NBA teams with most, least roster continuity

Over the last several months, dozens of NBA players have changed teams via free agency, dozens more have entered or exited the league and a total of 31 trades have been made. After all that offseason activity, some teams will enter the 2022-23 season looking totally different than they did in the spring, while others will look pretty similar to last season’s squads.

Roster continuity is generally perceived as a sign of stability, but carrying over a significant number of players from last year’s team doesn’t necessarily give a club a leg up entering a new season.

Heading into the 2021-22 season, for instance, the Nuggets, Kings, Hawks and Magic were the teams with the most roster continuity, and none of those clubs had a hugely successful season (Denver and Atlanta exited the playoffs quickly, while Sacramento and Orlando didn’t make it). On the opposite end of the spectrum, the Celtics were one of the teams with the most roster turnover during the 2021 offseason and made it within two wins of a championship this past spring.

Entering the 2022-23 campaign, the Bucks, Pelicans and Magic are the three teams bringing back the most players from last year’s end-of-season rosters (including two-way players). All three clubs retained 14 players over the summer.

It’s the third straight year in which Orlando has ranked among the teams with the least roster turnover, which suggests the team remains high on its young core and doesn’t want to break it up. Milwaukee and New Orleans, meanwhile, are joined by the Clippers (13 returning players) as teams perhaps hoping that the return of an injured star (Khris Middleton, Zion Williamson, and Kawhi Leonard, respectively) will help propel them to a deeper postseason run in 2023.

The Jazz are, unsurprisingly, the team that experienced the most roster turnover, having launched a rebuilding process that saw them trade away All-Stars Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell, among other veterans. They’re bringing back just five players.

The Lakers, who had a disaster of a 2021-22 season after bringing back just three players from the previous season’s roster, once again rank among the teams with the most roster turnover, having retained just six players from their end-of-season roster. We’ll see if this version of the new-look squad has more success than last year’s did.

Here’s the total number of returning players for each of the NBA’s 30 teams, from most to fewest:

1. Milwaukee Bucks: 14
   New Orleans Pelicans: 14
   Orlando Magic: 14
2. Chicago Bulls: 13
   Los Angeles Clippers: 13
   Miami Heat: 13
   New York Knicks: 13
3. Charlotte Hornets: 12
   Phoenix Suns: 12 (*)
   Toronto Raptors: 12
4. Brooklyn Nets: 11
   Dallas Mavericks: 11
   Houston Rockets: 11
   Memphis Grizzlies: 11
   Oklahoma City Thunder: 11
   Washington Wizards: 11
5. Boston Celtics: 10
   Cleveland Cavaliers: 10
   Detroit Pistons: 10
   Golden State Warriors: 10
   Indiana Pacers: 10
   Philadelphia 76ers: 10
   Portland Trail Blazers: 10
   Sacramento Kings: 10
   San Antonio Spurs: 10
6. Denver Nuggets: 9
   Minnesota Timberwolves: 9
7. Atlanta Hawks: 7
8. Los Angeles Lakers: 6
9. Utah Jazz: 5

* The Suns’ count includes Jae Crowder, since he technically remains on the roster, even though he’s away from the team.