The NBA season is just around the corner, with 25 teams holding their media days on Monday, while the rest did so last week. The preseason has been full of ups and downs: trades, contract stalemates, and injuries were some of the obstacles faced by the league’s teams. Despite the fact that there are 22 days until the start of the regular season, not all of the preseason stories of each team have been resolved. Analyzing the current situation of each NBA team and the upcoming season, our reporters have posed and answered the most important question each team will face at the start of the 2025-26 preseason: How will the Jonathan Kuminga saga affect the Golden State Warriors’ season? How will the LA Clippers handle the league investigation involving Kawhi Leonard? And what are the expectations for the Indiana Pacers this season? These are just some of the most important stories to follow at the start of the season. Here are the most important questions, and their answers, facing the 30 teams during the preseason. The teams are listed in alphabetical order.
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Atlanta Hawks
Are the Hawks and Trae Young ready to compete in the East? With teams like Boston, Indiana, and Milwaukee expected to take a step back due to injuries, Atlanta decided this is the time to strike in the East. The Hawks acquired reinforcements in Kristaps Porzingis, Nickeil Alexander-Walker, and Luke Kennard. These three will help stretch the court and provide Young, the current assists leader, with more weapons. With Jalen Johnson returning from shoulder surgery and hoping to resume his great performance, and Dyson Daniels, Onyeka Okongwu, and Zaccharie Risacher continuing their development and progress, Young could have his most talented roster yet. He will also seek to prove that he is worthy of a four-year, $229 million extension for which he is eligible.Boston Celtics
What is Boston’s goal this season? The Celtics, for most of the last decade, have had a singular focus: to try to hang more championship banners in the TD Garden stands. But this season, Boston is charting a different course with Jayson Tatum’s Achilles tendon rupture and the transfers of Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis in cost-saving moves this summer. But, what exactly is that course? Will the Celtics try to compete for a playoff spot behind Jaylen Brown and Derrick White, or will this be an attempted “gap year”?Brooklyn Nets
Will there be enough space and opportunity on offense for Cam Thomas and Michael Porter Jr.? Thomas arrives after a season full of nagging hamstring injuries. This limited him to 25 games and a subsequent disappointing run through restricted free agency, resulting in him taking a $6 million qualifying offer. Porter was acquired from Denver for Cameron Johnson in early July, after being a third wheel in that offense. Both are aggressive offensive players who enjoy freedom, and Porter has never shot more than 13.6 shots per game. Watching the balance between the two will be interesting as the Nets search for an identity.Charlotte Hornets
Can LaMelo Ball be the star the Hornets desperately need? It has been three difficult seasons for Ball, who has only played 105 games in his career due to injuries. Ball’s talent cannot be denied when he is healthy, as he averaged 25.2 points, 7.4 assists, and 4.9 rebounds in 47 games last season. But Ball not only has to prove that he can stay on the court, but also that he can be the leader that Charlotte needs him to be. Can he improve his shooting efficiency and his defense? Brandon Miller’s second season was limited to 27 games due to an injury. While Charlotte is on its way to another rebuilding season, second-year coach Charles Lee will want to see what his two young stars can do together for a full season alongside Miles Bridges and the number 4 pick, Kon Knueppel.Chicago Bulls
Will any of the young players on the team take the next step? After moving on from the DeMar DeRozan-Zach LaVine era, the Bulls have transformed their roster into a collection of young players who believe they still have potential, including Josh Giddey (22), Coby White (24), Matas Buzelis (20), and Noa Essengue (18). But for a team that has made the playoffs once in the last eight seasons, including three consecutive losses in the play-in tournament, they will need a player to blossom into a star or the team will remain stuck in play-in purgatory.Cleveland Cavaliers
Can the Cavs overcome their playoff obstacle? One of the most successful seasons in franchise history was followed by one of its most disappointing playoff defeats, and the 2025-26 Cavs will be judged by how they recover from that. Their acclaimed four-player core, Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley, Darius Garland, and Jarrett Allen, returns with most of the team that led the East with 64 wins. Injuries certainly played a role in their playoff defeat, but after being outmatched by the Indiana Pacers during their playoff series, the Cavs knew they were going to need some adjustments in both their playing style and their mentality. The Cavs are one of the teams in the East that have the most pressure to do so, or questions about the future of their roster could start to get louder.Dallas Mavericks
When does Kyrie Irving return, and how soon can he get back to his form? Irving gave Mavericks fans a glimmer of hope in September when he told TMZ that his rehabilitation from a torn ACL is going “incredibly well.” Therefore, there is optimism for a possible return of Irving as early as January. Meanwhile, Dallas needs to find a way to position themselves for ideal conditions upon his return. To do that, Anthony Davis, returning from offseason eye surgery, needs to carry the Mavericks on both ends of the court. The development of the number 1 pick, Cooper Flagg, will also be key, as coach Jason Kidd plans to put the ball in the rookie’s hands often.Denver Nuggets
Will the Nuggets’ depth and defense be enough? Nikola Jokic is in his prime, and the Nuggets can’t afford to waste him. The new additions of Jonas Valanciunas, Tim Hardaway Jr., and Bruce Brown will boost the Nuggets’ once-scarce bench depth. But despite all of Jokic’s brilliance, Denver’s defense conceded 115.1 points per 100 possessions last season, ranking 21st. If the Nuggets don’t improve on that end, then any hope of a deep postseason run will be frustrated.Detroit Pistons
Where does Jaden Ivey fit into this new equation? Ivey was having a career season, shooting 45% from 3-point range off catch-and-shoot before fracturing his left fibula on New Year’s Day. The Pistons, 14-18 at the time, took off after Ausar Thompson emerged in the starting lineup in Ivey’s absence. Thompson’s defense unlocks things in that first unit, while Ivey’s scoring and speed complement Cade Cunningham’s style, raising the question of whether Ivey will start the season back in the starting lineup or as a sixth-man type. It’s also noteworthy that Ivey and Jalen Duren are awaiting rookie scale extensions.Golden State Warriors
Can they prevent Jonathan Kuminga’s contract drama from affecting the season? The resolution on Kuminga’s front will very likely determine both Kuminga’s participation early in the season and his tradeability at the deadline. There’s a reason why it has held the Warriors’ summer captive and generated so many headlines. If the two sides reach a reasonable compromise, there’s a world in which the awkwardness quickly diminishes. Kuminga is a useful wing in rotation and is used or moved as a player to reinforce an older rotation that needs reinforcements. But, if it’s the qualifying offer or if he’s unhappy and on his way to unrestricted free agency in 2026, that could be a big blow to the rotation, flexibility, and team environment.Houston Rockets
Are the Rockets still contenders in the West after the possible season-ending injury to Fred VanVleet? Yes. They have Kevin Durant, a lot of hungry young talent, and solid coaching. ESPN’s Bobby Marks explained that, absent a trade, Houston cannot fill their only roster spot with a free agent, as they are $1.25 million below the first apron. Therefore, attention turns to potential replacements on the current roster, such as Reed Sheppard, an improved shooter and defender, veteran undersized Aaron Holiday, and two-way phenom Amen Thompson, who will likely get the first opportunity to replace VanVleet. Thompson is poised to make a leap this season after dedicating most of the offseason to improving as a playmaker and ball handler.Indiana Pacers
What should be expected of the Pacers this season? The defeat of Indiana in Game 7 in the NBA Finals was not only crushing due to the missed opportunity for a championship, but because Tyrese Haliburton’s Achilles tendon rupture was a major setback for the 2025-26 Pacers. The team also lost center Myles Turner in free agency. It prepares the current conference champions to enter a season without expectations. The Pacers have four centers on the roster to test Turner’s replacement. They will allow Andrew Nembhard to handle the ball more as a point guard in Haliburton’s absence. For the outside world, it’s a sabbatical year for a team that misses its best player, but for a team that still has talent and that enjoyed defying expectations last season, the Pacers might have different ideas about how good they can be this season.LA Clippers
How will the Clippers handle another NBA investigation involving Kawhi Leonard? The NBA’s latest and most prominent investigation into the team and whether it circumvented the salary cap, one of the league’s cardinal sins, will cast a shadow over their season. And if new revelations surface before the investigation is complete, it could become even more uncomfortable. Overall, the NBA investigation could serve as a distraction, or the team could compartmentalize it and await the results, whatever they may be. But, this is also a team built around players in the winter of their careers, including 40-year-old Chris Paul, 37-year-old Brook Lopez, and 36-year-old James Harden, and given their history of injuries and overall mileage, even 34-year-old Leonard. A possible rebuild looms in the near future, meaning the team cannot afford to waste what may well be their last chance to achieve significant success from the Leonard era.Los Angeles Lakers
Will this be LeBron James’ last season with the Lakers? The Lakers had a 15-8 record with James and Luka Doncic on the court together to close out the regular season. While their timely combination secured L.A. the number 3 seed in the end, James and Doncic were eliminated by Minnesota in five games during the first round. With the West projecting even stronger conference competition than last season, will the Lakers’ world-class duo and supporting cast be able to keep L.A. near the top of the standings in what could be one of James’ last laps? And if they aren’t winning, will James be content to finish the season in L.A.?Memphis Grizzlies
Is Memphis’s abrupt decision to readjust positioning the Grizzlies better for long-term success?
General manager Zach Kleiman deserves some credit for taking a hard look at the roster and determining that it simply wasn’t strong enough to consistently compete in the West. That led to the firing of coach Taylor Jenkins and the elevation of assistant Tuomas Iisalo. They also traded Desmond Bane to Orlando for a good package of picks that helped the Grizzlies move up to get Cedric Coward. At the same time, Kleiman and the Grizzlies didn’t drastically impact the club’s ability to compete now, as they continued to build on the margins around Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr. with the additions of Ty Jerome and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope.
