Coming into the 2025/26 season, the general consensus among NBA fans and experts alike was that the Western Conference would be deeper and much more competitive than the Eastern Conference, where multiple All-Stars – including Celtics forward Jayson Tatum and Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton – would be sidelined while recovering from major injuries.
The sense was that at least seven or eight teams in the West looked like solid playoff clubs, while several more – including the Mavericks, Grizzlies, Trail Blazers, Kings, Suns, and Pelicans – believed they could break into that group.
So far this fall, the teams at the very top of the West have been just as good as we expected. The Thunder are 15-1, the Nuggets and Rockets only have three losses apiece, and the Lakers, Spurs, and Timberwolves are all at least five games above .500.
But the quality depth we expected in the West hasn’t been there yet. The ninth-place team – Portland – is just 6-9, with playoff hopefuls like the Grizzlies (5-11), Clippers (4-11), Mavs (4-12), Kings (3-13), and Pelicans (2-13) all falling well short of their preseason expectations.
Eastern Conference clubs still have a losing record against the West in the early going, but that has been largely a result of the East’s very worst teams playing a lot of inter-conference games — the Hornets, Nets, Pacers, and Wizards have gone 3-19 against Western Conference opponents, while the other 11 East teams have a 30-17 record vs. the other conference.
In the West, a 5-9 record currently puts the Jazz in a play-in spot, but the 8-8 Bucks are on the outside of the top 10 in the East. Still, it’s not as if Milwaukee faces an insurmountable deficit in the standings. While the 13-2 Pistons are three games ahead of anyone else in the conference, the Nos. 2 through 11 seeds are currently separated by just 2.5 games, from the 10-5 Raptors to those 8-8 Bucks.
The Pistons and Raptors have been two of the conference’s most pleasant surprises so far. Detroit was viewed as a solid playoff team and Toronto was expected to be better than last season’s 30-win version of the team, but both clubs have far exceeded expectations. The Pistons have the NBA’s second-best defense after barely cracking the top 10 in that category last season; the Raptors, meanwhile, are up from 26th in the NBA in offense to eighth this fall.
The Knicks and Cavaliers, who were expected to be good, are third and fourth in the East, closely followed by the 9-6 Heat and Sixers. Miami’s new uptempo offensive system has the Heat playing at the fastest pace in the NBA and has helped rejuvenate a team playing without All-Star guard Tyler Herro. In Philadelphia, Tyrese Maxey appears to be taking a leap to a new level of stardom, whether or not Joel Embiid and Paul George are available — Maxey is the NBA’s second-leading scorer behind Luka Doncic.
The Bulls, Hawks, Magic, and Celtics hold the play-in spots in the East for the time being. Orlando and Atlanta, widely projected to be playoff teams, are still finding their footing as they incorporate offseason additions and deal with injuries affecting star players (Paolo Banchero and Trae Young), but Chicago and Boston have been better than expected.
The Bulls are getting contributions up and down their roster, with seven players averaging at least 13.3 points per game; the Celtics are showing they’re still a dangerous team without Tatum on the court, as Jaylen Brown has admirably taken on the No. 1 role on offense by averaging career highs in points per game (27.5) and field goal percentage (50.3%).
Finally, while the Bucks are sitting at .500 now, three of their recent losses have come in games that Giannis Antetokounmpo missed or exited early. As long as their superstar forward is available for most of the season, they look like a solid playoff contender.
We want to get your early impressions on the Eastern Conference. Which of the early-season surprises – including the Pistons, Raptors, Heat, Sixers, and Bulls – do you believe are for real? Which of the 11 current .500-and-above teams in the East do you expect to finish outside of the top 10? Which teams will be in the top six? Do you believe the East has a deeper group of top-10 teams than the West?
Head to the comment section below to weigh in with your thoughts!
Raptors are the biggest surprise, having a tough opening schedule with 10 of 15 games on the road and going 6-4 vs teams with winning records.
Knicks and Heat each have only 1 home loss, but have struggled on the road.
The 8-8 Bucks have been disappointing, they look like they might end up outside looking in.
Agreed but in the preseason, looking at their roster I couldn’t see how they all mesh, but they definitely built chemistry and continuity in the offseason. Very impressive team.
13th in payroll and they possess both their 1st and 2nd round picks next season. They could be a buyer in a weak east.
Could use RJ Barrett $29M expiring next year and get LaMelo perhaps? They have a hard time drawing elite FA’s, so LaMelo would fix a need, and also has way more than enough talent around him to win and keep him focused.