Last time out, we provided evaluations of the Eastern Conference teams. Today, we’ll be grading the off-seasons for the Western Conference’s squads.

Dallas Mavericks

Key additions: D’Angelo Russell, Cooper Flagg (R)

Retaining: Dante Exum, Kyrie Irving

Key departures: Spencer Dinwiddie

Grade: A+

Cooper Flagg is a generational prospect who will emerge as one of the NBA’s best players in just a few years. Though the team is preparing to go into the 2025-26 season without the services of Kyrie Irving, the addition of D’Angelo Russell will help minimize his absence. If Kyrie can come back early, then the Mavs will have one of the league’s best backup point guards. Dallas should be competing for a playoff spot next season.

Denver Nuggets

Key additions: Bruce Brown, Cam Johnson, Tim Hardaway Jr., Jonas Valančiūnas

Retaining: HC David Adelman

Key departures: Michael Porter Jr., Dario Šarić, HC Michael Malone

Grade: A-

Considering David Adelman had only coached three NBA games before leading the Nuggets to a 7-7 playoff record, Denver made the right decision to retain him. Meanwhile, Valančiūnas is an improvement over Šarić, while Cam Johnson’s stats are fairly similar to Michael Porter Jr.’s. Also, bringing back Bruce Brown, who was a key contributor on Denver’s championship team, will be great for locker room chemistry.

Golden State Warriors

Key additions: Alex Toohey (R), Will Richard (R)

Retaining: N/A

Key departures: Kevon Looney

Grade: C-

There isn’t much to say here for Golden State. They didn’t add anybody, but they also only lost Kevon Looney, whose minutes and production have fallen in each of the last three seasons. Moving on from Jonathan Kuminga could drastically change the complexion of this team, but until that happens, Golden State will continue to be a force in the West.

Houston Rockets

Key additions: Clint Capela, Kevin Durant, Dorian Finney-Smith

Retaining: Steven Adams, Aaron Holiday, Jeff Green, Jabari Smith Jr., Jae’Sean Tate, Fred VanVleet, HC Ime Udoka

Key departures: Dillon Brooks, Jalen Green, Jock Landale, Cam Whitmore

Grade: A+

The acquisition of Kevin Durant was easily the biggest move of the summer, and the Rockets were able to hold on to Jabari Smith Jr., Amen Thompson, and Alperen Şengün. That is an absolutely massive win for this franchise. They’re also bringing back numerous important rotational players like Steven Adams, Jeff Green, and Fred VanVleet, who helped this team finish with the second-best record in the West last season. To top it all off, they added Clint Capela and Dorian Finney-Smith to provide the frontcourt with extra support. The Rockets have had the best off-season of any team in the NBA.

Los Angeles Clippers

Key additions: Brook Lopez, John Collins, Yanic Konan Niederhauser (R), Kobe Sanders (R)

Retaining: Nic Batum, James Harden

Key departures: Drew Eubanks, Norman Powell

Grade: B

If frontcourt depth was a problem before, it certainly won’t be next season. Brook Lopez is an ideal backup to Ivica Zubac. He can still play effectively in short bursts and can provide a lot of valuable scoring off the bench. He’ll also be a great mentor to rookie center Yanic Konan Niederhauser. Retaining Nic Batum and adding John Collins provides the Clips with extra bodies in case Kawhi Leonard deals with injuries. And of course, re-signing James Harden was a no-brainer. They didn’t make the splashiest moves, but everything the Clippers did was really solid and positions them to be a top team in the West.

Los Angeles Lakers

Key additions: Deandre Ayton, Jake LaRavia, Adou Thiero (R)

Retaining: Jaxson Hayes

Key departures: Dorian Finney-Smith

Grade: D+

I am actually a fan of the Deandre Ayton signing. He averages a double-double over his seven-year career, filling the center need that the Lakers have had for a few years. They also seemingly found Dorian Finney-Smith’s successor by drafting Adou Thiero. Unfortunately, this has been an underwhelming off-season for one of the most respected franchises in basketball history. There were talks about trading for Giannis Antetokounmpo or making a push for someone like Myles Turner. Instead, they ended up with Ayton and Jake LaRavia, which is a clear failure by comparison.

Memphis Grizzlies

Key additions: Cole Anthony, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Ty Jerome, Jake Lockland, Cedric Coward (R), Javon Small (R), Jahmai Mashack (R)

Retaining: Santi Aldama, Jaren Jackson Jr., Cam Spencer, HC Tuomas Iisalo

Key departures: Desmond Bane, Luke Kennard, Jay Huff, HC Taylor Jenkins

Grade: B-

This has been a weird off-season for the Grizzlies. Despite being one of the most active teams in free agency and retaining several key members of the organization, the Grizzlies don’t feel like they’re any better than they were last season or any closer to winning a championship. Cole Anthony, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, and Ty Jerome will all be important contributors to the offense, while Santi Aldama and Jaren Jackson Jr. will continue to anchor the defense. As a slightly older rookie, I think Cedric Coward can be a difference-maker on this team. Again, though, it doesn’t feel like Memphis is better today than it was when its season ended.

Minnesota Timberwolves

Key additions: Joan Beringer (R), Rocco Zikarsky (R)

Retaining: Joe Ingles, Julius Randle, Naz Reid

Key departures: Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Luka Garza, Josh Minott

Grade: B

Minnesota just needed to ensure that it kept its core together while keeping its finances in order, and that’s exactly what it did. The core of Reid, Randle, Rudy Gobert, and Anthony Edwards is under contract until 2028-29, when Randle and Gobert’s deals are set to expire. They’ll likely miss Nickeil Alexander-Walker, who had the second-highest regular season defensive rating amongst Timberwolves players averaging at least 20 minutes per game, but they had to part ways with him to keep Reid and Randle, so the payoff will be worth the sacrifice. Also, I love Joan Beringer getting a chance to sit on the bench and learn from a pair of great centers. He’ll eventually be Rudy Gobert’s replacement.

New Orleans Pelicans

Key additions: Saddiq Bey, Kevon Looney, Jordan Poole, Jeremiah Fears (R), Derik Queen (R), Micah Peavy (R), President Joe Dumars

Retaining: N/A

Key departures: Bruce Brown, CJ McCollum, Kelly Olynyk

Grade: C

The Pelicans made a lot of meaningful additions. Jordan Poole, Kevon Looney, Jeremiah Fears, and Derik Queen can all come in and almost immediately make this team better. Unfortunately, most of the good work accomplished by new team president Joe Dumars was undone on draft night, when the Pelicans agreed to trade away their 2026 first-round selection (the highest-value pick held by either the Milwaukee Bucks or the Pelicans) to move up in the draft. That could end up being a top-three draft pick next year! And they parted ways with it to take a center with the 13th overall pick? As good as some of their moves have been, that one was incredibly stupid and shortsighted.

Oklahoma City Thunder

Key additions: Thomas Sorber (R), Brooks Barnhizer (R)

Retaining: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Chet Holmgren, Ajay Mitchell, Jaylin Williams

Key departures: Dillon Jones

Grade: A-

With the Larry O’Brien Trophy already in their possession, the Thunder didn’t have to do much this off-season. The only valuable asset they lost was Dillon Jones, and OKC chose to get rid of him in a trade with the Washington Wizards. The Thunder will manage to live without the 2.5 points per game he provided in the playoffs. They locked down Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Chet Holmgren for the next five years while also retaining their glue guy, Jaylin Williams. They just needed to add more frontcourt depth, which they did by drafting Thomas Sorber.

Phoenix Suns

Key additions: Dillon Brooks, Jalen Green, Nigel Hayes-Davis, Mark Williams, Khaman Maluach (R), Rasheer Fleming (R), Koby Brea (R), HC Jordan Ott

Retaining: Collin Gillespie, Devin Booker

Key departures: Kevin Durant, Tyus Jones, Cody Martin, Vasilije Micić, Mason Plumlee, HC Mike Budenholzer

Grade: B+

They needed to move on from Kevin Durant and that failed experiment. The fact that they were able to land Dillon Brooks, Jalen Green, and Khaman Maluach in the process is just an added bonus. I also love them taking a gamble on a young, up-and-coming assistant like Jordan Ott rather than hiring another recycled old coach off the street. Their frontcourt should be much better with Mark Williams and Maluach, who I have high hopes for. Phoenix will probably struggle to make the playoffs, but it’s not out of the realm of possibility that they can get in. Even if they miss out on the postseason, they’ll be in the exact same position as they are now, only next time, they have much more salary cap space. And they can bank on Devin Booker being there long-term.

Portland Trail Blazers

Key additions: Jrue Holiday, Yang Hansen (R)

Retaining: N/A

Key departures: Anfernee Simons, Deandre Ayton

Grade: C-

This has not been a good off-season for the Blazers. They traded away a young, almost 20-point-per-game scorer for an aging point guard who doesn’t even want to be in Portland. Then, they let Deandre Ayton walk in free agency, only to turn around and use their lone draft pick on yet another center despite having taken Donovan Clingan with the seventh overall pick in last year’s draft. The only reason the Trail Blazers don’t have a lower grade is because I am actually buying into the Yang Hansen hype. If he really turns out to be the “Chinese Jokić,” then the pick will look brilliant, and this off-season will be a winner. It’ll probably take some time before we can make that determination, though.

Sacramento Kings

Key additions: Dennis Schröder, Dario Šarić, Nique Clifford (R), Maxime Raynaud (R)

Retaining: HC Doug Christie

Key departures: Jake LaRavia, Jonas Valančiūnas, HC Mike Brown

Grade: C+

None of the things the Kings did this off-season really moved the needle. At the same time, we can’t say that the Kings have gotten worse. They need consistency in terms of leadership now that they’re on their fourth head coach since the start of the 2021-22 season, so it makes sense that they retained Doug Christie. Meanwhile, Dennis Schröder can still be a double-digit nightly scorer (even if Sacramento is overpaying him). I also think Maxime Raynaud could be a steal after he was taken in the second round of the draft.

San Antonio Spurs

Key additions: Luke Kornet, Kelly Olynyk, Dylan Harper (R), Carter Bryant (R)

Retaining: HC Mitch Johnson

Key departures: Sandro Mamukelashvili, Malaki Branham, Blake Wesley

Grade: B+

It cost almost nothing to acquire Kelly Olynyk, who can come in and provide a little spark off the bench while giving Victor Wembanyama some rest. Meanwhile, Dylan Harper walks into an absolutely amazing situation where he has the potential to become an All-Star while playing alongside Wemby and reigning Rookie of the Year Stephon Castle. They’ll obviously miss Gregg Popovich behind the bench, but he’ll still be able to help out as the team’s president of basketball operations. The dark times in San Antonio are over. They should be a playoff team within the next year or two.

Utah Jazz

Key additions: Jusuf Nurkić, Kyle Anderson, Kevin Love, Ace Bailey (R), Walter Clayton Jr. (R), John Tonje (R)

Retaining: N/A

Key departures: Johnny Juzang, Collin Sexton, Jordan Clarkson, John Collins

Grade: B-

The Jazz lost several key contributors from last year’s team. Then again, Utah finished had the league’s worst regular season record, so it didn’t make much sense to keep those guys around to continue to perpetuate a losing culture. Kevin Love and Kyle Anderson will be bringing in some much-needed wisdom to the sixth-youngest team in the league last season. Most importantly, I am excited to see what Ace Bailey and Walter Clayton Jr. can do for the Jazz. I think both of those guys have the potential to be stars in this league, especially Bailey, who is undeniably talented.

Author’s note: (R) indicates a rookie who was just selected during the 2025 NBA Draft