NBA power rankings 2024-25: A Christmas wish for every team, with Oklahoma City still No. 1

Wherever and however you celebrate this time of year, I hope you get to do it with the people who make you feel warm and comfortable. Happy holidays!

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1. Oklahoma City Thunder (23-5, Last Week No. 1). Christmas wish for the Thunder: The respect they deserve. Playing on Christmas Day is the NBA’s ultimate sign of respect — the league’s biggest stars and best teams are paired to show off the best the NBA has to offer on a day a lot of fans think of as the unofficial start of the NBA season. Oklahoma City has the day off. That despite being the top seed in the West last season with a legitimate MVP candidate in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. If the Thunder want that respect, they will have to earn it with wins in May and June, the kind of win they failed to get in the NBA Cup championship game (although, outside that one-off bad shooting night, OKC has won eight in a row).

2. Cleveland Cavaliers (26-4, LW 3). Christmas wish for the Cavaliers: A shot at Boston come May. The Cavaliers started the season 15-0, have currently won 9-of-10 (including beating the Celtics, Nuggets and Bucks), have the best offense in the NBA and a top-10 defense. Yet, the doubters of this team around the league are legion. The only way to dispel those doubts is to beat — or, at least have a very strong showing against — the defending champion Celtics come May. Like the only team above them on this list, the Cavaliers are home on Christmas Day, and the level of respect they want has to be earned in the postseason. Hopefully, they get that shot.

3. Boston Celtics (22-7, LW 2). Christmas wish for the Celtics: Championship banner No. 19. That’s the only thing that ultimately matters. Peyton Pritchard winning Sixth Man of The Year would be fun (and seems plausible), and Jayson Tatum getting more MVP votes would be deserving, but at the end of the day, it’s a ring or nothing for this roster. The Celtics suit up on Christmas Day against a 76ers team starting to get healthy and find their stride, Boston should still win but it can’t just look past Philly anymore.

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4. New York Knicks (19-10, LW 6). Christmas wish for the Knicks: Enough defense to make a deep playoff run. To repeat something from this space a few weeks back (via Steve Jones on X), this year’s Knicks are last year’s Pacers, a high-powered offense and very fun team that doesn’t defend well enough to be a real postseason threat (at least to Boston). There are good perimeter defenders on this roster — OG Anunoby, Mikal Bridges, Josh Hart — but they may need a healthy Mitchell Robinson to make it all work. The Knicks host the Spurs and Victor Wembanyama on Christmas, this should be the best game of the day, with Karl-Anthony Towns pulling Victor Wembanyama out of the paint (ideally).

5. Dallas Mavericks (19-10, LW 4). Christmas wish for the Mavericks: A return to the NBA Finals. Dallas is playing well enough to get back, having won 10-of-12, with a top-10 offense and an 11th-ranked defense for the season (which has been a little worse the last few weeks and needs to be tightened up). While the Mavericks are playing well enough to get back the road to that destination will be harder this season. Dallas will suit up on Christmas Day in a Western Conference Finals rematch against a stumbling Timberwolves team.

6. Memphis Grizzlies (20-10, LW 5). Christmas wish for the Grizzlies: The chance to see Ja Morant do his thing deep in the playoffs. Morant and this Grizzlies core has been to the playoffs three times in his six seasons and gotten out of the first round just once — that seems like the baseline this season, and they are playing well enough to do it. This is a team with a top-six offense and defense, but can rookie Zach Edey be the guy they need in the paint in the playoffs? And can Ja Morant make plays like this in the postseason?

7. Milwaukee Bucks (16-12, LW 8). Christmas wish for Bucks: That NBA Cup momentum carries through to the playoffs. The Bucks got a nice bump in their paychecks for winning the NBA Cup, but nothing from that championship game carries over to the regular season — not the points, the rebounds, or the win. However, it could have been the confidence boost Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Bucks need. When playing well, this team looks like its top four in the East, at worst.

PLAYOFFS OR BUST

8. Houston Rockets (20-9, LW 10). Christmas wish for the Rockets: The chance to see what this core can do in the playoffs. This wish looks like it will come true, the Rockets are currently the No. 2 seed in the West and not only likely make the playoffs but will be home for the first round. Also, Rafael Stone and the Houston front office does not plan to jump into the Jimmy Butler sweepstakes or make a big move during the season. Houston is playing this smart, see what this promising young group can do, then adjust.

9. Denver Nuggets (16-11, LW 9). Christmas wish for the Nuggets: Some help around Nikola Jokic. To prove the point: Denver came from behind to force OT and eventually beat New Orleans, and the headline out of that was Nikola Jokic’s triple-double to spark the win. What also happened: Coach Michael Malone pulled Michael Porter Jr. in the third quarter when the team was down 86-72 and he never saw the court in the fourth quarter or overtime. Jokic has been brilliant, and the latest example: Jokic leads the NBA in 3-point percentage at 51.4%, if he can keep this up he will be the first center in NBA history to lead the league in that category.

10. Miami Heat (14-13, LW 11). Christmas wish for the Heat: The Jimmy Butler trade drama to go away. One way or another, it will. Eventually. The less likely (but not impossible) option is that Butler gets traded to Phoenix or Golden State, the problem is constructing those trades in-season while dealing with the luxury tax aprons — Miami cannot take $1 more back in a trade than it sends out — is exceedingly difficult. The smart money is on Butler being with the Heat past the Feb. 6 deadline, but one way or another, the Heat need to move on because this is a team finding its stride and always finds a way to step up during the playoffs.

11. Golden State Warriors (15-13, LW 12). Christmas wish for the Warriors: Get Stephen Curry some consistent help on offense. Golden State already made one such move by trading for Dennis Schroder, but he is clearly still adjusting to his new team and system, averaging 7.7 points a night on 38.9% shooting through three games. That will improve, but ultimately the Warriors need to make a bolder move (Jimmy Butler may want to come but that 4-for-1 trade construction with Andrew Wiggins and Jonathan Kuminga part of the crew going out is hard to make work). Stephen Curry vs. LeBron James on Christmas is a perfect form of holiday nostalgia for fans.

12. Los Angeles Clippers (17-13, LW 16). Christmas wish for the Clippers: Kawhi Leonard returns and looks like his vintage self. Tyronn Lue deserves a lot of credit for getting the most out of this roster and creating an elite defense with enough offense most nights to win games (shout out to Norman Powell!!). Put the All-NBA level Kawhi Leonard from a season ago on this team and suddenly they aren’t just good but become a team nobody wants to face in the playoffs. Put that team in the amazing new Intuit Dome — playing in front of “The Wall” — and you have a great playoff atmosphere.

13. Orlando Magic (19-12, LW 13). Christmas wish for the Magic: A little bit of health luck. We should be talking about this team with Houston as such great breakout stories this season, instead we’re talking about how the Magic can keep their season afloat with Paolo Banchero, Franz Wagner and his brother Mo Wagner all out with injuries. Banchero and Wagner should return from their torn obliques before the playoffs, and when that happens, this team becomes the one nobody at the top of the East wants to see in the first round.

14. Minnesota Timberwolves (14-14, LW 7). Christmas wish for the Timberwolves: Some good vibes. It’s no secret this team is struggling on offense — Julius Randle and Anthony Edwards both wanting to play in isolation is just not a fit — but what becomes hard watching them is the vibes. Basketball should be fun and it doesn’t feel like it when these Timberwolves play. That could show up on Christmas Day when Minnesota steps into a Western Conference Finals rematch against Dallas, a team that is clearly enjoying itself this season.

15. Atlanta Hawks (15-15, LW 17). Christmas wish for the Hawks: More Jalen Johnson and Dyson Daniels. It would be easy to wish for more 3-pointers for Atlanta — but let’s live in reality. What is fun about this team is they have some quality young talent to go around Trae Young, and he is happily playing more of a facilitator role. It’s just fun to watch Johnson and Daniels play on both ends of the court and we need more of it.

16. Los Angeles Lakers (16-13, LW 18). Christmas wish for Lakers: Consistency. The easy thing to wish for here would be help for LeBron James as he turns 40 this week — and the Lakers need to do that. Most likely, we’ll see a trade before the deadline for a big man to go with Anthony Davis or some defensive/shot-creation help on the wing. What that would ideally bring is some consistency to a team that can look like a playoff threat some nights and like a team that should miss the play in others. Which is about the roster, not J.J. Redick as coach. One thing that has been more consistent of late has been the Lakers’ defense, which is third in the NBA in the last five games.

PLAY IN HOPEFULS

17. Indiana Pacers (15-15, LW 21). Christmas wish for the Pacers: To keep this offensive groove. We could wish Indiana finds some defense under the Christmas tree, but we should live in reality, and this roster is not going to defend. However, the Pacers have won five in a row, and in that stretch their offense has looked closer to the powerhouse of last season that reached the Western Conference Finals. That team was fun to watch led by Tyrese Haliburton playing like an All-NBA guy, we need more of those Pacers and have gotten it lately. Let’s hope it continues.

18. San Antonio Spurs (15-14, LW 19). Christmas wish for the Spurs: A healthy return of Gregg Popovich whenever he is ready. That is at the top of the list and far more important than anything else. Secondary wish for the Spurs: The right system — and players to fit that system — to go around Victor Wembanyama. The first 1.3 seasons with Wembanyama have felt an experiment to see what works and what doesn’t in San Antonio. Devin Vassell is a fit, and Stephon Castle looks like he may be a draft steal, but who are the long-term answers around Wemby, and what system best suits them? Even with all these questions, the Spurs could well be a play-in team this season.

19. Phoenix Suns (14-14, LW 15). Christmas wish for the Suns: More games with Kevin Durant and Devin Booker healthy. It’s this simple, the Suns are 13-3 in games both of them play, 1-11 in every other game. Those two Olympians are two of the most pure hoopers in the league, and the league is just better when we get to see them play — which we will not on Christmas Day with Booker out due to a groin injury.

20. Sacramento Kings (13-17, LW 14). Christmas wish for the Kings: Something for their fans to cheer for. The excitement and joy in Sacramento a couple of years ago when this team broke its record playoff drought was one of the great stories in the league. Since then, well, last Sunday Kings fans were booing their team after a 27-point blowout loss to the Pacers, the Kings’ fourth straight loss at home. Look for this team to make a move at the deadline, but with a core of De’Aaron Fox, Domantas Sabonis and DeMar DeRozan, are these Kings what they are? That said, they are better than this record and should finish higher up in the West.

21. Philadelphia 76ers (10-17, LW 22). Christmas wish for the 76ers: Joel Embiid stays healthy. In the limited minutes that Joel Embiid, Paul George and Tyrese Maxey have played this season — 81 minutes across five games — the Sixers have a +11.3 net rating with a stifling defense. Because they are in the East, there is plenty of time to right this ship — they are just 1.5 games out of the play-in and 4 games out of a top-six seed despite this horrid start — but it has to start with Embiid and others just staying healthy.

22. Chicago Bulls (13-17, LW 20). Christmas wish for the Bulls: Lonzo Ball staying healthy and on the court. It’s one of the great stories of the season just to see him back. A secondary Christmas wish for Chicago: A new home for Zach LaVine and Nicola Vucevic. The Bulls want to move on from their last era and start a rebuild, but to do that they need to trade LaVine (Denver is interested) and Vucevic (multiple teams are looking for a center). Those trades of players with healthy contracts may be tough to pull off in the luxury tax apron era, but let’s hope the Bulls can make it work and find a new direction.

23. Detroit Pistons (13-17, LW 23). Christmas wish for the Pistons: Some ball handling help to go next to Cade Cunningham. In his fourth season, Cunningham has played like an All-Star — 23.9 points, 9.7 assists, and 7 rebounds a game — and his troubling 4.5 turnovers a game are in part due to how defenses can focus on him because they don’t fear another shot creator on the roster. Detroit needs to get that man some help for whatever they are building next.

CAPTURE THE (COOPER) FLAGG

24. Brooklyn Nets (11-18, LW 24). Christmas wish for the Nets: New homes for Bojan Bogdanovic, Dorian Finney-Smith, Cameron Johnson, Nic Claxton and any other Brooklyn players who want out. This is a rebuilding team, and the trade of Dennis Schroder to Golden State (for De’Anthony Melton, a payer out for the season due to a torn ACL) is a sign of the Nets’ long-term plans. There are still quality players on this roster who deserve a new home.

25. Utah Jazz (7-21, LW 27). Christmas wish for the Jazz: Hold on to Walker Kessler and make him part of the future. It’s no secret that Utah is rebuilding, and this summer that could well mean Lauri Markkanen — who likes it in Utah and arranged his re-signing so he couldn’t be traded during the season — will be sent to a new home. There are a lot of teams calling about Kessler, but in a rebound year for him, maybe the Jazz can keep him and give their long-suffering fans some consistency and someone to root for during what will be a rough few years.

26. Toronto Raptors (7-23, LW 25). Christmas wish for the Raptors: A chance to see their best lineups together. I was higher on Toronto than most coming into this season because I liked their top-end lineups with Scottie Barnes, Jakob Poeltl, Immanuel Quickley, and RJ Barrett, with Gradey Dick stepping up. We have not seen that five-man unit on the court this season. Toronto is in the tank for this season, but it would be nice to see a glimpse of what this team could be.

27. Charlotte Hornets (7-22, LW 26). Christmas wish for the Hornets: Some 3-pointers to fall. Charlotte is third in the NBA launching 42.4 3-pointers a game, but they are bottom 10 in the league in 3-point shooting percentage at 34.6%. This team is bottom 10 in the league in offense and defense, but get some 3s to fall and at least things get more entertaining around LaMelo Ball.

28. Portland Trail Blazers (9-20, LW 28). Christmas wish for the Trail Blazers: More Anfernee Simons and Shaedon Sharpe. Portland is not very good but they can be very entertaining, and while we could wish for a swifter ownership change in Portland or some other things, let’s at least have this team be entertaining through its rebuild. Which means more of this:

29. Washington Wizards 4-23, LW 30). Christmas wish for the Wizards: New homes for Kyle Kuzma and Jonas Valanciunas. (We would add Jordan Poole to that list, but not even Santa can find him a new home right now.) The Wizards are rebuilding and have some players that playoff-bound teams should find interesting, let’s get Kuzma and Valanciunas to teams they can help now, and get the Wizards more picks or young players to move toward whatever is next.

30. New Orleans Pelicans (5-25, LW 29). Christmas wish for the Pelicans: A little bit of health luck. It’s troubling that Zion Williamson is injured again, but it’s unsurprising. However, the injuries to Brandon Ingram, Trey Murphy III, Jose Alvarado and the list goes on and on have just made this team hard to watch, and fills us with pity. The Basketball Gods need to at least give Pelicans fans something to root for.

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