Predicting the NBA's Highest-Scoring Offenses In 2024-25

We're in a new era of scoring prowess in the NBA.

In the history of the league, six of the seven highest offensive ratings were recorded last season alone while the top 37 have all come in the last five years.

The Boston Celtics recorded the best offensive rating in NBA history last year (123.2 rating) and should once again be one of the most dynamic scoring attacks in the league in 2024-25.

So which teams project to join them?

The five highest-scoring offenses should be a mix of repeat leaders and some fresh faces climbing toward the top thanks to some key offseason additions.

5. Philadelphia 76ers

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PHILADELPHIA, PA - JULY 23: Paul George #8 of the Philadelphia 76ers poses for a portrait on July 23, 2024 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2024 NBAE (Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images)

2023-24 Offensive Rank: No. 14, 116.2 rating

New Additions: G/F Paul George, F Caleb Martin, C Andre Drummond, SG Eric Gordon, PG Reggie Jackson, G Jared McCain

The Philadelphia 76ers offense took a step back last season—a combination of James Harden's holdout and eventual trade and Joel Embiid missing over half the year due to knee surgery.

Still, even when Embiid and Tyrese Maxey shared the floor, this offense was elite.

In the 1,996 total possessions that Embiid and Maxey logged together, the Sixers had an offensive rating of 124.2 (97th percentile, via Cleaning the Glass).

Of course, adding Paul George as a free agent is the biggest reason to believe this scoring attack will be even more dynamic. A three-level offensive threat, George averaged 22.6 points per game with the Los Angeles Clippers last season on a career-high 41.3 percent mark from three. He was an elite outside shooter off the catch (45.4 percent) and should get even more opportunities playing off two All-Stars.

The Clippers offense jumped by 7.0 points per 100 possessions with George on the floor (94th percentile) while the team's effective field-goal percentage rose by 5.3 percent (99th percentile).

This is a deep rotation that still features Kelly Oubre Jr. (15.4 points per game last season) and Kyle Lowry (8.0 points, 4.6 assists, 40.4 percent from three) to go along with a number of fresh faces.

Nick Nurse is an excellent head coach who will have this team's offense humming in no time.

4. Phoenix Suns

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WASHINGTON, DC -  FEBRUARY 4: Tyus Jones #5 of the Washington Wizards drives to the basket during the game against the Phoenix Suns on February 4, 2024 at Capital One Arena in Washington, DC. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2024 NBAE (Photo by Kenny Giarla/NBAE via Getty Images)

2023-24 Offensive Rank: No. 10, 116.8 rating

New Additions: PG Tyus Jones, PG Monte Morris, C Mason Plumlee, HC Mike Budenholzer

Getting Tyus Jones on a veteran minimum contract is the best value of the entire NBA offseason and helps cure much of what plagued this Phoenix Suns offense last year.

Here's how the Suns ranked in some key passing categories with no true point guard:

• 14th in assist percentage (63.7 percent)

• 25th in turnover percentage (15.0 percent)

• 24th in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.82)

For a team that features three of the best offensive players in the world in Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Bradey Beal, these numbers should have been higher and now will be with the additions of Jones and Monte Morris.

Jones had a historically efficient season with the Washington Wizards last year, becoming the first player in the NBA to ever record an assist percentage higher than 34 percent while registering a turnover rate under nine percent. Jones' 7.3 assists per game ranked 12th in the league while his 1.0 turnovers a contest finished tied for 203rd.

Morris recorded just seven total turnovers in 33 games between the Detroit Pistons and Minnesota Timberwolves, compared to 69 total assists.

New head coach Mike Budenholzer consistently ran some of the best offenses in the NBA during his five seasons with the Milwaukee Bucks, with scoring attacks that ranked 4th, 8th, 6th, 7th and 12th overall.

Durant, Booker and Beal are still a three-headed offensive monster and role players like Grayson Allen, Jusuf Nurkić and Royce O'Neale can all hit shots and/or pass at a high level for their position.

Damion Lee is also back from a year-long injury and shot 44.5 percent from three for the Suns during the 2022-23 season.

This may not be the best defensive group, although with Jones and Budenholzer joining the mix, it will be one of the greatest scoring attacks in the league.

3. Indiana Pacers

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SAN FRANCISCO, CA - MARCH 22: Tyrese Haliburton #0 high fives Andrew Nembhard #2 of the Indiana Pacers during the game against the Golden State Warriors on March 22, 2024 at Chase Center in San Francisco, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2024 NBAE (Photo by Noah Graham/NBAE via Getty Images)

2023-24 Offensive Rank: No. 2, 120.5 rating

New Additions: C James Wiseman, G/F Johnny Furphy

The Indiana Pacers didn't make any big offseason additions, and they didn't need to, either, after finishing as the second-best offense in NBA history last year.

Pascal Siakam is back on a four-year, $188.9 million deal, keeping the core of him, Tyrese Haliburton, Myles Turner, Andrew Nembhard, Bennedict Mathurin and others together. Obi Toppin also returns on a four-year, $58 million deal after averaging 10.3 points and making an uber-efficient 70.6 percent of his twos and 40.3 percent of his threes.

Led by Haliburton, this is an extremely unselfish offense that prides itself on ball movement and getting players open looks.

Indiana ranked No. 1 overall in made passes (308.3), assists per game (30.8), and points created off assists (78.1) as well as No. 4 in potential assists (49.6) and No. 5 in secondary assists (4.3).

One of the few teams that can truly play five-out thanks to Turner's three-point shooting ability at the center position and with arguably the best backup point guard in the NBA in T.J. McConnell, it's hard to find a weakness in Indiana's offensive attack.

With Nembhard gaining even more experience on the Canadian national team this summer and Mathurin due back from shoulder surgery, the Pacers offense should stay in the top three in the league.

2. Oklahoma City Thunder

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NEW ORLEANS, LA - APRIL 29: Jalen Williams #8 of the Oklahoma City Thunder celebrates during the game against the New Orleans Pelicans during Round 1 Game 4 of the 2024 NBA Playoffs on April 29, 2024 at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, Louisiana. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2024 NBAE (Photo by Jeff Haynes/NBAE via Getty Images)

2023-24 Offensive Rank: No. 3, 118.3 rating

New Additions: C Isaiah Hartenstein, G Alex Caruso, F Dillon Jones

A loaded Oklahoma City Thunder team that finished third in offense should be even better this year with some key additions in the draft, free agency and via trade.

OKC already ranked No. 1 overall in three-point shooting last season (38.9 percent) and just swapped out Josh Giddey (33.7 percent) for Alex Caruso (40.8 percent). They've still got room to grow in terms of pure volume, as the Thunder's 34.2 three-point attempts per game ranked just 16th in the NBA.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is only getting better as a scorer and is coming off a third-place finish in points per game (30.1). Jalen Williams made a second-year leap (19.1 points on 42.7 percent shooting from three) and Chet Holmgren's playbook should open up now in his second professional season.

Isaiah Hartenstein may be known more for his defense, but the 26-year-old center is a terrific passer and screener who doesn't take bad shots himself. The New York Knicks scored 7.0 more points per 100 possessions with Hartenstein in the game last season (94th percentile via Cleaning the Glass) despite his modest 7.8 point-per-game average.

Jones put up 20.8 points and 5.2 assists as a junior at Weber State last year, giving the Thunder another potential offensive weapon in the rotation.

Internal growth, some smart additions and playing a modern style of offense will keep OKC's scoring near the top of the league.

1. Boston Celtics

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BOSTON, MA - JUNE 21: Derrick White #9, Al Horford #42, Jayson Tatum #0, Jaylen Brown #7, Kristaps Porzingis #8, and Jrue Holiday #4 of the Boston Celtics pose for a photograph with the Larry O'Brien Trophy and the Bill Russell Finals MVP Trophy before the 2024 Boston Celtics championship parade on June 21, 2024 in Boston, Massachusetts. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2024 NBAE (Photo by Brian Babineau/NBAE via Getty Images)

2023-24 Offensive Rank: No. 1, 122.2 rating

New Addition: SG Baylor Scheierman

After registering the highest offensive rating in NBA history, winning the 2024 title and bringing back every member of the rotation, the Boston Celtics haven't provided any reason to pick anyone else for the top of this list.

Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Jrue Holiday, Derrick White, Al Horford, Payton Pritchard, Sam Hauser and others will all be back. Kristaps Porziņģis will likely miss the first few weeks of the season following surgery to fix a torn retinaculum and dislocated posterior tibialis tendon, although the Celtics offense actually dipped by a few points (minus-1.8 per 100 possessions) when the 7'2" center was on the floor.

Boston ranked first overall in made threes per game (16.5) and was barely beat out by the Oklahoma City Thunder in success rate (38.8 percent). The Celtics added another shooter in the draft in Baylor Scheierman, who made 40.4 percent of his threes over the past four years in college.

Both Tatum and Brown are entering their primes, while Holiday and White still look to be in theirs. Driving lanes are always wide open with this group, and this is an area Boston could explore far more often (39.1 drives per game, 28th in the NBA).

No team took better care of the ball than the Celtics last year (12.1 turnover percentage, No. 1 overall), a product of playing with two starting point guards. Boston was also terrific in transition, with its 1.19 points per possession only ranking behind the Phoenix Suns.

Boston truly has no weaknesses and should weather a few missed weeks from Porziņģis to start the year. Add in a long, successful playoff run and a year of experience together and this team may set an NBA record for offensive efficiency.