NBA Power Rankings: Spurs Open Season at No. 1, Knicks Lead Reloaded East

Welcome to the 2026-27 NBA season. It's go time, baby. We've been evaluating these teams for months, and now we get to see them actually play. This sets up to be one of the wildest seasons in history with no fewer than 14 teams that absolutely believe -- mostly with justifiable reason -- that they can compete for the title with some circumstantial aid.

It is through this "Championship viability" lens that we have composed our first Power Rankings of the season. As the season gets going, this ranking will reflect more toward current trends, but this is one last receipt of how we see the teams stacking up in the big picture.

NBA 2026-27 season predictions: Expert picks for full standings and Finals Sam Quinn

Let's get to it. This is going to be a fun one.

Biggest Movers 6 Rockets 3 Pacers Rk Teams   Chg Rcrd 1 Spurs The Spurs pulled a little rabbit out of the hat against OKC in the conference finals. The Thunder, albeit by a thin margin, felt like the better team for most of that series. But moving forward, the Spurs are going to get an even better version of Victor Wembanyama, Stephon Castle and especially Dylan Harper, who didn't really break out until the playoffs. For all the talk of trading De'Aaron Fox, for now he's a luxury the Spurs can afford while Castle Harper and Wembanyama are all still on rookie contracts. The bottom line is this: The Spurs beat OKC in a conference finals Game 7 on the road, then held the lead against the Knicks in the Finals for over 72% of the minutes played when at this time last year it would've been considered a success if they had simply qualified for a playoff spot. Last year was prologue. This year, the story begins. -- 0-0 2 Thunder If you believe the Thunder are still the best team in the West, or the league for that matter, you won't get a strong argument from me. Personally, I'm accounting for a leap from all three of San Antonio's best players, whereas OKC already made that leap. The losses of Isaiah Joe, Aaron Wiggins (even if he'd fallen out of the playoff rotation) and Lu Dort are real. But Cason Wallace is better than all of them. Ultimately, Chet Holmgren is the X-factor here. He turned in a great season, developing as a self-creator and he's still arguably the best rim protector this side of Wemby. That's his only nemesis. If he closes the gap on Wembanyama in a heads-up series, that could swing the pendulum back to OKC. It will be the single biggest storyline if those two meet again in the postseason. 1 0-0 3 Knicks Come playoff time, the Knicks are obviously the team to beat in the East. But I don't think they'll look the part in the regular season. They only won 53 games a year ago and I'm predicting less than that this year in a loaded Eastern Conference. All the contract stuff with KAT and others is extra weight for a Knicks team already carrying the significant burden of trying to be the first repeat champion since the 2018 Warriors. There's a reason nobody has done it since then. The league is so deep and almost everything has to break your way. With the chemistry, defense, shooting and versatility, you can't overstate the power of a team that has now proved to itself that all these things it believes in, and has believed in, actually work at the highest level. That creates a level of collective calm and confidence that is an NBA superpower. It will carry them when it needs to, but the regular season could be a bit of a slog. 1 0-0 4 76ers On paper, this might be the most talented starting five LeBron James has ever played with. Think about that. As talented as LeBron's teams were in Cleveland and Miami, they were always a Big 3. Neither had that fourth superstar. LeBron, Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey and Jaylen Brown are All-NBA-level players, and V.J. Edgecombe could emerge as one of the best fifth starters in the league. Nick Nurse will have 82 games to figure out how these five guys fit together, which will ultimately determine their playoff utility. Sacrifices will have to be made. Last season, the five guys listed above amassed a collective usage rate of 143.1%. Simple math tells you that when all of them are on the court, they will have to cut that number, collectively, by 43%. That's a lot. Everyone is going to get fewer shots. Nobody on this team should be hitting their previous scoring averages. They have to be OK with that. So often when superteams come together, the idea is for everyone to sacrifice scoring and embrace the margins, but the reality is they're superstars because they're great with the ball in their hands and asking them to operate without it just becomes awkward. See Damian Lillard in Milwaukee, and multiply it by two or three guys trying to do that. Still, what is the start of a new season without ultimate optimism? The Sixers are stacked. There is no way to dispute that. We will see if they can shoot and defend well enough, and most importantly, stay healthy enough. But right now I'll take all the talent and bet on them to figure out the fit as they go. 4 0-0 5 Raptors Here's a stat for you: The Raptors were 10 points worse per 100 possessions in relation to their opponent last season when Brandon Ingram was on the floor, per Cleaning the Glass, and he was miserable in the playoffs. He was a wonky fit as a methodical self-scorer on a team that wants to play fast and free. Now they flip Ingram out for Kawhi Leonard, the apex scorer they lacked. That's quite an exchange for a team that won 46 games a year ago and took the Cavs to seven games in the playoffs. Leonard is coming off the healthiest and arguably best regular season of his career. We're talking about just under 28-6-4 on almost 50-40-90 shooting over 65 games. He'll have to do it again for the Raptors to contend. Kawhi and Scottie abarnes are going to be a nasty 1-2 punch. Behind that you have RJ Barrett, who could be a 20-ish point third scorer or a trade chip on an expiring deal. Collin Murray-Boyles is set to explode. Immanuel Quickley averaged 16 and 6 last year on 38% 3-point shooting. If you don't know about Jamal Shead, you better learn. I don't love Jakob Poeltl as the starting center or the depth behind him, but everything else about this team looks like a true contender. Vibes are high in Toronto. They should be.

-- 0-0 6 Celtics Boston won 56 games last year and stands to be better this year. Jayson Tatum effectively replaces Jaylen Brown, Paul George replaces Anfernee Simons, and Mitchell Robinson replaces Nikola Vucevic. That's three upgrades. Now factor in another year of growth for the surprise studs of last year -- Hugo Gonzalez, Baylor Scheierman and Neemias Queta -- and an All-Star leap from Payton Pritchard. Yes, you read that correctly. Payton Pritchard will be an All-Star. Joe Mazzulla's system is a regular-season cheat code. They are going to win the possession game with low turnovers and a ton of offensive rebounds from Queta and Robinson. We haven't even mentioned Derrick White, Sam Hauser or Jordan Walsh. This can be a top-five offensive and defensive team. They could miss Brown's scoring force in the playoffs, and they lack overall athleticism and rim pressure, but in the regular season, I've got the Celtics coming out as the No. 1 East seed. 1 0-0 7 Pacers This might not happen right away. Tyrese Haliburton may need some time to hit his groove. But Indiana returns the guts of the same team that took OKC to Game 7 of the 2025 Finals and very well might've won the whole thing had Haliburton not blown his Achilles. Turner has been replaced by Ivica Zubac, who doesn't bring the same kind of shooting but does everything else better and gives Indiana more diversity as a post presence and passing hub. Ultimately, this high of a ranking is a bet on Haliburton. Few point guards create as lush an offensive environment as he does. Andrew Nembhard and Aaron Nesmith don't get talked about nearly enough. Pascal Siakam could've been All-NBA last year if not for the 65-game rule. This team is loaded and reenergized after the gap year. Again, it may take a minute. But come go time, Indiana should be up near the front of the Eastern pack.

3 0-0 8 Rockets I don't understand Houston's over/under 48.5 win total. That's a blow-by number if they stay even relatively healthy. Sure, they went in the tank at points last year and looked bad in the playoffs, but they won 52 games with no point guard and Steven Adams, a major part of their major offensive rebounding advantage, out for the entire second half of their schedule. Now the Rockets get Adams and their point guard, Fred VanVleet, back in addition to Marcus Smart. This is a better team than the one that finished last season with the sixth-best net rating in the league. If you're waiting on the Kevin Durant decline, get comfortable. The guy averaged 26 points per game last season on damn-near 52/41/87 shooting splits with almost zero structural offensive assistance. There's a strong case to be made that 52 wins was about the lowest possible outcome for Houston last season. Based on their point differential, Cleaning The Glass pegged them as an expected 56-win team. And again, they are better this season. They'll be in contention for a top-four seed and have all the ammo necessary to make a major trade should they choose to. De'Aaron Fox or Kyrie Irving would immediately turn this team into a top-shelf contender. 6 0-0 9 Timberwolves Love the LaMelo Ball-Anthony Edwards pairing. Shooters connect on a higher percentage of shots off Ball passes than any distributor not named Nikola Jokic. Anthony Edwards shot 48% on catch-and-shoot 3s last year. This is a beautiful offensive pairing, and Minnesota has the bones of an elite defensive infrastructure to support Ball. The West is tough, but so is this team. I've got them a little lower than a team that has been to two of the last three conference finals should probably be because Ball is such a shakeup to the core, but if he proves up to the challenge of performing in meaningful games (he's never played in a single playoff game), the Wolves can be scary.

3 0-0 10 Nuggets This largely comes down to Aaron Gordon's availability. When he plays, the Nuggets still kill. When he's out, it's a much different story. Given that Gordon is healthy right now and looked good in preseason, I'll give him the benefit of the doubt and bank on Denver's continuity and starting-five punch to carry the day. Cam Johnson caught a lot of flak last year, but look at the numbers. He shot 43% from 3 and was lights out after a terrible start, and he's going to be more comfortable in year two. Christian Braun might never be worth his contract, but can and likely will be better than he was last year. DeMar DeRozan doesn't seem like a great fit, but he could theoretically help keep the non-Nikola Jokić minutes above water. Bottom line, there's still a lot of talent here. Murray was sensational last year. I just can't see a Jokić team not winning 50 games. He remains one of the three best players in the world on his worst night. But this does feel like the Denver flight is on its descent.

-- 0-0 11 Heat Half-court cramping is a concern with Bam Adebayo and Giannis Antetokounmpo on the floor together, but let's not overcomplicate this. The Heat are working with one of the best players in the world in Antetokounmpo, one of the best defenders in the world in Adebayo, and one of the best coaches in the world in Erik Spoelstra. Miami has the makings of a top-five defense. Antetokounmpo's paint gravity will generate plenty of open 3s, and quietly the Heat have a number of guys -- Andrew Wiggins (41%), Klay Thompson (38%), Bobby Portis (46%), Tim Hardaway Jr. (41%), Davion MItchell (40%), Simone Fontecchio (38%) -- who can feast on these looks in an up-tempo drive-and-kick setting. Pelle Larsson i

_Originally reported by [CBS Sports](https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/nba-power-rankings-spurs-knicks-oct-20/)._