The final buzzer has sounded on the NBA's regular season, and the playoff picture is set. Now, it's time for the ultimate report card. We're combining definitive power rankings with final grades to assess how all 30 teams performed against their preseason expectations. Who finished on top, and which squads earned the highest marks for their campaign?
Our power rankings are based on one simple question: which team is best positioned to win the championship right now? For playoff-bound teams, it's about title odds. For those in the lottery, it's a measure of just how far they are from contention.
Take the Los Angeles Lakers, for example. Despite losing stars Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves to injury late in the season, their ceiling with a healthy roster keeps them in the conversation. Meanwhile, the Houston Rockets might have a clearer path out of the first round, but the Lakers' championship pedigree gives them a slight edge in our title calculus.
The grades, however, tell a different story. We're evaluating every franchise on a curve against its own objectives. Did a contender meet its win projections? Did a rebuilding team successfully develop its young core? You'll see that success and failure come in many forms.
Let's dive into the rankings and report cards, starting at the bottom of the standings.
The Washington Wizards entered the season with low expectations and, in a way, exceeded them by securing the league's worst record with room to spare. The low point? Allowing Bam Adebayo to drop 83 points in a single game. Yet, there are bright spots. Rookie Alex Sarr looks like a future star, and young pieces like Tre Johnson and Bilal Coulibaly show promise. Their curious trades for Trae Young and Anthony Davis—who played a combined five games—seem strategically geared toward the future. For executing a clear, if painful, rebuild, they earn a solid B.
Over in Indiana, the Pacers executed a deliberate plan in a season without Tyrese Haliburton. Their mission was to position themselves for a top draft pick, and they succeeded. Their most frequent lineup of Pascal Siakam, Andrew Nembhard, Aaron Nesmith, Jarace Walker, and Johnny Furphy logged a mere 47 minutes together across six games, signaling a season focused on development and lottery odds over immediate wins.