantasy-relevant numbers, but managers continue to rely on underachievers such as Njoku and the Ravens’ Mark Andrews. Barner scored 10.1 points against the Jaguars, the fourth time in five weeks he reached double digits. His is not major volume, and his touchdown rate is a bit high, but you can trust him in Week 7 and drop him for his bye in Week 8.

Bye weeks: Keep these players rostered

Bye weeks continue in Week 7 with the Buffalo Bills and Baltimore Ravens taking off. For the Bills, fantasy managers might wish to part with WRs Keon Coleman (75.5%) and Khalil Shakir (76.8%), along with TE Dalton Kincaid (78.7%). In each case, it would be more prudent to keep these players on your bench rather than dumping them for one-week fixes, if you can help it. This remains one of the top offenses in the league. Move on from the Bills D/ST (62.1%), though.

The bye week comes at a good time for the struggling Ravens, who might get QB Lamar Jackson (hamstring) back for Week 8 against the Bears. Fantasy managers must keep RB Derrick Henry and WR Zay Flowers through the bye as well. That is not the case with veteran TE Mark Andrews (84.3%), who scored 6.6 points on Sunday and boasts more than half of his season total from one Week 3 game. Meanwhile, why is the Ravens D/ST (41.0%) still so popular? Only the Cowboys D/ST has been worse for fantasy!

Defense/special teams

Deep-league options/streamers/random thoughts

The Browns continue to struggle to score points, so although the Dolphins don’t exactly play awesome defense, the Miami D/ST (2.5%) unit appears to be a useful streamer for Week 7.

The Giants D/ST (18.3%) scored 8.0 points in the victory over the Eagles, and it will face a Denver Broncos offense that scored only one touchdown in Week 6. The Giants have registered three or more sacks in half their games, and they create turnovers. Go with the Giants over the scuffling New York Jets (9.1%), who face the seemingly easier opponent in the Panthers. The Panthers have scored 57 points over the past two games and feature Dowdle and star rookie WR Tetairoa McMillan.

The NBA might be in its depth era, but star power still wins the day.

In a sport in which only five players take the floor for each team at a time, a concentration of stars has been a clear way to build a championship-level team.

But even when a team doesn’t have a trio of ready-made stars, looking at the top three players on each roster is a good way to measure both the short- and long-term health of an organization and where a franchise is headed over the next few months and next few years.

With that rubric in mind, we not only have laid out the cores of all 30 NBA teams, but also ranked them in comparison to one another. And we’ve done so by taking into account both the group’s present and future value — along with the likelihood that these players will be with their respective teams for the medium to long term.

Jump to a tier:
A league of their own | Knocking on the door
Best of the East | Ascendant young teams
Gap Years | Old stars with big questions
Changing the course | Stuck in the middle
Starting a rebuild | Rebuilding

Tier 1: A league of their own

Oklahoma City Thunder: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Chet Holmgren, Jalen Williams

Who else could be atop this list? Not only did the Thunder win 68 games and their first championship last season, but they also did so with one of the youngest title-winning rosters in NBA history. Then, to cap things off, general manager Sam Presti went out this summer and proceeded to lock all three of his young cornerstones into long-term contract extensions — officially cementing the Thunder as the perennial favorites to lift the Larry O’Brien Trophy for the foreseeable future.

Last year: Gilgeous-Alexander, Holmgren, Williams

Tier 2: Knocking on the door

Denver Nuggets: Aaron Gordon, Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray

Denver is a pair of rough Western Conference semifinal Game 7s — blowing a 20-point lead at home to the Minnesota Timberwolves two years ago before playing with an injured Gordon against the Thunder last season — from having a potential chance at ripping off three straight titles. Denver still has the best player in the sport in Nikola Jokic, though, and a pair of co-stars who fit extremely well alongside him in Murray and Gordon. They both have delivered repeatedly in huge playoff moments.

Last year: Gordon, Jokic, Murray

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Is Nikola Jokic the best player in the NBA?

The “NBA Today” crew discusses a preseason poll naming Nikola Jokic the best player in the NBA.

Tier 3: Best of the East

Cleveland Cavaliers: Darius Garland, Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley

The Cavaliers, like the Thunder, have a trio of prime-age or younger stars locked into long-term contracts and a team that won 64 games last season. Unlike the Thunder, however, Cleveland was unable to follow it with playoff success, losing in five games to the Indiana Pacers in the second round. That is why the Cavaliers are placed here and not even higher up this list. A strong playoff run next spring, and that will quickly change.

Last year: Garland, Mitchell, Mobley

New York Knicks: OG Anunoby, Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns

New York enters the season having moved on from coach Tom Thibodeau after reaching the Eastern Conference finals for the first time in 25 years — a clear indication that the Knicks believe this group is good enough to finally snap a half-century championship drought. Brunson and Towns are two of the best offensive point guards and centers, respectively, in the league, while Anunoby is as good as any defender on the wing on top of becoming an excellent 3-point shooter, too.

Last year: Anunoby, Brunson, Towns

Tier 4: Ascendant young teams

Atlanta Hawks: Dyson Daniels, Jalen Johnson, Zaccharie Risacher

For the second straight season, the Hawks have the same trio leading the way, all while the franchise has undergone a rapid and fascinating reimagining of the roster by newly installed general manager Onsi Saleh. Trae Young remains this team’s best player. Kristaps Porzingis could be its second. And yet, both players are able to be unrestricted free agents next summer. Meanwhile Daniels was last season’s Most Improved Player, Johnson — if he can stay healthy — is a popular breakout candidate and Risacher, although no Cooper Flagg or Victor Wembanyama, had a fine rookie season after Atlanta selected him No. 1 in the 2024 draft.

Last year: Daniels, Johnson, Risacher

Detroit Pistons: Cade Cunningham, Ron Holland, Ausar Thompson

A year ago, there were massive questions about the Pistons’ roster. They began with Cunningham, and whether he was capable of being the kind of star leader a franchise needs to become a factor in the playoffs. Cunningham responded with a brilliant campaign, earning All-Star and All-NBA honors for the first time while leading Detroit back to the playoffs for the first time since 2019. Questions remain about the rest of the roster, but there are several intriguing young players such as Holland, Thompson, Jaden Ivey and Jalen Duren, who could all fill the remaining core spots around Cunningham.

Last year: Cunningham, Holland, Ivey

Houston Rockets: Alperen Sengun, Reed Sheppard, Amen Thompson

A lot has changed in Houston over the past year. Thompson was a very near miss from inclusion in this group a year ago, and in hindsight that was an obvious mistake. The No. 4 pick in the 2023 NBA draft continues to blossom into a star and has a chance to take another massive leap forward this season due to the unfortunate torn ACL for Fred VanVleet last month during preseason workouts. Although I’m sure you’re thinking, “No Kevin Durant? Really?” remember the purpose of this list. Durant remains — at least for now — without a contract extension, and Sheppard could be the team’s starting point guard this season and remains a key player for Houston long term.

Last year: Sengun, Sheppard, VanVleet

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Perk: The Rockets are going to be the NBA’s best offensive team

Kendrick Perkins breaks down his optimism for the Rockets’ offense after an impressive performance vs. the Jazz.

Minnesota Timberwolves: Anthony Edwards, Jaden McDaniels, Julius Randle

After advancing out of the first round of the playoffs once in its first 34 years of existence, Minnesota has now done so in back-to-back seasons, reaching the Western Conference finals before losing to the Dallas Mavericks and Oklahoma City Thunder, respectively. The question now is how Minnesota will find a way to advance further — especially with the Thunder looming over the West moving forward. The answer will begin with continued improvement from Edwards and McDaniels. Randle moves into the core after inking a long-term extension with the franchise this offseason.

Last year: Edwards, McDaniels, Rudy Gobert

Orlando Magic: Paolo Banchero, Desmond Bane, Franz Wagner

Orlando’s season going sideways last year when Jalen Suggs suffered a knee injury is a sign of just how important he is — despite the fact that he, unlike Banchero and Wagner, is not on a max contract. But Orlando paid a king’s ransom to land Bane — a perfect complement to its three young homegrown players — this summer, and Suggs is still sidelined with the knee injury, so Bane moves into the core for this group. The Magic’s season will likely hinge on whether Banchero and Wagner can make improvements in their efficiency this season — which, if they can, could lead to huge success in a wide-open East.

Last year: Banchero, Suggs, Wagner

San Antonio Spurs: De’Aaron Fox, Dylan Harper, Victor Wembanyama

How do you get picked fourth and win Rookie of the Year, as Stephon Castle did last season, and fall out of a team’s core? By that same team trading for an All-Star point guard (Fox) and drafting another (Harper) with the second pick after jumping up in the lottery, as the Spurs did over the past few months. How all of these different players fit around the one certain core player in San Antonio for the foreseeable future, Wembanyama, will be one of the big stories of the upcoming NBA season.

Last year: Wembanyama, Castle, Devin Vassell

Tier 5: Gap years

Boston Celtics: Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, Derrick White

A year ago, Boston was coming off raising banner No. 18 to the TD Garden rafters and looked poised to have a real chance at claiming a 19th title. Then came Tatum’s unfortunate torn Achilles in May against the Knicks in the conference semifinals. Now, Boston is likely to spend this season spinning its wheels waiting for Tatum to get back and give this group a chance to potentially be back in the title fight again in 2026-27. Until then, though, Brown and White will still remain two of the better wing players in the NBA, and the envy of most of the opponents they’ll come up against this season.

Last year: Brown, Tatum, White

play

Jayson Tatum: ‘I haven’t said I’m not playing this season’

Jayson Tatum tells Stephen A. Smith he hasn’t ruled out playing this season and has spoken to Tyrese Haliburton about them both suffering with an Achilles injury.

Indiana Pacers: Tyrese Haliburton, Andrew Nembhard, Pascal Siakam

Entering Game 7 of the NBA Finals, Indiana was likely going to be right near the top of this list after a remarkable playoff run that featured a series of historic comebacks fueled by the style of play coach Rick Carlisle and Haliburton have employed in Indianapolis. But after Haliburton suffered an Achilles tear in that final game of the 2024-25 campaign, the Pacers are also staring at a long 12 months until his likely return at the start of next season. One silver lining? Although Bennedict Mathurin fell out of the team’s core thanks to the emergence of Nembhard, who had another brilliant playoff run, Haliburton’s absence could give the former lottery pick a chance to reestablish himself with the Pacers.

Last year: Haliburton, Siakam, Mathurin

Tier 6: Old stars with big questions

Dallas Mavericks: Anthony Davis, Cooper Flagg, Kyrie Irving


Things are drastically different in Dallas compared to a year ago, when the Mavericks had Luka Doncic and Irving together in a backcourt that was coming off an NBA Finals appearance. Now, Irving has a torn ACL, Doncic is in Los Angeles and — after a stunning bit of lottery luck — Flagg is the star of the show, playing alongside Davis in the Mavericks’ frontcourt. It’s all pretty hard to believe, even months after it all took place. Still, Dallas could have a chance to be a factor this season — but that will require Flagg to instantly contribute, Davis to remain healthy and Irving to come back from his knee injury ready to go by playoff time.

Last year: Irving, Doncic, Dereck Lively

Golden State Warriors: Jimmy Butler, Stephen Curry, Draymond Green

Last season, the Warriors went 22-5 with Butler and Curry both available after acquiring Butler at the trade deadline from the Miami Heat, and they feel they’d have advanced to the Western Conference finals if they hadn’t lost Curry for the rest of the series against the Minnesota Timberwolves with a hamstring injury. There’s little doubt this team has a very high ceiling — if healthy. But given their core is all 35 or older, the “if healthy” question is going to follow this group around all season long.

Last year: Curry, Green, Brandin Podziemski

LA Clippers: James Harden, Kawhi Leonard, Ivica Zubac

The Clippers had a very productive offseason, going out and landing John Collins, Brook Lopez, Bradley Beal and Chris Paul, and should get strong seasons from both Harden and Zubac. Questions about Leonard — both on and off the court — hang over this team like a lead balloon, however. Can Leonard, who has missed just over 40% of the possible games he could’ve played for the Clippers over the past six seasons, and played just 37 last season, stay healthy? And, with the investigation into potential cap circumvention ongoing, will that cause any issues for him and the Clippers? Only time will tell on both fronts.

Last year: Harden, Leonard, Zubac

Los Angeles Lakers: Luka Doncic, LeBron James, Austin Reaves

The Lakers — fairly — believe a team led by Doncic and James can contend with anyone. However, that requires both players to be healthy. And with James already dealing with a sciatica problem that threatens the start of his season for the first time in his remarkable career — plus his status as the league’s oldest player, who is approaching his 41st birthday — health is going to be a constant question. And that’s before the potential shooting issues, as well as the perimeter and interior defensive concerns for this team.

Last year: James, Reaves, Anthony Davis

Milwaukee Bucks: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Bobby Portis, Myles Turner

As ESPN’s Shams Charania reported last week, Antetokounmpo’s future in Milwaukee is a much-discussed — and planned-for — topic around the NBA. But as the season approaches, he remains a Buck, and he should be an MVP candidate this season if he remains healthy given how much he’s going to have the ball in his hands. Although Turner slots in for Brook Lopez as the floor-spacing center in the core, the drop-off from Damian Lillard — now back in Portland — to Portis (or Kyle Kuzma or AJ Green or whomever you choose for the third person to be) is massive and shows why it could be a challenging year in Milwaukee, even with a healthy Antetokounmpo terrorizing opponents.

Last year: Antetokounmpo, Lillard, Lopez

Tier 7: Changing the course

Memphis Grizzlies: Cedric Coward, Jaren Jackson Jr., Ja Morant

Here’s all you need to know about the state of things in Memphis: Jackson is recovering from offseason surgery; Morant is now likely to miss the start of the season with an ankle sprain; Zach Edey is also recovering from offseason surgery; and both Jaylen Wells, No. 3 in last season’s Rookie of the Year balloting, and Coward, whom Memphis leapt up in the draft to take at No. 11 this past June, ended last season hurt. The Desmond Bane trade reconstituted the Grizzlies’ roster — Memphis subsequently placed a big bet on Coward — but this team can still go only as far as Morant and Jackson can take it. This is also another reminder of how fast things can change in the NBA, as it wasn’t long ago that Morant-Jackson-Bane was seen as one of the elite, young cornerstone foundations in the league.

Last year: Morant, Jackson, Bane

Philadelphia 76ers: VJ Edgecombe, Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey

Questions? In Philadelphia? Never! Jokes aside, obviously the elephant in the room is the health of Embiid, let alone that of Paul George. If the two of them can stay on the court this season, Philadelphia could be a factor in the East. But there’s no certainty of when, or how often, we will see the two 76ers stars out there. George, meanwhile, is in the second year of a max extension that he signed as a free agent last summer, but he falls out of the core this season in favor of Edgecombe, the third pick in June’s draft.

Last year: Embiid, Maxey, George

play

Shams Charania expects Erik Spoelstra to coach Team USA for multiple cycles

Shams Charania joins “The Pat McAfee Show” to discuss Erik Spoelstra being named the head coach for Team USA men’s basketball.

Tier 8: Stuck in the middle

Chicago Bulls: Matas Buzelis, Noa Essengue, Josh Giddey

This is a franchise perpetually stuck in the mud. One could argue the Bulls should be in a lower tier than this — but that would be saying the Bulls are definitely going to be committed to bottoming out and rebuilding. History suggests they will win 38 or 39 games and be in the play-in — which, in this season’s East, is very possible. After signing a long-term deal this offseason, Giddey is a core player. Coby White, although the team’s best player, is not as he enters the season on an expiring deal. Instead, the No. 12 pick in this year’s draft, Essengue, is one alongside Buzelis, last year’s No. 11 pick.

Last year: Giddey, White, Patrick Williams

Miami Heat: Bam Adebayo, Tyler Herro, Kel’el Ware

The Heat are not a team accustomed to being stuck anywhere, but that’s where they seem to be after yet another play-in finish last season. With Butler now having decamped to Golden State, the Heat are officially on the hunt for their next long-term star to pair with Adebayo. Perhaps that player is Herro, if he can make another big leap after a great season earned him his first All-Star berth. Ware, too, has a lot of promise as a super-active, long defensive big. But this team needs more if it’s going to leap out of the doldrums — even in the East.

Last year: Adebayo, Herro, Jimmy Butler

Sacramento Kings: Zach LaVine, Keegan Murray, Domantas Sabonis

The seven-game series against the Warriors in the first round of the 2023 playoffs feels like a decade ago now. De’Aaron Fox is now in San Antonio, Mike Brown is now in New York, and the Kings have morphed into a bizarro version of the Chicago Bulls with LaVine and DeMar DeRozan back together again. Murray is likely to get an extension done with Sacramento in the coming days, but he’s the one long-term bright spot on this roster despite missing the first several weeks of the upcoming season with a thumb injury. The rest? Either in their prime or aging out of it, and it’s unclear what path this team will take from here.

Last year: Murray, Sabonis, Fox

Toronto Raptors: Scottie Barnes, Brandon Ingram, Collin Murray-Boyles

Barnes was guaranteed to be a part of this core after agreeing to a massive max contract extension, but who would be alongside him? It turns out, it’s last season’s big trade deadline acquisition, Ingram, and Toronto’s big offseason acquisition, Murray-Boyles, the No. 9 pick in June’s NBA draft. Still, it’s hard to see the long-term upside of this group to be anything more than what the tail end of the previous Raptors playoff team was: one good enough to make it and lose in a competitive first-round series.

Last year: Barnes, Gradey Dick, Immanuel Quickley

Tier 9: Starting a rebuild

Charlotte Hornets: LaMelo Ball, Kon Knueppel, Brandon Miller

The Hornets, now in their second full season under general manager Jeff Peterson and coach Charles Lee, will hope to see their collection of interesting young talent on the court far more often this season, after a number of injuries — including to Ball and Miller — precluded it last season. What the injury woes did do, however, was give the Hornets the chance to land Knueppel with the fourth pick in June’s draft. He should be a perfect complement alongside Ball and Miller on the wings. The questions, though, are inside, where Charlotte is back to square one after sending Mark Williams, a core member last season, to Phoenix in June after the failed trade to the Lakers back in February.

Last year: Ball, Miller, Williams

New Orleans Pelicans: Jeremiah Fears, Derik Queen, Zion Williamson

Williamson showed up for training camp in great shape for New Orleans, and the Pelicans hope that finally translates into sustained health and high-level play from him this season. But although Dejounte Murray and Trey Murphy remain in New Orleans, the man who traded for Murray and drafted and extended Murphy — David Griffin — is not. So, instead, the two lottery picks from the new front office, Fears and Queen, become core members for the Pelicans going forward. Queen will be fascinating to watch given all the attention around the trade the Pelicans made to acquire him, which included giving up an unprotected pick in next year’s loaded draft to Atlanta.

Last year: Williamson, Murray, Murphy

Phoenix Suns: Devin Booker, Ryan Dunn, Khaman Maluach

What a difference a year makes. Last year at this time, the Suns had a wildly expensive roster built around three big stars — Booker, Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal. Now, Durant and Beal are gone, Booker remains, and the Suns — who have dead money on their books for the rest of the decade and none of their own draft picks under their control for the same time period — are starting a rebuild. There are some interesting young players, led by Dunn and Maluach, but it’s going to take time for Phoenix to turn this around — and the Suns are going to need to show more patience than they have at any point since Mat Ishbia bought the team two-plus years ago.

Last year: Booker, Beal, Durant

Tier 10: Rebuilding

Brooklyn Nets: Nic Claxton, Egor Demin, Nolan Traore

If you need any hint to the direction of the Nets, look no further than June’s NBA draft, when Brooklyn had five first-round picks — and kept all of them, drafting Demin, Traore, guards Drake Powell and Ben Saraf, and big man Danny Wolf. They, along with Noah Clowney, a first-round pick two years ago, are the future in Brooklyn — along with whomever the Nets land in the 2026 draft. Claxton remains a core member because he’s on a long-term deal and, given he’s in his mid-20s, should still be able to rediscover his prior form. Cam Thomas, on the other hand, is not, after he signed the one-year qualifying offer this offseason.

Last year: Claxton, Clowney, Thomas

Portland Trail Blazers: Toumani Camara, Donovan Clingan, Shaedon Sharpe

There are few teams harder to parse in terms of their direction than Portland. The Blazers have a roster full of interesting young talents, such as Clingan, Sharpe, Scoot Henderson and Yang Hansen. But then they went out this offseason and traded for Jrue Holiday and re-signed Lillard, who won’t play all season. Will Jerami Grant start? Will Henderson when he comes back from a hamstring injury? Where does Deni Advija, who was arguably the team’s best player last year, fit in the starting five – or does he? There’s just so much noise here that it’s hard to know exactly what Portland’s goals are — which will make for a very fascinating season.

Last year: Clingan, Henderson, Sharpe

Utah Jazz: Ace Bailey, Walter Clayton, Lauri Markkanen

The Jazz, once again, kept the dubious distinction of having never moved up once in the NBA’s draft lottery, causing them to land the fifth pick after having the league’s worst record. Still, they wound up drafting Bailey, who spent all season as a consensus top-three selection, as the first move of Austin Ainge’s tenure as the team’s president of basketball operations. He quickly followed it up by landing Clayton, the national championship-winning point guard, with the No. 18 pick to make him a core player, as well. Walker Kessler, without a contract extension, isn’t one, and Markkanen will look to get back to the form he showed two years ago.

Last year: Markkanen, Keyonte George, Kessler

Washington Wizards: Bilal Coulibaly, Tre Johnson, Alex Sarr

Another team that had its high lottery hopes dashed in the lottery, the Wizards are once again committed to playing and developing their young talent. That’s why Coulibaly, Sarr and Johnson — their top picks in each of the past three drafts, respectively — remain the top three players in Washington’s core. This season, though, will be about continuing to see who can emerge from the many young players the Wizards have assembled, as they’re now up to 10 players on first-round rookie contracts on their roster.

Last year: Coulibaly, Sarr, Bub Carrington