With the 2024-25 NBA season coming to a close on Sunday, we’re turning our attention to how every eliminated team should approach the offseason, including through the draft, free agency and trades.
Which of the lottery-bound franchises will secure the No. 1 overall pick and the chance to draft Cooper Flagg? How quickly can rebuilds progress for teams such as the Washington Wizards, Utah Jazz and Charlotte Hornets?
We’re breaking down the potential moves for each franchise, including a look at the state of the roster, finances, front office priorities, extension candidates to watch, team needs and future draft assets.
Key: ETO = Early Termination Option | P = Player Option | R = Restricted | T = Team Option
Jump to a team:
ATL | BOS | BKN | CHA | CHI | CLE
DAL | DEN | DET | GS | HOU | IND
LAC | LAL | MEM | MIA | MIL | MIN
NO | NY | OKC | ORL | PHI | PHX
POR | SAC | SA | TOR | UTAH | WAS
2024-25 record: 17-64
Draft picks in June: No. 1/2 (own), No. 22 (via Minnesota), No. 44 (via Dallas) and No. 52 (via LA Clippers). Note: Draft ties will be broken after the regular season.
Odds for the No. 1 pick: 14%
Free agents: John Collins (P), Micah Potter (R) and Oscar Tshiebwe (R)
State of the roster:
Trading your entire starting five usually means bottoming out. But since trading Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert in 2022, the Jazz have done the opposite, overachieving in the first half of the 2022-23 season. But nearly three years later, the Jazz have officially bottomed out — this time by design.
“What’s different this year is that we’re starting to build a good depth base. They just happen to be really young,” Jazz GM Justin Zanik said before the season. “But our growth is going to come from developing our talent base, so that we can win more games now and in the future. That doesn’t happen overnight.”
The Jazz finished the season with the youngest roster and tied with Oklahoma City with nine players 23 years old or younger. But unlike the Western Conference leading Thunder, wins were scarce this season.
The Jazz lost 60 games in a season for the first time in franchise history and have not won three straight games since January 2024. There are positives, though.
Rookie Isaiah Collier averaged 6.3 assists this season, the most among rookies and the most by a Jazz rookie in franchise history. Walker Kessler ranked second in total blocks this season, trailing only Victor Wembanyama. And the 2025 draft will offer the next opportunity for Utah to add to its roster. The Jazz have a 14% chance of selecting first, and own three additional picks, including a first from Minnesota. And although all 15 players are under contract for next season, Utah has financial flexibility to be active in trades, with $60 million in expiring contracts and no player on the roster other than Lauri Markkanen who will earn more than $27 million.
Offseason finances:
With two first-round picks in June and 15 players under contract, expect Utah to act like a team over the cap this summer. Including both firsts and $15 million in non-guaranteed contracts (a total of $15 million), Utah is right at the salary cap. The contracts of Svi Mykhailiuk ($3.7 million) and Johnny Juzang ($2.8 million) become guaranteed if they are on the roster after June 30. John Collins has until June 27 to opt in to his $26.6 million salary. Utah will have the non-tax midlevel ($14.1 million), biannual ($5.1 million), second-round and veteran minimum exception available. They also have a $3.5 million trade exception.
Top front office priority:
It starts with the draft. Out of the 15 players under contract, five (Cody Williams, Isaiah Collier, Keyonte George, Taylor Hendricks and Brice Sensabaugh) were first-round picks selected by Utah the past two years.
And while there are signs of individual growth, none of them are considered franchise players. This draft could change that. After selecting outside of the top eight in consecutive years, Utah will have, at a minimum, the No. 6 pick in the draft.
They will also need to decide what to do with Markkanen, Collins, Jordan Clarkson and Collin Sexton. Markkanen is under contract for the next four seasons, but Collins, Clarkson and Sexton are all entering the last year of their contracts. After renegotiating and then extending his contract last August, Markkanen is now trade eligible. The former All-Star played 47 games this season, the lowest in his career. He attempted a career-high 8.5 3-pointers per game this season, but shot 35% from beyond the arc, the second-lowest mark in a season in his career.
Extension candidate to watch:
Utah could have over $70 million in cap space in 2026, and despite the low $14.6 million free agent hold of Walker Kessler, the Jazz can be aggressive. Kessler is the first player to average at least two blocks per game in each of his first three NBA seasons since Tim Duncan from 1997-2000. He also averaged a career high in points (11.1), rebounds (12.2) and assists (1.7) and shot 66.3% from the field, the highest in the NBA.
Other extension-eligible players: Collins and Sexton
Team needs:
Internal development on offense and defense. Utah ranked last in turnover percentage and allowed the most transition possessions per game, per Second Spectrum, and the most since tracking began in 2013-14. The Jazz ranked 29th in defense, last in points per game off turnovers and last in fast break points allowed.
Future draft assets:
The Jazz own 11 first-round picks, including a combined five unprotected first-rounders (two in 2027 and 2029) from Cleveland and Minnesota (the Wolves will also send a top-five protected first in 2029.) The Suns will also send Utah an unprotected 2031 first. The Jazz have a top-five protected 2027 first from the Lakers and can swap a first with Minnesota or Cleveland in 2026 (if in the top eight) and with Cleveland in 2028. The Jazz owe Oklahoma CIty a top-10 protected first in 2024 (top-10 protected in 2025, top-eight in 2026). Utah has nine second-round picks available to use in a trade.
2024-25 record: 17-64
Draft picks in June: No. 1/2 (own), No. 20 (via Memphis), No. 41 (via Phoenix). Note: Draft order ties will be broken after the regular season. The first from Memphis is top-14 protected. If the first is not conveyed, Washington will receive 2026 and 2027 second-round picks.
Odds for the No. 1 pick: 14%
Free agents: Malcolm Brogdon, Khris Middleton (P), Tristan Vukcevic (R) and JT Thor (R)
State of the roster:
Give credit to the Wizards. They know who they are. “There’s the laying-the-foundation phase. There’s the building it back up, and then there’s fortifying what you build,” Wizards GM Will Dawkins said before the season. “We’re still focused on deconstructing and laying that foundation. And I think that’s important to remind everyone that we’re still early.”
This past season reminded Wizards fans that laying down the foundation comes with growing pains. The youngest team in the NBA when weighed by playing time (seven players are 23 years old or younger) endured two separate losing streaks of 16 games this season.
There were some positives to this season. Second-year forward Bilal Coulibaly and rookie big man Alex Sarr developed into building blocks. Before suffering a season-ending hamstring injury in March, Coulibaly ranked in the top-15 in field goal percentage allowed as the closest defender among more than 100 players to defend at least 600 shots this season, per Second Spectrum. Sarr, the second pick in last year’s draft, averaged 16.8 points and 38% on 3-pointers after the All-Star break. The play on the court also improved dramatically since Washington acquired veterans Khris Middleton and Marcus Smart at the trade deadline. (The Wizards were 5-4 when both players were on the court together.) The Wizards should benefit from the return of Saddiq Bey following his torn ACL in March 2024. Bey was averaging 13.7 points with Atlanta in 2023-24 before the injury.
For a second year in a row, Washington will add a high lottery pick to their roster. The Wizards have a 14% chance of selecting first in the draft and have a first-round pick from Memphis and three additional seconds.
Offseason finances:
The Wizards parlayed potential cap space this offseason into draft picks when they acquired Middleton and Smart. The two trades netted Washington that 2025 pick from Memphis, the right to swap firsts in 2028 (with Milwaukee) and former first-round pick AJ Johnson. Washington is also $14 million below the tax and has flexibility in $20 million of non-guaranteed contracts (Richaun Holmes, Justin Champagnie, Anthony Gill and Colby Jones). Gill’s $2.2 million contract becomes guaranteed on July 1, while Middleton has until June 29 to opt-in to his $33.3 million salary for next season. Washington will have the non-tax midlevel ($14.1 million), biannual ($5.1 million), second round and veteran minimum exception available. They also have three trade exceptions ($9.9 million, $5.3 million and $2.5 million).
Top front office priority:
The draft and how to navigate their five picks. For a second straight year, Washington has a projected top-4 first and a pick in the mid 20s. Last year, Washington sent the 51st pick to New York and moved up two slots to draft Kyshawn George. The 21-year old started 36 games, averaging 8.6 points. The Wizards have 16 future second-round picks, including two this year to potentially take the same approach.
The draft is not the only decision the Wizards need to weigh. How much value do the veterans have in the locker room and on the court? Washington has nearly $70 million in expiring contracts for Middleton, Smart and Holmes. Do the Wizards continue to take back salary that stretches into future seasons if they get more draft picks? The Wizards project to have $80 million in cap space in 2026-27.
There is also the future of Jordan Poole. It was only last season that team executives described the Poole contract as an albatross. Then Poole averaged career highs in points, assists, steals and 3-point field goal percentage this season. Poole has two years remaining ($31.8 million and $34 million), and is eligible to sign up to a three-year, $154 million extension starting on Oct. 1.
“The ceiling is high [in Washington],” Poole told Andscape’s Marc Spears. “We got a lot of guys in here who care, a lot of talented guys, a lot of guys who just love to hoop and they just love the game.”
Extension candidate to watch:
The Wizards have five players (Bub Carrington, Coulibaly, George, Johnson and Sarr) on first-round scale contracts. However, no players in that group are extension-eligible.
Other extension-eligible players: Malcolm Brogdon, Khris Middleton, Marcus Smart, Jordan Poole (as of Oct. 1) and Colby Jones
Team needs:
When you finish last in offensive efficiency and 28th defensively, there are needs aplenty. Internally, improved play from the perimeter is a must. The Wizards ranked 29th in 3-point and true shooting percentages. Defensively, acquiring a big who can rebound and defend the perimeter should be a priority.
Future draft assets:
The Wizards have 26 draft picks through 2032, including 10 first-rounders. Four of those firsts were acquired in the past two seasons. Including the Memphis pick in June, Washington has the least favorable 2026 first of Oklahoma City, Houston (if 5-30) and LA Clippers. They also have the second-most favorable 2029 first of Boston, Milwaukee and Portland. The Warriors will send a top-20 protected first to Washington in 2030. Washington has the right to swap first-rounders with Phoenix in 2026, 2028 and 2030. The Wizards owe New York a first-round pick that is top-8 protected in 2026.
2024-25 record: 19-62
Draft picks in June: No. 3 (own), No. 33 (own) and No. 34 (via New Orleans). Note: first-round draft position will be set by the May 12 draft lottery.
Odds for the No. 1 pick: 14%
Free agents: Seth Curry, Taj Gibson, Tre Mann (R) and Wendell Moore Jr.
State of the roster:
The goal for the 2024-25 season was not for Charlotte to break their playoff drought that extends back to 2016. “I have zero interest in making the playoffs for a year and then being out for the next four or five and then in for two and out again after that,” first-year GM Jeff Peterson said in February. Instead, the focus for Peterson and coach Charles Lee was to build a foundation, not take shortcuts and evaluate the roster.
The Hornets have continued to take a big-picture approach to their roster, adding six draft picks since October, including a first-rounder. The Hornets’ evaluation is incomplete even with losing 50 games for a third straight season. LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller did not play a significant part of the season because of injuries. As a result, Charlotte ranked second in missed games and used 36 different lineups. The team’s core of Ball, Miller, Miles Bridges and Mark Williams shared the court for only 3% of possessions. According to Cleaning the Glass, that lineup was a +2.1 per 100 possessions and averaged 121.5 points on offense, an intriguing but small sample that ranked in the 90th percentile among all lineups.
There are positives moving forward. The Hornets could add a potential franchise player in the draft (they have a 52% chance of a top-4 pick) to join Miller, Ball and last year’s first-round pick Tidjane Salaun. They also have two second-rounders in the early 30s. Aside from Ball, no player on Charlotte’s roster earns more than $30 million, which gives the franchise the optionality to build upon their draft assets in trades.
Offseason finances:
The Hornets valued picking up an additional first at the deadline from Phoenix in exchange for taking on the $19.4 million owed to Jusuf Nurkic next season. The Nurkic salary, their own first and the Tre Mann free-agent hold has Charlotte right over the $154.6 million salary cap. Josh Okogie’s $7.7 million salary becomes guaranteed if he is on the roster past June 30, but the team will still be over the cap even if they waive him prior that date. Charlotte has the $14.1 million non-tax midlevel, $5.1 million biannual, second round and veteran minimum exceptions available to use.
Top front office priority:
The Hornets, with three draft picks in June, also have three roster priorities. The most important is Ball’s future. While there is no sense of urgency considering Ball is under contract through 2028-29, durability issues are a concern. He has played more than 60 games only once in the past five seasons and has missed at least 25 games in the past three. The team went 2-24 without Ball this season, and despite averaging at least 25 points in three seasons, he and the team’s offense has ranked in the bottom-3 in offensive efficiency. “There’s so many elements that he can continue to add to his game, certainly with the ball,” Lee told the Charlotte Observer. “He’s getting better off the ball and that’s all we can ask of him, is to continue to compete and trust his teammates and keep building his leadership.”
The second priority is Bridges, the longest-tenured player on the roster. Bridges averaged at least 20 points per game for a second straight season and is one of two players in franchise history to have multiple 45-point games (Kemba Walker is the other. Since the All-Star break, Bridges has averaged 43.0% from the field and 32.8% on 3-pointers. He has a $25 million salary next season that dips to $22.8 million in 2026-27.
And finally, the team must figure out the price point on Mann’s new contract. After failing to reach an extension before the season started, Mann averaged 14.1 points with 40% shooting on 3-pointers. However, Mann dealt with a back injury this season, resulting in a career-low 13 games.
Extension candidate to watch:
After the Lakers rescinded on their February deal for Williams, the third-year center averaged 28.6 minutes, 15.1 points, 10.7 rebounds and a career high 1.3 blocks. Williams played a career-high 44 games this season after just 62 games in his first two years. The concern of committing a lucrative contract comes with his defensive shortcomings. The Hornets allowed 120.0 points per 100 possessions with him on the court, per Cleaning the Glass, which ranked in the bottom 19th percentile among all players. Per Second Spectrum, opponents made 65.6% of their field goal attempts within five feet when Williams was the primary defender — fifth-worst among all centers.
Other extension-eligible players: Jusuf Nurkic and Grant Williams (as of July 11)
Team needs:
Aside from health and lineup consistency, having Salaun play some dependable minutes. More shooting will also help, as the Hornets ranked last in effective field goal percentage this season.
Future draft assets:
The Hornets own all their firsts through 2031 and two additional firsts from Miami and Dallas. If the Heat reach the playoffs this season, the Hornets receive a 2027 top-14 protected first (if Miami misses out and keeps the pick, Charlotte receives a 2028 unprotected first). The Hornets will also receive a 2027 top-2 protected first from the Mavericks. Charlotte is allowed to trade up to eight first-round picks. They also have 13 future second-round picks.
Source: espn.com