Unraveling the Insanity of the 2025-26 NBA Regular Season
- Vincent Mendoza
- Apr 30
- 17 min read
BY: VINCENT MENDOZA / CHIEF OF SPORTS
The 2025-26 NBA Regular Season played out like a strange balancing act. While established teams maintained a sense of success and championship contention, rising powers inserted themselves into the spotlight. Off the court, scandals and drama added a chaotic and entertaining vibe to the season.
Reigning MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the champion Oklahoma City Thunder dominated. This was especially true in the opener. They earned two double-overtime wins over the Rockets and Pacers, powered by Shai's 35 and 55-point performances. With these two tight victories, concerns about a championship hangover grew.
The Thunder immediately silenced these conversations, winning 22 of their next 23 games to push their record to 24-1, the strongest start since the 2016 Warriors, who later surpassed the 1996 Bulls’ mark with 73 victories.
Poised to push their record to an impressive 25-1 and reach the In-Season Tournament Championship, they fell to the rapidly rising powerhouse of the league, the San Antonio Spurs. This marked the beginning of a short-lived spiral. In the same month of December, Oklahoma City dropped three more games, including one against the Minnesota Timberwolves and a back-to-back against the same team that stole their opportunity to win the In-Season Tournament. The defeats to the Spurs weren’t close by any means, either, losing by 20 on the road, followed by 15 at home on Christmas Day.
Entering the new calendar year, conversations about the Thunder dethroning the 2016 Warriors came to a halt. However, they still had the upper hand over the rest of the league. Oklahoma City finished the season with a 64-18 record, first in the Western Conference and the league as a whole. Much of this success can be credited to Gilgeous-Alexander's dominance and brilliance.
In 68 games, the 27-year-old was the runner-up scoring champ, averaging 31.1 points per game and totaling 2,117, both second only behind Luka Dončić – and that’s just a surface-level observation. Despite attempting 19.4 shots a game, the seventh highest mark in the NBA, Shai shot 55.3 percent from the field, leading all guards and placing 12th in the entire league (minimum of 300 field goals attempted). Alongside his 55.3 field goal percentage, he shot 38.6 percent from three and just under 88 percent from the free throw line, unrivaled levels of efficiency. He also made history by surpassing Wilt’s 127-game streak of scoring at least 20 points, now at 140.
Superstars leave their biggest imprint in the clutch, and SGA embodies that standard. Clutch time is defined as the final five minutes or overtime when the point margin is five or fewer. He led the NBA with 175 clutch points, shot 51.5 percent from the field, and had an assist-to-turnover ratio of three. In OKC’s 27 clutch games, they went 20-7. Gilgeous-Alexander had a plus/minus of +93 in these games, ensuring his team’s victory 75 percent of the time, and likely securing the 2026 Clutch Player of the Year.
Gilgeous-Alexander’s impact also translated defensively. He placed 22nd in total steals and fifth in defensive box plus/minus, an advanced metric that measures the difference in points allowed per 100 possessions with a player on the court versus off the court.
Alongside SGA is a group of versatile, tenacious defenders who powered the Thunder to lead the NBA in defensive rating, net rating, and opponent field goal percentage. All-Star forward Chet Holmgren came into his own defensively this season, blocking 2 shots per game and 131 in total, ranking second and third, respectively. The 7-footer also placed second in block percentage and defensive win shares, an estimate of the number of wins contributed by a player due to defense. The Thunder also feature multiple-time all-defensive team selections in Lu Dort and Alex Caruso, in addition to Cason Wallace.
With the Thunder's strengths established, focus now shifts to the postseason, where the defending champions are once again favorites to hoist the Larry O’Brien Trophy and look to be the first consecutive champs since 2018.
As alluded to earlier, the NBA has a rising hegemon in San Antonio, and they made leaps and bounds beyond most expectations. Entering the season, the Spurs were projected to win roughly 43 games, a realistic expectation given the jumps Victor Wembanyama and Stephon Castle would make, combined with a roster construction comparable to that of modern winning teams. San Antonio, led by Mitch Johnson, had other plans.
The Spurs accelerated their road to dominance and championship contention. They finished 62-20, second in the West, and defeated the current hegemon four times.
The 7’4” French phenom rose to a consensus top-five player in the league. He averaged 25 points, a fourth-best 11.5 rebounds, three assists, and a league-leading three blocks, and met the 65-games played requirement for regular-season award consideration. Wemby’s overall impact towers over practically everyone, combining his elongated stature, defensive versatility, and IQ.
This is evident in advanced defensive metrics, as he led the NBA in block percentage, defensive rebounding percentage, defensive win shares, and defensive box plus/minus. These analytics and his impressive plays made him a lock for Defensive Player of the Year and a top-three MVP candidate.
Aside from Wembanyama, six other Spurs posted double-digit scoring figures. As a unit, they finished in the top four in both offensive and defensive rating. Castle executed a successful second season, averaging roughly 17 points, five rebounds, and seven and a half assists per contest, along with defending the opposing team’s best guard. De’Aaron Fox fulfilled his role perfectly, averaging roughly 19 points and six assists, while serving as an essential veteran. Other young talents like Sixth Man of the Year frontrunner Keldon Johnson, Julian Champagnie, Devin Vassell, and the 2025 second overall pick, Dylan Harper, were consistently contributing on both ends of the floor.
Although the Spurs lack overall playoff experience, except for Fox, Harrison Barnes, and Luke Kornet, Wembanyama and his young teammates remain undeterred. While the NBA playoffs are a different animal than the regular season, this young, yet astonishing team will be a tough test for anyone who comes in their path.
On the topic of rising powers, the Detroit Pistons completed a 180 from their historically poor season two years ago and built upon their success from last season. In a lackluster Eastern Conference with multiple stars injured, the J.B. Bickerstaff-led squad took full advantage, tallying a conference-best 60 wins and ranking second in defensive rating. This was despite star guard Cade Cunningham missing 18 games due to a lung injury.
The dynamic duo of Cunningham and Jalen Duren, a combination more similar to the 1990s or 2000s, made their presence felt. Cade inserted himself into MVP conversations by averaging roughly 24 points, six rebounds, and a career-high 10 assists, second only to Nikola Jokić. Duren nearly doubled his 2025 points per game average this season, tallying 19.5 points per game on a fourth-best 65 percent from the field, snatching 10.5 rebounds, and making his first All-Star team.
Beyond those two, the Pistons’ roster is filled with solid role players and contributors, and Ausar Thompson is at the top of that list. The third-year defensive maestro cemented himself as one of the league’s premier defenders. Thompson led the league with two steals per game, along with steal percentage. He tallied the third-most steals with 146, and finished in the top five in defensive win shares and defensive box plus/minus.
Tobias Harris and Duncan Robinson each provided at least 12 points per game and a veteran presence. Younger pieces, including Daniss Jenkins and Ron Holland II, provided depth on both ends of the floor. Those four, with Duren and Thompson, secured wins during Cunningham’s absence.
As if the Pistons as the first seed wasn’t enough of a surprise, trailing behind them were the Boston Celtics, a team fans and media members perceived as a solid team at best without Jayson Tatum, who missed the first 62 games of the season rehabbing a torn Achilles.
Jaylen Brown, a player who entered the season being a four-time All-Star, 2023 All-NBA honoree, 2024 Eastern Conference Finals MVP, NBA Champion, and 2024 Finals MVP, faced doubts as a leader. Without Tatum, Brown led the Celtics to a 41-21 record, finished with a 56-26 record, and posted the second-best offensive rating and fourth-best defensive rating, proving all the doubters wrong.
In 71 games played, Brown posted a career-high 28.7 a game (fourth-highest amongst the league), seven boards, and career-high five assists each contest. Although his defensive impact and raw efficiency decreased, they were both expected to take hits considering his increased scoring and facilitating role.
Last year’s Sixth Man of the Year recipient, Payton Pritchard, slotted up to the starting lineup, replacing Jrue Holiday and the loss of Tatum. The fifth-year guard took advantage, posting 17 points, five assists, and four rebounds per game, all of which were career highs. Two-time all-defensive honoree Derrick White contributed averages of 16.5 points, four and a half rebounds, and five and a half assists.
Without Tatum, coach Joe Mazzulla relied more on his bench, and they stepped up. Three-point snipers Sam Hauser and Baylor Scheierman, traditional big Neemias Queta, defensive-oriented forward Jordan Walsh, and stretch five Luka Garza all set career highs in minutes and points per game.
With Tatum back and healthy, averaging 22 points, 10 boards, and five assists in his 17 appearances, the Celtics are the favorites to come out of the East and possibly win their second title in three years.
With elite teams came elite performances, and the most memorable of them all occurred on a random Tuesday in March. The 16-47 Washington Wizards made a trip down to South Beach to play the Miami Heat. It’s important to note that in this matchup, the Wizards were without Trae Young and Anthony Davis. The Heat were missing a slew of their top scorers, including Tyler Herro, Norman Powell, Kel’el Ware, and Andrew Wiggins, who roughly contributed 70 of the Heat’s 120 points per game, the second-highest mark in the league. This left one man to carry Miami’s offense – Bam Adebayo.
Bam racked up 31 first-quarter points, the second-most in a first quarter, only behind Kevin Love, who scored 34 on November 23, 2016. In the case of Kevin Love and many others, players who attain historic first-half scoring performances often get benched in the second half, tarnishing their hopes of reaching Wilt’s coveted record. On this night, that pattern would not repeat itself.
42 minutes played, 43 field goal attempts, and 43 free throws attempts later, the three-time All-Star would end the night tallying 83 points, surpassing the late Kobe Bryant for the second-most in NBA history. This feat quite literally broke the internet.
The “Real” App, a social sports data app tracking 10 national and international sports, crashed due to the exorbitant amount of comments and interaction Bam’s performance was getting. As of April 17, a little over a month later, his performance has accumulated over 113,000 comments and 84,000 meme reactions, a new record that will be difficult to shatter.
Most called this performance unethical, selfish, and a mockery of the game because he remained aggressive during garbage time and got to the free-throw line 43 times. Despite these claims, many fail to acknowledge they’d do the same thing if they were in his position. When approached with the chance to be cemented in the history of any sort, many would take it, and rightfully so.
For any sport, an exceptional season often requires a feel-good, comeback story – and this season featured two just 250 miles apart. 38 games into the season, the Atlanta Hawks and Charlotte Hornets were viewed as disappointments. Charlotte’s draft capital, consisting of LaMelo Ball, Miles Bridges, and Brandon Miller wasn’t assembling correctly, and the team stood 12 games below .500. The Hawks were struggling to ship off their former franchise cornerstone – Trae Young - and were four games under .500.
Throughout the next 44 games, both teams flipped the script, finishing the season with above .500 records. In Charlotte, the combination of the established trio, 2025 draft selections Kon Knueppel and Ryan Kalkbrenner, and a trade to acquire Coby White would shoot them up the standings and make history along the way. The long-distance duo of Knueppel and Ball led the league in threes, knocking down 273 and 272, respectively, the second duo to accomplish this after the Splash Bros. Miller, who appeared in only 27 games last season, played 65 and averaged 20 points on above-league-average efficiency.
Two days after game 38, the Hawks shipped off Trae Young to D.C. in return for veteran guard C.J. McCollum and forward Corey Kispert. A little later, Kristaps Porziņġis got moved to Golden State for Jonathan Kuminga.
These moves allowed first-time All-Star Jalen Johnson and Most Improved Player favorite Nikeil Alexander-Walker to establish themselves as the offensive engines. McCollum, small-ball five, Onyeka Okongwu, and last year’s Most Improved Player, Dyson Daniels, filled out around the edges. They also bought in defensively, limiting opponents to 112 points per game and causing 16 turnovers per game, a pattern they will look to continue against the New York Knicks in the first round.
These two franchises and their fanbases, especially the Charlotte Hornets, needed this resurgence. Regardless of their play-in and postseason performances, the 2025-26 season can be viewed as a success and a stable foundation for their futures.
For almost a decade, the Denver duo of Nikola Jokić and Jamal Murray have terrorized the league, most notably when they steamrolled through the 2023 playoffs en route to their Championship victory over the Miami Heat. This season, the two entered that same level of supremacy.
The three-time MVP just reached the 65-game requirement, and averaged eighth-best 27.8 points while leading the league with 13 rebounds and 10.7 assists, the first player to ever do so. He posted these numbers all while shooting an absurdly efficient 57/38/83 shooting split.
The Joker became the only player besides Russell Westbrook to average a triple-double in multiple seasons, and amassed 34 individual triple-doubles, 21 more than the second place. His total tallies of 1,799 points, 836 rebounds, and 697 assists ranked tenth, fourth, and first league-wide.
Jamal Murray, formerly regarded as one of the most talented players to never make an All-Star game, entered a stratosphere parallel to his performance in the NBA Bubble or 2023 playoffs. In 75 games, he scored 25.4 points per game and dished out seven assists, while shooting 48.3 percent from three and 88.7 percent from the line.
These numbers were finally good enough to be awarded with an All-Star appearance. His mark from behind the arc is all the more remarkable given that he attempted 565, the fourteenth-most in the association. Murray also totaled the eighth-most points (1,905 points), fifth-most assists (535), and third-most threes (245).
The two led the Nuggets to a 54-28 record, the third seed in the West, and a league-leading 122 points per game and 122.6 offensive rating, despite being a bottom-10 defense. The Jokić and Murray two-man connection was on full display this season, and they’ll have to continue piloting the team if they want a chance at winning another championship.
Luka Dončić’s first full season in La La Land brought about cinema and entertainment not even Hollywood could provide. The five-time All-NBA honoree and 2024 scoring champ had a bounce-back season individually, securing his second scoring title, dropping 33.5 points per game and 2,143 total. He led the league with 44 games of at least 30 points, including 16 performances of 40 or more, while also ranking third in assists per game and sixth overall.
Although these numbers are outstanding, he topped the competition in average field goal attempts (23), threes attempted (11), and turnovers (four). Alongside his high usage and spurts of inefficiency, his lackluster defense continued to be a lingering issue, especially to open the season, all reasons why the superstar point-forward won’t take home this year’s MVP.
Just when things were starting to look good for Dončić and the Lakers, he would go down with a hamstring injury in a primetime matchup against the Thunder. Unfortunately, this is the same injury that has been lingering for the past few seasons. The following day, Luka would be diagnosed with a Grade 2 hamstring strain, sidelining him for four to six weeks, a devastating blow considering the postseason was around the corner.
It was later reported that Austin Reaves would be joining Dončić on the sidelines after suffering a Grade 2 oblique strain, receiving a similar timeline. Going into their first round matchup against the Houston Rockets, the Lakers will be led by a 41-year-old LeBron. Although he’s still capable of playing at an All-Star level, he should not be depended on to this degree.
While the Lakers can pull off the upset against the Rockets, a team that has struggled offensively and whose best player lacks true leadership qualities, they’ll struggle heavily in the next round against the San Antonio Spurs, especially if Dončić isn’t available. Nevertheless, Luka Magic revealed tons of tricks in the regular season.
Scandals are no strangers to the league, with many occurring throughout its existence. While they can be detrimental to the specific individual player, team, or league as a whole, they also make for entertaining storylines and unforeseen triumphs.
Prior to the commencement of the 2025-26 season, investigative sports journalist Pablo Torre released a podcast episode uncovering a possible circumvention of the salary cap, done by Steve Ballmer and the Los Angeles Clippers. Since its release, all information portrayed was confirmed, further investigations have occurred, and additional information has been collected.
For those who believe in karma, their stock rose as the season began and slowly progressed. Through their first 27 games, the Clippers won a mere six games, despite James Harden averaging 26 points, five rebounds, and eight assists per game. Compounding the issue, Leonard — who has a lengthy injury history — had already missed 10 games. Fast forward to the tail end of the season, and the Clippers secured a play-in spot, traded Harden and Ivica Zubac for younger talent in Darius Garland and Benedict Mathurin, and Kawhi had his best regular season since 2020. The craziest part – the Clippers, nor Kawhi, had to face any real repercussions.
Just when karma-believers thought they’d lost all hope, the basketball Gods stepped in. In a win-or-go-home matchup at home against the Golden State Warriors, they fumbled, falling 126-121. Heading into the offseason, things seem bleak for this team. Discussions surrounding disciplinary action through voided contracts, the NBA draft, and Kawhi’s future individually are resurging, and the ending to this saga is unknown.
While the Clippers failed to truly overcome their scandal, the Portland Trail Blazers made everyone forget. On the second day of the regular season, reports were released stating that Chauncey Billups was arrested in connection with an illegal gambling operation, leading to his termination. With Billups gone, former Spurs center and 2014 NBA Champion Tiago Splitter became their interim coach and seized his opportunity to become their full-time guy.
The Trail Blazers went 42-20, secured the eighth seed play-in position, and defeated the Phoenix Suns to advance to the playoffs and face the Spurs in the first round. Point-forward Deni Avdija broke out this season, averaging 24 points, seven rebounds, and roughly seven assists, and made his first All-Star appearance. Second-year center Donovan Clingan had a much-improved season, putting up 12 points, a third-most 11.6 boards, and roughly two blocks per game. In total, Clingan snatched 892 rebounds, the most of anyone this season.
Others, such as two-time champion Jrue Holiday, Toumari Camara, and Jerami Grant, provided much-needed defense and scored a combined 48 points a night. Despite the grim news and shaky future to open the season, Splitter, Avdija, and the Trail Blazers built a strong foundation that can compete in the Wild West.
The NBA All-Star game is one of the most entertaining times of the year. The league’s best stars come together to compete, the trade deadline concludes, and the smell of playoff basketball teases fans’ nostrils. This year, a bright light was cast upon something much different.
Kevin Durant has notoriously been involved in online drama, constantly facing leaked burner accounts on X or him debating haters on his main page. However, nothing compared to the bombshell that was dropped this time around. Messages from a private group chat where a user named “getoffmydickerson” (allegedly Durant) made several disparaging comments about former and current teammates were made public. Fans dubbed them the “KD Files”.
Remarks such as Russell Westbrook being a “triple-double cocaine bear”, Devin Booker and coach Frank Vogel being compared to “Stalin and Hitler”, the Warriors cutting anyone that didn’t appease Steph Curry, and Jabari Smith Jr. being slandered were most notable out of the bunch. Prior to the game, Durant looked visibly tense, not participating in warmups and constantly checking his phone.
The underlying reason behind the release of these messages was that Durant failed to acknowledge his role in the ongoing genocide in Palestine. It was reported that the four-time scoring champ invested in drone technology used by the Israeli government to destroy structures in Palestine, and when a user on X confronted him about it and didn’t receive an answer, the user released them. The most stark message of them all was in response to another user sending a message about KD profiting from the genocide, to which Durant responded, “If they need drones!! we got ya”.
This story followed a familiar media pattern: a major headline that faded within days. Durant and the Rockets, meanwhile, handled the situation quickly and kept it out of the spotlight, finishing the season as the fifth seed in the Western Conference. In hindsight, it remains one of the most amusing yet troubling moments of the 2026 NBA season.
The words “funniest”, “disturbing”, and “season” cannot be mentioned without former Bulls guard Jaden Ivey. Towards the end of March, Ivey began going on Instagram live tirades. The content being discussed involved the significance of Christianity and how the world and the NBA proclaims the “unrighteousness” of the LGBTQ+ community. The Bulls reacted swiftly, cutting the guard on March 30.
This situation sparked enormous amounts of controversy and debate online. Some claimed it was the league retracting Ivey’s First Amendment right and an act against Christianity. Others viewed it as reasonable, backed by the lack of on-court production and the whirlwind it caused the organization internally. Ivey’s case isn’t an anomaly by any means, drawing parallels to A.J. Griffin and Kai Jones, two former players who, in one way or another, exited the league due to their Christian faith. While this is a sad situation for Ivey, the main lesson that can be taken away from this is to remember that actions tied to freedom don’t negate consequences.
During the 2025 NBA Finals, the Pelicans traded a 2026 first-round pick to the Pacers, likely yielding a bottom-10 selection. On draft night, they dealt another 2026 first-rounder to the Hawks in exchange for the 13th pick. New Orleans used it on Maryland’s Derik Queen, after selecting Oklahoma guard Jeremiah Fears seventh.
In the offseason, they decided to move on from C.J. McCollum, trading him to the Wizards for Jordan Poole, a young, yet experienced guard. They also acquired one of his 2022 championship teammates, Kevon Looney, adding depth in the frontcourt.
Despite much confusion and speculation from the outside, the Pelicans suggested they were entering win-now mode, ready to compete in the stacked Western Conference. Along with those acquisitions, they retained the 2019 first overall pick and generational prospect Zion Williamson, three-level scorer Trey Murphy III, and lockdown defender Herb Jones. And the cherry on top: Dejounte Murray would be ready to return later in the season.
Unfortunately, nothing went as planned in NOLA. The Pelicans lost 56 games, even with Zion playing 62, Murphy III competing in 66, and the two 2025 first-rounders playing in all but one. In addition to their availability and solid production, forward Saddiq Bey averaged 17.7 points per game, shooting 45 percent from the field, both career highs. And the true kicker: just days after trading the 2026 first-round pick to Indiana, Tyrese Haliburton tore his Achilles in Game 7, and the Pacers would go on to have the second-best odds to receive the 2026 first overall pick.
New Orleans is the home of voodoo magic, and it was clearly used on them. Without a first-round pick in such a stacked draft class, combined with a blurry future and unstable foundation, Dumars is on the hot seat, and their eyes are set on free agency and the trade market.
Coming out of Duke, Cooper Flagg was one of the highest-touted prospects of the 21st century. Despite the Mavericks making one of the worst decisions in sports history, they were rewarded with the first overall pick, creating one of the most ironic realities we’ve ever seen.
Flagg struggled coming out of the gate, averaging just 14 points on 38 percent from the field. Many heavily criticized him for his sluggish start, but some deemed this to be the worst version we’d received, and the latter portion would be proven correct.
In the month of November, the ‘Maine Event’ would elevate to 18 points per game on 50 percent from the field, capped off by a 35-point outing against the Clippers, resulting in a rare Mavs victory. In 70 games played, the first overall pick led rookies in points per game, averaging 21, complemented by roughly seven rebounds and almost five assists per game.
Within the scope of other newcomers, Flagg totaled the second-most points, second-most assists, third-most rebounds, and fourth-most steals and blocks. In the scoring department, Flagg accounted for the top four single-game scoring performances, with a 51-point masterclass against the Orlando Magic topping the rest. This performance marked the first 50-point performance by a teenager in NBA history, and is ranked as the fifth-highest single-game total by a rookie.
Despite being thrusted in the point guard role, one not exactly fit for a 6’9”, 19-year-old wing, he made due with the cards dealt. Throughout the season, Flagg’s decision-making in the pick-and-roll drastically improved, along with his assertiveness and ability to get to his spots. Along with this, Flagg continued to embody his Duke playstyle, driving downhill and forcing contact, resulting in highlight plays, easy points at the line, and forcing defenders into foul trouble.
Considering Flagg’s excellent play to end the season in tandem with Knueppel’s season-ending struggles, the Maine Event will more than likely receive the Rookie of the Year, a much-deserved accomplishment. Flagg has quickly become a savior for Mavs fans and the organization, and it’s imperative they construct a good roster around him.
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