Week 2 NBA power rankings: 10 best and 10 worst teams right now, including the Warriors, Bucks, and Suns

Not every team can get off to a flying start in the new NBA season. There are quite a few teams that 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 some shockingly awful starts. Let’s take a look at the 10 worst teams in the NBA entering November.

This could be a very ugly season for the Brooklyn Nets. Yes, they have a couple of nice young players in Cam Thomas and Nic Claxton. But the club is completely in rebuild mode and expectations are very low. However, they have played solid ball to start the year. Along with impressive play from Thomas, they have surprisingly gotten productive minutes from oft-injured guard Ben Simmons this season.

If he can stay on the floor and possibly get closer to the player he once was, the Nets will quickly move up these NBA power rankings.

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It will be interesting to see what Ty Lue can do with this current Los Angeles Clippers roster. Both Paul George and Russell Westbrook are gone and James Harden and Kawhi Leonard are another year older. The expectations will be much lower now than in years past, especially with Leonard’s dodgy knee sidelining him to start the season.

LA got off to a nice start and scored big wins over the Warriors and Nuggets to start the year. However, being without their top star has started to have an effect as they dropped under .500 to being November. The group will go as far as a healthy Leonard can take them.

The Philadelphia 76ers should be a major player in the East this season — when their top two players are on the floor. Unfortunately, Joel Embiid and Paul George have been off the floor due to injuries for most of their games this season. Unsurprisingly, the remaining pieces haven’t been enough and they are a bottom-feeder right now.

They will eventually rise up our rankings when Embiid and George are back on the floor consistently. Until then they are near the back of our latest rankings.

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The Milwaukee Bucks are one of the biggest shocks in the NBA to begin the season. They have a pair of ultra-talented stars in Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard, a good roster, and a Hall-of-Fame-worthy coach. Yet the Bucks have one of the worst records in the league to start the season. What is most worrisome is a team that should be one of the better defensive teams in the East has been among its worst to begin the year.

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While Scottie Barnes elevated his game and grew into the new face of the Toronto Raptors, the team went into rebuild mode last season after shipping off OG Anunoby and Pascal Siakim before the trade deadline. They need former Knicks Immanuel Quickley and RJ Barrett to be top-shelf secondary scorers if they plan to go far.

On the offensive side of the ball, the Raptors are one of the best-scoring teams in the league. Sadly, for as good as they have been offensively they have been even worse on defense (125.6 points given up per game) and it is why they are one of the bottom feeders in the East to begin the year.

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The Charlotte Hornets disappointed again in 2023-24. And top star LaMelo Ball mirrored his brother Lonzo as a gifted player who had trouble staying on the court. The expectations are low for the team this season. Yet, they aren’t doing much to change assumptions about them in the new season. Wall Ball has played well, but the team’s poor play on defense continues to be a hindrance over the first couple of weeks. Unless a serious number two option can arise on offense this team is doomed to be a lottery team again in 2025.

Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups is on a very hot seat this season. They have a roster that can be competitive, so Billups must finally get the pieces to fit, as well as elevate the game of Scoot Henderson. Last season’s top pick.

So far not so good this season. The team has gotten off to another slow start in the new season, and being among one of the worst scoring teams in the NBA to begin the season is getting Billups closer to an in-season ouster.

The Washington Wizards were a disaster last season despite adding some nice players, like former Warriors bench ace Jordan Poole. In the offseason, they brought in worthwhile veterans like Jonas Valanciunas and Malcolm Brogdon. They also used their top pick on French big man Alex Sarr. On paper, this should be a competitive team in the East.

Unfortunately, they have been dealing with injuries to top star Kyle Kuzma and Brogdon to start the season. Nevertheless, they have gotten off to a decent start and a pair of recent back-to-back wins over the Hawks is reason for hope.

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The Detroit Pistons were the worst team in basketball this season. Unfortunately, things have not gotten much different despite a head coaching change in the summer. After the first two weeks, the Pistons have already had a four-game losing streak and just two wins. While they played hard in the first few games, losses piling up are sure to quickly bring back those terrible feelings from last season.

This is an important year in the young career of head coach Will Hardy. After the Utah Jazz surprised in 2022-23, they regressed last season. The goal from the top is to be better in the new season. Unfortunately, they have been the worst team in the NBA to start the year. Injuries have certainly hurt this team, but even when their top players have been on the floor, they have underperformed badly this season.

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Now it is time to look at the cream of the Week 1 NBA crop. Some of the teams below were expected to be among the 10 best to start the NBA schedule. However, there are a few surprises after the first week of the season.

The expectations for the Los Angeles Lakers this season were not high. It’s why their fast start to the year was reason for hope. However, despite some outstanding play from Anthony Davis this season, there is a growing concern for LA. Under former head coach Darvin Ham, they were known for strong defense. But in the new JJ Redick era that has become less important and now it has cost them in games lately. It is something to keep an eye on in the weeks ahead.

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The Minnesota Timberwolves were one of the best squads in the NBA all of last season. While Anthony Edwards played a huge role in their success, what made them better than most teams was their strong play on defense. After trading Karl-Anthony Towns in October, some felt their D might improve with his departure. However, the opposite has occurred this season and they are giving up a whopping six more points on average compared to when they led the league at just 106.5 points allowed.

The New York Knicks front office went all in this summer to bolster this roster for a serious championship run. Star guard Jalen Brunson will now have two-way stud Mikal Bridges with him in the backcourt, and four-time All-Star Karl-Anthony Towns as his scoring partner. Although they were handed losses by the Cavs and Celtics, New York has played well in their three wins and is still in the early stages of developing chemistry among a very talented group.

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The Memphis Grizzles were expected to be far better this season with superstar Ja Morant back. And so far the results have been positive. Yet, what makes their super-solid start to the new season so promising is that many talent evaluators felt Jaren Jackson Jr. would take another development step forward in the new season. And so far the defensive ace is proving to be a legitimate No. 2 to Morant.

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The Dallas Mavericks quieted a lot of doubters last season after a disastrous finish to the 2022-23 season. In the offseason, they added future hall-of-famer Klay Thompson. And they will have key role players Daniel Gafford and PJ Washington on the roster from the start of the season.

While they split their first two games of the season, the good defense they played late in the season has continued in their new campaign.

There is a lot of pressure and high expectations on this Phoenix Suns roster. That is what comes with investing a massive amount of money in three players that may not necessarily be a perfect fit. But after Frank Vogel failed to turn this unique group into a title contender the task now falls to Mike Budenholzer.

And thus far, this Phoenix team has looked very good to begin the year. The most fascinating part of their fast start is that Budenholzer has seemingly brought his defensive mindset as the Suns are shockingly among the best defensive teams in the league (109.8 points allowed per game) to begin the year.

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This will be the dawn of a new age in Golden State. The Big Three era is over and a shift is beginning to Jonathan Kuminga and Brandin Podziemski being core players of the roster. However, to start the season Stephen Curry and a new face have led the way in an outstanding 6-1 start.

Curry surprisingly hasn’t played like a scoring beast. Instead, summer addition Buddy Hield (22.2 PPG) has been a perfect fit in Golden State’s system. So far the Warriors are playing great team ball and are quickly evolving into one of the best teams in the NBA over the first month of the season.

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The Boston Celtics were one of the top teams in our NBA power rankings throughout last season and will remain near the top all season long barring a major injury. To open their title defense they have scored several blowout wins and are an overtime loss to the Pacers away from being undefeated at 8-0 to being the season. What makes their start all the more scary is talented big man Kristaps Porzingins hasn’t even played yet this season.

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The Cleveland Cavaliers’ start to the new season has been one of the biggest stories in the NBA this season. Some around the league were confused by JB Bickerstaff’s firing after leading a strong team last season. However, Kenny Atkinson has proven to be a tonic that has taken Cleveland’s play to new heights. They have the best record in the league entering November and they are a top-five team on offense and defense right now. The Cavs look like a problem in the East.

The Oklahoma City Thunder added underrated center Isaiah Hartenstein and defensive ace Alex Caruso in the offseason. Those moves help to make them the team to beat out west until further notice. So far Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the crew have looked scary as they have by far the best defense in the league (97.5 PPG!). Despite Hartenstein being out with an injury. They currently own the best record in the West and that is likely to be the situation for the months ahead.