Can Anthony Davis and coach Jason Kidd power Dallas back into the postseason mix in 2025-26?
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The most encouraging sign for all 30 teams when the season starts is this: Everyone’s tied for first place on opening night.
But what about the season ender in April? Where do those teams stand seven months later? That’s what a handful of developing teams are wondering as 2025-26 approaches. Those teams missed the playoffs last season, either altogether or after losing in the Play-In Tournament. Those teams carry the burden of doubt until they do something to erase it.
Last season’s field of 16 playoff teams doesn’t necessarily translate into this season. Nothing is guaranteed for them, either. There’s always a shift in power and performance year to year, where some teams stumble and others rise and a new pecking order is established.
That might be too much to ask for the Washington Wizards and Utah Jazz, who finished at the bottom of the Eastern and Western Conferences, respectively. Both would require a drastic reversal to make the playoffs this season. A few other rebuilding teams, on the other hand, seem to be on the cusp of playing into April.
Here are four teams that can make the playoffs after missing out last season:
1. Atlanta Hawks
Trae Young talks with Stephanie Ready about the Hawks’ offseason moves.
Crazy but true — the Hawks made the Eastern Conference Finals this decade. And also true — they haven’t come close ever since that 2021 postseason. That’s because of a variety of factors involving personnel, and also the Hawks’ roster back then simply maxed out.
The main cog of that team, Trae Young, is still in place. Meanwhile, the surrounding cast is almost entirely different right now and, shall we say, more promising. While the Hawks don’t often come up in conversation when the topic is the beasts of the East, asking this emerging young team to make the playoffs isn’t a tall demand.
The main reason is Jalen Johnson. He played only 36 games last season because of injury. Johnson was on the verge of a breakout after averaging 18.9 points, 10 rebounds and 1.6 steals per game and showed signs of being the co-star that Young needs. The good news? The small forward is positioned to assume where he left off.
Dyson Daniels was one of the league’s best discoveries in 2024-25 when he was named Kia Most Improved Player and finished second in Kia Defensive Player of the Year voting. Speaking of defense, which has been one of this team’s problems, Atlanta added Nickeil Alexander-Walker and suddenly, the backcourt has a pair of defensive aces.
Young is among the league’s premier and inventive passers (no one created more points off assists in 2024-25). Now he has Johnson, along with Kristaps Porziņģis and Zaccharie Risacher, as shooting targets and finishers.
This team is headed in the right direction. If Young becomes a more efficient shooter, which is possible now with more weapons for teammates, the playoffs are well within sight.
2. Dallas Mavericks
Missing the playoffs in 2024-25 was a mixed bag. It was deflating because it came on the heels of the Luka Dončić trade and therefore became the salt in the wound. It was also a blessing because the Mavericks, through great fortune, managed to secure the No. 1 overall pick and grab Cooper Flagg, widely assumed to be a generational talent.
Which means the Mavericks will enter the season surfing on good vibes. Anthony Davis is healthy (fingers crossed), Kyrie Irving is on the mend from surgery and targets a return in the spring, and there’s enough talent on hand to bridge that gap between now and then.
For example, the Mavericks aren’t asking D’Angelo Russell to be a savior, even if he had those qualifications. But he should be able to hold down the point guard spot for half a season. They are asking him to be more of a facilitator, to give Dereck Lively II, Daniel Gafford and PJ Washington touches while creating open looks for Klay Thompson.
As for Davis, he’ll likely be on a mission to stay healthy and prove to Dallas fans that the Dončić trade did bring an elite-level player. He can also take lots of pressure off Flagg, the rare No. 1 overall pick who’ll begin his rookie season with a playoff-caliber team.
Plenty must happen before we call the Mavericks a serious title contender. But playoff team? A healthy Kyrie and AD will almost guarantee that.
3. Philadelphia 76ers
It has become fashionable to throw stones at the Sixers, a process — excuse the pun — that both pelts the team’s reputation and also risks injuring one of their gimpy stars. Without a doubt, the Sixers and Joel Embiid and Paul George are low-hanging fruit, easily dismissed as contenders and categorized in some parts as a cautionary tale following a disastrous 2024-25 season (24 wins).
Pump the brakes a bit, though, before piling on Philly. Yes, they’ve been a laughingstock for the last 12 months, starting with Embiid’s faulty decision to play for Team USA instead of resting his body in the summer of 2024, all the way to this summer when George was revealed to require knee surgery, placing his immediate future in question.
But, let’s be realistic and reasonable — the Sixers are a top five or six team in the East if those two are healthy, which admittedly is a big “if.” Let’s assume the best and Embiid, the Kia MVP in 2022-23, and George, a superb two-way player, suit up for 50-plus games each. That’s not unreasonable.
If so, then the Sixers could make moves in a watered-down East (no Jayson Tatum or Tyrese Haliburton). This assumes that Embiid returns to being beastly and George, given the benefit of the doubt following the only bad season of his career, returns to form. That’s because the supporting cast is solid: Tyrese Maxey, Kelly Oubre, Jared McCain (who could’ve been Kia Rookie of the Year if not for injury) and rookie VJ Edgecombe, among others, will contribute. The playoffs are suddenly back on the radar after a year’s absence.
4. San Antonio Spurs
Can the Spurs make it 3 consecutive Kia NBA Rookie of the Year winners? Dylan Harper has the DNA and the upside to make that happen.
Everyone knows the emerging Spurs will rattle off a string of playoff appearances. It’s just a matter of when such a streak will launch. And it appears it’ll happen sooner than later, like, this season.
Just having Victor Wembanyama for a full season should pencil in a playoff spot. His rise is truly something to behold, as an impact player at both ends, and at 21, he’s just getting started. Still, the Spurs’ push for prime position in the West goes well beyond him.
The backcourt of De’Aaron Fox, Stephon Castle and Devin Vassell seems poised for solid results. It’s much too early to label it the best three-guard rotation in basketball, but Castle looks prepared for an even bigger role.
Everywhere else on the roster are players who could take the next step — Jeremy Sochan, Keldon Johnson among them — with Dylan Harper hoping to follow Wemby and Castle and give the Spurs three straight Kia Rookie of the Year winners.
The Spurs probably still have some growing pains and overall lack playoff experience with the exception of Harrison Barnes and a few others. Plus, they’re playing in the deep and competitive West. But Wemby gives them an edge over other teams sitting on the playoff fence.
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Shaun Powell has covered the NBA for more than 25 years. You can e-mail him here, find his archive here and follow him on Twitter.
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