Report Card Grades for Every NBA Team Entering Season's Final Quarter
We've made it to the final quarter of the 2023-24 NBA season, and that means it's time for another leaguewide report card.
Every team will get the classic A through F treatment, but they'll be graded on something of a curve. If a team was supposed to be awful and was indeed awful, it doesn't make a lot of sense to fail them. To a certain extent, these marks are relative to expectations, which is why you'll see everyone's preseason over-under. Think of those numbers as a guide.
It's also important to note that these grades are for the entire season to this point, rather than what teams have done between now and the last report card.
So, with all of the above in mind, let's dive in.
Atlanta Hawks: D+
1 of 30
Preseason Over-Under: 42.5
Current Pace: 36
Few teams have been quite as underwhelming as the Atlanta Hawks this season.
The above-.500 projection from Las Vegas was seemingly an endorsement (though a soft one) of coach Quin Snyder and his ability to make mismatched chess pieces like Trae Young and Dejounte Murray work. He simply hasn't pulled off.
Prior to a hand injury that will keep Young out for most of the stretch run, Atlanta was minus-5.8 points per 100 possessions with both guards on the floor. For context's sake, the injury-ravaged Memphis Grizzlies are minus-6.3 for the season.
Snyder was never able to find the offensive balance between Young and Murray, and the inherent tension there may have contributed to efficiency dropoffs for both Clint Capela and Onyeka Okongwu.
On the bright side, Bogdan Bogdanović has had another solid off-the-bench campaign, and Jalen Johnson legitimately broke out as a three-and-D forward who even has some playmaking chops.
But barring some kind of miraculous late-season run behind Murray, Atlanta is going to enter the offseason with some significant questions.
Boston Celtics: A+
2 of 30
Preseason Over-Under: 54.5
Current Pace: 65
There isn't much left to say about this Boston Celtics regular season. To this point, it couldn't have gone much better.
Jrue Holiday has more than replaced Marcus Smart's defense. The attention Kristaps Porziņģis commands has opened the floor up for Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown and Derrick White.
And the way everyone, including reserves like Al Horford, Sam Hauser and Payton Pritchard, seems to be on a string defensively is shutting down opposing offenses almost every time Boston plays.
Everything has come together to the tune of a 10.73 simple rating system (which combines point differential and strength of schedule). That mark ranks fifth all-time, and the only teams ahead (the 1970-71 Milwaukee Bucks, the 1971-72 Los Angeles Lakers, the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls and the 2016-17 Golden State Warriors) all won the championship.
Brooklyn Nets: D
3 of 30
Preseason Over-Under: 37.5
Current Pace: 32
At a certain point, the Brooklyn Nets passing felt like a pretty safe bet.
They were .500 through 30 games. Mikal Bridges looked a bit more like a No. 1 option. Even Cam Thomas was turning some heads with his high-volume scoring games.
Since then, Brooklyn is 25th in net rating. Bridges looks overtaxed. Thomas' efficiency has plummeted to his below-average career norms. Head coach Jacque Vaughn got fired. Spencer Dinwiddie's gone. Ben Simmons (the team's highest-paid player) barely plays. Even Nic Claxton, who's probably the closest to consistently good play, has been worse than he was last season.
They've been a bit better of late (getting to play the Memphis Grizzlies and Atlanta Hawks helped), but if the Nets close out the season the way they generally played through January and February, they might get an F in April.
Charlotte Hornets: D
4 of 30
Preseason Over-Under: 31.5
Current Pace: 21
The Charlotte Hornets have a couple saving graces on this report card. First, it's not really the team's fault that LaMelo Ball's injury-prone. And second, it looks like 2023 No. 2 pick Brandon Miller has star upside.
We'll start with the latter. Over his past 21 games, Miller's averaging 20.5 points, 2.8 threes and 2.6 assists while shooting 37.2 percent from deep. He's a better and more willing defender than a lot of highly touted offensive prospects.
The former, again, has had a terrible time staying on the floor. It'd be difficult for any team, let alone one with a roster as bad as Charlotte's, to replace 22 points and eight assists (roughly Ball's averages for the past three seasons).
Not having your lead playmaker has sort of a waterfall effect for the rest of the team, too. It's tough for anyone to find and stay in a rhythm.
Another key piece and the likely anchor of the defense going forward, Mark Williams, has also been limited to just 19 appearances this season. Like Ball with the offense, not having Williams has contributed to a constant state of flux on the defensive side of the floor.
So, it probably shouldn't come as too much of a surprise that the Hornets are trending toward a win total that falls way shy of their preseason projection. But it's also hard to let them off the hook entirely for being one of the worst teams in the league relative to expectations.
Chicago Bulls: C
5 of 30
Preseason Over-Under: 37.5
Current Pace: 38
The Chicago Bulls may be the NBA's prime example of average.
They're right on track for their preseason over-under. They can at least compete with just about anyone on a given night, but there are very few (if any) playoff contenders you'd expect to lose a series against them.
It might be tempting to say you'd expect more of the Bulls with Zach LaVine, but even before an injury ended his season, the team was significantly better without him on the floor.
What they've stumbled into since he left the rotation is a grind-it-out, statistically mediocre style that will keep them in the basketball purgatory they've inhabited for years.
Cleveland Cavaliers: A
6 of 30
Preseason Over-Under: 50.5
Current Pace: 54
The Cleveland Cavaliers started the season a ho-hum 18-15. Since then, they have a plus-11.4 net rating that leads the entire. Yes, they've been better than the Boston Celtics over that stretch.
What makes this season even more remarkable for Cleveland is that it lost both Darius Garland and Evan Mobley to weekslong injuries shortly before this stretch. In mid-December, scores of fans and analysts were advocating for a rebuild-starting trade of Donovan Mitchell.
What they got instead was MVP-level play from Mitchell (the Cavs are plus-13.7 points per 100 possessions when Mitchell plays without Garland and Mobley) and All-Star level support from Jarrett Allen (17.2 points, 11.8 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.4 blocks per game since that 18-15 start).
By the time Garland and Mobley returned, the team was rolling in a way that even rotation shifts couldn't slow down.
Dallas Mavericks: B
7 of 30
Preseason Over-Under: 45.5
Current Pace: 46
After seeing their own grade and the difference between their pace and over-under, Chicago Bulls fans may cry foul upon seeing this mark for the Dallas Mavericks.
But I'll cop to having plenty of subjectivity within this report card (this is more English or history than it is math or science). Plus the Mavs' expectations were harder to hit than Chicago's, and they have two individual stars who can reach heights few others in the league can.
They may not be on track for 50 wins or even a top-six finish that would get them out of the play-in tournament, but Luka Dončić and Kyrie Irving are both capable of taking over a seven-game series. If both are available in the playoffs (again, assuming Dallas gets there), the Mavs will be dangerous against anyone.
And that's even more true after a solid trade deadline that also boosts this team's grade a bit.
With the additions of P.J. Washington and Daniel Gafford, Dallas is deeper in the frontcourt. Gafford can be a high-end rim-runner and -protector, especially when he has Luka feeding him. Washington is a more explosive defender than Grant Williams. And if he finds his outside shot with the Mavs, this team has one of the highest-ceiling starting fives in the league.
Those three, Dereck Lively II and either of Josh Green or Dante Exum make up a group with tons of playmaking, finishing and versatility.
This grade may be more forward-looking than others, but the person with the red marker is allowed some liberties.
Denver Nuggets: A-
8 of 30
Preseason Over-Under: 52.5
Current Pace: 56
The reigning champions have spent much of the season outside the top five in net rating, but they're working their way back in now. That's particularly impressive when you consider that Jamal Murray has missed 16 games with injuries (and much of two in which he was injured).
When he and Nikola Jokić are both on the floor, Denver is a juggernaut-like plus-14.9 points per 100 possessions. Add that to the memory of their dominance in the 2023 playoffs, and it's fair for Nuggets fans to have plenty of confidence for a potential repeat.
Still, in a season in which the Boston Celtics are putting up historic numbers and well on their way to home-court advantage throughout the playoffs, a little more statistical dominance or stability from Denver's bench would be nice.
Detroit Pistons: F
9 of 30
Preseason Over-Under: 28.5
Current Pace: 13
To this day, even after a historic losing streak and a generally dismal season, you can look at the Detroit Pistons roster and expect more.
Sure, 29 wins may have been an overly optimistic projection, but Cade Cunningham should be better by now. Jaden Ivey shouldn't have languished on the bench as long as he did. Those two should work better with Jalen Duren. Killian Hayes and James Wiseman probably shouldn't have played as much as they did.
Prior to the trade deadline, the Pistons had solid veteran role players in Bojan Bogdanović and Alec Burks.
It's probably not fair to put the entire failure on new coach Monty Williams, but much of the above was directly under his control. And when you have a sub-30 over-under and still fail to get halfway there, that warrants an F.
Golden State Warriors: C+
10 of 30
Preseason Over-Under: 48.5
Current Pace: 44
Yes, the Golden State Warriors appear headed for the under, but that's not representative of how they're playing now (and what their recent play might mean for the last quarter of the season).
Chris Paul has missed 24 games this season, but he's back now, and there's no doubt having him on the floor helps Stephen Curry.
When both are on the floor, the Warriors are plus-8.2 points per 100 possessions (much better than the plus-2.1 season-long net rating). And CP3's general willingness to play the ball- and player-movement heavy style of the Warriors has been obvious.
Another recent development is the leap Jonathan Kuminga took during Draymond Green's latest suspension. Over his past 22 games, Kuminga is averaging 20.6 points, 6.0 rebounds and 2.9 assists while shooting 37.2 percent from deep.
Finally, Klay Thompson accepting a reserve role may have been the final piece of a puzzle that's come together perfectly for this last quarter of the season. In six games off the bench, Thompson's numbers (19.2 points with a 44.1 three-point percentage) are clearly better than they've been in his starts (16.9 points with a 37.0 three-point percentage).
Add all of that to better-than-expected play from Dario Sarić and rookie Brandin Podziemski, and it looks like Golden State has rediscovered its identity just in time for the postseason.
Houston Rockets: B-
11 of 30
Preseason Over-Under: 31.5
Current Pace: 35
Relative to their first couple months of the season, the Houston Rockets have been a disappointment of late. But from a macro perspective, it's still easy to look at this season as a step in the right direction.
Houston won 22 games last season. They're on pace to nearly double that. Alperen Şengün had a borderline All-Star case a few weeks ago and looks like the game's next great point center. Jabari Smith Jr. looks like he's going to be a plus on defense for years to come and has potential as a floor-spacing big. And Cam Whitmore and Amen Thompson have both exceeded rookie expectations.
There is still some concern about Jalen Green, particularly his inefficiency as a scorer, but the Rockets have suddenly have a bevy high-ceiling wings. The organization's success certainly isn't tethered to Green's.
And the Rockets are undoubtedly moving in the right direction.
Indiana Pacers: B+
12 of 30
Preseason Over-Under: 38.5
Current Pace: 46
Struggles with injuries have really slowed down Tyrese Haliburton, but the Indiana Pacers still have the second-best offense in the NBA.
And with the midseason addition of Pascal Siakam, Indiana now has two bona fide All-Star-level talents (maybe even two and a half, if you add fringe All-Star Myles Turner).
With those three clicking, and Aaron Nesmith and Obi Toppin growing into their roles alongside them, Indiana has shown an ability to outscore just about anyone on a given night.
The lack of defense is probably going to doom them in the playoffs, but coach Rick Carlisle has at least started to establish a winning culture in his second stint leading the Pacers.
Los Angeles Clippers: A
13 of 30
Preseason Over-Under: 46.5
Current Pace: 54
Since the six-game losing streak in November that doubled as an adjustment period for the newly acquired James Harden, the Los Angeles Clippers are 35-13 with a plus-7.1 net rating that ranks fourth in the NBA over that span.
Zeroing in a bit closer, for the entire season, they're plus-11.5 points per 100 possessions when Harden, Kawhi Leonard and Paul George are all on the floor.
And beyond the numbers, L.A. just looks like a contender with Harden now in place as the lead playmaker. The Clippers have been dominant with the two star wings available for years, but it always felt like there was a dash of playmaking missing.
Harden provides more than a dash.
He gets those wings (not to mention Ivica Zubac and the rest of the supporting cast) the kind of wide-open looks they simply weren't seeing as often prior to his arrival.
While the defense may not be quite as stout as it's been at other points in the Kawhi era, L.A. still has two of the game's best wing defenders when engaged. Over the rest of this regular season and into the playoffs, Kawhi and PG should be engaged.
Los Angeles Lakers: C+
14 of 30
Preseason Over-Under: 47.5
Current Pace: 44
The Los Angeles Lakers are getting a plus here for the same reason the Warriors did.
Yes, it looks like falling short of that over-under is more than in play, but L.A. has clearly figured some things out (particularly on offense) in recent weeks.
The Lakers are 9-3 since February 1, and their 120.8 points per 100 possessions over that span rank fourth in the league.
A lot of that obviously has to do with LeBron James and Anthony Davis (both of whom have played like top-10 players all season), but Darvin Ham finally trusting Rui Hachimura helped too.
His promotion to full-time starter coincides almost perfectly with the start of this run, and he's averaging 13.9 points and shooting 41.0 percent from deep since landing that role.
The biggest difference, though, might be D'Angelo Russell. Long rumored to be a trade candidate ahead of the deadline, Russell has averaged 22.6 points, 6.8 assists and 3.9 threes, while shooting 45.0 percent from deep, over his past 21 games.
Put all of that together, and L.A. suddenly looks like the Showtime Lakers (on the right night). But there are also still performances like a near-loss to the Washington Wizards in February that likely have Lakers fans flashing back to the 24-25 start to the season that featured way too many lapses in focus and effort.
If the current version of the team shows up for the play-in tournament and playoffs, it could make another deep playoff run. If not, the Lakers could be one-and-done.
Memphis Grizzlies: Incomplete
15 of 30
Preseason Over-Under: 45.5
Current Pace: 27
There's no reason to rip the Memphis Grizzlies.
They lost Steven Adams to an offseason surgery right before 2023-24 tipped off. Ja Morant only managed to squeeze nine games in between the end of his 25-game suspension and a season-ending shoulder surgery. Desmond Bane hasn't played since mid-January. Marcus Smart only has 20 appearances.
If anybody deserves the incomplete, it's this team.
The 2023-24 campaign did provide some reasons for hope, though.
Jaren Jackson Jr.'s defense wasn't as good as it was last season, but he got a chance to spread his wings a bit on offense. He's averaging a career-high 22.4 points, and the growth he's been forced to make as a No. 1 option could come in handy when he slides back to his more natural role.
Perhaps even more encouraging is the rapid development of GG Jackson, who just turned 19 in December. In only 20.1 minutes per game, the 6'9" forward is putting up 11.2 points and 1.7 threes, while shooting 39.2 percent from deep.
As he continues to develop, and Memphis gets the aforementioned talents back from injury, the Grizzlies should instantly be dangerous again in 2024-25.
Miami Heat: B-
16 of 30
Preseason Over-Under: 45.5
Current Pace: 46
A bit like the Los Angeles Lakers and Golden State Warriors, the Miami Heat had a slow start to the season punctuated by a seven-game losing streak in late January.
Since then, they're 10-3 with Jimmy Butler seemingly activating playoff mode with a few weeks left in the regular season.
During this run, Butler is averaging 24.3 points, 6.9 rebounds, 6.2 assists, 2.1 steals and 1.6 threes while shooting 53.8 percent from deep.
When this version of Butler is rolling, life gets exponentially easier for everyone on the Heat. Bam Adebayo's work from the high or low post gets a bit more space. Tyler Herro is able to attack more scrambled defenses. And Jaime Jaquez Jr. has fewer gaps to fill on both ends of the floor.
Ideally (at least for the stress level of Miami fans), it wouldn't take this long for the Heat to get rolling, but the approach certainly seems to be working. Miami has made two Finals and three conference finals in the Butler era.
Milwaukee Bucks: B
17 of 30
Preseason Over-Under: 54.5
Current Pace: 54
The Milwaukee Bucks' pace may be slightly behind that over-under, and they've certainly dealt with (or caused) plenty of tumult over the course of the season, but they're still headed toward 50-plus wins and defending better under Doc Rivers.
Most importantly, they have a consensus top-three-to-five player in Giannis Antetokounmpo and a new offensive co-star that covers for Giannis' very few flaws in a way no other Buck has during his career.
In the 2022 and 2023 postseason, Antetokounmpo's lack of a jump shot and the team's general inability to create great looks in the clutch doomed them. Now, the Bucks have one of the most famously clutch players in NBA history in Damian Lillard. And right now, he's fourth in the league in total clutch points scored.
If those two are available, and the rest of a supporting cast that includes Khris Middleton, Brook Lopez and Bobby Portis can just play B to B+ basketball, Milwaukee will be a very real title threat this postseason.
Minnesota Timberwolves: A
18 of 30
Preseason Over-Under: 44.5
Current Pace: 57
There's a real temptation to give the Minnesota Timberwolves the second A+ of this exercise. They're on track to smash that preseason over-under. Rudy Gobert has been the Defensive Player of the Year frontrunner all season. Karl-Anthony Towns has regained his All-Star form. Anthony Edwards is surging just in time for the playoffs. Mike Conley is doing a solid job of orchestrating everything.
The reason for pause, of course, is an offense that despite improving marginally over the course of the season still ranks in the bottom half of the league.
Starting two bigs and not getting threes up in volume makes the attack a little clunky, but a leading scorer who can play with the kind of force that Ant can generate may be able to overcome that in the playoffs.
Even if that's just enough to make the Wolves solid on that end of the floor, that will make them bona fide title contenders. With Gobert's rim protection and the perimeter defense of Edwards and Jaden McDaniels, Minnesota has had, by a wide margin, the league's best defense all season.
New Orleans Pelicans: B+
19 of 30
Preseason Over-Under: 44.5
Current Pace: 48
The New Orleans Pelicans don't have a single player who's consistently looked like a star all season. And when their three best players (Zion Williamson, CJ McCollum and Brandon Ingram) are all on the floor, the team is a concerning minus-1.4 points per 100 possessions.
But this team's depth, at least to this point in the regular season, has been enough to overcome a lack of superstar power at the top of the roster.
Zion, McCollum and Ingram are playing like fringe All-Stars, while Jonas Valančiūnas, Herbert Jones and Trey Murphy III have all played like solid starters (at least). Dyson Daniels, Jose Alvarado and Larry Nance Jr. have all been above-average reserves, too.
All of that may not add up to title contention, but it's been enough to play at a near-50 win pace and put them on track to surpass that preseason over-under.
New York Knicks: A-
20 of 30
Preseason Over-Under: 45.5
Current Pace: 48
A recent 3-8 stretch has rocked the New York Knicks' winning percentage, but it's hard to hold it against them.
If any team was down three starters (New York has been without Julius Randle and OG Anunoby for weeks and Mitchell Robinson for months), it'd likely tumble too.
But we did get a chance to see much of this squad together prior to Anunoby's surgery, and the combination of aggression on defense and Jalen Brunson's star turn on the other end had New York looking like a fringe contender.
It looks like that entire group (plus Robinson) should be able to reconvene ahead of the playoffs. If it looks anything like it did before (the Knicks were plus-30.2 points per 100 possessions with Brunson and Anunoby both on the floor), New York could play spoiler in the first round (or two) of the postseason.
Oklahoma City Thunder: A+
21 of 30
Preseason Over-Under: 44.5
Current Pace: 57
Coming into the season, the Oklahoma City Thunder had the second-youngest roster in the league. Given that reality, even 44.5 felt like a somewhat optimistic line.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the rest of this young core is on track to obliterate it anyway.
SGA has been in the top two or three of the MVP race for most of the season. Chet Holmgren is already one of the game's best rim protectors and floor-spacing bigs as a rookie. And second-year wing Jalen Williams has been one of this season's most prolific fourth-quarter scorers.
OKC already has a very real "big three," and a number of other young role players, like Isaiah Joe and Cason Wallace, who are exceeding expectations.
Barring some kind of unforeseen late-season collapse, it's hard to imagine this campaign going much better.
Orlando Magic: A-
22 of 30
Preseason Over-Under: 37.5
Current Pace: 46
Unlike the Houston Rockets, the up-and-coming Orlando Magic never really fell off after a solid start to the season.
Despite being one of the youngest teams in the conference, Orlando is comfortably on its way to a playoff spot (or at least a spot in the top half of the play-in tournament).
It has two rising stars in Franz Wagner (20.6 points and 4.1 assists) and Paolo Banchero (22.8 points and 5.2 assists) who can run the offense for a given possession and theoretically guard multiple positions.
That kind of versatility out of players who are 6'9" and 6'10", respectively, puts a ton of pressure on opposing frontcourts and makes life easier for role players like Jalen Suggs (who's been one of this season's best perimeter defenders), Cole Anthony (a solid heat-check scorer off the bench) and Wendell Carter Jr. (whose outside shooting has taken off this season).
The Magic also have one of the league's best all-around defenders in Jonathan Isaac, who's appeared in 40 games, despite managing just 45 over the four seasons prior to this one.
Philadelphia 76ers: B-
23 of 30
Preseason Over-Under: 48.5
Current Pace: 47
Any team missing its best player for over 40 percent of its games would struggle. So the Philadelphia 76ers going 8-17 without Joel Embiid can't be too much of a knock against them, even if it would be encouraging to see a little more competitiveness from a roster led by Tyrese Maxey, Tobias Harris and Buddy Hield.
Philly is plus-8.7 points per 100 possessions with Embiid on the floor this season and minus-0.9 without him. The version of the team that features an all-time great scorer playing like a legitimate MVP is likely worthy of an A. The way the 76ers have played without him, relative to expectations, is probably in the high-D to low-C range.
So, consider this splitting the difference.
If the rest of the roster starts to win some games and Embiid gets back to action ahead of the playoffs, Philadelphia could still earn an A for the final grade.
Phoenix Suns: B+
24 of 30
Preseason Over-Under: 51.5
Current Pace: 49
Another team that took a while to find its groove, the Phoenix Suns are 9-4 in their past 13 games.
Though anyone could have (and probably should have) foreseen struggles with availability, Phoenix is steamrolling opponents when its stars play.
With Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal all on the floor, the Suns are plus-12.0 points per 100 possessions.
But they don't deserve all the praise for the team's success. The bet on Jusuf Nurkić over Deandre Ayton has paid off. His passing alone has really opened things up for the stars. And Grayson Allen has been one of this season's best and most dynamic floor-spacers.
The amount of talent and capital expended to turn this roster has left it with little depth. That's still a concern, but it has one of the best starting fives in the league. The recent addition of Royce O'Neale should help a bit with the second unit, too.
Portland Trail Blazers: D
25 of 30
Preseason Over-Under: 28.5
Current Pace: 23
If you're basing this grade on the effectiveness of the most important pieces of the young core, Portland would be dangerously close to an F.
For the second season in a row, Shaedon Sharpe is way below replacement level by box plus/minus. By the same metric, Scoot Henderson is having one of the worst rookie seasons of the three-point era.
That, falling short of that preseason over-under and failing to move Malcolm Brogdon and/or Jerami Grant for some rebuild-ready assets at the deadline all count against Portland for the report card.
But they still don't quite earn an F.
There's reason for optimism thanks to Anfernee Simons. It's too early for definitive statements on Sharpe and Henderson. Deandre Ayton has come alive recently, averaging 18.1 points, 11.2 rebounds and 1.0 blocks over his past 13 games.
Frankly, 28.5 was too high in the first place.
Sacramento Kings: B
26 of 30
Preseason Over-Under: 44.5
Current Pace: 47
The Sacramento Kings missed the playoffs in every season from 2006-07 through 2021-22. And though this campaign doesn't quite have the magic of the "Light the Beam" fueled one that broke that playoff drought in 2022-23, the Kings are still significantly better than they've been historically.
Bucking a decade and a half of incompetence isn't easy. And though this season's net rating has generally been underwhelming (Sacramento's currently 19th there), that feeling may be the unconscious desire for linear improvement over last season.
The Kings are still on track for a win total in the high 40s. Domantas Sabonis leads the league in triple-doubles. De'Aaron Fox is just 0.2 percent shy of his career-high three-point percentage. And Malik Monk is likely going to win Sixth Man of the Year.
A sub-zero point differential is far from ideal, but the good still clearly outweighs the bad for Sacramento.
San Antonio Spurs: D-
27 of 30
Preseason Over-Under: 28.5
Current Pace: 16
It took way too long for Gregg Popovich to end his non-conventional point guard experiment. That and the insistence on playing Victor Wembanyama at the 4 (an easier position to defend) suppressed his individual production a bit.
But over the past couple months, it's become clear that he's one of those talents who transcends situation.
Over his past 28 games, in only 27.5 minutes, Wembanyama is averaging 22.9 points, 9.9 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 3.6 blocks, 1.9 threes and 1.3 steals while shooting 37.0 percent from deep.
Wemby is already playing like a top-20 player in the league. He could be in the mix for the top 5-10 as early as next season. He's on track to be a perennial MVP candidate, and he might be good enough to change San Antonio's rebuilding plans.
As tempting as it is to angle for another high pick in the 2025 draft that includes Cooper Flagg and Ace Bailey, Wembanyama might already be too good to delay trying to win now.
Toronto Raptors: D+
28 of 30
Preseason Over-Under: 36.5
Current Pace: 30
Moving Pascal Siakam and OG Anunoby, trying to get a little younger and building around Scottie Barnes was the right call.
But with Barnes as the cornerstone of a rebuild, the No. 1 priority moving forward should undoubtedly be shooting.
They got some of that with the deadline-day acquisition of Kelly Olynyk, but spending a first-round pick on a mid-30s veteran felt like an odd move for a team in Toronto's position. Two of the others picked up midseason, RJ Barrett and Bruce Brown, both have below-average three-point percentages for their careers.
The best fit, at least among the newcomers, is probably Immanuel Quickley, but in a bigger role for the Raptors, he's struggled to produce at the same level he did as a New York Knick.
Right now, everything still feels like a mishmash up and down that roster. Which is why, despite having a 22-year-old All-Star in Barnes to build around, the team is still likely going to fall well shy of that over-under.
Utah Jazz: C+
29 of 30
Preseason Over-Under: 35.5
Current Pace: 37
Some Utah Jazz fans are understandably disappointed by the past two trade deadlines. In both 2022-23 and 2023-24, the Jazz were better than expected heading into February. And at both deadlines, the front office made moves to unload winning veterans in exchange for young talent or picks.
The deals pretty much knocked the team out of playoff contention in back-to-back seasons, but they're still on pace to exceed the preseason over-under for 2023-24.
Given what they did in the summer of 2022, when they traded two superstars in Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell, the Jazz are probably still slightly ahead of schedule overall.
Lauri Markkanen is already an All-Star. Walker Kessler has been better than expected since coming over in the Gobert deal. At least one of this season's rookies, Keyonte George, is flashing some serious upside as a playmaker and shooter.
And the trove of future of draft assets is about as deep as any in the league.
Washington Wizards: F
30 of 30
Preseason Over-Under: 24.5
Current Pace: 12
The Washington Wizards haven't won a game since January. They have a worse winning percentage than the Detroit Pistons, who had a record-tying 28-game losing streak earlier in the season. Wrap your head around that for a second.
And unlike the Pistons and some of this season's other tanking teams, there aren't really any surefire future stars on the roster.
Deni Avdija and Bilal Coulibaly could both develop into high-level starters for good forwards, but the over-under on career All-Star appearances for both of them probably wouldn't be high.
The veterans who were supposed to help this team at least be competitive, like Tyus Jones, Kyle Kuzma and especially Jordan Poole, haven't been good enough to make Washington look like an NBA team on some nights.
Unless noted otherwise, all stats are current through March 1 and are courtesy of Basketball Reference, NBA.com/stats, Cleaning the Glass and PBP Stats.
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