Five NBA teams that aced the offseason

After an eventful offseason, the majority of the NBA is on vacation until training camp. So it's finally time to assess which teams aced their summers. Here are the five that did exactly what they were supposed to do:

Houston Rockets 

Is it possible to have too many good players on a roster? Seriously, the Rockets probably have the deepest roster in the NBA after their incredible offseason that saw them trade for Kevin Durant without giving up any of their main core pieces or future draft capital, steal Dorian Finney-Smith from the Lakers, sign Clint Capela, sign Josh Okogie and re-s ign Steven Adams and Fred VanVleet to reasonable extensions. 

After finishing with the fourth-best defensive rating in the league last season, they should be even more stout on that next season. So long as Durant stays relative healthy, and at least a few of their young studs like Amen Thompson, Reed Sheppard, Jabari Smith Jr. and Tari Eason make a leap, they should also significantly improve upon their 13th-rated offense. 

The Rockets made the jump from being a happy-to-be-there playoff team to a serious title contender.

Denver Nuggets

After a second consecutive second-round exit from the playoffs, the Nuggets went to work this summer on addressing their biggest issue: depth. Last season, the Nuggets were a plus-10.5 when Nikola Jokic was on the court and a negative-8.5 when he was off the court. Aiming to fix that, Denver traded sharpshooter Michael Porter Jr. for another great shooter with a better defensive reputation in Cameron Johnson. They also signed three legitimate rotation players in Bruce B rown, Tim Hardaway Jr. and Jonas Valanciunas, which should allow them to ease Jokic's burden, especially in the regular season. 

When you have the best player in the NBA, you should always be doing everything you can as a franchise to win a championship. The Nuggets had cut some corners in recent years, so this offseason should reinvigorate a title contender in Denver.

Atlanta Hawks

The Hawks have made four decisions this offseason that should bode well for them in the future. First, they acquired Kristaps Porzingis, giving them a legitimate stretch-5 who can perform on both ends in the playoffs (when healthy). Second, they acquired one of the best assets in the league — the Pelicans' unprotected 2026 first-round pick in a draft that is projected to have a handful of franchise players. Third, they signed the top three-and-D wing on the market, Nickeil Alexander-Walker and one of the top shooters on the market, Luke Kennard. 

Finally, they did not hand Trae Young a massive contract (yet, at least). Young is an excellent point guard and could opt out of his contract next summer, but if he's making the max, the team's ceiling is capped at Eastern Conference Finals contender due to his defense. If the Hawks can find a way to shave his deal down a little to give them more flexibility, then with some development of their young studs like Jalen Johnson and Dyson Daniels, they could be contenders before we realize it.

Los Angeles Lakers

What a difference a month can make. Early in free agency, the Lakers seemed to be at war with LeBron James, were rumored to be hesitant to make any big moves until the summer of 2027, weren't sure if Luka Doncic was going to sign an extension, lost Finney-Smith and hadn't signed any marquee free agents. Fast forward to this month, and the LeBron tension appears have have dissipated, Doncic signed a three-year extension and Deandre Ayton and Marcus Smart were added to the team despite not being free agents when the summer began — both were bought out by th e Portland Trail Blazers and Washington Wizards, respectively. That's about as good a summer as they could have hoped for given their limited cap flexibility and roster heading into free agency.

Now comes the important part — what trade does Rob Pelinka do to round this very solid roster into a bona fide title contender? They're probably one three-and-D wing away from being able to match any team in the league in terms of high-end talent and depth.

Orlando Magic 

The Magic kick-started the offseason during the NBA Finals by trading for the rugged, but sweet-shooting Desmond Bane. They gave up quite a lot (four first-round picks, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Cole Anthony), but Bane provides the elite shooting they've been desperately craving for years around Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner. Over the past four seasons, Bane has averaged 20.2 PPG, 5 RPG, 4.3 APG to go along with 47-41-89 shooting splits and is squarely in his prime at 27 years old. 

The Magic also capitalized on Michigan State star Jase Richardson's mini fall in the draft. The super crafty, way-less-athletic son of two-time dunk champion Jason Richardson has a whole lot of game and seems like an ideal off-guard to play with Banchero, Wagner and Bane. Don't be surprised if the Magic make a leap and are in the Eastern Conference Finals next spring.