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Report Card Grades for Every NBA Team's Starting Lineup
NBA starting lineups are a real mess these days—what with all the tanking, minute manipulation, and recent injuries to key players.
While you might think that means analyzing all 30 first units is a mistake, this is actually the perfect time to do it. That's because many teams' goals have changed (or become much more obvious) as the standings continue to separate. Not only that, but a handful of squads are trotting out groups you never would have imagined just a few weeks ago. Some lineups are worth discussing just for novelty's sake.
More than ever, we need to get a fresh sense of who's playing with whom and how well it's going. Let's grade all 30 starting fives—from the entrenched units on big-time winners to the recently thrown-together collections of G Leaguers and stopgaps.
Atlanta Hawks
1 of 30
Starting Lineup: Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Dyson Daniels, Zaccharie Risacher, Jalen Johnson, Onyeka Okongwu
This group has stayed relatively healthy all season and has close to 300 more total minutes of action than any other on the Atlanta Hawks. Grading out slightly above average in offensive efficiency on the strength of a good shot diet (more looks at the rim and from the deep corners than most), it generates much of its scoring punch in transition.
Though Atlanta's starting five doesn't feature a traditional point guard, it makes up for that with a bunch of capable wing creators who can push the ball up the floor themselves, attacking defenses before they're set. With a transition frequency that ranks in the 94th percentile and a stellar 4.7 points per 100 possessions added in transition off steals, this is one of the most athletic, hard-charging high-minute units in the NBA.
Risacher came off the bench for the first time this season against the Nets on Feb. 22. That's worth keeping an eye on.
Grade: B+
Boston Celtics
2 of 30
Starting Lineup: Derrick White, Baylor Scheierman, Jaylen Brown, Sam Hauser, Neemias Queta
The Boston Celtics used this look a handful of times before the All-Star break and stuck with it afterward. The results are hard to question.
Across its first 132 minutes together (garbage time excluded), this starting five is a plus-22.7, easily the best net rating among any Celtics group with at least that much playing time.
Brown shoulders a heavy creation load, but he's been fine with that all season. When Boston needs even more stretch, Payton Pritchard comes in off the bench to share the playmaking burden while even more dramatically spacing the floor. Queta looms in the middle of it all, a dynamic dive man who thrives in the four-out setup created by Hauser and Scheierman, neither of whom can be ignored off the ball.
Grade: A-
Brooklyn Nets
3 of 30
Starting Lineup: Nolan Traoré, Egor Dëmin, Michael Porter Jr., Noah Clowney, Nic Claxton
As you'd expect from a tanking team that needs to service the developmental needs of several youngsters, the Brooklyn Nets' starting lineup has been a bit of a revolving door all season. At the moment, this group looks like the one head coach Jordi Fernandez favors when all parties are healthy.
There's no statistical justification for trusting this unit, as it gets absolutely hammered on both ends. Brooklyn's offensive and defensive efficiency rated in the third percentile across this group's first 164 minutes. Despite the extreme bludgeoning, marked by a minus-36.4 net rating, only three other Nets lineups have seen more action than this one.
The lone relative strength of this group, which is basically designed to fail, is that it takes decent care of the ball on offense and is adequate at getting to the foul line.
Grade: F
Charlotte Hornets
4 of 30
Starting Lineup: LaMelo Ball, Kon Knueppel, Brandon Miller, Miles Bridges, Mousa Diabaté
Diabaté and Bridges' suspensions allowed Ryan Kalkbrenner and Grant Williams a few recent cracks at the starting five, but it's clear the Charlotte Hornets know who belongs in their top lineup.
To an astonishing degree, the above fivesome is the most potent offensive unit in the league. Among lineups with at least 400 possessions together, Charlotte's starters are running away with the points-per-possession crown. They average a ridiculous 139.7 points per 100 possessions, roughly 16 points better than the second-best scoring group.
Ball is the key initiator, but Knueppel and Miller are aces as secondary creators. Knueppel's shooting is already the stuff of legend, and Diabaté is among the best in the league at corralling his teammates' (rare) misses. Bridges is the relative weak link, but he's more than adequate as a fourth option.
Defense still feels like a long-term concern, but Charlotte destroys opponents by 30.0 points per 100 possessions whenever these guys share the floor.
Grade: A+
Chicago Bulls
5 of 30
Starting Lineup: Josh Giddey, Isaac Okoro, Matas Buzelis, Guerschon Yabusele, Jalen Smith
In an odd twist for a roster remade at the deadline to feature roughly 47 guards, the Chicago Bulls recently dabbled with starting a pair of conventional big men in Yabusele and Smith. Those two took the floor for opening tips in back-to-back losses against the Detroit Pistons and New York Knicks late last week.
Don't assume that'll be the core first unit going forward, as the Bulls have also opted for Anfernee Simons, Jaden Ivey, Collin Sexton, or Patrick Williams in place of Smith or Yabusele since the trade deadline.
Giddey is wildly overstretched as the only shot-creator when Sexton or Simons isn't involved, and Chicago would probably sacrifice size and play another guard if it cared about making the Play-In. The Bulls have finally embraced the wisdom of tanking culture, though, so they won't be motivated to optimize their starters as they did in their annual pursuit of 41 wins.
Grade: D
Cleveland Cavaliers
6 of 30
Starting Lineup: James Harden, Donovan Mitchell, Dean Wade, Evan Mobley, Jarrett Allen
Harden's arrival also triggered the removal of Jaylon Tyson from the starting five, as head coach Kenny Atkinson is typically opting for Wade at small forward.
It's a little odd that after increasing their collective size by swapping Darius Garland for Harden, Cleveland went even bigger by starting the 6'9" Wade over the 6'5" Tyson. But Wade is the superior overall defender, and Tyson makes sense on a second unit that also features high-energy players like Dennis Schroder, Keon Ellis, and Nae'Qwan Tomlin.
These starters haven't seen much time together, but early indications are positive. Harden and Mitchell are elite drivers of offense, Wade can guard multiple positions and hit threes, and the two bigs offer the back-line protection necessary to compensate for Harden's weak perimeter D.
With only about 50 possessions of data, this grade is largely theoretical. But it's not hard to see this unit being among the best in the league for the balance of the season.
Grade: A
Dallas Mavericks
7 of 30
Starting Lineup: Cooper Flagg, Max Christie, Naji Marshall, PJ Washington, Daniel Gafford
Flagg was back at the point prior to the foot injury that shelved him on Feb. 10, and it stands to reason he'll be back out there running the offense when healthy. Even without him, head coach Jason Kidd went without a traditional point guard against the Indiana Pacers on Feb. 22.
If worst comes to worst, Tyus Jones and Brandon Williams are both options at the 1. Ryan Nembhard could also come back up from the G League after starting several games early in the year.
Besides Flagg, Dallas seems most likely to use its best wings—Christie, Marshall, and Washington—together. Those three bring size, athleticism, and enough shooting (mostly from Christie) to work well between Flagg and the lob-catching Gafford.
This group has yet to share the floor as starters, and Dallas will surely shuttle players in and out of the lineup for injury management as it winds down a lottery-bound season. Still, there's a lot to like here if Flagg can continue to grow as an initiator.
Grade: C+
Denver Nuggets
8 of 30
Starting Lineup: Jamal Murray, Christian Braun, Julian Strawther, Cameron Johnson, Nikola Jokić
It says a lot about the Denver Nuggets' injury issues that this group, which didn't start a single game until Feb. 7, is already the team's third-most-used lineup on the season. Aaron Gordon and Peyton Watson are both nursing hamstring injuries, so the Nuggets' "new" first unit will get ample time to build on what's been a very strong start.
Through their first 182 possessions together, these five players produced elite offense. That's no great accomplishment when Jokić is involved, but it's still encouraging that its 139.6 offensive rating is higher than that of Denver's preferred lineup, which features Gordon in Strawther's place.
The defense has been a major issue, though. The Nuggets feel Gordon's absence acutely on that end, where this unit surrenders a whopping 133.1 points per 100 possessions. Jokić, in particular, isn't getting the job done on D. Opponents are hitting 80.9 percent of their attempts at the rim against this lineup, a much more worrying issue than the unsustainable 59.1 percent teams are shooting on corner threes.
Grade: B+
Detroit Pistons
9 of 30
Starting Lineup: Cade Cunningham, Duncan Robinson, Ausar Thompson, Tobias Harris, Jalen Duren
This is the best high-usage lineup in the league, sitting at a net rating of plus-14.9 points per 100 possessions. That's tops by a mile among groups that have played at least 500 possessions together.
Detroit gets it done on D by completely denying access to close-range attempts while also piling up a huge share of its own shots at the rim on the other end. The Pistons are like a football team that wins every game by dominating on the offensive and defensive lines.
This lineup's 88th percentile offensive rebound rate is just another testament to its physically overpowering play.
Cunningham does virtually all of the shot creation, and Detroit's offense suffers whenever he's not involved. But the upside is that when Isaiah Stewart slots in for Duren, the interior deterrent factor is even greater.
Grade: A+
Golden State Warriors
10 of 30
Starting Lineup: Pat Spencer, De'Anthony Melton, Moses Moody, Gui Santos, Draymond Green
Spencer, Melton, Moody, and Santos have been regular starters for almost all of February, and they'll stick in those roles with Stephen Curry set to miss at least the rest of the month. Back soreness kept Green out of the lineup in a stirring win over the Nuggets on Feb. 22, and the ball positively hummed on offense.
The offense's superior flow with Al Horford and Quinten Post at center is something to monitor as Golden State slogs its way toward a Play-In spot.
This group has been slightly outscored overall, but it slings the ball around, gets up heaps of threes, and injects some chaos into the proceedings on D. A lot of that is Santos, who flies around the floor causing trouble, but Melton is also known for harassing ball-handlers. He had four steals against Denver and five in 24 minutes versus the Lakers on Feb. 7.
Head coach Steve Kerr will do plenty of shuffling as Curry returns, perhaps sending Green to the bench for Kristaps Porzingis or Horford. For now, this unit is competing to the best of its ability. A 2-3 record in five starts reflects that.
Grade: C-
Houston Rockets
11 of 30
Starting Lineup: Amen Thompson, Kevin Durant, Tari Eason, Jabari Smith Jr., Alperen Sengün
As long as Eason continues to drill well over 40.0 percent of his threes, there'll be no reason for head coach Ime Udoka to go back to Josh Okogie, who was a regular presence among the starters for most of this season. More late-game offensive collapses could result in Reed Sheppard getting a few more looks.
The overall offensive numbers are fine with this group, and it's winning its court time by 9.0 points per 100 possessions. That success continues to be fueled by elite offensive rebounding, and the recent blown 18-point fourth-quarter lead against the Knicks shows that Houston's attack bogs down when the going gets tough.
Thompson is arguably the worst jump-shooting non-big in the league, Sengün struggles when simply bashing into his man fails, and Durant's ability to get off a mid-ranger at will isn't enough to avoid massive scoring droughts.
This unit has succeeded overall, but no one should feel confident about its playoff viability.
Grade: B
Indiana Pacers
12 of 30
Starting Lineup: Andrew Nembhard, Ben Sheppard, Aaron Nesmith, Pascal Siakam, Jay Huff
The Indiana Pacers are playing fast and loose with rest days, illnesses, and lineup tinkering as they head down the stretch of a lost season. The above group is our best guess as to who Rick Carlisle would start if he had to actually win a game on a given night.
It has played nine possessions together this season.
Sheppard slots into a spot vacated by the injured Johnny Furphy, who teamed with the other four in Indy's most-started lineup on the year. Nembhard, Siakam, and Nesmith will look a lot better when bookended by Tyrese Haliburton and Ivica Zubac in 2026-27.
Grade: D-
LA Clippers
13 of 30
Starting Lineup: Kris Dunn, Derrick Jones Jr., Kawhi Leonard, John Collins, Brook Lopez
Thanks largely to Leonard, this lineup's offense gets a lot of mileage out of the mid-range, attempting nearly 40.0 percent of its shots in that area. So far, the shot-making has been good enough to keep the offense from completely cratering.
Most of this group's success comes on the other end.
As you'd expect from a lineup featuring Leonard (more steals than fouls on the season) and another notorious disruptor in Dunn, LA forces turnovers in bunches when this unit takes the floor. That fuels just enough transition chances to raise the scoring level of an offense that loses the possession game in the half-court because it never gets offensive rebounds. We're talking a third-percentile rate on the glass, which means second-chance points are nonexistent.
This group is winning its minutes, but if opponents take care of the ball a bit better, the wheels could fall off.
Grade: B-
Los Angeles Lakers
14 of 30
Starting Lineup: Luka Dončić, Austin Reaves, Marcus Smart, LeBron James, Deandre Ayton
The outlook would be a lot different for this starting group if it had the 2021 version of Smart, who won Defensive Player of the Year and could still make an impact as a third or fourth-option scorer. Questions about Smart's offensive capability are a big reason players like Rui Hachimura, Jake LaRavia, and Luke Kennard have all gotten shots with the first unit.
In the end, what remains of Smart's defensive abilities (which is mostly foul-grifting and flopping) still matters for a group that doesn't otherwise have a good defender. Reaves, James, and Dončić are all average or worse on that end, and you'd have a hard time finding a center who plays with less force on either end than Ayton.
The offense will always be reliable with Dončić at the controls, and Reaves proved earlier this year he could run the show himself. James, slowing down, can still think his way to buckets for himself and others.
The Lakers are going with Smart for now, and the sample is way too small to judge conclusively. Worth noting: the unit that had Hachimura in James' place has a plus-15.2 net rating.
Grade: C+
Memphis Grizzlies
15 of 30
Starting Lineup: Ty Jerome, Cedric Coward, Jaylen Wells, GG Jackson, Taylor Hendricks
This is pure guesswork based on the litany of different starters, faux injuries, and tanktastic shenanigans that have prevented the Memphis Grizzlies from starting the same lineup in consecutive games at any point in February.
Is Hendricks a center? Sure isn't!
Is Jerome likely to be yanked due to injury management at any time? Absolutely!
Coward, the most promising semi-healthy prospect on the team, is missing time with a knee issue and should be a lock to start upon his return. But everyone else, with the possible exception of the steady-but-unspectacular Wells, is never going to know whether a start or a DNP is in the offing.
Memphis is firmly in mix-and-match mode, and nobody should expect consistency going forward. What's certain is that no starting lineup will grade out as average.
Grade: Somewhere between F and C-, depending on the day
Miami Heat
16 of 30
Starting Lineup: Davion Mitchell, Norman Powell, Pelle Larsson, Andrew Wiggins, Bam Adebayo
This is the Miami Heat's fifth-most-used lineup on the season, though injuries and rest have prevented it from starting consistently since the middle of January. It opened a 128-97 win over the Hawks on Feb. 20, but Mitchell bowed out of action with a head illness in the Heat's very next game.
Unavailability is an issue, but that's the only drawback with this group.
Mitchell, Wiggins, and Adebayo are all plus defenders, and Powell's late-career development into a remarkably self-sufficient scorer provides offensive punch. Opponents turn the ball over on roughly one of every five possessions against this lineup, which is beyond elite.
Larsson is a quintessential on-the-margins contributor who makes smart cuts, has a knack for well-timed passes within Miami's system, and generally throws himself around to great effect on both ends. He's averaging 15.2 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 4.8 assists per 36 minutes.
Grade: A
Milwaukee Bucks
17 of 30
Starting Lineup: Ryan Rollins, AJ Green, Kevin Porter Jr., Kyle Kuzma, Myles Turner
As expected, this group has a significantly worse net rating than the one that substitutes Giannis Antetokounmpo for Kuzma. That lineup, the Milwaukee Bucks' preferred starting group when healthy and the one that has played more possessions than any other, is a plus-13.6 on the season.
The group Milwaukee has most often resorted to with its superstar on the sidelines is a minus-12.6.
Relatively speaking, this unit's only strength is its respectable defensive rebounding, which doesn't square with Turner's career reputation as a poor contributor in that area and probably isn't sustainable.
Offensively, this unit scores at a rate well below that of the league-worst Pacers' full-season figure.
Grade: D-
Minnesota Timberwolves
18 of 30
Starting Lineup: Donte DiVincenzo, Anthony Edwards, Jaden McDaniels, Julius Randle, Rudy Gobert
These starters might deserve an "A" just for sheer availability. They've played over 300 more possessions than any other lineup in the league. That's a remarkable accomplishment in the era of injury management, rampant calf strains, and frequent rest nights in back-to-back sets.
Though Minnesota doesn't blow the doors off opponents on either end with its starters on the court, it produces offensive and defensive ratings several percentage points above the league average. All told, that balances out to a net rating approaching double digits at plus-8.9.
Edwards still has a bit too much responsibility in an attack that needs better creation, but all five of these guys have to be accounted for on offense. Even Gobert is still a rolling lob threat. And on the other end, the four-time Defensive Player of the Year could be well on his way to adding an unprecedented fifth such honor as the anchor of a unit that has no major weaknesses.
Grade: A
New Orleans Pelicans
19 of 30
Starting Lineup: Saddiq Bey, Herb Jones, Trey Murphy III, Zion Williamson, Derik Queen
You've got to respect a setup that gets most of its shot creation from the power forward and center, but the novelty of the New Orleans Pelicans' starting group hasn't equated to success on either end.
Other than an extremely low turnover rate of 10.6 percent, this unit has been a disappointment on offense. While Williamson and Queen can facilitate and score around the basket, neither shoots the ball well enough to stretch opposing defenses or cause overreactions that open up driving lanes for teammates.
As you'd expect with two defensively poor power forwards on the back line, this lineup also can't protect the basket. Opponents take nearly one-third of their shot attempts at the rim against this fivesome and convert them at a 68.7 percent clip.
Other than some bad luck on opponent three-point shooting, every other ugly aspect of this unit's defense is, unfortunately, legitimate.
Grade: D
New York Knicks
20 of 30
Starting Lineup: Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges, Josh Hart, OG Anunoby, Karl-Anthony Towns
Surprisingly, this unit is performing a bit better on defense than offense. The New York Knicks will take it, partly because almost every other lineup that includes Brunson, Bridges, and Towns scores like gangbusters. Odds are, this one will eventually go from merely passable on offense to good.
Last season's 119.9 offensive rating feels closer to reality than this year's 117.6. Even if the 2025-26 edition doesn't quite get back to last season's levels, the Knicks can always throw Mitchell Robinson out there to inhale offensive rebounds, which historically produces excellent offense.
The operation is pretty simple. Brunson runs the show; Towns gets a few cracks at isolation drives; Anunoby and Bridges cut, shoot spot-ups, and defend; and Hart crashes the glass and gets a handful of transition finishes every night.
If it ain't broke, don't fix it.
Grade: A-
Oklahoma City Thunder
21 of 30
Starting Lineup: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Lu Dort, Jalen Williams, Chet Holmgren, Isaiah Hartenstein
We could certainly discuss the merits of Aaron Wiggins, Kenrich Williams, and Cason Wallace as starters. All of them have appeared in first units this month, while SGA, Williams, Hartenstein, and basically everyone but Dort have battled injuries throughout the year.
Assessing the Oklahoma City Thunder is different, though. We know who they prefer to play when all hands are on deck, and a contender of this magnitude needs to be evaluated as if it's at full strength. There's more to gain from looking at who OKC will play when the games matter than from analyzing these cobbled-together groups.
No surprise, the Thunder's main starters, who've only opened five games this year (losing four!), are beyond reproach. The numbers this season (plus-9.7 in 91 possessions) hint at what we know from the 2024-25 season and playoffs: SGA, Dort, J-Dub, Holmgren, and Hartenstein are as good as it gets.
Grade: A+
Orlando Magic
22 of 30
Starting Lineup: Jalen Suggs, Desmond Bane, Anthony Black, Paolo Banchero, Wendell Carter Jr.
Suggs had a run of 11 straight appearances interrupted on Feb. 21, breaking a season-long stretch during which this unit started every game. Ideally, Franz Wagner would be healthy enough to feature here, but he remains out indefinitely with ankle soreness.
The drop-off from Wagner to Black, whose breakout season came at the right time, isn't as severe as you'd expect. This group owns a plus-8.2 net rating in nearly 500 possessions, while the Wagner-for-Black swap "only" ups that to plus-13.4. Either figure rates as excellent, which underscores the truth about Orlando's disappointing season: It's mostly the bench's fault.
Suggs' continued inability to stay healthy is the other point of concern. His team-high plus-11.5 on/off net rating swing ranks in the 95th percentile league-wide. If he's on the floor, Orlando has success with virtually any lineup construction.
Grade: A-
Philadelphia 76ers
23 of 30
Starting Lineup: Tyrese Maxey, VJ Edgecombe, Kelly Oubre Jr., Dominick Barlow, Joel Embiid
Embiid's shin injury didn't wreck his season, so he gets the nod here despite Andre Drummond seeing plenty of time as the starting center this month. Any real assessment of the Philadelphia 76ers should probably include the former MVP, who remains a potent scoring force whenever healthy.
That said, the Sixers are Maxey's team in a couple of important senses. He's the most reliable player on the roster, leads the league in minutes per game, and is a virtual lock to secure his first All-NBA nod. Next to him, Edgecombe has outperformed expectations for a rookie, while the Oubre-Barlow combination brings more than enough athletic juice to offset the absence of a suspended Paul George.
This five-man crew is a plus-12.4 over nearly 300 possessions, significantly better than the lineup featuring George in Oubre's spot.
Grade: A
Phoenix Suns
24 of 30
Starting Lineup: Collin Gillespie, Jalen Green, Devin Booker, Royce O'Neale, Mark Williams
We're leaving Booker in the lineup because his hip injury should only cost him another week or so. Dillon Brooks' broken hand is going to knock him out for at least a month, so we have to remove him for the time being.
That leaves the above group, which has started precisely one game but appears to be the likeliest first unit once Booker is back.
Between Gillespie, Green, and Booker, this group should score the ball effectively. O'Neale is a little light to be handling the 4, but it's a role he'll have to embrace with the burly Brooks sidelined. Phoenix has compensated for smaller lineups with full-court pressure and tons of activity all year, so it's reasonable to assume it can continue the trend—though Green's historically punchless defense could compromise things.
To hazard a guess, this lineup will score the ball better than the one with Brooks in Green's spot, but it won't come close to matching the 81st-percentile defensive rating of that group, which has been the Suns' most used on the year.
And if Booker isn't back in a hurry and looking like himself, things could get rough on both ends.
Grade: B
Portland Trail Blazers
25 of 30
Starting Lineup: Deni Avdija, Jrue Holiday, Toumani Camara, Jerami Grant, Donovan Clingan
This lineup is a delight on paper and a disaster in a small-sample on-court reality.
Is it bad to get outscored by 28.0 points per 100 possessions? Because it seems bad.
Fear not. Opponents will probably make fewer than 51.1 percent of their threes, and it seems even less likely they'll drill 66.7 percent of them from the corners, which has been the case so far. When those numbers regress, Portland's preferred current starters should perform much better than the league average on D while scoring enough to win their minutes.
Spacing is a concern, but Holiday is quietly enjoying a late-career playmaking renaissance after doing mostly spot-up work with the Celtics. If Camara and Grant can be threats from the outside, Avdija's elite drive and foul-drawing game will make the Blazers dangerous against anyone.
Grade: B-
Sacramento Kings
26 of 30
Starting Lineup: Russell Westbrook, DeMar DeRozan, Keegan Murray, Precious Achiuwa, Maxime Raynaud
This is not a lineup with a strong track record of success, but you have to admit it's a little intriguing.
Westbrook and DeRozan generate the shots, with the latter still capable of getting a relatively efficient 20 points via the mid-range jumper. DeRozan is quietly having his most efficient scoring season (51.9 effective field-goal percentage) since he was an All-Star in 2022-23. That hasn't been nearly enough to produce a competent offense because Raynaud is wildly overmatched every night, Murray's three-point shot has completely deserted him, and Achiuwa is strictly a pick-up-the-scraps scorer.
On balance, the Kings manage just 99.6 points per 100 possessions with this unit, about 10 points below the league's worst offense. A similarly inept defense, which should be the expectation with a rookie center and a Westbrook-DeRozan backcourt, results in the group being outscored by a whopping 22.2 points per 100 possessions.
At least there are only another six weeks left in the season.
Grade: F
San Antonio Spurs
27 of 30
Starting Lineup: De'Aaron Fox, Stephon Castle, Devin Vassell, Julian Champagnie, Victor Wembanyama
Harrison Barnes had a starting spot locked down until Jan 28, when the San Antonio Spurs dispensed with the conventional power forward and opted for what amounts to four guards around Wemby.
It made sense. Wembanyama is a defense unto himself, and the combination of Champagnie, Fox, Vassell, and Castle created more offensive dynamism. As long as Wembanyama could hang around the lane as a helper, the Spurs knew they wouldn't get burned by mismatch post-ups against their otherwise undersized collective.
The results speak for themselves. This group is 7-0 in its last seven starts, including a statement road win against Detroit on Feb. 23. Vassell and Champagnie both shot the lights out in that one, and Wemby's presence limited the Pistons to just 103 points.
Grade: A
Toronto Raptors
28 of 30
Starting Lineup: Immanuel Quickley, RJ Barrett, Brandon Ingram, Scottie Barnes, Jakob Poeltl
Poeltl missed nearly two months and seems to be getting an ease-in return, but he figures to continue starting more often than not at center, which will reduce rookie Collin Murray-Boyles to "occasional starter" status.
Whether CMB or Poeltl takes the floor to open games, it's the other four Raptors that matter most. When Quickley, Barrett, Ingram, and Barnes are on the court, Toronto is winning those minutes regardless of who's at center. While it may owe to a lot of minutes against second units, it's worth noting that Sandro Mamukelashvili's time at the 5 coincides with the most success.
Toronto is a plus-6 with Murray-Boyles as the fifth starter, a plus-5.3 with Poeltl, and a plus-6.7 with Mamu.
Grade: B
Utah Jazz
29 of 30
Starting Lineup: Isaiah Collier, Ace Bailey, Cody Williams, Lauri Markkanen, Kyle Filipowski
Good luck predicting who'll start for the Utah Jazz on any given night. Already fined $500,000 for their practice of benching good players late in games, the tanking Jazz are now making even more of an effort to keep their top talents off the floor in the first place.
Filipowski will get all he can eat with Jaren Jackson Jr. and Jusuf Nurkić done for the season, and Markkanen will suit up whenever the Jazz can't justify an "illness" designation. Meanwhile, Collier, Bailey, and Williams can explore the studio space for as long as Keyonte George's ankle injury lingers—which will probably be a while.
This unit has no proven rotation-caliber players outside of Markkanen and should see its net rating get much worse than its current minus-12.8 in limited action.
Grade: F
Washington Wizards
30 of 30
Starting Lineup: Bub Carrington, Tre Johnson, Bilal Coulibaly, Kyshawn George, Alex Sarr
It was tempting to go with "center of choice" instead of Sarr, but he was only expected to miss two weeks with the hamstring injury he suffered on Feb. 8, and is important enough to the Washington Wizards' operation to be included.
This group has barely played and has been soundly thumped when on the floor. That said, it's made up of Washington's five top young pieces and figures to get a lot of action going forward if Sarr returns on time.
The key shortcomings stem from Carrington's inability to finish inside the arc, Coulibaly's stalled-out playmaking, and Johnson's inability to impact the game beyond shooting. That last one is to be expected from a rookie who is at least delivering on the perimeter skill that got him drafted so high, but it'd be nice to see at least one other dimension from the shooting guard.
All of these pieces offer reasons for future optimism. Together, they're no good in the present.
Grade: D-
Stats courtesy of NBA.com, Basketball Reference, and Cleaning the Glass. Salary info via Spotrac.
Grant Hughes covers the NBA for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Bluesky and subscribe to the Hardwood Knocks podcast, where he appears with Bleacher Report's Dan Favale.
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