
The 2024 portion of the NBA season is in the books and now is the perfect time to look at the new pecking order in our latest NBA power rankings heading into 2025. A few teams have surprised for good and bad reasons over the first few months of the NBA schedule.
While at the same time, others have continued their elite, or awful, play from last season. So, without further ado, let’s look at the 10 worst and 10 best teams in the NBA right now.
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10 worst NBA teams right now

Not every NBA team can get off to a flying start in the new season. Several have issues dating back to last season that they must first overcome before they can earn respectability around the game. However, others have gotten off to shockingly bad starts that have many around the game confused. Let’s look at the 10 worst teams in the NBA right now.
10. Golden State Warriors

The 2024-25 edition of the Golden State Warriors got off to a red-hot start, and after the first month, they had one of the best records in basketball. But De’Anthony Melton’s season-ending injury sent an unexpected ripple effect through the team and they have gone into a shocking nose dive since the end of November.
They lost 15 of 21 games at one point and would not even be in the play-in tournament if the season ended today. At this point, any trade will now be to try and salvage what has been another underwhelming year for the NBA’s most recent dynasty team.
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9. Chicago Bulls

The Chicago Bulls have a pair of players — Zach LaVine and Nikola Vucevic — that will get All-Star consideration this season. And former first-round pick Coby White is having another strong year for the team. They are why Chi-Town is one of the best-scoring teams in the league. Unfortunately, they are giving up almost four more points on average due to an atrocious defense.
They are in a position to get a play-in spot this year. However, the team has far more reason to be big-time sellers before next month’s trade deadline.
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8. Philadelphia 76ers

The Philadelphia 76ers have been one of the biggest disappointments in the NBA over the first half as injuries and in-fighting led to an awful start. Despite having a trio of All-Star-level scorers, the 76ers offense has been mediocre at best this year (107.4 PPG). Fortunately, their defense has kept them in a position to still be in the play-in conversation. However, a slew of new injuries to their best bench players has led to another slump and surprise losses to the Warriors and Suns.
7. New Orleans Pelicans

It has been a rough season for New Orleans Pelicans fans. On paper, they entered their campaign with a roster that should be among the best in the NBA. However, they have been ravaged by injuries to many of their best players all season. And they are now just starting to get close to full health in January.
With Zion Williamson finally back in the lineup, they are showing signs of life and a turnaround. With a lot of season left they have the time and talent to dig themselves out of their massive hole and get back into playoff contention over the next couple of months.
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6. Portland Trail Blazers

On paper, the Portland Trail Blazers roster looks like a team that should be contending for a play-in spot this season. Unfortunately, they have several players who would be better fits as the third option on a good team. This group has been a major disappointment and the lack of real growth of their young talent is an indictment of the organization’s poor skills at talent development. At this point, seeing if they can move any of their players will be the top goal for the team before the Feb. 6 trade deadline.
5. Brooklyn Nets

This was always expected to be a heavy rebuild year for the Brooklyn Nets. After some competitive play to begin the year, an extended slump was all the organization needed to go into full-on sell mode and trade off a couple of their better veteran players. However, despite losing eight of their last nine, they are still just five games out of the final play-in spot of a weak Eastern Conference. So despite punting being a highly competitive team until next season, they still have a lot to play for.
4. Utah Jazz

In year three as head coach, Will Hardy and his team have taken another step back. Plus, despite getting a massive contract extension in the summer, top star Lauri Markkanen was the poster boy of their struggles as he had a start that made many recall his early career draft bust play. The Jazz have the assets to make some impact trades if they want. But if team president Danny Ainge continues to remain overly patient, the Jazz are headed toward another appearance in the NBA Draft lottery in June.
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3. Charlotte Hornets

While LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller have put up some pretty good stats this season, they aren’t improving their teammates. Despite the strong play from talented youngsters, the Charlotte Hornets have one of the worst records in the NBA and just recently ended a 10-game losing skid. While they are a solid defensive team (giving up 112.4 PPG), they are near the bottom of the league in points per game despite having a pair of 20-plus-point scorers.
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2. Toronto Raptors

Over the first couple of months, the Toronto Raptors were a solid group on the offensive side of the ball. However, that was then and now Toronto’s offense has slipped into mediocrity even with talented scorer Immanuel Quickley back from a long stay on the injured list. It also hasn’t helped that they are among the worst defensive squads in the league (119.2 opponent’s PPG).
For a franchise that has gained a well-earned reputation for developing new stars, this is quickly becoming a low point for Toronto.
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1. Washington Wizards

Even with new head coach Brian Keefe, the Washington Wizards remain one of the league’s worst teams. They have an atrocious defense and have also struggled for much of the season to put points on the board. Top star Kyle Kuzma having one of his worst seasons in years isn’t helping either. The team is in the midst of another lengthy losing skid and the only hope for its roster is that they are among the players traded before next month’s deadline.
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10 best NBA teams right now

Now for the 10 best teams in the NBA right now. This group has quite a few familiar faces, like the defending champion Boston Celtics. However, there are some fresh brands among the league’s elites. With that said, let’s look at the 10 best NBA teams right now.
10. Dallas Mavericks

The Dallas Mavericks were quietly having another strong season. They were a top-four club out West and a game from having the second-best record in the conference heading into the new year. Their offense was among the best in the league, and it was backed by a rock-solid defense.
However, Luka Doncic suffering a serious calf injury has completely changed the team’s trajectory for the weeks ahead. Now, head coach Jason Kidd will need to put all his management tools to the test to make sure his team doesn’t take a massive backslide while their superstar is away.
9. Orlando Magic

The Orlando Magic got hit with a massive blow early in the season when top star Paolo Banchero suffered a torn oblique. Then a few weeks later Franz Wagner suffered a torn oblique. It seemed like it would be a death blow for their season. Yet, Jamhal Mosely has done a splendid job of keeping his team competitive and not losing much ground in the standings. Now, Banchero is back, the Magic weathered the worst of their injury storm and came out better for it.
8. Los Angeles Clippers

Los Angeles Clippers head coach Ty Lue continues to show why he is one of the best in his field. Despite being without top star Kawhi Leonard due to (of course) injury for much of the year, the team played far better than anyone expected. With the multi-time champion back on the court, LA has a massive upside in the weeks ahead. Especially since their top-five defense will allow their offense to get back in a groove throughout January.
7. Denver Nuggets

When you have the best player on the planet, Nikola Jokic, the Denver Nuggets will always be a very competitive squad. Yet, over the first couple of months, the team struggled, and it led to various rumors of trades and key members of their championship team being moved. However, over the last few weeks, Denver has played well — winning seven of their last nine. Now, a trade could be to help add to a Finals-contending team instead of to salvage of disappointing year.
6. Houston Rockets

The Houston Rockets showed some late-season promise in year one for head coach Ime Udoka. They have continued that momentum in 2024 by kicking off the season with a 21-11 start. What is exciting is that the strong showing is led by young stars Jalen Green and Alperen Sengun and backed by a top-three defense (107.3 points against). Like the Kings and Thunder the last two years, The Rockets are the new “it” team this year and one of the Thunder’s biggest threats in the West.
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5. New York Knicks

The New York Knicks have been a surprisingly dominant offensive force this season. Their starting five which includes Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns, and Mikal Bridges have gelled faster on the offensive side of the ball faster than many NBA pundits expected. However, they still have a ways to go on defense. And their surprising losses to the Bulls, a beat-up Magic team, and the Pistons show they are not quite a serious threat to the champion Celtics just yet.
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4. Memphis Grizzlies

The Memphis Grizzles were expected to be far better this season with superstar Ja Morant back. And so far, the results have been very good. With their superstar back they are the best-scoring team in the league (122.9 PPG) and own one of the best records in the game. If they can make some impactful moves before the Feb. 6 NBA trade deadline, the Grizz have a real chance to get to the Finals out of the West.
3. Boston Celtics

The defending champion Boston Celtics were one of the top teams in our NBA power rankings throughout last season and will remain there all of this year — barring a major injury. They have one of the best-scoring teams in the league (118.5 PPG), as well as a defense giving up 10 fewer points per game. They now have “the unicorn” Kristaps Porzingis back, and he should give them a boost both on offense and defense. The Cs remain the title favorite in January.
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2. Cleveland Cavaliers

The Cleveland Cavaliers have been outstanding this season under new head coach Kenny Atkinson. While they are still a problem on defense, he has helped to elevate their offense to new heights and they are among the best in the NBA right now (122.5 PPG). They are deep and play hard. There is no reason to believe they won’t be a top-five team in the league for the rest of the season. The NBA playoffs will be this team’s real proving ground.
1. Oklahoma City Thunder

The Oklahoma City Thunder have twice been hit by huge injuries this season. However, they have endured and remained one of the best squads in the NBA this season. Their defense is the best in the game (103.0 points against per game) and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams have felt like a new-age Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen. OKC remains the team to beat out West and they aren’t even fully healthy yet.
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