By Tim Bontemps, 2026-04-15 19:00:00
周二晚上，NBA季后赛拉开了帷幕。波特兰开拓者队锁定了西部季后赛的7号种子，而夏洛特黄蜂队则在一场加时赛的惊险逆转中获胜，在争夺东部最后一个季后赛席位的战斗中避免了被淘汰。
虽然在通往2026年总冠军的两个月征程中，会有无数的故事上演，但现在是一个很好的机会，来审视每支球队刚刚结束的82场常规赛。
这是一个波澜壮阔的2025-26赛季，充满了卓越的表现、震撼的交易以及联盟排名中的种种惊喜。（此外，还有大量关于摆烂和其他一些不太体面话题的讨论。）
在这里，我们将为所有30支球队给出常规赛评分——这是对ESPN NBA分析和评分传奇人物凯文·佩尔顿 (Kevin Pelton)的致敬——评分标准很简单：一支球队是达到、超过还是未达到其赛季前的预期？
球队必须表现得极其出色才能获得仅有的七个“A”级评分。请看下面所有30支球队的评分结果。（同一评分等级内的球队按英文首字母顺序排列）。
跳转至评分范围：
A级 | B级 | C级 | D级 | F级
跳转至特定球队：
老鹰 (ATL) | 凯尔特人 (BOS) | 篮网 (BKN) | 黄蜂 (CHA) | 公牛 (CHI) | 骑士 (CLE)
独行侠 (DAL) | 掘金 (DEN) | 活塞 (DET) | 勇士 (GS) | 火箭 (HOU) | 步行者 (IND)
快船 (LAC) | 湖人 (LAL) | 灰熊 (MEM) | 热火 (MIA) | 雄鹿 (MIL) | 森林狼 (MIN)
鹈鹕 (NO) | 尼克斯 (NY) | 雷霆 (OKC) | 魔术 (ORL) | 76人 (PHI) | 太阳 (PHX)
开拓者 (POR) | 国王 (SAC) | 马刺 (SA) | 猛龙 (TOR) | 爵士 (UTA) | 奇才 (WAS)
“A”级评分
波士顿凯尔特人：A
2025-26赛季战绩： 56胜26负
ESPN预测战绩： 43胜39负
考虑到杰森·塔图姆 (Jayson Tatum) 右脚跟腱断裂后的阵容重组——波士顿交易走了克里斯塔普斯·波尔津吉斯 (Kristaps Porzingis) 和朱·霍勒迪 (Jrue Holiday)，并因自由市场失去了艾尔·霍福德 (Al Horford)——很难想象他们能冲到东部第2。但在乔·马祖拉 (Joe Mazzulla) 最佳教练级别的执教和杰伦·布朗 (Jaylen Brown) 重新定义职业生涯的赛季表现下，这支2024年的NBA冠军球队重新回到了竞争行列。随着塔图姆在季后赛前16场比赛的复出中逐渐找回状态，凯尔特人再次成为了夺得东部冠军的热门。
夏洛特黄蜂：A
2025-26赛季战绩： 44胜38负
ESPN预测战绩： 26胜56负
整个联盟——可能也包括夏洛特自己——都认为2025-26赛季将为球队的年轻天才提供宝贵的经验，因为球队正准备在人才济济的2026年选秀中再获得一个高顺位乐透签。相反，黄蜂在全明星赛后打出了18胜9负的战绩，冲进附加赛，并有机会打进十年来的首个季后赛系列赛。但无论周五的比赛结果如何，这个赛季对于“蜂鸣之城”来说都是一个绝对的成功。
底特律活塞：A
2025-26赛季战绩： 60胜22负
ESPN预测战绩： 47胜35负
从2023-24赛季的14胜到上赛季的44胜是一项了不起的成就。而到了本赛季，他们拿到了令人震惊的60胜——这在球队辉煌的历史上仅发生过两次——这完全是另一个水平。凯德·坎宁安 (Cade Cunningham) 成为了MVP候选人，杰伦·杜伦 (Jalen Duren) 成长为球星，活塞重新夺回了他们在东部作为充满威慑力、强调身体对抗的竞争者地位。
凤凰城太阳：A
2025-26赛季战绩： 45胜37负
ESPN预测战绩： 30胜52负
太阳曾被认为更有可能在联盟垫底，而不是打入季后赛。然而，他们整个赛季都在竞争西部前六，最终排名第七，现在必须在周五获胜才能晋级季后赛。凤凰城聘请了一位出色的年轻教练乔丹·奥特 (Jordan Ott)，他在执教的首个赛季就建立了一种令人印象深刻的勤奋、拼搏的文化。
圣安东尼奥马刺：A
2025-26赛季战绩： 62胜20负
ESPN预测战绩： 44胜38负
进入赛季前，圣安东尼奥仅仅打进季后赛就被认为是一个可以实现的目标，尤其是在马刺34胜的赛季中，维克托·文班亚马 (Victor Wembanyama) 因血栓问题缺席了下半程。但文班亚马不仅保持了健康，还带领马刺拿到了62胜，甚至差点超越卫冕冠军雷霆，夺得全联盟最佳战绩。
洛杉矶湖人：A-
2025-26赛季战绩： 53胜29负
ESPN预测战绩： 50胜32负
考虑到头号得分手卢卡·东契奇 (Luka Doncic) 和奥斯汀·里夫斯 (Austin Reaves) 在季后赛前遭遇了毁灭性的伤病，湖人国度现在的心情可能不太好，但总体来看，很难说这个赛季不是成功的。湖人最终获得了西部前四的种子席位，东契奇打出了MVP级别的赛季，而勒布朗·詹姆斯 (LeBron James) 则适应了作为第三球星的角色，在伤病侵袭前，这让球队一度梦想着能在季后赛走得很远。
俄克拉荷马城雷霆：A-
2025-26赛季战绩： 64胜18负
ESPN预测战绩： 64-18
对于卫冕冠军来说，赢得64场比赛被视为达到了预期目标，这足以说明他们的地位，但事实确实如此。考虑到球队在整个赛季中经历了如此多的伤病，能取得这样的成绩证明了阵容的深度，以及潜在的两届MVP谢伊·吉尔杰斯-亚历山大 (Shai Gilgeous-Alexander) 极高的稳定性。俄克拉荷马城现在希望完成另一项被寄予厚望的任务：打破NBA连续七个赛季没有蝉联冠军的纪录。
“B”级评分
波特兰开拓者：B+
2025-26赛季战绩： 42胜40负
ESPN预测战绩： 39胜43负
常规赛开始时，主教练昌西·比卢普斯 (Chauncey Billups) 在一项联邦赌博调查中受到指控。结束时，球队完成了向新老板汤姆·邓顿 (Tom Dundon) 的出售。在这一切变故中，波特兰在常规赛结束时处于附加赛的上半区，这是一项了不起的成就，尤其要归功于临时教练蒂亚戈·斯普利特 (Tiago Splitter) 和明星前锋德尼·阿夫迪亚 (Deni Avdija)。对于处于上升期的开拓者来说，这是一个成功的赛季，甚至在阿夫迪亚带领他们夺得7号种子并实现球队五年来的首次季后赛之旅之前就是如此。
多伦多猛龙：B+
2025-26赛季战绩： 46胜36负
ESPN预测战绩： 33胜49负
猛龙在本赛季开始前很难被定位，尤其是布兰登·英格拉姆 (Brandon Ingram)（脚踝）在去年交易截止日前加盟后尚未完成多伦多首秀。但他本赛季打了77场比赛——是自2016-17新秀赛季以来最多的一次。英格拉姆的反弹赛季和斯科蒂·巴恩斯 (Scottie Barnes) 最佳阵容级别的飞跃，让猛龙四年来首次重返季后赛。
亚特兰大老鹰：B
2025-26赛季战绩： 46胜36负
ESPN预测战绩： 47胜35负
老鹰带着以长期球队核心特雷·杨 (Trae Young) 为中心冲击前四种子的抱负进入赛季。然而，杨在10月因膝伤缺阵，仅为老鹰打了10场比赛，就在赛季首笔交易中被送往奇才。但在全明星赛前徘徊在东部附加赛边缘后，凭借首次入选全明星的杰伦·约翰逊 (Jalen Johnson) 带领下的强势收官，球队一路冲到了第六名。
丹佛掘金：B
2025-26赛季战绩： 54胜28负
ESPN预测战绩： 53胜29负
丹佛经历了一个波折的赛季，结局也颇为离奇：掘金试图在首轮避开明尼苏达森林狼，但最终还是对上了这支在过去三个赛季季后赛中交手过两次的球队。但与此同时，掘金将以相对健康的姿态进入季后赛，并且是西部三支被认为有希望突围并冲击过去四个赛季中第二座总冠军的球队之一。这正是掘金在赛季开始时被预期的位置。
休斯顿火箭：B
2025-26赛季战绩： 52胜30负
ESPN预测战绩： 54胜28负
这是另一个赛季结束时达到或超过预期，但过程比预期更曲折的例子。随着首发控卫弗雷德·范弗利特 (Fred VanVleet) 因跟腱断裂缺阵，休斯顿的进攻陷入停滞，球队的年轻天才——特别是阿门·汤普森 (Amen Thompson) 和里德·谢泼德 (Reed Sheppard)——表现起伏不定。尽管如此，火箭有望自2020年以来首次赢得季后赛系列赛，并追平了上赛季52胜的总战绩。
费城76人：B-
2025-26赛季战绩： 45胜37负
ESPN预测战绩： 40胜42负
直到上周，在经历了去年24胜58负的伤病赛季后，这个赛季本应被视为巨大的成功。但乔尔·恩比德 (Joel Embiid) 紧急阑尾切除手术的消息可能会在季后赛开始前毁掉76人的反弹赛季。因此，尽管76人冲击了前六种子，新秀 VJ·艾奇康姆 (VJ Edgecombe) 表现亮眼，泰瑞斯·马克西 (Tyrese Maxey) 也打出了有望入选最佳阵容的突破表现，但2025-26赛季的结局可能与费城最近的许多赛季一样——伴随着关于恩比德的令人沮丧的伤病消息。
“C”级评分
布鲁克林篮网：C
2025-26赛季战绩： 20胜62负
ESPN预测战绩： 23胜59负
这个过程可能并不愉快，但布鲁克林最终到达了它应该在的位置：全联盟倒数前三，拥有在6月选秀中获得前四顺位签的最高概率。迈克尔·波特 (Michael Porter Jr.) 在休赛期从丹佛交易过来后（连同一个未来的首轮签）打出了职业生涯最佳赛季，这是一个意外的惊喜，但篮网的总体目标已经实现。
克利夫兰骑士：C
2025-26赛季战绩： 52胜30负
ESPN预测战绩： 59胜23负
克利夫兰进入本赛季时是夺得东部冠军的热门之一，但一个动荡的赛季让骑士解体了他们的“核心四人组”，并跌跌撞撞地获得了第四名。在前MVP詹姆斯·哈登 (James Harden) 在交易季的一次重大运作中取代达里厄斯·加兰 (Darius Garland) 进入后场后，克利夫兰正寄希望于通过季后赛的深入表现来改变这一评价，但常规赛的表现确实令人不尽人意。
明尼苏达森林狼：C
2025-26赛季战绩： 49胜33负
ESPN预测战绩： 51胜31负
森林狼是过去几天西部联盟顶部摆烂博弈的大赢家，因为他们将对阵掘金——一支他们在季后赛中曾取得过成功的球队，然后是一支缺乏经验的马刺，他们将力争连续第三次闯入西部决赛。但这是一个起伏不定的赛季，他们并没有去争夺西部前四，反而差点掉进附加赛。
纽约尼克斯：C
2025-26赛季战绩： 53胜29负
ESPN预测战绩： 54胜28负
尼克斯和骑士一样，在去年分区决赛失利并解雇教练汤姆·锡伯杜 (Tom Thibodeau) 后，带着极高的期望进入赛季。虽然本赛季的故事最终将由季后赛书写，但目前只能被视为略显失望。在布朗执教的首个赛季，尼克斯给人的感觉是整体表现不如个人天赋的总和，而他们正追逐着本世纪首次打入总决赛的赛季前目标。
犹他爵士：C
2025-26赛季战绩： 22胜60负
ESPN预测战绩： 19胜63负
爵士实现了他们的赛季前目标：保住首轮签，并在选秀顶端再搏一次。犹他在交易来前最佳防守球员小贾伦·杰克逊 (Jaren Jackson Jr.) 的同时实现了这一目标，并在此过程中因摆烂被罚款，这条道路比许多人预期的更有趣。剩下的唯一一件事就是看看今年是否终于是这支球队获得乐透签好运的一年。
华盛顿奇才：C
2025-26赛季战绩： 17胜65负
ESPN预测战绩： 20胜62负
和篮网一样，华盛顿全赛季的目标很明确：确保不低于选秀前五顺位。但在奇才锁定联盟最差战绩的同时，球队在交易季完成了两次最重磅的引援，先后得到了特雷·杨和安东尼·戴维斯 (Anthony Davis)。随着6月高顺位乐透签的到来，下个赛季的华盛顿将非常值得关注。
印第安纳步行者：C-
2025-26赛季战绩： 19胜63负
ESPN预测战绩： 39胜43负
虽然波士顿在塔图姆受伤后避免了“空窗年”，但泰瑞斯·哈利伯顿 (Tyrese Haliburton) 因跟腱撕裂赛季报销，加上常规赛前几周爆发的大规模伤病，让印第安纳从一开始就注定了失败。即便如此，步行者在赛季结束时拥有了入选最佳防守阵容的中锋伊维察·祖巴茨 (Ivica Zubac) 和一个潜在的前四顺位签。在过渡年里，这远非最坏的结果，但对于印第安纳来说，这个失落的赛季距离2025年NBA总决赛的抢七大战确实跌落得太快了。
迈阿密热火：C-
2025-26赛季战绩： 43胜39负
ESPN预测战绩： 39胜43负
和老鹰一样，迈阿密达到了大多数预测的胜场，但过程非常复杂。热火在赛季的大部分时间里都在争夺东部前六，并最终超过了赛季前的预测胜场总数。但在阿德巴约 (Bam Adebayo) 在赛季中多次表示厌倦了打附加赛之后，迈阿密连续第四个赛季进入附加赛，并连续第二年拿到10号种子。但与去年不同的是，热火没能再次上演冲向8号种子的奇迹。
“D”级评分
金州勇士：D+
2025-26赛季战绩： 37胜45负
ESPN预测战绩： 48胜34负
勇士带着在西部排名前六的梦想开始赛季，拥有了完整赛季的吉米·巴特勒三世 (Jimmy Butler III) 和又老了一岁的传奇斯蒂芬·库里 (Stephen Curry)。相反，金州在早期搞砸了几场本该赢下的比赛，随后遭遇了巴特勒和摩西·穆迪 (Moses Moody) 的赛季报销伤病，此外库里和波尔津吉斯等人也长期缺阵。糟糕的状态和伤病让勇士在过去几个月的大部分时间里都沦为附加赛的最后一支球队。金州还能打进季后赛吗？当然可以。但这绝不是勇士希望拥有的赛季。
洛杉矶快船：D+
2025-26赛季战绩： 42胜40负
ESPN预测战绩： 50胜32负
快船在几个月的时间里表现出色，从赛季初的泥潭中爬了出来，但这支球队原本被广泛预期能在西部季后赛中获得主场优势。洛杉矶以令人难以置信的6胜21负开局，并伴随着詹姆斯·哈登和祖巴茨的交易。即便这两笔交易（换来达里厄斯·加兰和一个潜在的中位乐透签）是可以理解的，但最终的结果还是让这个赛季被轻易贴上“失望”的标签。
芝加哥公牛：D
2025-26赛季战绩： 31胜51负
ESPN预测战绩： 36胜46负
公牛球迷可能会认为这个赛季其实超过了预期，因为球队终于选定了方向，现在正寻求更换阿图拉斯·卡尼索瓦斯 (Arturas Karnisovas) 和马克·艾弗斯利 (Marc Eversley) 这两位篮球运营负责人。但公牛在进入2025-26赛季时并没有预想到会成为东部第12名，而且在附加赛无望后，也没能在选秀乐透排名中取得实质性的提升。
达拉斯独行侠：D
2025-26赛季战绩： 26胜56负
ESPN预测战绩： 44胜38负
考虑到本赛季的表现有多糟糕，可能很难让人想起，达拉斯在赛季初曾被认为有机会成为西部的一股重要力量。相反，安东尼·戴维斯在被交易前只打了29场比赛，达拉斯在赛季后半段的大部分时间里都在拼命争取在乐透排名中尽可能靠前。球队现在进入休赛期，开始寻找尼科·哈里森 (Nico Harrison) 的继任者来担任篮球运营负责人。
孟菲斯灰熊：D
2025-26赛季战绩： 25胜57负
ESPN预测战绩： 42胜40负
灰熊是过去几周联盟中最明目张胆的摆烂机器——这奏效了，他们在乐透排名中一路冲到了第六。虽然从一个失落的赛季中获得高顺位签是好事，但这并不能改变小贾伦·杰克逊远走犹他、贾·莫兰特 (Ja Morant) 又经历了一个毫无存在感的赛季，以及扎克·埃迪 (Zach Edey) 几乎整个赛季都因脚踝问题缺阵的事实。
奥兰多魔术：D
2025-26赛季战绩： 45胜37负
ESPN预测战绩： 50胜32负
在阵容多年沉寂之后，奥兰多选择了孤注一掷，用四个首轮签从灰熊换来了后卫德斯蒙德·贝恩 (Desmond Bane)，此举旨在将魔术提升到真正的竞争者地位。相反，奥兰多又一次以一支进攻水平低于平均线的球队结束了常规赛，并且不太可能打破连续16个赛季没有赢得过系列赛的尴尬纪录。
密尔沃基雄鹿：D-
2025-26赛季战绩： 32胜50负
ESPN预测战绩： 46胜36负
没有哪支球队比雄鹿更适合这个评分了。在一个灾难性的、充满伤病的赛季中，道格·里弗斯 (Doc Rivers) 辞去了主教练职务，围绕超级巨星扬尼斯·阿德托昆博 (Giannis Antetokounmpo) 的风波也一直在持续，毫无疑问这个赛季是失败的。密尔沃基即将迎来巨变。
新奥尔良鹈鹕：D-
2025-26赛季战绩： 26胜56负
ESPN预测战绩： 26胜56负
新奥尔良的预期显然没有达到，鹈鹕在休赛期进行了一系列运作，相信球队可以竞争附加赛席位甚至更好。但去年6月与亚特兰大的选秀日交易之所以受到广泛批评，正是因为人们预期鹈鹕会落在乐透区中段。而且，如果不是因为全联盟范围内明目张胆的摆烂，这个选秀权的顺位原本会比现在更高。
萨克拉门托国王：D-
2025-26赛季战绩： 22胜60负
ESPN预测战绩： 37胜45负
国王本赛季的一个缩影：在摆烂成风的赛季中，他们因涉嫌摆烂接受调查，最后通过辩称他们的教练在一场比赛中完全搞砸了战术决策而洗清了嫌疑。这足以说明这支球队的现状——他们原本被预测会竞争附加赛，结果却成了联盟最差的球队之一，然后甚至还凭实力赢球，把自己踢出了乐透前三。
由生成式人工智能翻译，译文内容可能不准确或不完整，以原文为准。
点击查看原文：Grades for all 30 NBA teams after the 2025-26 regular season
Grades for all 30 NBA teams after the 2025-26 regular season
Tuesday night kicked off the start of the NBA postseason, when the Portland Trail Blazers secured the 7-seed in the West playoffs and the Charlotte Hornets won an overtime thriller to avoid elimination in the battle for the East’s final playoff spot.
But while numerous storylines will play out during the two-month trek to decide the 2026 champion, this is a good opportunity to take stock of what just took place across every franchise’s 82-game regular season.
It has been an eventful 2025-26, full of superlative performances, shocking trades and surprises up and down the league standings. (Plus plenty of talk surrounding tanking and other less savory subjects.)
Here, we’re handing out regular season grades to all 30 teams – an ode to ESPN NBA analytics and grades legend Kevin Pelton – using a simple rubric: Did a team meet, exceed or fall short of its preseason expectations?
Teams will have to go above and beyond to receive one of the seven ‘A’ grades handed out. See where all 30 teams landed below. (Teams are in alphabetical order within each grade).
Jump to a grade range:
A’s | B’s | C’s | D’s | F’s
Jump to a team:
ATL | BOS | BKN | CHA | CHI | CLE
DAL | DEN | DET | GS | HOU | IND
LAC | LAL | MEM | MIA | MIL | MIN
NO | NY | OKC | ORL | PHI | PHX
POR | SAC | SA | TOR | UTA | WAS
‘A’ grades
Boston Celtics: A
2025-26 record: 56-26
ESPN Forecast: 43-39
Given the roster reshuffle in the wake of Jayson Tatum’s torn right Achilles – Boston traded Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday and lost Al Horford in free agency – a run to the 2-seed was difficult to fathom. But behind a Coach of the Year caliber job by Joe Mazzulla and a career-redefining season from Jaylen Brown, the 2024 NBA champs are right back in the mix. And with Tatum rounding into form during his 16-game runup to the playoffs, the Celtics are back as the favorites to win the conference.
Charlotte Hornets: A
2025-26 record: 44-38
ESPN Forecast: 26-56
The belief leaguewide – and likely in Charlotte as well – was that the 2025-26 season would provide valuable experience for the team’s young talent as the franchise prepared to add another high lottery pick in a loaded 2026 draft class. Instead, Charlotte went 18-9 after the All-Star break to roll into the play-in tournament with a chance to reach its first playoff series in a decade. But whatever happens in Friday’s game, the season has been an unqualified success in Buzz City.
Detroit Pistons: A
2025-26 record: 60-22
ESPN Forecast: 47-35
Going from 14 wins in 2023-24 to 44 wins last season was a remarkable feat. Going to this season’s staggering 60 victories, something that’s only happened twice in the franchise’s illustrious history – is at another level. Cade Cunningham became an MVP candidate, Jalen Duren developed into a star and the Pistons reclaimed their status as the East’s menacing, physical contender.
Phoenix Suns: A
2025-26 record: 45-37
ESPN Forecast: 30-52
The Suns were seen as a team more likely to finish last in the league than to make the playoffs. And yet, they flirted with a top-six seed in the West all season, ultimately finishing seventh, and now will have to win Friday to make the playoffs. Phoenix hired an excellent young coach in Jordan Ott, who has created an impressive hard-working, hard-playing culture in his first season.
San Antonio Spurs: A
2025-26 record: 62-20
ESPN Forecast: 44-38
Heading into the season, San Antonio merely reaching the postseason was considered a reachable goal, especially after Spurs’ 34-win campaign featured Victor Wembanyama missing the second half due to a blood clot issue. But not only has Wemby been healthy, he led the Spurs to 62 wins while nearly chasing down the defending champion Thunder for the league’s best record.
Los Angeles Lakers: A-
2025-26 record: 53-29
ESPN Forecast: 50-32
It might not feel great in Lakerland right now, given devastating injuries to leading scorers Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves just before the playoffs, but it’s hard to see this season as anything but a success in the aggregate. The Lakers finished with a top-four seed in the West, Doncic had an MVP-caliber season and LeBron James settled into a role as a third star who had the franchise dreaming of a deep playoff run before injuries hit.
Oklahoma City Thunder: A-
2025-26 record: 64-18
ESPN Forecast: 64-18
It says plenty where the defending champions sit that winning 64 games is seen as achieving an expected outcome, but it’s a truthful statement. The fact the team did it with so many injuries throughout the season is a testament to the talent across the roster, and the sheer steadiness of potential two-time MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. Oklahoma City will now hope to do something else it is expected to: Break the NBA’s record streak of seven seasons without a repeat champion.
‘B’ grades
Portland Trail Blazers: B+
2025-26 record: 42-40
ESPN Forecast: 39-43
The regular season began with coach Chauncey Billups being charged in a federal gambling investigation. It ended with the team completing a sale to new owner Tom Dundon. Through it all, Portland finishing the regular season in the upper half of the play-in tournament is quite an accomplishment, particularly to interim coach Tiago Splitter and star forward Deni Avdija. It was a successful campaign for the rising Blazers, even before Avdija led them to the 7-seed and the franchise’s first playoff appearance in five years
Toronto Raptors: B+
2025-26 record: 46-36
ESPN Forecast: 33-49
The Raptors were hard to place coming into this season, particularly since Brandon Ingram (ankle) had yet to make his Toronto debut after joining the team ahead of last year’s trade deadline. But he played 77 games – most since his rookie season in 2016-17. Ingram’s bounce-back season and Scottie Barnes’ All-NBA-caliber leap have the Raptors in the playoffs for the first time in four years.
Atlanta Hawks: B
2025-26 record: 46-36
ESPN Forecast: 47-35
Atlanta entered the season with aspirations of a top-four seed, built around longtime franchise icon Trae Young. Instead, Young was sidelined in October with a knee injury, played 10 games for the Hawks and was traded to the Wizards in the first deal of the season. But after floundering in the bottom of the East play-in picture through the All-Star break, a furious finish behind first-time All-Star Jalen Johnson lifted the franchise all the way to sixth.
Denver Nuggets: B
2025-26 record: 54-28
ESPN Forecast: 53-29
It’s been an eventful season in Denver, one that concluded in odd fashion with the Nuggets trying to avoid the Minnesota Timberwolves in the first round and ultimately still ending up against the team they’ve faced in the playoffs twice in the past three seasons. But at the same time, Denver will enter the playoffs relatively healthy and as one of three teams expected to have a chance to emerge from the West with a chance to win a second championship in the past four seasons. That’s where Denver was expected to be when the season began.
Houston Rockets: B
2025-26 record: 52-30
ESPN Forecast: 54-28
This is another case where the season ended at or above where it was supposed to, just in a more circuitous path than expected. With starting point guard Fred VanVleet out with a torn ACL, Houston’s offense sputtered, and the team’s young talent – specifically Amen Thompson and Reed Sheppard – had its ups and downs. And yet, Houston is expected to win a playoff series for the first time since 2020, and matched last season’s 52-win total.
Philadelphia 76ers: B-
2025-26 record: 45-37
ESPN Forecast: 40-42
Until last week, this season would have been considered a major success after last year’s injury-filled 24-58 campaign. But the news of Joel Embiid’s emergency appendectomy could derail the 76ers bounce-back season before the playoffs even begin. So even though the Sixers pushed for a top-six seed, rookie VJ Edgecombe shined and Tyrese Maxey played his way into a likely All-NBA breakthrough, 2025-26 could end like many recent seasons in Philadelphia – disappointing injury news involving Embiid.
‘C’ grades
Brooklyn Nets: C
2025-26 record: 20-62
ESPN Forecast: 23-59
It might not have been an enjoyable process, but Brooklyn wound up where it was supposed to be: bottom three in the NBA standings with the highest possible odds of landing a top-four pick in June’s draft. Michael Porter Jr. posting a career season after coming over (along with a future first-round pick) in an offseason trade with Denver was a welcomed bonus, but the Nets’ overall goal was achieved.
Cleveland Cavaliers: C
2025-26 record: 52-30
ESPN Forecast: 59-23
Cleveland entered this season as co-favorites to come out of the East, but a topsy-turvy season saw the Cavaliers break up their “Core Four” and limp to a fourth-place finish. With former MVP James Harden replacing Darius Garland in the backcourt in one of trade season’s biggest moves, Cleveland is banking on a deep playoff run to change this assessment, but it’s been an unsatisfying regular season.
Minnesota Timberwolves: C
2025-26 record: 49-33
ESPN Forecast: 51-31
The Timberwolves have been the big winner from the tanking maneuvers at the top of the Western Conference over the past few days, as they will get the Nuggets, a team they’ve had postseason success against, and then an inexperienced Spurs squad as they vie for a third straight Western Conference finals. But it’s been an up-and-down season, and rather than pushing for a top-four spot in the West, they nearly found themselves in the play-in.
New York Knicks: C
2025-26 record: 53-29
ESPN Forecast: 54-28
The Knicks, like the Cavaliers, entered the season with sky-high expectations after moving on from coach Tom Thibodeau after last season’s conference finals defeat. And while this season’s story will ultimately be written in the playoffs, it can only be seen as a mild disappointment right now. In Brown’s first season, the Knicks feel like a group that’s played to less than the sum of its parts as they chase preseason ambitions of reaching the NBA Finals for the first time this century.
Utah Jazz: C
2025-26 record: 22-60
ESPN Forecast: 19-63
The Jazz accomplished their preseason goal: keep their first-round pick and get one final swing at the top of the draft. Utah accomplished it while trading for former Defensive Player of the Year Jaren Jackson Jr. and being fined for tanking along the way, a more interesting path than many expected. The only thing left is to see if this is finally the year this team gets some lottery luck.
Washington Wizards: C
2025-26 record: 17-65
ESPN Forecast: 20-62
Like Brooklyn, the goal was clear all season in Washington: guarantee no worse than the fifth pick in the draft. But while the Wizards were securing the league’s worst record, the franchise made two of the biggest splashes of trade season when it acquired Trae Young and Anthony Davis. With a high lottery pick coming in June, next season will be a fascinating watch in D.C.
Indiana Pacers: C-
2025-26 record: 19-63
ESPN Forecast: 39-43
While Boston avoided a gap year in the wake of Tatum’s injury, the combination of Tyrese Haliburton being out for the season with an Achilles tear and a rash of other injuries in the opening weeks of the regular season doomed Indiana from the start. That said, the Pacers will come out of this season with All-Defense center Ivica Zubac and a potential top-four pick. There are far worse outcomes in a gap year, but Indy’s lost season remains quite a fall from Game 7 of the 2025 NBA Finals.
Miami Heat: C-
2025-26 record: 43-39
ESPN Forecast: 39-43
Like Atlanta, Miami matched most projections but in a convoluted fashion. The Heat spent much of the season fighting for a top-six spot in the East and ended up surpassing their preseason over/under wins total. But after Bam Adebayo said repeatedly throughout the season that he was tired of being in the play-in, Miami finished there for the fourth consecutive season and grabbed the 10-seed for the second straight season. But unlike last year, the Heat couldn’t make a run to the 8-seed.
‘D’ grades
Golden State Warriors: D+
2025-26 record: 37-45
ESPN Forecast: 48-34
The Warriors began the season dreaming of a top-six finish in the West, with a full season of Jimmy Butler III in the fold and another year of icon Stephen Curry. Instead, Golden State bungled several winnable games early and then endured season-ending injuries to Butler and Moses Moody – plus lengthy absences for Curry and Kristaps Porzingis, among others. The bad stretches and injuries relegated the Warriors to the last team in the play-in for most of the past few months. Could Golden State still make the playoffs? Sure. But this is not the season the Warriors were hoping to have.
LA Clippers: D+
2025-26 record: 42-40
ESPN Forecast: 50-32
The Clippers had a great few months to dig themselves out of an early-season hole, but this was a team widely expected to have homecourt in the Western Conference playoffs. LA began the season with an almost unbelievable 6-21 record and coupled it with trading James Harden and Ivica Zubac. Even if both deals, for Darius Garland and a potential mid-lottery pick, were understandable, the final result makes this an easy season to label as a disappointment.
Chicago Bulls: D
2025-26 record: 31-51
ESPN Forecast: 36-46
Bulls fans might argue this season actually exceeded expectations, given the team finally chose a direction and is now searching to replace Arturas Karnisovas and Marc Eversley as the leaders of basketball operations. But the Bulls, who didn’t enter 2025-26 with visions of the East’s 12-seed, also failed to meaningfully move up in the draft lottery standings after the play-in tournament became out of reach.
Dallas Mavericks: D
2025-26 record: 26-56
ESPN Forecast: 44-38
It’s hard to remember given how awful this season has gone, but Dallas was believed to have a chance to be a factor in the Western Conference this season. Instead, Anthony Davis played 29 games before being traded, and Dallas spent most of the back half of the season desperately trying to move as high in the lottery standings as possible. It now enters the offseason searching for Nico Harrison’s replacement as the franchise’s head of basketball operations.
Memphis Grizzlies: D
2025-26 record: 25-57
ESPN Forecast: 42-40
The Grizzlies have been the league’s most egregious tanking machine over the past couple of weeks – it worked, they’re all the way up to sixth in the lottery. But while it’s a positive to come out of a lost season, it doesn’t change that Jaren Jackson Jr. is in Utah, Ja Morant had another invisible campaign and Zach Edey spent another nearly entire season sidelined with ankle issues.
Orlando Magic: D
2025-26 record: 45-37
ESPN Forecast: 50-32
After years of inactivity with the roster, Orlando went all-in by trading Memphis four first-round picks for guard Desmond Bane in a move designed to vault the Magic into a true contender status. Instead, Orlando finished another regular season as a below-average offensive team and are unlikely to snap a streak of 16 seasons without a series victory.
Milwaukee Bucks: D-
2025-26 record: 32-50
ESPN Forecast: 46-36
No team belongs here more than the Bucks. Between a disastrous, injury-filled season that saw Doc Rivers step down as coach and the ongoing saga surrounding superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo, there’s little doubt this season has been a failure. Massive changes are coming to Milwaukee.
New Orleans Pelicans: D-
2025-26 record: 26-56
ESPN Forecast: 26-56
Expectations might not have been met in New Orleans, where the Pelicans made moves in the offseason while believing this team could contend for a play-in spot or better. But the reason the draft night trade with Atlanta was panned as much as it was last June was because of the expectation the Pelicans would land in the middle of the lottery. And, if it wasn’t for egregious tanking from across the league, the pick would’ve landed even higher than it did.
Sacramento Kings: D-
2025-26 record: 22-60
ESPN Forecast: 37-45
A microcosm of the Kings this season: They were investigated for tanking, in a season that’s been rife with it, and were cleared from it by arguing that their coach just completely messed up a strategy decision in a game. That said it all about a team that was projected to fight for the play-in and instead was one of the league’s worst teams – and then even won its way out of a top-three lottery spot.
By Tim Bontemps, via ESPN