Translator's note: The original text was published on ESPN. The data in the article are as of the time of the original text (August 25 local time). The dates and times involved are all local time
2025-26 season will be another season full of changes. Less than two months after the start of the season, people's excitement has begun to heat up.
While the league prepares for the ripple effect of stars like Kevin Durant, Myers Turner and Christaps Porzingis on new teams, other teams like the Celtics and Pacers are preparing for a season without their own stars. Will these lineup changes and potential injuries pave the way for an unexpected NBA championship team?
The ESPN Summer Forecasting Expert Group, composed of our NBA insiders, answered some of the most watched questions in the NBA before the start of the 2025-26 season, including which teams are expected to make a comeback, which stars may leave their existing teams, and whether we will have a different championship team for the eighth consecutive season. (The following is the scoring method: the first place vote scores 5 points, the second place vote scores 3 points, and the third place vote scores 1 point.)
The following are the prediction results:
Team counterattack: Which teams will make a huge leap?
tied for first place: Spurs/Hawks: 55 points
Second place: 76ers: 49 points
Third place: Magic: 48 points
Fourth place: Timberwolves: 6 points
Fifth place: Rockets: 5 points
Spurs set a record of 22 consecutive playoffs between the 1997-98 season and the 2018-19 season. After four consecutive years of holding the top ten picks, they may finally be ready to end the six-year playoff drought. The health and growth of the Spurs' youthful talent, especially the two consecutive NBA Rookies of the Year Victor Vinbanyama and Stephen Castle, are crucial to leading this revamped team. Now, the team has another rookie of the year candidate, second-place pick Dylan Harper, and veterans like Luke Cornett and Kelly Olynick.
But don't underestimate the Hawks and the 76ers in the voting. Just five years ago, the Sixers and the Hawks had a fierce confrontation in the Eastern Conference semi-finals, with Trae Young and Joel Embiid scoring 39 points and 37 points respectively in Game 7. The Sixers' prospects depend largely on the health of veteran stars Embiid and Paul George, as well as the continued growth of Terrys Maxi. Meanwhile, the Hawks supported Trae Young by introducing scorers like Porzingis and Luke Kennard, plus a potentially transformative offseason with reliable defender Nikil Alexander Walker.
The young and eager to win also lurks here, hoping to break through the first round of the playoffs for the first time since the 2009-10 season.
The team is in turmoil: Which team will plummet this season?
First place: Bucks: 41 points
Second place: Lakers: 32 points
Tire third place: Celtics/Suns: 28 points
Fourth place: 76ers: 25 points
Fifth place: Pacers: 19 points
The Bucks are at the top of this list because they are at the end of their recognized championship window, and the uncertainty in the future is increasing day by day. Giannis Antetokounmpo remains one of the best players in the world. Still, the talent gap between him and the rest of the roster is still staggering, even after the Bucks made unprecedented moves, after signing Miles Turner in free-market.
To sign Turner, the Bucks cut down guard Damian Lillard and decided to use extended clauses to share the remaining $110 million in their contract's salary over the next five years, sacrificing future flexibility in search of short-term reinforcement - a move seen by rival teams as a desperate bet by the Bucks to catch the tail of Antetokounmpo's peak.
The Bucks' success plan this season will rely heavily on Antetokounmpo. The two-time MVP had previously shouldered a difficult task, but bringing this lineup into the championship ranks without clarifying the second in command may require him to make the most difficult effort. The Bucks started 2-8 last season and then managed to cheer up and make the playoffs, but were out early in the first round. If the Bucks start slowly this season again, will they still have the patience and confidence to rebound?
The next superstar to apply for a deal will be...?
First place: Zion Williamson: 10 votes
Second place: Giannis Antetokounmpo: 7 votes
Third place: LeBron James: 6 votes
Fifth place: Ja Morant: 1 vote
Fifth place: Trae Young: 1 vote
(Note: This scoring standard is 1 point per vote)
Not like the tension between Jimmy Butler and the Heat last season, there seems to be no situation this summer that is destined to cause a star to part ways with the team in the middle of the season
Williamson's time in the Pelicans may have been extended due to changes in the team's management, and Joe Dumas replaced David Griffin as the main decision-maker. If Williamson can play strong early in the season and avoid the injury issues that plagued his career, it's entirely possible that he will seek a new start instead of staying with a Pelicans that seem to be stagnant.
James has been silent since then after executing the $52.6 million player option for the new season. The all-time scoring champion and his team understand how complicated a deal involving him would be considering his age, his high salary, and the deal veto he has.
speculations about Antetokounmpo's request to leave the Bucks have been circulating for several years. If he didn't take that dramatic step in the offseason, it wouldn't be possible in the middle of the season.
Which superstar's injury will have the greatest impact on the East?
First place: Jason Tatum: 20 votes
Second place: Terris Halliburton: 5 votes
Third place: Joel Embiid: 1 vote
(Note: this scoring standard is 1 point per vote)
For the Celtics, Tatum's Achilles tendon injury may have prompted the Celtics to carry out a more radical lineup cleaning and spending cuts, who were already forced to break up the core lineup and cut wages to avoid the second luxury tax line. The Celtics undoubtedly achieved this goal, sending center Porzingis and defender Ju Holiday away. They also lost substitute center Cornett and are likely to part ways with beloved veteran inside Al Horford, who is still a free agent.
Yes, the Celtics still have Jaylen Brown and Derek White on the wing, and new aid Anthony Simmons is undoubtedly a capable scorer. Nevertheless, no team in the league has lost more top skills and talent this offseason than the Celtics. The depth of the team is no longer the championship level, especially in the inside, and it is obvious that the Celtics are looking at next season and will reopen their championship window after Tatum returns to the lineup.
Will we have a different championship for the eighth consecutive season?
Yes: 15 votes
No: 11 votes
(Note: This rating is 1 point per vote)
Earlier this month, I talked about this topic of balance of strength and whether it is a good thing to no longer have a dynasty for an alliance whose history is mostly written by dynasty teams.
Why does voting tend to be that this trend will continue? This is actually understandable. This spring, the Thunder became the seventh consecutive NBA champion, and the Celtics became the sixth consecutive defending champion to fail to break through the division semifinals.
However, this vote may be too dependent on inertial thinking, focusing only on the past, without examining the situation of Thunder. The Thunder is the second youngest team to win the championship in the past 50 years, second only to the Trail Blazers in 1977. All of their players are back in the new season, and there are good reasons to believe they will become stronger in the 2025-26 season. League insiders have said they would choose the Thunder to defend their title and see no credible reasons for opposition.
But this does not guarantee that the Thunder will really defend their title successfully. Last season, the Cavaliers and Celtics were expected to meet in the Eastern Conference Finals, but neither team could get to that point. The Thunder had a life-long hang in the second round against the Nuggets and the Finals against the Pacers. The inevitable intensification of competition in the league, coupled with some questions about the Thunder's endurance, led our expert team to conclude that balance of strength will be the main theme of the new season.
Which team is most likely to have big moves before the trade deadline?
First place: Warriors: 7 votes
Second place: Lakers: 5 votes
Tire third: Cavaliers/Pelicans: 3 votes
Fourth place: 76ers: 2 votes
Fifth place: Grizzlies: 1 vote
(Note: This scoring standard is 1 point per vote)
Warriors are at the top of this list because they have basically hinted throughout the offseason that they hope to take action before the trade deadline. Their two-year, $45 million contract for restricted free agent Jonathan Cumingga is to get him to a salary level that can be traded in January. The Lakers who are transitioning to the Luca Doncic era have retained some first-round picks as bargaining chips that can be used to complete the deal when LeBron James' contract is about to expire. Disappointment and despair may lead to changes in the case of the Knights. If they worry that their high-paying core quartz will not be able to succeed in the playoffs again, they may decide to trade one of them to change the roster.
Author: NBA insiders
Translator: GWayNe
source:tỷ số bóng đá m7