Welcome to TSA Hoops NBA Power Rankings. We’re shifting the ranks week to week, giving our excerpts on why each team earned their spots, the movements that occurred and so on. As play occurs, only the top 15 teams will get an explanation has to why they have earned their rank. We hope you enjoy.
We have finally arrived at the start of the 2024-’25 NBA Season. This off-season gave fans and teams a good amount of things to marinate on, react to and reason with over the summer. Moves, Olympics and retirements changed the course of some teams for the upcoming season, as well as the fates of the hearts of fans worldwide.
While some of you were simply waiting on the building of your teams, like Portland, Washington, Chicago and Utah, some of you were taken from casual spectators to heavy investors thanks to some huge off-season moves (a la Dallas, Minnesota, Philly, New York, OKC). The rest of us were left in awe ( Indiana Pacers, Golden State Warriors) in shock (LA Clippers, Chicago Bulls) or stunned in silence (Denver, LA Lakers.)
| Team | Record | Rank | Reason |
| Boston | 0-0 | 1 | There is no reason to doubt the heart of a champion, nor is there a reason to doubt that the Celtics will start out on fire this week. Beyond the talent, lies a smoldering fire stoked by the media, aimed to burn Tatum and Brown. That fire alone will fuel this team thru week 1. |
| Minnesota | 0-0 | 2 | There were already a dozen reasons why this team was picked over OKC as the second most powerful team in the league, but is it possible to ship off an All-Star and get better? Odds based on the new line up including Randle and DiVincenzo says yes. |
| Oklahoma City | 0-0 | 3 | On paper, the margin is razor thin between OKC and Minnesota. While adding a big man (Hartenstein) and an All-Star perimeter defender (Caruso), this team still needs to make more adjustments to show that No. 1 seed from last season wasn’t a fluke. |
| Phoenix | 0-0 | 4 | The Tyus Jones addition, plus the Budenholzer hiring put this team in the drivers seat of, not only the Pacific Division, but on a collision course for top seed in the West. KD should be able to play more loose without having to worry about facilitation, and same for Booker. Olympics helped both improve and KD is HEALTHY |
| Dallas | 0-0 | 5 | The Mavs have continued to take full advantage of the Kai/Luka window, tinkerer enough with off-season acquisitions (K Thompson) and are seasoned enough to make that Finals run legit. The moves made in the off-season, plus a healthier Doncic all point to a powerful team – at least on paper. |
| New York | 0-0 | 6 | The best part about putting the Knicks at this spot is that the team is a combination of the positives in off-season moves, the observation of ‘if/then’ predictions and the questions that the teams after them also carry. Getting Bridges and KAT were great pick ups. How soon into the season will we be asking “at what cost?” |
| Denver | 0-0 | 7 | Addressing the elephant in the room: the fate if this team lies in the health of Jamal Murray. After a terrible end to a good season, he the. had a terrible Olympic showing, whereas Jokic had the opposite going on. The team lost some great players in KCP and Bruce Brown, they aren’t seeing talent step up and they don’t have much in trade assests to get Murray a better back-up. All that aside, Jokic can still carry. |
| Milwaukee | 0-0 | 8 | Doc Rivers’ first full season with the Bucks might be his best one yet. He’s getting a healthier squad (looking at you, Lillard), and more seasoned squad and a whole off-season to get this playoff-bound team ready for the season. The schedule is favorable this week for them. |
| Philadelphia | 0-0 | 9 | Embiid’s new “no back-to-back games” tag doesn’t affect the ability this team now has to power through this week . |
| Los Angeles Lakers | 0-0 | 10 | On paper, and on social media, this team looks ready. After the Minnesota game, this team should.be good to get at least 3 solid wins. |
| Cleveland | 0-0 | 11 | The Cavs had an interesting end to there season, and with players like Evan Mobley returning from injury, they look to be better than expected this week. What will be the result of all that off-season rest? |
| Houston | 0-0 | 12 | This got healthier, faster, and upgraded in the draft with rookie Reed Shephard. If the Pre-season is any type of indicator- it’s that this team will start hot. |
| Miami | 0-0 | 13 | Although the team had a very disappointing end to their season, the improvement of all players should be a good sign of their fight to stay relevant (fighting almost as much as their fans are) |
| Indiana | 0-0 | 14 | I’m still unsure as to how prepared Haliburton is for the season. What i saw in Paris was… nothing. What we saw toward the end of last season looked like a bunch of… nothing. I doubt we can expect the same this week. |
| Los Angeles Clippers | 0-0 | 15 | The loss of Kawhi to the start of this season Is the biggest blow to any team this season. The only way this team can get any type of return on their investment is to have Harden run the show, win some games this week and readjust. This team has won without Kawhi before |
| Orlando | 16 |
| San Antonio | 17 |
| Golden State | 18 |
| New Orleans | 19 |
| Memphis | 20 |
| Atlanta | 21 |
| Brooklyn | 22 |
| Chicago | 23 |
| Portland | 24 |
| Sacramento | 25 |
| Utah | 26 |
| Washington | 27 |
| Detroit | 28 |
| Toronto | 29 |
| Charlotte | 30 |
.Wherever on the spectrum of awe you lie, the fact still remains that “ball don’t lie.” There is a full season ahead with lots to dig into. Here’s a look at how well we think the league will start this season.
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