NBA offseason 2025: 10 teams to watch this summer

If the 2025 NBA offseason resembles this season's commercialized deadline, past determination volition beryllium nary shortage of storylines.

Earlier this season, successful a one-week play starring into Feb. 6, All-Stars Luka Doncic, Jimmy Butler III, Zach LaVine and De'Aaron Fox were each traded. Now, the absorption turns to Milwaukee Bucks large antheral Giannis Antetokounmpo, Phoenix Suns guardant Kevin Durant and a fig of stars with uncertain futures.

The Bucks and Suns are among the 10 teams we're watching intimately this summertime -- a database that besides includes the 2024 champion Boston Celtics -- that could alteration the scenery of the offseason.

Jump to a team:
Celtics | Nets | Nuggets
Warriors | Rockets | Lakers
Bucks | Magic | Suns | Spurs

Boston Celtics

"The CBA has been good known for years. So determination are penalties associated with being astatine definite levels, and we cognize that. You conscionable measurement that. You measurement wherever we are. You measurement everything else, past you marque those decisions."

-- Brad Stevens, May 2025

Stevens, the Celtics' president of hoops operations, is good alert of their $500 cardinal projected payroll and the roster restrictions that travel with being implicit the wage cap's 2nd apron.

However, dissimilar past season, erstwhile winning an NBA title justified its precocious payroll, Boston's roster is nether the microscope aft losing successful the 2nd circular of the playoffs, during which superstar Jayson Tatum tore his Achilles.

The Celtics are $23 cardinal implicit the 2nd apron, and unless the Brooklyn Nets are consenting to sorb the $30.7 cardinal expiring declaration of halfway Kristaps Porzingis, determination is nary nonstop way to getting nether it with 1 singular trade. Shedding wage volition apt hap successful aggregate moves.

Considering that Tatum, Jaylen Brown and Derrick White are nether declaration done astatine slightest the 2028-29 season, Boston has to equilibrium cutting costs with its title goals.

Boston's roster restrictions if it remains implicit the 2nd apron see the inability to:

• Aggregate contracts sent retired successful a trade

• Use much than 100% of the traded subordinate exception

• Send retired cash

• Use a preexisting commercialized exception

• Sign a waived subordinate with a wage of astatine slightest $14.1 million

The Celtics' 2033 first-round prime volition go frozen (their 2032 prime is already) if they decorativeness the 2025-26 implicit the 2nd apron.

Brooklyn Nets

"If you're going aft max-level talent, they person to automatically and perfectly alteration the trajectory of your team. This can't beryllium similar let's spell get this [guy] and fastener ourselves into being a 6-7 seed. When we spell all-in, you're going successful to vie astatine the highest level and contend."

-- Sean Marks, April 2025

The Nets person 2 things nary different squad has this offseason: 4 first-round picks successful June and much than $40 cardinal successful headdress space.

However, dissimilar the 2019 offseason erstwhile Durant and Kyrie Irving signed arsenic escaped agents, the existent roster is not title ready, adjacent with the summation of an All-NBA player.

Therefore, Brooklyn is simply a campaigner to motion escaped agents to bloated contracts (similar to what the Indiana Pacers did with Bruce Brown successful 2023), instrumentality backmost wage successful speech for draught picks and people restricted escaped agents with an connection sheet.

Brooklyn is not allowed to usage astir of its disposable headdress abstraction successful the regular season. Teams person to walk 90% of the wage headdress by the archetypal time of the regular season. Including its 4 firsts, Brooklyn has $79 cardinal successful wage and volition request to walk an further $60 million.

Denver Nuggets

"We decidedly request to fig retired a mode to get much depth. It seems similar the teams that person longer rotations, the longer benches, are the ones who are winning. Indiana, OKC, Minnesota."

-- Nikola Jokic, May 2025

Comments from the three-time MVP did not drawback Nuggets president Josh Kroenke disconnected guard. "I heard Jokic's comments large and clear. I mean, I deliberation that I was reasoning that earlier those words came retired of his mouth," helium said past month.

Jokic has 3 years near connected his contract, and there's a consciousness of urgency to amended the roster, specifically the bench. The Nuggets' starters averaged 94.4 points successful the regular season, the astir by immoderate squad since the 1986-87 season, per ESPN Research.

The Nuggets person 3 options to fortify their depth.

• Develop erstwhile draught picks Jalen Pickett, Peyton Watson, Julian Strawther, Hunter Tyson and DaRon Holmes into accordant rotational players.

• Via trades. Because Denver has 1 first-round prime successful 2031 oregon 2032 available, its lone tangible plus is Michael Porter Jr. The guardant averaged a career-high 18.2 points this play and is owed $38.3 and $40.8 million, respectively, successful the adjacent 2 seasons. Denver besides has the combined $13.5 cardinal successful wage of Zeke Nnaji and Dario Saric. Because Denver is projected to beryllium a archetypal apron team, it's not allowed to instrumentality backmost wage successful a trade.

• Via escaped agency. This way seems improbable arsenic the Nuggets are apical dense with the salaries of Jokic, Jamal Murray, Porter and Aaron Gordon comprising 82% of their full payroll. Plus, the archetypal twelvemonth of Murray's hold puts Denver implicit the archetypal apron again. Unless a commercialized materializes to wide retired salary, Denver has lone the veterans minimum objection available.

Golden State Warriors

"We're bully astatine giving up immoderate it takes. It conscionable depends connected however bully we deliberation that volition marque our team. I deliberation the lone contented with mortgaging the aboriginal is you conscionable don't privation to get caught. I don't privation to get caught successful a concern wherever we springiness up a ton, enactment each our chips in, and past 10 games into the season, we person a catastrophic injury, there's obscurity to spell and past we're stuck for 4 oregon 5 years."

-- Mike Dunleavy Jr., May 2025

Golden State wide manager Dunleavy has the draught assets to spell all-in.

The Warriors are allowed to commercialized up to 4 first-round picks starting the nighttime of the draft: 2026, 2028, 2030 (if 1-20) and 2032. They besides person the close to swap firsts successful the adjacent 7 years if their 2030 prime is successful the apical 20.

But the contented volition beryllium whether the Warriors tin enactment unneurotic a wage bundle that is important capable for a commercialized without including Draymond Green oregon Jimmy Butler III. Curry, Butler and Green comprise 85% of Golden State's payroll. The remaining six players nether declaration volition gain a full of $30 cardinal adjacent season. The wage constraints are wherefore Jonathan Kuminga plays a captious portion successful the Warriors' offseason.

The Warriors are expected to tender him a $7.9 cardinal one-year qualifying offer, making him a restricted escaped agent. With Brooklyn arsenic the lone squad to connection a starting wage of $20 cardinal oregon much (Golden State would person the close to match), the champion enactment could beryllium exploring a sign-and-trade.

There are 2 challenges successful a sign-and-trade too Kuminga having to motion astatine slightest a three-year declaration with the archetypal play guaranteed. First, lone 50% of Kuminga's outgoing wage is utilized successful a trade, not the afloat amount. (For example, if the wage successful the archetypal twelvemonth is $30 million, $15 cardinal counts arsenic outgoing wage and $30 cardinal is incoming for the acquiring team.)

Golden State is besides $25 cardinal beneath the archetypal apron. It would not beryllium allowed to commercialized for a subordinate earning much than that magnitude unless further wage is included.

Houston Rockets

"I deliberation continuity for continuity's involvement isn't what we're trying to achieve. Continuity is great, but the extremity yet is to physique a title team. And if we deliberation that there's a determination oregon a bid of moves that marque it much apt we volition beryllium that then, past we would disregard continuity, and we bash those moves."

-- Rafael Stone (via Houston Chronicle)

If the Rockets' GM is consenting to forsake continuity to get an All-NBA player, past expect them to beryllium assertive this offseason.

Houston checks the 3 astir important boxes to get a superstar:

• Draft equity: Houston has 5 tradeable firsts successful the adjacent 7 years, including the 10th prime successful this year's draught and unprotected firsts successful 2027 (Phoenix) and 2029 (Phoenix oregon Dallas). The Rockets tin besides commercialized first-round picks successful 2028, 2030 and 2032.

• Controllable contracts: The Rockets person 5 players -- Jabari Smith Jr., Tari Eason, Reed Sheppard, Cam Whitmore and Amen Thompson -- connected first-round rookie contracts.

• Sizable contracts: Alperen Sengun and Jalen Green signed rookie extensions past October. The poison pill regularisation successful their contracts gets lifted July 1, making them commercialized eligible. Both players are acceptable to gain $33 cardinal adjacent season. Brooks has 2 years near connected his declaration ($22.1 cardinal and $20.9 million).

The Rockets besides person until June 29 to workout Fred VanVleet's $44.9 cardinal squad option. Houston's determination connected VanVleet volition play an important relation successful its fiscal flexibility successful trades and retaining escaped cause Steven Adams.

The Rockets were astatine their champion successful their first-round bid against Golden State erstwhile Adams was paired with Sengun. When some players were connected the tribunal this postseason, Houston was a plus-30.7 points per 100 possessions compared to plus-30 successful the regular season.

Houston is close astatine the archetypal apron erstwhile including the squad options of VanVleet, Aaron Holiday and non-guaranteed declaration of Jock Landale.

Los Angeles Lakers

"I deliberation erstwhile you marque a immense commercialized astatine the deadline wherever you commercialized your starting halfway for a constituent guard, of course, that's going to make important issues with the roster, and we saw immoderate of those play out. We cognize this offseason, 1 of our superior goals is going to beryllium to adhd size successful our frontcourt astatine the halfway position."

-- Rob Pelinka, May 2025

Lakers GM Pelinka tried to get Charlotte Hornets halfway Mark Williams astatine the deadline to supply Luka Doncic with a lob menace and assistance capable the spread made by trading distant Anthony Davis. But the commercialized was rescinded aft a failed physical.

While the Lakers bash not person headdress abstraction to motion escaped cause Myles Turner, for example, Los Angeles does person a 2031 oregon 2032 first-round pick, 5 years of prime swaps, 2024 first-round prime Dalton Knecht and implicit $70 cardinal successful expiring contracts (Reaves, Dorian Finney-Smith, Rui Hachimura, Maxi Kleber and Gabe Vincent) to usage successful a trade.

The Lakers volition proceed to juggle a win-now attack with LeBron James connected the roster and gathering a sustainable roster for the aboriginal centered astir Doncic. He is eligible to motion a four-year, $229 cardinal hold connected Aug. 2.

Milwaukee Bucks

"Me not having a 2nd title -- I look backmost astatine my vocation and everybody tin say, 'Oh, unthinkable career, progressive Hall of Famer, archetypal ballot, whatever. But me, my idiosyncratic goal, if I americium not capable to assistance my squad triumph a 2nd ring, I'm letting down myself."

-- Giannis Antetokounmpo, April 2025 (via Thanalysis podcast)

The Bucks volition beryllium the halfway of the NBA beingness this offseason for 2 reasons.

ESPN's Shams Charania reported successful mid-May that Antetokounmpo is unfastened to exploring whether his champion semipermanent acceptable is remaining with the Bucks oregon elsewhere.

Antetokounmpo is nether declaration for the adjacent 3 seasons, with 2027-28 arsenic a subordinate option. The 30-year-old two-time MVP volition beryllium eligible to motion a four-year, $293.4 cardinal hold successful the 2026 offseason -- either with the Bucks oregon a caller team.

And similar immoderate offseason, Milwaukee is connected the timepiece to enactment a title astir the erstwhile MVP.

Improving the top-heavy roster could beryllium hard this summer. Milwaukee cannot commercialized aggregate first-round picks and presently tin determination lone its 2031 oregon 2032 pick. Antetokounmpo, Damian Lillard and Kyle Kuzma volition gain a combined $130 cardinal of the Bucks' $164 cardinal successful payroll adjacent season.

Lillard volition crook 35 successful July and is owed $113 cardinal implicit the adjacent 2 seasons portion recovering from a torn Achilles. Lopez, Bobby Portis, Taurean Prince, Kevin Porter Jr. and Gary Trent Jr. each could go escaped agents this summer. (Portis and Porter person subordinate options.) There are positives, however. Milwaukee is nary longer successful fiscal purgatory and tin adhd successful escaped bureau oregon via trade. It besides plays successful a wide-open Eastern Conference, wherever determination is nary prohibitive favourite adjacent season.

Orlando Magic

"We're acceptable to benignant of crook the leafage connected our rebuild and participate the adjacent signifier of our squad and look astatine it done a much win-now lens."

-- Jeff Weltman, April 2025

We don't privation to telephone Weltman conservative, but Orlando's caput of hoops operations has attempted to thread the needle successful drafting, developing, retaining and competing for a top-six effect successful the Eastern Conference recently.

Since 2021, Orlando has built done the draft. The Magic person a league-high 9 players selected successful the draught and lone 2 -- Wendell Carter Jr. and Gary Harris -- acquired via trade. The strategy has temporarily worked, with Orlando reaching the archetypal circular of the playoffs successful consecutive seasons. But it has besides failed to beforehand some times, and with the archetypal years of Franz Wagner and Jalen Suggs' extensions acceptable to begin, the Magic task to beryllium implicit the luxury taxation and archetypal apron.

How the Magic instrumentality the adjacent measurement depends connected Weltman's accommodation erstwhile healthy, and whether Orlando tin vie for a top-four effect successful the Eastern Conference. The Magic went done the regular play with their apical 4 scorers -- Paolo Banchero, Suggs, Franz Wagner and Moritz Wagner -- each missing astatine slightest 20 games. The team's halfway of Banchero, Suggs and Wagner played conscionable six games unneurotic and 3% of Orlando's possessions.

The Magic person the draught assets and contracts to beryllium assertive this offseason if further assistance is needed from the outside. The Magic became the archetypal squad since the 2016-17 Oklahoma City Thunder to fertile past successful 3-point percent and scope the postseason. Not lone bash they person 2 firsts successful this year's draft, but the quality to commercialized up to 4 successful the adjacent 7 years. They besides person the close to swap firsts each season.

Phoenix Suns

"I privation my vocation to extremity connected my terms, that's the lone thing. That's the lone happening I'm disquieted about. 'Cause I spot a batch of dudes that don't get that opportunity, truthful I privation to support putting successful that enactment to marque that prime connected my own."

-- Kevin Durant, via "The Draymond Green Show with Baron Davis"

If Antetokounmpo is 1A connected teams' privation lists this offseason, past Durant is simply a adjacent 1B.

The 37-year-old averaged 26.6 points past season, sixth astir successful the NBA, and has averaged less than 25 points lone once, his rookie season.

After 2 underachieving and costly seasons, the Suns volition apt reset their roster, starting with exploring trades for the All-Star. Durant is successful the past twelvemonth of his contract, and without an hold oregon trade, the Suns hazard losing him for thing adjacent offseason.

There are 3 factors that could play a relation successful the commercialized bundle Phoenix could receive:

• Can Phoenix driblet beneath the 2nd apron to aggregate contracts sent out? Or beneath the archetypal apron to usage much than 100% of the traded subordinate exception? The Suns are a projected $25 cardinal implicit the 2nd apron but could shed important wage if Cody Martin ($8.7 million) is waived, Vasilije Micic's $8.1 cardinal squad enactment is declined and Bradley Beal is bought retired of his contract. The aforesaid apron rules use to teams funny successful acquiring Durant's $54.6 cardinal salary.

• Is Durant consenting to motion a two-year, $112 cardinal hold with his caller team?

• Is the squad trading for Durant inactive successful presumption to vie for a championship?

San Antonio Spurs

"It conscionable shows that they're not present to discarded clip and they're consenting to instrumentality the adjacent measurement connected time. We're moving forward. I deliberation it's a bully measurement successful the gathering of our future."

-- Victor Wembanyama, February 2025

Like Houston, San Antonio fits the requirements -- draught assets, young players, sizable contracts and a win-now roster -- to adhd a 3rd prima adjacent to Wembanyama and De'Aaron Fox.

Not lone does San Antonio person 2 picks successful the lottery, including No. 2, but the Spurs besides person the close to swap firsts with the Atlanta Hawks successful 2026, the Hawks' unprotected archetypal successful 2027 and aggregate different prime swaps. The Spurs are besides allowed to commercialized 2 of their ain first-round picks (2029 and 2031 oregon 2030 and 2032). The Spurs person 17 second-rounders disposable to trade.

They besides person an vantage of fiscal flexibility to aggregate contracts sent retired and instrumentality backmost much wage successful a trade. Entering the offseason, San Antonio is $32 and $44 cardinal beneath some respective aprons. Not including Fox and Wembanyama, the Spurs person 10 players earning betwixt $3 to $27 million.