Ty's 2025-2026 NBA Season Preview: Nets, Jazz, Hornets
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Starting today I will be doing my 2025-26 preseason NBA countdown. I'm going to go through all 30 teams, ranking them from 30 to 1. This is all my opinion. I'm going to do three teams a day and tell you all why I have them where I have them. After that I will do postseason and awards predictions. Enough preamble, let's get to it.
Coming in at number 30 I have the Brooklyn Nets. The Nets are clearly trying whatever they can to tank. They want to get high picks and take as many shots as they can at drafting their next superstar. They traded away Cam Johnson for Michael Porter Jr. I think this says way more about Porter Jr than Cam Thomas. He is going to get every single shot he wants, but he is going to be less focused on defense than he ever was before, and he was never really a defensive guy. He has been going on a social media odyssey as of late, and this has made me believe he is truly nuts. I feel like the Nets were willing to take him on in a deal because they truly believe he cannot be the number one option on a good team. Cam Thomas is back on a one year prove it deal to the 29 other teams, but much like Porter Jr, he could care less about the defensive side of the floor. He and Porter Jr will score a good amount of points, but they will give up more on defense. Nic Claxton has some tools, especially to be a pick and roll threat, but he will not get nearly enough touches here. I bet he is a prime trade candidate. Drew Timme was only decent in college. Ziaire Williams, a former lottery pick, barely sees the floor. Terrance Mann has become a well traveled vet that never seems to stick anywhere. Kobe Bufkin should get a chance to prove he belongs. And they drafted 5 rookies that have similar abilities. Egor Demin is a shooter and a shooter alone. Good luck getting the ball on this team. Danny Wolf is a modern big who can handle the ball, but his shot comes and goes and he is a turnover machine. And I know next to nothing about Nolan Traore, Drake Powell and Ben Saraf. Who knows how much time they will see on an NBA court this year. But, let's not get it twisted, the Nets aren't trying to win many games this year. I get vibes of "The Process" 76ers with this roster construction. They'll be lucky to win 20 games this year.
At number 29 I have the Utah Jazz. They have done a good job offloading some vets to get picks, and they even got the third overall pick in the most recent draft. Ace Bailey has about a billion questions about his game and his willingness to get better, but the dude can get buckets. He won't play much defense, but he will get up shots left and right. I'm kind of fascinated to see how he plays in his rookie year. Lauri Markanen, who I have been tough on in the past, deserves better than this. He has carved out a solid career and has gotten better every season he has been in the league. He finds new things to add to his game every season, and I like seeing that improvement. I just hope he doesn't have to toli away in the obscurity of the Utah Jazz. I would like to see him on a team with title contention dreams. Kevin Love is still on this roster, and that blows my mind. He should be with Minnesota or Cleveland playing out the twilight of his career as a deep bench guy. Seeing him in a Jazz jersey is going to be weird. Kyle Filipowski doesn't seem to have anything that stands out to me. Jusuf Nurkic has fallen off a cliff. Keyonte George can maybe do some things with more playing time. Isaiah Collier's game feels way better for college than the NBA. Cody Williams might already be a bust, which bums me out. I don't get why the Jazz went out and traded for Georges Niang and Kyle Anderson. Those two would be much better off as vets on a playoff team. Mo Bamba keeps moving teams. And Oscar Tshiebwe has not figured out the NBA game yet. The Jazz have a good coach and some young players they need to see make some leaps. But to keep Markanen and guys like Niang and Anderson is pointless. This team wants another shot at the number 1 pick, and these guys want a shot at a ring. The Jazz are going to be a lottery team once again, and I will be waiting to see how long it takes for them to move on from some bigger, better names they have on their roster.
The final team for the day, at number 28 I have the Charlotte Hornets. Look, LaMelo Ball is a delight to watch play offensive basketball, and he is the best of the Ball brothers, but he simply cannot stay on the floor. He always seems to be injured. He misses big portions of every season lately. He might just be the player he is always going to be at this point, and that is a flashy, low calorie stats guy. Collin Sexton looked better at times in Utah, and I'd like to see him continue to get better. I've always liked his game, and I think playing in a small market like Charlotte will do him a world of good. I despised their two first round picks. I have zero faith in Kon Knueppel doing anything of importance in the NBA. He is like an off brand, wannabe Tyler Hansborough, and we all know how the NBA turned out for Hansborough. Liam McNeely is better skilled, but he is skinny as a rail, and he got pushed around in the Big East last season. I cannot fathom him being able to stop Giannis or Wemby or any big of note. Brandon Miller has skills. He looks to be the best player on the roster. I'm at the point where I think they should start building around him. He is the guy that is going to make the Hornets relevant. Miles Bridges is an abuser and I don't like him. Spencer Dinwiddie is washed. Moussa Diabate will play harder than anyone on the floor when he is out there. Pat Connaughton and Mason Plumlee should retire. Grant Williams turned one good season into a massive contract, but he is an afterthought now. Tidjane Salaun is raw, but humongous and l bet he has some hidden skills we don't know about just yet. The Hornets don't seem to have any compass. I don't know what they're trying to achieve. And that is going to end up giving this team low 20 wins this season. The Hornets are kind of a mess at this time.
That's it for today. Come back tomorrow for the next three teams.
Ty
Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing, the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast, and the greatest basketball writer on the internet.