Midseason 2025 Tiers

It’s been a weird NBA season—what with the Cavaliers and Oklahoma City both challenging for seventy wins, plus Houston coming out of nowhere to be the fifth-best team in the league. For SlamNation, 2025 has been topsy turvy as well, with two non-playoff teams from 2024 now in our top five, as well as the league leaderboard headed by SQSQ and ILCN, who were lower tier playoff teams last season. Last year’s regular season king, SCRM, is still duking it out at the top, but this regular season is certainly wide open with only seven weeks left to go! Let’s take a look at the tiers. [ Pre-Season: Russell | Chamberlain ]

CONTENDERS

#1 SQSQ (8-3)

ODE: 13/4/1

Feeding off the vibes from last year’s successful playoff run, SQSQ is throwing it back to three seasons ago when they last took a regular season crown. SQSQ ripped off five wins to start the season and have lost three of their last five—to SOUR, SWMP, MELO—but are still in prime position to lead the pack.

Featuring high efficiency and defense, SQSQ is first in FG% and third in TOS, while ranking first in BLK and fifth in STL as well. The block party is led by Anthony Davis but comes from all over, with 2025 RD1.11 rookie Alexandre Sarr, Daniel Gafford, Derrick White, and Tari Eason all averaging over one block a game as well. A little more offensive juice could take them one step up as well, as LeBron James and DeMar DeRozan seek a Slam title to wind up their careers.

A WK17 and WK18 end of the season matchup versus SWMP and then a rematch with MELO could really determine home court advantage throughout the playoffs for them. It’s great to see SQSQ up at the top, as LeBron and Bronny celebrated the NBA’s first father-son on-court duo. Maybe SQSQ can follow up KSKT’s title from last season!

#2 ILCN (7-3-1)

ODE: 12/7/3

We’ve been waiting for ILCN to put it all together for one season and make a title run, and this year might be it. Despite injuries to Paolo Banchero early—and now Luka Doncic—ILCN has weathered the storm of the hardest part of their season and look in good shape to continue their ascent—there was an 0-3-1 stretch from WK5-8, albeit against some good teams. After picking up some gimme wins in recent weeks, ILCN will now face a gauntlet of five teams with winning records in a row, which could determine if this team is fool’s gold or ready for an actual golden run.

ILCN is the top rated combined ODE team, with a very good efficiency and defensive rating. They are second overall in FG% and while they are very mid in PTS, REB, AST, the return of Banchero and Doncic will help those areas dramatically. The Cleveland duo of Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland are really leading the way for ILCN this season, just like in the NBA. With the second-best rated keeper core around, this could just the beginning of ILCN dominance.

#3 MELO (7-4)

ODE: 5/13/11

Jack is back, baby! Continuing their trend of one-good, one-bad, MELO is bouncing back from last year’s five-win season in a big way. It seems like MELO is a playoff team every other year and this is looking like their third playoff appearance, assuming things hold for them.

Playing at top speed, MELO is second in the league in  PTS, featuring plenty of 3PT, REB, and still a good FG% and decent TOS. Despite a lack of defense and not much passing—in addition to weak FT%—MELO is running and gunning behind Kevin Durant, Jaylen Brown, RJ Barrett, Pascal Siakam, and Brandon Miller. Add in the center duo Nikola Vucevic and Jakob Poeltl—having an incredible season—and MELO is deep and dangerous.

After roaring out of the gate with five wins straight, MELO did hit a bump with three losses in their next five games. However, their two wins during that span were versus SCRM and SQSQ, who are in the upper tier of teams. There’s no rest of MELO the rest of the schedule either, as they face six out of seven 0.500+ matchups to finish out. There’s matchups ahead against all three teams above them in this ranking so MELO fans better buckle up!

#4 SCRM (7-4)

ODE: 9/1/15

Despite a dip from the last few years’ blistering regular season pace, SCRM is still solidly on the contender list for 2025. They are slightly under the best of the best though, as they have suffered losses against the cream of the crop this season.

The main culprit here is the offense, which was a top-two unit last season, but only average this year. SCRM's issue is owning the league’s third-worst 3PT shooting, paired with the worst FT% around—even Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (7.9 FTA) and James Harden (7.3 FTA) can’t offset Giannis Antetokounmpo’s 60.5% on 11.1 FTA I guess—and some very high TOS.

The defense for SCRM is vicious though, as they are tops in STL and third in BLK. Dyson Daniels has been a revelation and the backcourt of SGA and Daniels combines for 5.2 STL per game!

It might be tough sledding for SCRM to vault into the upper echelons this season but the good news: they’re already through the tough part of their schedule, with mostly very beatable teams ahead, minus a WK15 and WK16 face off against SWMP and MELO respectively. SCRM should finish with at least five more wins and that’ll be enough to propel them into another title hunt…and a roster shifting trade is always a threat with this team.

#5 SWMP (7-4)

ODE: 2/5/6

Working on their ninth straight double digit regular season, SWMP was edged out of the playoffs last year but won the Toilet Bowl (again). They won’t be back this season to defend their TB title. As the only balanced team in the top five currently, SWMP has plenty of upside potential. They are great at PTS, REB, AST, STL, and FG%, while being pretty good in 3PT as well. SWMP is lacking sorely in the BLK department, with TOS usually a loss, but aside from no rim protection, there’s not many weaknesses here.

Zach LaVine has decided to play this season, giving a third wing behind Jalen Johnson and Jalen Williams. Heck, with LaVine and Cameron Johnson, SWMP has two of the NBA’s most talked about trade candidates at the moment. With Nikola Jokic doing literally everything, SWMP has the firepower to take down anyone at any time. There’s still three though matchups ahead for SWMP—starting off with WK12 versus ILCN—but this is truly a dangerous dark horse team for the playoffs.

THE MUDDLED MIDDLE

#6 BUFF (6-5)

ODE: 3/15/6

Looking for a return trip to the Finals, BUFF leads off the six teams hovering right above 0.500+. They’re first because, well, the alphabet, but they are also conceivably the best as well, with a recent 5-2 record after starting the season off with just one win in the first month. If they can pick up a WK12 win versus KSKT, the path is clear for a playoff run and they’ll get to take a full measure of themselves versus SWMP and MELO in WK16/17.

BUFF is using the same strategy as last year to power their success: a great offense filled with slinging the ball around and throwing up 3PTs. The twist however, is that BUFF’s efficiency is way up this season—a top six ranking—albeit at the cost of an equal downfall in their defense. BUFF is now ranked dead last in BLK and second-to-last in REB. But who cares about that, let’s watch Jalen Brunson, Coby White, and Brandon Ingram bomb away! 

There’s a slew of scoring-skewed wings on this team—Ingram, Bridges, Kyle Kuzma, Andrew Wiggins, Klay Thompson—so maybe a deal could help balance things out. We’ll see what BUFF will do as they have squarely returned back to respectability.

#7 CHMK (6-5)

ODE: 7/2/15

It’s a little surprising to see CHMK not higher in the standings and instead fighting for a playoff spot. After two eight-win seasons—and a long three years out of the playoffs—we thought CHMK would be working their way upward behind last year’s mega-deals for Anthony Edwards and Alperen Sengun. A 6-1 start to the season certainly looked promising but then CHMK lost four in a row—all to tough teams—and are now wondering if their brush with elite status was a mirage.

The scoring for CHMK has been really good, especially with 2025 RD5.6 Norm Powell playing like Kawhi-lite and Evan Mobley putting some offensive punch in his game, finally. Also, Jalen Suggs (RD2.9) has been a bigger offensive contributor as well until he got injured recently.

However, CHMK’s AST and 3PT are just average, giving this strange team a much better defense than offense. In fact, CHMK fields the second best defense in the league as they grab rebounds, defend the rim, and also swipe the ball at a top-two rate. I guess the cooks over at Monkey kitchen are still working out some ingredients. With a pretty strong offense-defense combo, it’s possible CHMK could also make another deal or two to push them solidly into the playoff picture.

#8 FUNK (6-5)

ODE: 8/11/4

A totally unbalanced team, this current iteration of FUNK is only good at two things: shooting 3PT and not turning the ball over. And when Myles Turner mans the middle, they are also somehow fourth in BLK with no other player averaging more than one. Otherwise FUNK are putrid in REB, AST, and FG%, while not putting up many PTS either. Basically FUNK is playing one-on-one and either throwing up a three or going to the free throw line.

One strength is negated by one weakness, and it’s an open question if FUNK will make it into the playoffs after earning the first overall pick last year. Oh yeah, that 2025 RD1.1 Reed Sheppard? Currently at 350 total minutes in his career and rarely used at all. A franchise altering selection for sure!

The good news? Um, Jayson Tatum fixed the hitch on his jump shot and is putting up ten and a half threes a game? Other than that, it’s been pretty crappy or injury across the rest of the roster, and pre-draft trade acquisition Lauri Markkanen has been misfiring all season. There is also now a yawning gap at point guard with Dennis Schroder landing in Golden State. This entire roster of wings plus Turner is looking at a major shake up if they want to make some noise this season.

#9 KSKT (6-5)

ODE: 4/9/13

Taking away efficiency, defending champs KSKT would still be one of the better teams in the league. However, they definitely aren’t the dominant team of the past two seasons as they’ve had their usual slew of injuries—primarily missing Zion Williamson and Kristaps Porzingis this season.

The roster is rock solid though, as evidenced by their title run. Cade Cunningham has gone up a level—even as Tyrese Haliburton has dropped one—and Anfernee Simons has been healthy all season long. KSKT is only first in one category this season: Games Played, but they are at least average-ish in all the other categories minus that crippling FG%.

Winning six in a row between WK4 and WK9 shows KSKT’s upside—two of those wins came against SWMP and ILCN— and should Williamson and/or Porzingis return by the fantasy playoffs, KSKT is just as well positioned to post a back-to-back as any title team in recent history.

#10 SBUK (6-5)

ODE: 14/11/2

We think this team is calling it quits (for the playoffs). Despite a slightly winning record—mainly powered by a 4-1 start—SBUK are losers of three of their last four and are now looking at being down Franz Wagner and Kyrie Irving for a few weeks.

This team can hang its hat on something though: leading SlamNation in FT%. The efficiency from SBUK keeps them in most games but the lack of offensive punch is a problem, and that was before Irving went down. In theory a healthier Joel Embiid could help in REB and BLK, but as he isn’t playing in back-to-backs, that’s at least a handful of games missed.

What’s the solution here for SBUK? Do they stay put and try to win, or do they pivot toward a more future oriented approach while their in-decline veterans still are producing? There is a possible layup line of FJUB, UFOS, and TRUO to end the regular season, so that might push SBUK toward a playoff run, but here’s hoping they look to retool before gearing up for a proper run at a title. Since we’ve never seen Josh engage in a roster overhaul, we vote for trade action from SBUK!!!

#11 SOUR (6-5)

ODE: 1/9/14

Our G.O.A.T. franchise hasn’t won a title in almost two years, should they panic?! Historically, SOUR has never gone longer than three years without a Finals appearance, so it’s possible they could be on the outside looking in this season.

However, SOUR does sport Slam’s number one offense, behind first rankings in 3PT and AST, with a fifth in PTS. That’s what happens when you pair up Steph Curry and Damian Lillard—acquired mid-2025 draft for Immanuel Quickley. Throw in a second in FT% and SOUR is working with four categories won almost every week. The problem is, they are also basically punting FG% and TOS, which leaves them at the mercy of REB, STL, and BLK.

Despite playing small ball with Draymond Green as the sole center—we don’t count rookie Donovan Clingan—SOUR is above average in REB as their forwards and guards all pull down very respectable numbers. The return of pre-draft trade acquisition Dejounte Murray has been a big boon to STL—and AST—while the suspension of Jimmy Butler might play out to be a plus as well once he lands on a new team.

SOUR’s 2-4 start has evolved into a 4-1 recent spurt—those four wins were in a row—so as always, it’s never a good idea to count out SOUR…

LIKELY ON LIFE SUPPORT

#12 SPDE (4-5-2)

ODE: 5/6/10

Can’t this team catch a break? I mean, the break after winning Viktor Wembanyama and Chet Holmgren and ranking as the best keeper core in SlamNation… Well, Holmgren has been hurt this season and while we assumed SPDE would never within smelling distance of the Toilet Bowl again, they are definitely standing at the bathroom door right now after coming out of the gate 1-4-2 in their first seven games.

Last week’s win versus MELO was the highlight of SPDE’s season so far but it could also portend for a big second half as Devin Booker, Tyrese Maxey, and a rejuvenated Tyler Herro should be plenty of firepower around Wembanyama. SPDE is very well balanced for a “bad” team, with a near top five offensive and defensive rating. They suffer from only bad FG% and TOS, but are very competitive everywhere else. How they’re not top-ranked in BLK with Wemby and Walker Kessler is beyond me, but  Holmgren’s eventual return will change that.

The roster is solid up and down, and now it’s just sit and wait to see how high—or low—SPDE wants to go this season. They’ve won three of their last four and only have on tough matchup in WK18 against SWMP to go. Should SPDE slip into the Toilet Bowl though, there’s a frightening world where they could get Wemby, Chet, and Cooper Flagg all on one team…

#13 FJUB (4-6-1)

ODE: 11/3/12

It has not been a great start to FJUB’s season, with one win, five losses, and one tie through the beginning of December. However, FJUB hasn’t finished under 0.500 since 2014—when they last missed the playoffs—so it’s unlikely they won’t find a solution out of their morass. They’ve already show signs of life, winning three of their last four games.

The outline is there for future success, as FJUB has been tops in REB, second in AST, and fifth in STL. They also are second in Games Played, showing that the effort is there. What’s missing is an offense, any offense. The Trae Young and Karl-Anthony Towns combo has only been enough to bring FJUB to thirteenth or worse in PTS, 3PT, FG%, and TOS. Getting so few PTS and 3PT on high TOS is tough. 

While Bradley Beal and Collin Sexton can fill it up, everyone else on this roster aside from those four are virtually offensive zeroes. The return of Isaiah Hartenstein adds an important defensive presence in the middle so that may have to be the formula moving forward. 

We’re guessing a better than 0.500+ record will be needed for the playoffs, and FJUB has three tough matchups left out of seven. To avoid the Toilet Bowl, this proud franchise is going to have to get to work!

#14 TRUO (3-7-1)

ODE: 10/14/6

The good news is that TRUO is on track to eclipse last year’s five win season. The bad news is that that might be their top end this year. A quick three win start to the year gave TRUO hope for a turnaround this season but they’ve remained winless since, going 0-7-1 and still counting. Note: This WK12 matchup is versus ABCX.

There is some good news though, as TRUO scooped up almost R.O.Y. candidate Jared McCain off the free agent wire. (McCain is outshining 2025 RD1.2 Zach Edey.) In addition, Cam Thomas, Jalen Green, and John Collins, and Jonathan Kuminga are all having career years.

So what’s going on? De’Aaron Fox and Julius Randle are both likely disgruntled, the chemistry on this team might be bad, and there are injuries galore right now for TRUO. The good news is that TRUO can shoot FT% wonderfully, and they can look to play spoiler in WK14 versus SCRM or WK16 versus SQSQ. Other than that, it’s time to prep for a deep Toilet Bowl run!

BOTTOM FEEDERS

#15 ABCX (1-9-1)

ODE: 15/8/9

No longer winless! ABCX got their first win in WK11, demolishing their chances of going back-to-back zero wins. Sure, it took an outing versus fellow down in the cellar team UFOS but a win is a win is a win! They’ll get another decent shot at winning this week, versus TRUO, but then the schedule really gets tough afterwards.

While ABCX hasn’t technically picked up any violations from their lineups this season, they don’t seem to know how to utilities their IR slots—Jaden Ivey just broke his leg, Ja Morant has been in and out, and Kelly Oubre Jr. is eligible right now too. Those IR slots could let Oliver gamble on some free agents, so we’d like to see some activity there.

The cool news is that LaMelo Ball is bringing highlights and stuffing the stat sheet; 2025 last pick RD6.16, rookie Yves Missi, has been nice in New Orleans; and Los Angeles’ best center, Ivica Zubac, is going wild in the new Intuit Dome.

It ain’t pretty for ABCX anywhere, but they are ranked second in REB behind Zubac, Jonas Valanciunas, and Missi. Those mashers also help ABCX to a decent FG% each outing. We can see another win on the horizon for ABCX coming, hopefully?

#16 UFOS (1-10)

ODE: 16/16/4

Spirits were high after WK9, as UFOS picked up their first win of the season, matching last year’s lone win already! That takes UFOS out of the running for a winless season and despite losing to ABCX last week, that’s already a semi-success. The question is: can UFOS pick up another win?

Lagging behind in Games Played certainly won’t do the job, as UFOS is the only team under 90% of the average Games Played mark. Currently they have 230 GP while the average for a Slam team is 260 over eleven weeks. Basically UFOS is totaling about one less week’s worth of stats than everyone else. That’ll have to be fixed for UFOS to have any shot at a second victory.

Unfortunately, a very young roster has had some injury issues—the latest to Jabari Smith Jr.—while also not having much top end talent. The mid-draft trade off of Damian Lillard for Immanuel Quickley has been hard to evaluate as Quickley has been in and out of the lineup. But hey, at least Jordan Poole is scoring, Bilal Coulibaly is growing, and 2025 RD4.15 rookie Bub Carrington is flashing. Are UFOS the Wizards? Sort of but it’s not all that bad. UFOS did have a very nice 2025 draft, hitting on Josh Giddey (RD1.4), Coulibaly (RD2.15), sort of Brandin Podziemski (RD3.2), and Carrington with their first four picks.

It’ll be at least one more year before UFOS can start to get to respectability, but the vision is there at least. Draft well, wait for youth to mature, and try to get some more Games Played in!

2025 Pre-Season: Russell

After a nice and easy 2025 draft, we're here to look at the new SlamNation season! Good luck everyone! [ 2025 Chamberlain | 2024 End of Season: Playoff Teams | Toilet Bowl Teams ]

TeamID - Abbrev - Name (2024 Record, 2023 Record)

#1 FJUB Fat Jubas (10-8, 12-7-1)

Having made their mark in last season’s playoffs by pulling off a huge first round upset over the twin seven-foot rookies from SPDE, FJUB was only slightly disappointed to be upset themselves in the next round by eighth-seeded SQSQ.

Heading into 2025 with their playoff streak intact—ten in a row, and having only missed one playoffs ever—FJUB is actually a totally brand new team after last season’s moves. From a keeper roster that featured Fred VanVleet and Brook Lopez to one that is now headlined by Trae Young and Karl-Anthony Towns, FJUB has dramatically transformed their keeper core—replaced all six plaeyrs—in a way that SlamNation has rarely seen. While the new core didn’t rate that high on our recent keepers tiers analysis, there’s no denying that FJUB’s future is very bright as they chase their third title.

Headlined by the NBA’s first overall pick, Zaccharie Risacher (2025 RD1.10)—FJUB’s draft also brought in Keon Ellis as an intriguing three-and-D piece, along with Grayson Allen and Corey Kispert as floor spacers. While Herb Jones and Isaiah Hartenstein are defensive stalwarts, the FJUB roster is constructed to be offense-first, with Young, Towns, Bradley Beal, and Collin Sexton firing away. It’ll be interesting to see if this brand-new FJUB can continue the success of a proud franchise that is always in the contender mix, regardless of what the prognosticators say.

#2 CHMK (8-9-1, 8-12)

A pair of eight-win seasons and three years out of the playoffs marks a nadir for the CHMK franchise. Despite two straight Toilet Bowl wins in 2022-23, CHMK managed to only pull Jabari Smith (2023 RD1.1) and Amen Thompson (2024 RD1.3) from the lottery grab bag. Smith was traded after his rookie year and while Thompson has lots of promise, he certainly wasn’t last year’s rookie of the year, even accounting for Wemby-mania.

However, despite those top of the draft misfires, CHMK has been outstanding in mining Jalens, with the results speaking for themselves as they now have Anthony Edwards and Alperen Sengun after cashing in two three-for-one trades last season. Edwards accelerated to mega-superstardom incredibly quickly and is now poised for an MVP-type season. The defensive backbone of Bam Adebayo and Evan Mobley are also second to none and adding Jalen Suggs (RD2.9) will further give them a point of attack.

To put themselves back into the playoff picture however, CHMK is counting on a bounceback season from Jamal Murray, further growth from Thompson, and the mercurial D’Angelo Russell (RD1.5) to support the main core. Taylor Hendricks (RD3.6) was a great upside pick but we feel like Mike Conley (RD2.11) is about to be the washed king soon, as he’ll likely be on a minutes restriction in Minnesota.  The additions of Tari Eason and Norman Powell are nice value picks though. The intriguing news: someone drafted Bronny James (RD6.11) and it wasn’t a Lakers fan, shocking! Here’s hoping we get to see Ant-Man in the 2025 Slam playoffs!

#3 FUNK (8-9-1, 12-8)

After six straight playoff appearances, FUNK dipped back into the Toilet Bowl. The silver lining was that they made it to the Toilet Bowl Finals and due to the SWMP Rule, “earned” the top pick in the 2025 draft. In a year with no clear standouts however, FUNK chose to go with Reed Sheppard at number overall pick, and belatedly realized he was not categorized as a point guard. Pre-draft, FUNK had already traded away Dejounte Murray—straight up for Lauri Markkanen—leading to a draft that unfurled with plenty of guard options.

The two-headed monster duo of Terry Rozier (RD2.12) and Dennis Schroder (RD3.5) will have to handle point duties for the strong forward core of the team, featuring new NBA champion Jayson Tatum, Markannen, OG Anunoby, and Trey Murphy III. With Devin Vassell ailing, the rest of FUNK’s draft was more guards—Malik Monk and Jordan Clarkson—as they have semi-floor spacers Myles Turner and Wendell Carter Jr. manning the middle.

Once a team full of up-and-coming franchise level stars, FUNK find themselves in a transitional year as they look to get back into the playoffs with a roster that is young vet heavy but light on upside, minus Sheppard. This is a roster built to win now, the question will be if they can?

#4 UFOS (1-17, 3-16-1)

It took a few months for UFOS to find their footing, but by the end of the season, UFOS got a better handle on the complicated Games Played cap and should roll into their sophomore season with a better grasp of how to play with the big boys.

Rolling over almost all of their keepers from the 2024 dispersal draft—only adding Onyeka Okongwu in place of Cameron Johnson—UFOS made a huge splash pre-draft, moving on from Damian Lillard, their only true blue star player. In return, UFOS acquired Immanuel Quickley, whose youth will much better align with the rest of this squad.

The frontline of Jabari Smith Jr., Jarrett Allen, Okongwu, and Nic Claxton is rock solid, and the clear strength of this team. Josh Giddey was tossed aside by Oklahoma City but drafted at 2025 RD1.4 by UFOS, who clearly have big hopes for his multi-purpose stats in Chicago. Sophomores Bilal Coulibaly (RD2.15) and Brandin Podziemski (RD3.2) will be given even more opportunity to shine, and another fellow sophomore, Jarace Walker (RD5.2) has talent if not a direct line to playing time.

Also, rookies Bub Carrington and Rob Dillingham were brought on board for a full youth movement. With Quickley and Jordan Poole—who can’t be worse than last season—alongside the big centers, UFOS have defined strengths at least to pick up a few more wins that last season. With their feet now wet from their first fantasy basketball experience, UFOS will look to build and grow!

#5 TRUO (5-13, 4-15-1)

It’s been a long six seasons of single digit wins for TRUO, and their previous string of playoff appearances are far behind them in the rearview mirror. When can they start their re-ascent? With De’Aaron Fox and Jalen Green in the fold, at least the backcourt seems set—especially with Cam Thomas possibly putting up so many shots this upcoming season that his arm might fall off.

There are larger questions surrounding the rest of this roster though. Will Julius Randle put up another All-NBA season? Can Jonathan Kuminga finally break through? Is Keegan Murray (2023 RD1.4) a better NBA player than fantasy asset? TRUO was able to upset CHMK in the Toilet Bowl, earning themselves a top-two pick in this year’s draft. That selection was used on Zach Edey (2025 RD1.2), who has Rookie of the Year potential, but is likely to have a high floor, low ceiling career as his unique stature is more a change-of-pace option.

Aside from Edey, TRUO’s draft was mostly safe options like John Collins, Alex Caruso, and the venerable Chris Paul (RD6.6). Andrew Nembhard and GG Jackson II are very nice role players for their NBA teams, but fantasy wise are still likely a little boxed in for minutes. At the end of the day, the hopes for TRUO to hit 0.500 again rest largely on Green’s ascendance—and maybe Kuminga. Here’s hoping TRUO can start some forward momentum in 2025 and get more than five regular season wins this season, at least.

#6 SWMP (10-8, 12-8)

Our 2025 Toilet Bowl champions! The last two TB victories for SWMP resulted in Markelle Fultz (2018 RD1.1) and DeAndre Ayton (2019 RD1.1), who are both famously not the best player in their respective drafts. Perhaps having learned a valuable lesson, SWMP instead went with a non-rookie with their pick this year, choosing sophomore Keyonte George (RD1.3) as he’s already flashed some star upside.

Having already made some big moves last season—moving Alperen Sengun for Jalen Williams and Jalen Johnson—SWMP entered the 2025 draft down their RD2 and RD3 picks, but recouped a third-rounder with a trade off of Bradley Beal. SWMP’s draft was mostly for role players with the likes of Cameron Johnson (RD3.10), Ayo Dosunmu, rookie Dalton Knecht, and Max Strus offering some light shooting and offense, but nothing that will push SWMP up a level.

Much like the real life Nicola Jokic, there seems to be a need for some filling out of the roster to get SWMP back to championship level. Paul George and Zach LaVine are great on paper, but both are injury prone, to say the least. That will put a lot of pressure on Williams and George to head the backcourt, and for Jalen Johnson to really blow up this season—which we think he will. Was 2024 just a brief hiccup in SWMP’s chase for a long awaited title? Or is it the start of a slow decline?

#7 MELO (5-13, 10-10)

Four years into SlamNation, MELO fans have experienced some whiplash action, seesawing from eleven wins to three wins, back to ten, and then last year collapsing to five again. History would indicate a winning season for MELO this year, and they certainly are the strongest MELO team we’ve had on paper.

Finals MVP and NBA champ Jaylen Brown and Kevin Durant are great cornerstones to build a team around, and it looks like sophomore Brandon Miller will follow in their footsteps as a great wing player. Pascal Siakam will have renewed life in Indianapolis, as does RJ Barrett, now returned to his native Canada. That gives MELO a great nice forward rotation, buttressed by Jerami Grant (RD2.13) as well. Incoming rookie Stephon Castle (RD1.7) is another do-everything type of player and gives MELO some upside to invest in.

Solid veterans Jakob Poeltl, Marcus Smart, and Aaron Gordon (RD5.4) will be plug-and-play, and even with everyone simply matching their career averages, MELO should be much better than last year already. Will that mean a second appearance for them in the playoffs? We can sure hope so!

#8 KSKT (12-5-1, 16-4)

It only took four seasons for KSKT to rise from six wins to a 2024 championship, and KSKT’s storybook franchise saga continues as they return the exact same keeper core for the second year running. The oldest player there is Kristaps Porzingis, at twenty-nine, but everyone else is still in their young to mid twenties. This is a team that has proven their championship mettle and is still getting better, as Cade Cunningham, Tyrese Haliburton, Zion Williamson, and Anfernee Simons could all go up another level, at least.

With Porizingis out for a few months, Clint Capela (RD1.16) will step in as the nominal starter, with Kelly Olynyk (RD3.14) tapped to simulate Porzingis’ big man shooting when necessary. Without many holes to fill besides at center, KSKT drafted Donte DiVencenzo (RD2.3), PJ Washington, and De’Anthony Melton as difference making role players and additional shooting. Late pick Tidjane Salaun (RD5.14) is one of KSKT’s signature rookie bets that could pay off handsomely.

Overall, injuries will likely determine if KSKT can repeat, but if healthy, this is the Slam team best positioned to repeat in recent history—something that hasn’t been accomplished since SOUR went three-peat in 2015-17. All hail the young king!

2025 Pre-Season: Chamberlain

Back with our pre-season team previews! [ 2025 Russell | 2024 End of Season: Playoff Teams | Toilet Bowl Teams ]

TeamID - Abbrev - Name (2024 Record, 2023 Record)

#9 SQSQ (10-8, 7-13)

It’s been a couple up and down seasons for SQSQ lately, as they’ve built to contend but have been unable to coalesce into championship form, dipping from winning season to seven wins and then back again like a yo-yo. However, during the 2024 playoffs, SQSQ got some serious payback against SCRM, as they pulled off the #8 vs #1 upset, taking out the juggernaut SCRM squad. (Back in 2022, #8 SCRM took out #1 SQSQ in the first round…) That had to feel amazing and even though SQSQ lost in the next round to eventual champion KSKT, the 2025 trophy still made it to the SQSQ/KSKT household as the father helped push the son to the mountain top. Amazing!

Now, for SQSQ to earn a title of their own, they’ll need some serious help from Father Time. LeBron James, DeMar DeRozan, Jrue Holiday, and even arguably Anthony Davis are all past their primes. Recall the huge Giannis Antetokounmpo trade from last season, which has now resulted in Giannis for Davis, DeRozan, Buddy Hield (2024 RD2.2), and Derrick White (2025 RD1.12). This is a win-now squad if we’ve ever seen one—this side of SCRM.

The 2025 draft brought in White, but also RD1.11 Alex Sarr, who has all kinds of physical potential, but may be quite the hit-or-miss prospect, depending on the pundit. It’s just as likely sophomore Julian Strawther (RD5.9) or fellow rookie Kel’el Ware (RD4.8) has as much short term fantasy impact as Sarr. However, Sarr gives this aging team some upside at least, along with last year’s RD1.2, Scoot Henderson, who has goggles now and hopefully a clearer view of the basket. And we can’t overlook the double Bogdanovic pairing of Bogdan and Bojan, which will make for fun vibes at the very least. We assume this is SQSQ’s last year to really push for a title, and we’re excited to see what the front office will do to pursue that goal.

#10 ABCX (0-16, 6-14)

Where is there to go after a winless season? Nowhere but up, right?! Despite recent troubles, ABCX was actually a playoff team just two seasons ago, as the Ja Morant and LaMelo Ball combo looked like an incredible duo. Instead, both have hit upon injury—and off-court related—hard times and ABCX floundered last season, racking up the worst regular season in SlamNation history—Jedi Knights went 0-18-1 in 2017.

Without much in-season of offseason movement, ABCX returns five keepers, with Jaden Ivey replacing Bobby Portis. Critics decried the keeping of Kelly Oubre Jr., but it’s possible he’ll start in Philadelphia. Still, other owners wondered if ABCX should have traded a future pick for a better keeper. We move on however! The return of Morant, Ball, and Bennedict Mathurin should give this team some semblance of competitiveness and scoring punch.

There will be certainly beef inside to help out all these guards, as ABCX elected to keep Jonas Valanciunas—one of the longest running Slam keepers at eleven years and running, and the lone non-All-Star—and then selected Jusuf Nurkic (RD1.8) and Ivica Zubac (RD2.16) to open their 2025 draft. That’s three non-shooting mashers to rebound and defend and while that sounds great for an actual NBA team, we’re worried ABCX isn’t in a position to do anything but aim for upside right now. Aside from arguably Keldon Johnson (RD4.16) and last overall pick 2025 RD6.16 rookie Yves Missi, ABCX is really going for the veteran low ceiling selections.

Maybe just getting a few wins for this team will be a win this season, but for a once proud franchise, something must sell tickets besides the promise of Ja and LaMelo not in street clothes.

#11 BUFF (12-6, 7-13)

What a show BUFF put on last season, as they went from seven wins in 2023 to a Finals berth in 2024. It had been a decade since BUFF last went to the Finals and it looks like they’re raring to go again with a draft heavy on veterans and a new keeper core featuring Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges, and Coby White—a trade acquisition pre-draft. The all offense keeper core maintains their identity and adds almost keeper Klay Thompson (RD1.9), Brook Lopez, Russell Westbrook, Andrew Wiggins, Harrison Barnes, and um, sixth round flier Lonzo Ball—his career is over, right?

Trading off a top-five fantasy NBA player in Anthony Edwards is tough for any fan base to digest, but the Finals appearance and the magic of turning Edwards into Brunson and Bridges makes for a much deeper team. Domantas Sabonis is a beast in the middle, while ex-Lakers Brandon Ingram and Kyle Kuzma are basically sort of the same player now...right?

What does that all add up to for BUFF? To be honest, we’re not really sure. Going this veteran heavy is a staple of BUFF’s drafts, but with everyone minus some of the keeper core on the downsides of their careers, is there enough oomph to power them to another title chase? Believe in Brunson!!!

#12 SOUR (10-7-1, 14-6)

It’s strange to have SOUR so sitting so far outside of the title picture. A ho-hum regular season led to a quick first round exit to eventual champs KSKT and SOUR’s repeat hopes were dashed pretty quickly. Our 2023 title holders are no stranger to change though and have already pulled off two transformative moves: trading for Dejounte Murray pre-draft and then Damian Lillard during the draft, losing Lauri Markkanen and Immanuel Quickley in the process.

With Olympic hero Steph Curry back again, as well as Jimmy “I’m Angry” Butler, on a revenge tour, SOUR is looking to contend again asap. Scottie Barnes is a franchise level Swiss knife, and while Miles Bridges is still a terrible human, he’s a fine fantasy player. The defense for this team will come from the five-D trio of Deni Avdija (RD1.13), rookie Donovan Clingan (RD2.6), Draymond Green, another rookie Ryan Dunn, and Andre Drummond. Actually, is that what GM Trieu is doing? Collecting D-names? Dejounte, Damian, etc.

Whatever SOUR’s strategy, we can look forward to a regular season that won’t find them so far out of the regular season spotlight, as Curry, Lillard, and Butler all have a lot to prove this year, and a title for SOUR is never too far out of reach.

#13 SBUK (10-8, 12-8)

Another title winning franchise that is getting a little long in the tooth, SBUK has slipped from 13-6-1 in their 2022 championship year to 12-8 in 2023, and then a less than enthusiastic 10-8 last season--a record that put them just outside the playoff picture. The core of Joel Embiid, Rudy Gobert, Kyrie Irving, and CJ McCollum stay the same and there’s plenty of upside for both Franz Wagner and last year’s pre-draft acquisition Desmond Bane. An upset by UFOS in round one of the Toilet Bowl was, well, upsetting, and that left SBUK without one of the top picks in the 2025 draft.

However, it seems like SBUK ownership knows it needs to invest in a semi-youth movement, and they went all upside for their draft, starting with RD1.6 Ausar Thompson, who was selected at the exact same spot in 2024 as well, albeit by TRUO. It’s not often a rookie is cut so fast, but Thompson has a very polarizing game. The hope is that Thompson’ll grow in his sophomore year. SBUK also brought in a trio of bigs to perhaps take over the reins from Embiid and Gobert. Naz Reid, Trayce Jackson-Davis, and Nikola Jovic have all shown flashes of being big contributors for their NBA teams, and the hope is they’ll show the same for SBUK.

Adding in Kevin Porter Jr. (RD4.10) and Tre Mann (RD5.7) also gives SBUK some much needed additional scoring. In a semi-transition year, it’ll be interesting to see if SBUK can trend back up for one more push at contention, or if this is the beginning of their team revamp. 

#14 SPDE (13-4-1, 7-13)

What is there even to say about this team? The old, emphasis on “old,” version of SPDE was a consistent threat on paper but they consistently fell short due to health issues. After a spectacular 14-4-1 2020 regular season, SPDE has gone 14-42 since. Well, when you get Victor Wembanyama and Chet Holmgren exploding on the scene, your franchise direction changes abruptly! The two super rookies powered SPDE to almost as many wins in one year as they had the previous three, and now give SPDE the best keeper core in SlamNation.

With Devin Booker, Tyrese Maxey, and Tyler Herro surrounding the trees in the middle—did we mention Walker Kessler was a keeper as well?—all SPDE needs is some forward types to fill in the gaps for a complete roster. With that in mind, SDPE brought in old standby Tobias Harris (RD2.2) and defensive ace Jadne McDaniels (RD5.15) to fill out the starting roster, and then took in Austin Reaves, Malcolm Brogdon, and Ben Simmons (RD4.2) for additional guard depth. With another center drafted last in Nick Richards, SPDE certainly will be looking to dominate the paint.

It may be too soon to call this a championship caliber team but Wemby and Chet seem capable of scaling any heights. We’ve love to call this the year of SPDE, even if they aren’t the direct favorites for the 2025 title!

#15 ILCN (11-7, 13-7)

With a roster brimming with talent, ILCN continues to be very good, but not great, and the question is when they’ll put it all together for a dominant regular season. Despite having racked up double digits wins in each of the last four seasons, ILCN has never been higher than a fourth seed. In fact, ILCN is still looking for their first playoff win ever—in three tries, minus the aborted 2020 postseason. The franchise’s main claim to fame is getting to a Toilet Bowl finals in 2022—the lone year from that span they didn’t make the playoffs. 

It’s certainly hard to fault the roster, as ILCN is carrying over all their keepers from a year ago and rank as the second-best keeper roster moving forward. Luka Doncic, Donovan Mitchell, and Darius Garland are as complete a backcourt as one can hope to assemble. The emergence of Paolo Banchero solidifies a forward spot, with Jaren Jackson Jr. sort of on-and-off dominating on defense. The wild card, twenty-one year old Shaedon Sharpe, is a fine prospect as well.

The 2025 draft brought in a bounty of riches as well, as ILCN had an extra third and fourth round pick from the 2024 trade off of Walker Kessler and Bradley Beal. ILCN took their own rookie from last year, Dereck Lively (RD1.15), to start things off, and then reeled off Josh Hart, Mark Williams, and fellow sophomore Jaime Jaquez Jr. before most teams had even fleshed out their starting eight.

Using their extra picks to mine for potential sleepers, ILCN then took rookies Matas Buzelis (RD3.12) and Cody Williams (RD5.12), before another sophomore, Noah Clowney (RD4.5) to finish things off—while adding Caris LeVert as a stop-gap in the last round.

While ILCN has always dealt with many injuries, the fanbase is demanding a longer run in the playoffs this season, as Luka and Co. are looking to make an impact in SlamNation aside from enviable roster construction.

#16 SCRM (16-1-1, 15-4-1)

In perpetual championship or bust mode, SCRM is always a thrill ride to follow. Following up their astounding 15-4-1 2023 regular season, SCRM stepped up to the plate in a big way in 2024, acquiring not only Giannis Antetokounmpo but also Kawhi Leonard as well. Both of them have championship pedigree and while they both cost a pretty penny, SCRM showed out with a regular season winning 16-1-1 record last year. Alas, SCRM was upset by eighth-seeded SQSQ in the first round, which left a lot of unfinished business heading into 2025.

Unafraid to make more moves, SCRM was already down a few 2025 early round selections but then sent off another one for Jalen Duren—while recouping a pick by selling off Coby White. The one-two punch of Antetokounmpo and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander are a force to reckon with, and the backcourt of James Harden and Fred VanVleet fit the core very well.

Without a pick unit the fourth round, SCRM drafted Jeremy Sochan (RD4.1) and Khris Middleton (RD4.4) before adding Dyson Daniels and rookie Ron Holland II  (RD6.4). With a roster thin post-draft, SCRM was understandably active at the first waiver wire, grabbing Rui Hachimura, Jalen Smith, Jonathan Isaac, and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope to round out the roster.

There’s no doubt this team will be a top contender—even without Leonard’s services—and we can’t rule out the possibility that another big move could reshape the team, but SCRM’s time will need to be now if they want to win a long awaited title. We hope they get that shot at a Finals berth in 2025!

Playoffs Teams: 2024

[ Power Rankings 2024 | Toilet Bowl Teams 2024 | One-Third Power Rankings 2024 ]

#1 SCRM (16-1-1)

ODE: 2/1/5

Capturing his first regular season championship in SlamNaton, SCRM has been on a steady climb ever since entering the league four years ago: from seven to eleven to fifteen and now sixteen wins—in a shorted schedule no less. With just a single WK1 loss and a tie versus KSKT in WK11, SCRM basically ran the table and will enter the 2024 playoffs as the heavy favorite for a ring.

Never one to rest on his laurels, GM Jordan shook the league with three mega-deals this season—acquiring Giannis Antetokounmpo pre-draft, moving all-in for Kawhi Leonard early on, and then divesting themselves of Karl-Anthony Towns late to acquire some additional postseaon depth. SCRM is top-ranked in PTS, REB, AST, STL, and FG%, while being very good in BLK as well. With a mostly healthy roster headed into our last few weeks, it looks like SCRM will be the clear team to beat. All they have to do is put the cherry on top of a banner 2024 regular season to give this franchise its first title!

#2 SPDE (13-4-1)

ODE: 6/2/5

Welp, after three down season, SPDE is fully back to their dominant regular season selves. Adding two generational seven-footers didn’t hurt, as both 2024 RD1.1 Victor Wembanyama and 2023 RD1.2 Chet Holmgren were better than advertised as rookies, powering SPDE back into contention in an instant. SPDE the season off well but really hit their stride late, wrapping up the regular season 7-1, as Wemby fully took off. A late October trade-off of Kawhi Leonard—for Walker Kessler and Bogdan Bogdanovic—seemed great then, but a fully healthy Leonard has powered top-seeded SCRM to regular season greatness.

However, this first season of Wemby-Chet has to be considered the floor for the new-look SPDE as they are not only young but extremely stacked. Tyrese Maxey emerged as an All-Star this season and even with injuries still plaguing the roster throughout, SPDE spanked teams down the stretch. SPDE was tops in BLK (obviously), but also lead SlamNation in FT% and are top five in PTS, 3PT, and STL. Entering the playoffs, they are missing a significant portion of their star power, as it looks like Devin Booker, Maxey, Tyler Herro, Kessler, and even Wembanyama have injury issues. However SPDE finishes the season however, they can already go into 2025 as the likely favorites, and maybe forever more?

#3 KSKT (12-5-1)

ODE: 2/11/12

Our repeat Chamberlain Conference winner started the season off on a seven win game streak before a troubling midseason stretch had them going just 2-4-1 as they got upset time and time again. Some of that was due to the injuries to Tyrese Halliburton and Cade Cunningham—the dual-turbo backbone of KSKT—so once they came back, the team rounded back into shape and are now the second-favorites for the 2024 title.

An explosive backcourt surrounding Zion Williamson and Kristaps Porzingis are a handful for anyone, and it looks like everyone’s healthy, which is a huge factor for this team. KSKT’s offense is rated second overall, as they shoot threes and pass with the best. However, their lack of rebounding and defense could be exposed come the playoffs against the wrong matchup. However, KSKT’s roster is deep and talented throughout and a championship breakthrough is overdue after last year’s semi-final upset at the hands of eventual champ FJUB. Playing under the radar most of the season, KSKT might be aligning right in time for an epic playoff run.

#4 BUFF (12-6)

ODE: 3/10/15

After only one winning season over the past decade, BUFF surprised everyone this year with a stunning ascension to home-court advantage in the first round and a top-four playoff seed. Bravo! After a slow 0.500 start to the year, BUFF hit their stride at the end of December and went 9-1 over the next ten weeks, with only a WK13 loss against FJUB. They were an excellent offensive team—with good PTS and AST—while struggling with STL, BLK, and FT%.

Interestingly, there wasn’t much substantive roster change—minus a Spencer Dinwiddie for Ben Simmons keeper swap, and the usual slew of rental veterans from the 2024 draft—but this BUFF team just simply outperformed their predecessors. With the team finally pointed upward, it was a bit of a shock to see twenty-two year old All-Star Anthony Edwards traded away right before the postseason, even as it brought back Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges, and Jalen Duren. With such a significant roster move pre-playoffs, it’s hard to gauge how well BUFF is positioned for a playoff run so for now we’ll laud their stellar regular season bounce back!

#5 ILCN (11-7)

ODE: 4/2/15

A team bursting with talent and conceptually on the rise, ILCN should have been going full-bore toward a title run this season. Instead, ILCN stumbled out of the gate with four losses in their first five weeks and we thought the team was going straight downhill. However, even as injuries piled up, ILCN found itself re-balancing and then used a six-game win streak to finish the season as an outside-ish contender. With just one win separating them from possibly being in the Toilet Bowl, it wouldn’t be accurate to say that ILCN has a true shot at the title.

However, ILCN does possess giant-killing powers, as they are well balanced on offense and defense, and are only held back week-to-week by their poor free throw shooting—and second-to-last TOS. Still a young team, nearly everyone on the roster had a career year—especially Donovan Mitchell--but injuries truly did wreak havoc on ILCN. Entering the postseason, there is a likely scenario where Mitchell, Khris Middleton, and Dereck Lively II won’t suit up, nevermind the long-time absence of Shadeon Sharpe and Mitchell Robinson. It was a valiant effort to climb back into the playoffs, but short of a Luka Doncic led miracle, the 2024 ILCN story may end in round one.

#6 SOUR (10-7-1)

ODE: 5/9/8

Our defending champs were rumored to in a deal for an all-in defense, but alas the trade deadline came and went quietly for GM Trieu. It’s rare to see SOUR so quiet before the playoffs but we’ve heard there’s a new addition to the SOUR household so congrats! And let’s not forget that Trieu already flipped over five of their six keepers from 2023 to 2024, and in retrospect, most of those moves look like wins, especially in the case of Scottie Barnes, who had a breakout All-Star campaign. SOUR had a very good draft too, with potential keepers Miles Bridges, Immanuel Quickley, and Jonathan Kuminga picked up with their first three selections.

SOUR started off the season hot with four wins in their first five games, but the rest of their regular season unfolded erratically, with losses against not only future playoff teams but the bottom dwellers of the league. Closing the year on a 1-3 run took SOUR into the lower echelons of the playoff bracket and now they’ll have to fight their way to another repeat title. As always however, it would be foolish to count SOUR out, as they’ve stolen rings they should’ve never logically gotten. With Barnes and Lauri Markkanen ailing though, it could be a quick exit even with the potential playoff heroics of Steph Curry and Jimmy Butler accounted for.

#7 FJUB (10-8)

ODE: 7/8/9

Trolled by an outside source that assured owner Eric he was out of the 2024 playoffs, FJUB had already turned their attentions toward future when they found out they had back-doored their way to yet another playoff appearance. That’s fourteen out of fifteen appearances btw! Despite wanting to turn a page to the next generation of FJUB, this franchise just can’t help winning! Having already moved for Trae Young earlier this season, FJUB traded for Karl-Anthony Towns right before the postseason started, cementing their foundation for next year but having passed up contention this season—Young was out.

With an up-and-down regular season that featured five wins against teams with 0.500+ records, FJUB was hard to pin down. This version of FJUB was less defensive focused but they were still top-five in BLK, STL, and AST—along with 3PT and FT%, while lacking in PTS, REB, and FG%. However, all of those numbers had to change with so much of the roster shifted over. Heading into the postseason with Young out (and KAT now that we see the future), it’l be tough for FJUB to make an impact in this playoffs after last season's surprise Finals run but maybe they’ll still have enough to play spoiler for a round or two. [Editor: Sorry Eric, congrats on making the playoffs again!]

#8 SQSQ (10-8)

ODE: 12/6/3

It’s been a roller coaster tale lately for SQSQ, and this year’s version is in the playoffs after a 7-13 season in 2023. We love to see teams compete and like that SQSQ gave it their all to return to the title chase. With a roster full of super-vets like LeBron James, DeMar DeRozan, Bojan Bogdanovich, Jrue Holiday, and Mike Conley, it was the clear choice. Having already pulled of the mega of all mega-trades in exchanging Giannis Antetokounmpo for Anthony Davis pre-draft, karma gave Davis (and LeBron) a full year of health.

It took awhile for this team to gel however, as SQSQ was middling throughout most of the regular season before roaring to life with a 4-2 record down the stretch, highlighted by a WK13 upset against KSKT that likely secured them the playoff bid.

SQSQ is the rare playoff team that is winning through defense—we’ll call that the Davis effect—but their lack of PTS and 3PT can likely only carry them so far this postseason. If they could upset top-seeded SCRM though, wow! Also, are these the real-life Lakers with the exact same strengths and weaknesses? Additionally, it’s unfortunate that 2024 RD1.2 Scoot Henderson has suffered a disappointing second-year, but this playoff team could be the bright spot that takes the pressure off Scoot for a better sophomore campaign.

Toilet Bowl Teams: 2024

There were two teams in the Toilet Bowl with 0.500+ records this year, which happens from time to time. With a shortened eighteen game regular season schedule, and two bottom teams that went 1-35 combined, there were some wonky W-L records! [ Playoff Teams 2024 | One-Third Power Rankings 2024 ]

#9 SWMP (10-8)

ODE: 9/5/5

For a team that was always in the championship picture during 2019-2022, the last two years have been weird, seeing as this fully stacked roster has fallen a little step behind recent title favorites. Seeing SWMP in the Toilet Bowl is a total shock though, as they haven’t been here since 2017-2018, when they had 10-9 and 12-7-2 winning records and were so dominant in the TB that we had to create the “SWMP Rule” for them. Now SWMP are in the position of testing out that exact rule, as they are clearly a step above the rest of the teams in the Toilet Bowl but will be ineligible for the 2025 RD1.1 or RD1.2 picks. Sources say that a hard partying All-Star weekend had coach Eddie mismanage his games that week, likely leading to this TB appearance.

The wheels were already coming off a 9-3 start by All-Star weekend already though, as SWMP enters the postseason on a five-game losing streak. However, on paper, SWMP actually has the third-best combined ODE in the league, as they are very strong in REB, PTS, FG%, and AST. Another big aftermath of All-Star weekend was the trade that brought in Jalen Williams, Jalen Johnson, and rookie Keyonte George—at the cost of Alperen Sengun. Despite some injuries across the board, SWMP should still be able to ride a healthy Nikola Jokic and Paul George to a high draft pick next season, as they dip their toe back into the smelly toilet bowl waters after five years away. Remember the stench?

#10 SBUK (10-8)

ODE: 13/7/1

Another team that really has no business not being in the playoffs, SBUK is on a run of four very good regular seasons, but due to a weird “rich versus poor” regular season, a glut of 10-8 teams resulted in a shake out that left SBUK on the outside looking in. Despite a 5-2 start to the season, SBUK hit a four-game snag in mid-January before righting the ship late with two gimme wins versus UFOS and TRUO to end the year on a slight upswing. Now this former champ has a shot at the 2025 RD1.3 pick, if they can win the Toilet Bowl. Adding another top prospect might just be the jolt SBUK needs to vault back into regular season domination.

Already, the SBUK roster is nicely balanced between youth and veterans, with a positional overlap solved mid-2024 draft by acquired Desmond Bane for Jalen Brunson. Mostly, SBUK’s late season stumble was caused by the injury to Joel Embiid and Bane, which cratered this team’s offense. Without those two, the bulk of the scoring was left to Kyrie Irving and despite a resurgent year from defensive anchor Rudy Gobert, the missing Embiid was likely too much to overcome on both sides of the ball. Still, the talent is definitely here to win a Toilet Bowl, which would be SBUK’s first.

#11 CHMK (8-9-1)

ODE: 11/4/13

Showcasing their scouting department, CHMK cashed in on two year’s worth of superior drafts and free agent pickups to emerge with a core that now features Anthony Edwards, Jamal Murray, Bam Adebayo, Evan Mobley, Alperen Sengun, and rookie Amen Thompson. Back-to-back Toilet Bowl wins didn’t hurt either, although we’d contend that neither of those high picks—2024 RD1.3 Thompson and 2023 RD1.1 Jabari Smith Jr. will be the best players in their respective classes. However, going all-in on “Jalens” yielded great results and GM Evan had enough talent to pull off three separate three-for-ones in 2024, yielding Murray, Edwards, and Sengun. That’s general manager of the year material!

After starting off 5-2, CHMK hit a bad patch and then really slipped, as they went 1-5 to end the season versus a tough schedule. However, with no losses against sub-0.500 teams, a high pick is all but assured for CHMK. Ostensibly a defense-focused team, we don’t really know how to evaluate CHMK’s actual Toilet Bowl chances as they were stripped down to the studs and now Mobley is injured. Still, it might not take much for CHMK to sneak another porcelain crown this year—ironically the one season they would be eligible for a top-two pick in next year’s draft. If they should three-peat in the Toilet Bowl, we might have to make a “CHMK Rule,” right?

#12 FUNK (8-9-1)

ODE: 8/12/4

After six straight seasons in the playoffs, FUNK found themselves starting off okay before a winless month left them out of the playoff picture. Picking up some wins late was small consolation for a lost season. It wasn’t even much about injuries either, as only OG Anunoby missed any major time. The all-wing keeper core featuring Jayson Tatum, Trey Murphy III, and PJ Washington was mostly a disaster and former franchise point guard Trae Young was traded mid-season to acquire a starting center.

At least FUNK’s 2024 draft yielded Tyus Jones and Ivica Zubac, who were much-needed all season long, along with FAAB pickup Malik Monk. For a team that used to boast Tatum, Young, and Karl-Anthony Towns, the premiere talent has really washed away without much playoff success to show for it. This 2024 version of FUNK was middling in just about every category, aside from jacking up a lot of threes, albeit at a not great FG%. The core of the playoff run was built through back-to-back 2015-2016 Toilet Bowl wins—resulting in Towns and Ben Simmons—so maybe FUNK can fire up their winning ways again with a high draft pick next year.

#13 MELO (5-13)

ODE: 10/13/10

Through four regular seasons in Slam, MELO has put up a 29-45 regular season record, with one playoff showing from their rookie year. The good news is, 2024 was the year MELO really got that Games Played down, and their GP was excellent, as Coach Jack didn’t rack up one lineup violation! That alone is cause for celebration, even as MELO is still looking to build out its roster and get onto steady footing.

A nine-game winning streak in this weird season wasn’t even all that bad, relatively, and MELO did finish the year with three wins in five tries, and they have a shooter’s chance of securing a top-two draft pick next year. Kevin Durant and Jaylen Brown are great mentors for 2024 RD1.4 Brandon Miller, who is proving that he’s the best non-Wemby 2024 rookie around and has tremendous outside. Unafraid to make roster changes—they exchanged Lauri Markannen for Pascal Siakam pre-draft—MELO will look to keep stacking additional talent while working their way toward sustained respectability. Game on my friend!

#14 TRUO (5-13)

ODE: 13/15/14

We have been anticipating TRUO’s long anticipated return to regular season relevance, but another five-win season will make that five straight years with less than five wins each. This year, TRUO strung together losing streaks of four and six, the last one to end the year. So despite some early season excitement, TRUO is still sloshing around in the shallow end. 

On the bright side, 2024 RD1.6 Ausar Thompson had a great rookie season while De’Aaron Fox, Jalen Green, and Cam Thomas are all great bucket-getters. Frontcourt stalwart Julius Randle is hurt to end the year, but his numbers are always impressive. TRUO does really need some top end talent though, so a good Toilet Bowl run would be huge. Having their pick of a prime lottery talent could be the push TRUO is looking for.

Also, our king of moves, GM Thien has a streaming style that has unearthed great pieces like late season find Vasilijie Micic, but also caused TRUO to eject too early on the likes of rookie RD3.2 Keyonte George and RD5.2 Coby White—both of which could’ve been valuable keepers. Can we say which method is better? As always however, we respect the hustle!

#15 UFOS (1-17)

ODE: 16/14/1

Cousin Victor’s first foray into fantasy basketball was rough, as managing all facets of a premiere sports franchise can really have a steep learning curve. Salary caps, uniform designs, concessions, local bylaws, new arena headaches, figuring out interstellar exchange rates, it’s all very difficult! All of that resulted in six lineup violations for UFOS this season, with most of the first half of the year lost to coaching mix ups. Stat: UFOS averaged 21.5 games per week, while league leader SCRM had 25.8 games per week.

However, UFOS did not finish last, as they sandwiched a win versus ABCX in WK11 in-between losing streaks on either side. And they weren’t dead last in combined ODE either, as they had a fourteen-rated defense, with an almost-average BLK and FG% ranking, showcasing their strong frontline of Jarrett Allen, Nic Claxton, and Onyeka Okongwu. With Damian Lillard and Jordan Poole firing away, plus youngsters like Jabari Smith Jr., Deni Avdija, and Cam Johnson as potential keepers, this team has some talent and will be better served with a full season to evaluate their overall talent. While a Toilet Bowl victory—and an assured top-four pick likely won’t come this season, UFOS have a brighter future than should be expected on paper. Congrats on finished a full season in SlamNation!

Up next: UFOS will use FAAB to pick up more than one player next season—they nabbed Marvin Bagley III for one dollar back in Nov. Baby steps!

#16 ABCX (0-18)

ODE: 15/16/10

We all have our off days, every sports franchise has its down years. We’ll give ABCX the benefit of the doubt here, as their winless season—the worst in Slam history, overtaking Jedi Knight’s 0-18-1 2017 campaign—comes on the heels of a 11-9 season just two years ago. ABCX’s Games Played ranking was awful this year, but traditionally they are more around slightly below average and not in the cellar.

So we’ll just assume owner Oliver wasn’t paying much attention over the back half of the year, as LaMelo Ball has been out since mid-January and in the ABCX starting lineup—along with Bennedict Mathurin who has been out for awhile now too. And aside from a $0 FAAB pickup of Josh Hart in early January, there’s been no free agent activity from ABCX since November. 

We hope Oliver and ABCX is doing well and we’ll look forward to their bounce back season. Frankly, having Ja Morant and LaMelo Ball out would be cause for anyone to take a break. The good news is 2024 RD1.7 Jaden Ivey is finally getting minutes in Detroit and he’ll be the bright spot to remember this disastrous season.

2024: One-Third Season Power Rankings

In lieu of a Game of the Week, since we’re at six games done and exactly one-third of the way through the eighteen game regular season, we’ll do a quick spin through each of the teams. Take a look at the newly released ODE numbers too! [ 2024 Pre-Season: Chamberlain | Russell ]

The Favorites

Just like last year, these two teams are on top of the regular season—and leading their respective conferences—and can already start planning for the postseason.

#1 KSKT (6-0)

ODE: Offensive / Defensive / Efficiency

ODE: 1/9/11

Fresh off his first career triple-double in the first round of the In-Season Tournament, Tyrese Haliburton is looking to give KSKT a preview trophy for a possible SlamNation one later this year. Similar to the real-life Pacers, KSKT boasts the number one offense in the league. They've also barely been challenged on their way to an undefeated record—four of their wins have been by 7-2 scores—and their one close call against SWMP in WK4 was won by two three-pointers.

KSKT does have two slight weaknesses, which keep them from an overwhelming combined ODE: they are a mere twelfth in rebounds and fourteenth in free throw percentage. That latter number is mostly due to Zion Williamson’s 66.4 FT% on 7.1 free throws per game. Plus, Zion is only contributing about six rebounds per game, in contrast to Michael Porter Jr.’s outstanding eight. Could KSKT be even better with a trade-off of Williamson? Something for GM Matt to ponder. An early season surprise has been free agent Jalen Suggs’ solid contributions, especially his almost two swipes per game. Once Anfernee Simons returns, KSKT will be even stronger and that much better on offense.

For our best team of 2024 so far, we’re highlighting a two-game stretch of WK10 and WK11 versus SOUR and SCRM to determine if KSKT could perhaps go undefeated this season.

#2 SCRM (5-1)

ODE: 8/1/10

In contrast to our top team, SCRM is our top-ranked defense while leading the league in steals. Similarly to KSKT, SCRM also have two relatively weaker categories: free throw percentage (11th) and three point shooting (14th), but they are top-three dominant in four categories: STL, FG%, REB, and AST.

After an opening week loss and then escaping a near upset by winless ABCX in WK2, SCRM has been getting stronger even as their schedule has got tougher. That ramping success might coincide with acquiring Kawhi Leonard—and Ben Simmons—right after that WK1 loss to SPDE, as GM Jordan is looking for a title immediately and has filled out his roster accordingly.

The return of new-Clipper James Harden to the court has been a boon—6.4 AST, 2.4 3PT, and 1.6 STL—so as long as most of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Karl-Anthony Towns, and Leonard stay healthy, this could be the team to beat. Interesting tidbit: Antetokounmpo averages 9.9 FTA per game, at a blistering 65.4 FT%, while his other four co-stars combine for 19.9 FTA, at an average of 88.3 FT%. Can those four help lift this team to free-throw respectability? It's an interesting exercise to pair Giannis with so many great free throw shooters and we like the way it's looking so far.

The Contenders

Any of these next five teams could challenge for the 2024 title, and they are all familiar names at the top of the SlamNation success charts.

#3 SOUR (4-2)

ODE: 4/6/2

As the top-ranked combined ODE team—tied for that honor—returning champs SOUR are a huge threat to repeat. Their two losses this season have come against SPDE and SCRM, and they are only weak in one category: AST. They boast the best PTS and 3PT in Slam, and are top five nearly everywhere else, save BLK and AST.

Steph Curry and Jimmy Butler pace the team while third-year breakout Scottie Barnes has been an all-around dynamo and defensive presence. Seriously, Barnes has become a 19.6 PTS, 9.1 REB, 5.5 REB, with defense and efficiency, making him the prodigal son as he re-enters SOUR's roster after being drafted by Trieu 2022 RD1.5. A little seasoning on TRUO's roster was all Barnes needed to overcome an underwhelming sophomore year I guess! In fact, all of GM Trieu’s offseason moves have seemed to work out beautifully, and even with Lauri Markkanen on the mend—his absence has been offset by the return to action of Miles Bridges—this team is gonna be a hard to take down. To be the king you gotta beat the king, and Snails will rule SlamNation till they are dethroned!

Seriousy, we're very scared by SOUR, even if they aren't one of the technical favorites right now.

#4 SPDE (4-2)

ODE: 3/3/6

Tied with SOUR for best combined ODE, SPDE is leaping into the championship conversation this season, or perhaps, reaching up higher with their newly expanded wingspans? After three losing seasons, it’s safe to say SPDE is back to their traditional winning ways.

Even with Devin Booker, Tyler Herro, and new trade addition Walker Kessler coming on and off the injury list, SPDE has been picking up wins left and right. Their only big loss this season was to ILCN in WK6, but the’ve been dominant otherwise.

The ascension of Tyrese Maxey is a huge reason for SPDE’s early success, but we don’t want to overlook the solid contributions Tobias Harris, Saddiq Bey (51.2 FG%), Gordon Hayward, Dennis Schroder, and Bogdan Bogdanovic have made as role players. All this, plus the additions of rookies Victor Wembanyama and Chet Holmgren, who have both been better than advertised—minus Wemby’s shooting percentage woes.

The only dark cloud on the horizon for SPDE is possibly the situation with Josh Giddey (42.7 FG%) but we’ll see how that turns out. SPDE can only get stronger as they get healthier, so if anyone wants to take down this deep and talented team, they better hope to get lucky with the injury report. Two matchups versus SWMP, plus a face-off with KSKT in WK14 are all that could challenge SPDE for the rest of the regular season.

#5 SWMP (4-2)

ODE: 7/4/3

Once a perennial title favorite, SWMP has slipped to a tier below “DominAyton” the past two seasons. This year they are dealing with the non-existence of offseason trade acquisition Bradley Beal, and the apathetic play of Zach LaVine holding them ever so slightly back.

However, SWMP is still very very good, and top-two in REB, FG%, and STL, behind a very strong front line duo of Nikola Jokic and Alperen Sengun—the two centers lead this team in assists! Add in the double-double contributions of Deandre Ayton and all that’s needed for this team is to get their shooters back in action.

If Paul George should sit out for his customary missed games, SWMP could be in a bit of trouble until LaVine and Beal can steady out. As it stands, SWMP is below average in three pointers—and blocks, but that’ll likely stay a weakness as nobody averages even one block per game on this roster. Despite a surprising WK6 loss to FUNK, SWMP is in position to only get stronger as the season progresses.

#6 SBUK (4-2)

ODE: 12/4/3

Aside from a WK1 loss to SOUR, SBUK has only suffered a close-ish loss to SCRM, which bodes well for their playoff chances. They are strong defensively and have good efficiency—minus some fluctuating FG% issues—but they do seem to have one glaring area of need: better offense.

SBUK is average or below average in PTS, 3PT, and AST—especially the latter where they are third-to-last in the league. Last season’s version of SBUK didn’t have this problem and GM Josh’s 2024 draft was pretty offense-heavy so maybe this team just needs time to gel. (The early season injuries to CJ McCollum probably has a little to do with it too.)

The stable of shooters on SBUK—buttressed by mid-draft trade addition Desmond Bane—should be enough to lift this offense so it’s likely just wait and see. The good news is that defending NBA MVP Joel Embiid has been even better than last year—even adding 6.6 AST to boot—while the free-agent addition of Heat rookie Jaime Jaquez Jr. may contend for waiver wire pickup of the season. There’s only three more matchups against winning teams this season for SBUK so their fans can likely start blocking off vacation days for playoff season already.

#7 CHMK (4-2)

ODE: 11/8/9

“These statistics are not the intended outcome of my roster construction strategy.” Haha! CHKM is indeed just about average in most of their category ranks—and slightly below in combined ODE—but wins and losses don’t lie and they are riding a three-game win streak at the moment. They do face a very tough schedule going forward, featuring six matchups against teams ranked above them in this power ranking—including two versus SCRM—so it’ll be a battle ahead for our co-Games Played leader.

CHMK is up to the challenge however, as they are pretty sturdy across the board, and only rank second-to-last in three pointers—which is partially offset by their sterling FG%. A boost in steals and blocks wouldn’t hurt either, and a lot of that could be solved by a healthier Bam Adebayo.

2024 RD1.10 center Jalen Duren has been a revelation but the RD1.3 selection of rookie Amen Thompson has so far not paid many dividends. (A quick drop of RD3.10 Jeremy Sochan might have been a tad too hasty as well.) The good news is that GM Evan hit big on Jalen Johnson, making the all-Jalen draft strategy a strong three-for-three for CHMK. Another rookie pick, Bilal Coulibaly, is already almost a 1/1/1 guy as well.

Actually, with the mid-draft trade for Jalen Brunson—which cost Desmond Bane—Evan is four-for-four for acquiring successful NBA Jalens! The healthy return of another 2024 trade acquisition, Jamal Murray, should give CHMK the juice they need to make the playoffs again after back-to-back Toilet Bowl wins. Key takeaway: “Jalens” are good!

The Bubble Teams

These three teams—really two—could move their way up into the playoffs, or tumble back down the standings given a bad turn of events. But being mid-tier may be a great time to seek some trades!

#8 FJUB (3-3)

ODE: 9/9/3

We’ll give the benefit of the doubt to FJUB here: they’ll be a playoff team this year, just like the past nine seasons. However, their uninspiring start, with wins against three sub-0.500 teams, does have management questioning if changes should be considered.

Traditionally a defense-focused team, FJUB is actually slightly better on offense this season as opposed to last, while their vaunted defense has slipped even as their efficiency has improved overall despite a third-to-last FG%. What this team is really lacking in is STL—they were never a good REB team, dating back to last season. After ranking second in steals last year, FJUB has slipped back to the pack in 2024. It’s been Herb Jones (1.8 STL), and well, Herb Jones. Fred VanVleet dropped from 1.8 STL last season to 0.7 this year, and losing Chris Paul (1.5) and Killian Hayes (1.4) hurt the volume of thefts as well.

Rookie free-agent Cason Wallace has been a NBA defensive menace, but his steals numbers don’t reflect that. And offseason trade acquisition Jerami Grant’s stud defensive days are mostly behind him—he’s been great at putting up points though. FJUB has to decide if they’ll return to the defensive identity that has given them so much success, or if they’ll look to make some philosophical transitions.

If FJUB can steal a WK7 win against undefeated KSKT in a shortened In-Season Tournament week, they’ll have five more matchups against current 0.500+ teams left. Going chalk would likely still leave them a game or two above 0.500, giving them a low playoff seed. That’s the worst case scenario. If GM Eric has big moves ahead though, the ceiling for FJUB could get much higher!

#9 BUFF (3-3)

ODE: 2/13/14

An example of an entirely one-sided team, BUFF has pushed their good offense from last year into a great one this year, taking their PTS, 3PT, and AST to higher levels this season. It’s been with much the same roster too, subbing in Jordan Clarkson for Collin Sexton and Harrison Barnes for Tobias Harris. Anthony Edwards and Brandon Ingram are the offensive cornerstones here, with Kyle Kuzma doing an almost better than Ingram Ingram-impression.

However, BUFF have no rim protection, aren’t great at cleaning the glass, and only get a league average amount of steals. Combine that with middling percentages and BUFF is rightly about a 0.500 team—which would be an improvement over last year’s mere seven total wins. So this team is on-track for a possible second playoff berth in their last ten years, and that would be considered a success.

But here’s where BUFF’s fans cry…. “Will Roger regret passing up on rookie Ausar Thompson or someone with more upside like Jaden Ivey and Onyeka Okongwu?” Yes, yes! Instead of drafting Russell Westbrook at 2024 RD1.5, BUFF could of had rookie Amen Thompson—taken one pick after—whose outstanding all-around game would have filled many of this team’s glaring needs. Thompson’s 9.1 REB and 2.5 combined STL/BLK is exactly what the doctor would’ve ordered to take BUFF up past the level of a bubble team.

In BUFF’s defense, few predicted that Ausar would be the good twin, and debuted with those eye-popping numbers, but sometimes gambling is necessary when you’ve struggled to maintain respectability. Westbrook has been okay this season, but he is thirty-five years old and Thompson would have assured a brighter future for BUFF. Regrets, regrets!

#10 FUNK (3-3)

ODE: 6/12/13

A middling team that has mostly been inconsistent, FUNK has picked up two of their wins versus 0.500+ teams while suffering losses to presumed weaker squads. With exactly nine of eighteen matchups against current 0.500+ teams, FUNK is going to be hard pressed to return to the playoffs after six straight showings.

Basically a lower-voltage version of BUFF, FUNK is similarly also all offense and not much else. While they have increased their 3PT production this season—to top-two in the league—it has come at the cost of their already bad FG% and more concerningly, overall PTS, as they are ranked fifteenth and twelfth in those categories respectively.

There’s been a gaping hole at center all season long—with Kelly Olynyk completely whiffing this season—and Ivica Zubac has often been played off the court. This aspirational five-out team has mostly been just firing and missing. Defensive stalwart OG Anunoby has been a disappointment overall and unless the recent return of Trey Murphy III can somehow magically make up for defense and rebounding issues—not his strong suit—FUNK is much closer to the Toilet Bowl than to the playoffs despite their 0.500 record, which only came about due to a surprise WK6 victory over SWMP.

The Make or Break Tier

These four teams are headed the wrong way already and most are lacking in overall talent—with one exception—or suffering from lack of health.

#11 ILCN (2-4)

ODE: 5/2/16

After years of collecting talent, GM Frank went for a more “win-now” approach after last season’s 13-7 showing. Surprise, this team is now floundering—and suffered a four game losing streak recently! A lot of it is health related, as Darius Garland, Donovan Mitchell, Khris Middleton, and Jaden McDaniels have both bounced back and forth in the lineup due to injuries.

This team is still uber-talented, with Shaedon Sharpe getting far more minutes than expected on a depleted Blazers team, and the 2024 draft also unearthed RD3.13 Mitchell Robinson and RD4.4 rookie Dereck Lively III, both of whom have picked up the slack for Jaren Jackson Jr.’s slight regression in BLK and decreased FG% due to an increased offensive role.

Other than all that, things still look swimmingly on paper for ILCN, as Luka Doncic and Co. should be better than this. Despite basically punting FT% and TOS, they are above average in most of the other categories and elite in PTS and STL. When everything clicks, ILCN is still capable of beating any team, as evidenced by a WK6 7-2 win over SPDE.

With two more matchups against undefeated KSKT coming up, as well as three more against 0.500+ teams, ILCN will have a chance to show that they’re better than their record—perhaps much better—and could easily elevate themselves back into the playoff picture.

#12 SQSQ (2-4)

ODE: 14/7/8

The good news is that SQSQ is better than last season, as least by combined ODE, the bad news is that they’re still kind of bad, which could possibly get worse in a post-Giannis Antetokounmpo world if either LeBron James or Anthony Davis start taking a seat. The return of a healthy Bojan Bogdanovic—not to mention DeMar DeRozan—is much needed, as this team is severely lacking in PTS and 3PT. Their two wins have come against ABCX and ILCN this season, and a lot of difficult matchups lie ahead.

There are silver linings to focus on for SQSQ, namely the high FG% and the very high BLK numbers, as Daniel Gafford (2.1 BLK) is contributing a lot there. But that might be it for early season superlatives. Does SQSQ take a look at this team before the trade deadline and look to ship off The King and/or The Brow? Or can this veteran-heavy group regain some semblance of competitive spirit?

The pressing issue for the future is that 2024 RD1.2 Scoot Henderson has been a major disappointment so far in his rookie campaign. He’ll automatically get Tari Eason’s keeper slot next season, but Henderson’s actually been even worse than the similarly disappointing Eason. There’s no young star to rebuild around yet so SQSQ’s best bet might to take this group for a deep Toilet Bowl run and emerge with a high draft pick—just like last year.

#13 TRUO (2-4)

ODE: 10/11/14

The this-week dubbed “Sweet Splash” hasn’t been so sweet to start the year. While we love the name, perhaps being sour is better? The goal for TRUO remains to make an impact in the Toilet Bowl, even as their roster is constantly shifting. This year’s version has a lot of promise however, and we’re actually quite high on TRUO’s future.

Offseason trade acquisition De’Aaron Fox—returning to this roster once again—has been a revelation as he’s pushed his game to even greater heights. And nobody could’ve predicted 2024 RD4.15 Cam Thomas to start scoring at a 26.1 ppg clip, a number that seems outrageous but is proving to be sustainable. And then there’s RD1.6 Ausar Thompson, the jewel of the Thompson family, who has exhibited young-Westbrook energy and statistics. That’s quite the trio!

There is a void in the middle though, with all three rostered centers on injured reserve—Wendell Carter Jr., Steven Adams, and Brandon Clarke so it’s impressive that Thompson and Julius Randle have taken this team to a league average REB ranking. In fact, TRUO is about league average in 3PT and AST as well. Their main problem is a lack of shooting efficiency, as they are quite awful in both percentages—without good PTS to show for it—which leaves them playing from a 0-2 deficit every matchup.

If TRUO can even out one of those percentages, they could make some noise in their likely Toilet Bowl appearance. With a league-leading seven matchups left to go against 0.500+ teams, Coach Thien is up against the toughest rest of the regular season schedule. Good luck, we’ll be cheering for you!

#14 MELO (2-4)

ODE: 13/13/12

We’re overwhelmed by MELO’s new coaching hire this season, as whoever the new person in charge has been putting in fantastic Games Played this season. Great work! Unfortunately, getting all those games in have left MELO at the bottom of the combined ODE rankings, as they are slightly below average in every category, with a bottom-four ranking in STL. However, combined ODE can sometimes lie, and being average across eight of nine categories is actually not a bad thing. Despite not taking a win off a 0.500 team (yet?), MELO is likely just a bit underpowered so far this season.

Kevin Durant is doing all he can to keep MELO afloat, as statistical regression has hit just about everyone else on the roster from Jaylen Brown to newly acquired Pascal Siakam, and on to Nikola Vucevic and RJ Barrett. Plus, the less said about the insipid play of Andrew Wiggins better.

There is one giant bright spot on MELO for this season, the promising play from 2024 RD1.4 Brandon Miller, who has outperformed just about everyone in his draft class aside from Victor Wembanyama and arguably Ausar Thompson. Miller is looking like a smooth all-around talent who should evolve quickly. As for MELO, it’ll just be a season waiting for the other veterans to pull their weight alongside Durant.

The Bottom Dwellers

These two teamss are winless and assured of a Toilet Bowl appearance, barring a miracle. Let’s see what they can do to improve to give them a fighting chance in the consolation tournament.

#15 UFOS (0-6)

ODE: 16/16/1

Last on offense and last on defense, but first in efficiency! That doesn’t pretend well for our rookie owner’s win-loss hopes, but in their inaugural Slam season, it’ll just be a proving ground and setup for future years. For now, the task at hand will be to pick up that Games Played mark, which is at 121 versus the league-wide average of 145 GP, meaning UFOS have played basically one less week of games than just about everyone else.

Assuming that all gets squared away, what’re we cooking with at UFOS laboratory? Every single player on this roster has upside potential—minus Damian Lillard, of course—so it’s just a matter of figuring out which ones will be worth keeping for next season. The in-dispersal trade trio of Jordan Poole (39.1 FG%), Jabari Smith Jr. (13.3 PTS), and Nic Claxton have all been okay. A bit underwhelming all around with only Claxton really returning previous season value with his 2.6 BLK—and probably single-handedly taking UFOS out off the cellar in at least one category.

There are a whole lot of role player types on this team, so it’s possible UFOS could play deal maker and send out pieces to contending teams while taking draft picks and more upside talent back. Who couldn’t use scorers like Cameron Johnson, Cole Anthony, or Gary Trent Jr. for a playoff push? Or maybe one of Jarrett Allen or Onyeka Okongwu might be available for the right price? And of course there’s the biggest trade chip of all, Lillard, who is ill-cast on this team and likely needs to be moved.

UFOS will have to one, fix their Games Played issue, and two, do some internal evaluation to see which six might be likely moving on to next season. Fun times ahead, especially in a WK11 matchup versus fellow undefeated ABCX, which could be a heavyweight matchup for first win of the season!

Note: “It won’t take much for UFOS to do better than the losingest owner of SlamNation history, and we’re guessing they can pull off at least four wins to surpass FOBS’ last two seasons.” Um, four wins for this squad is not looking very likely, especially in a shorter eighteen week regular season.

#16 ABCX (0-6)

ODE: 15/15/6

We ranked teams within each tier by combined ODE, making ABCX the last -ranked team, despite a seniority advantage on UFOS. As the only other team not within spitting distance of the average Games Played so far this young season—ABCX has 135 GP—that is a slight factor, but when you’re second-to-last in PTS, AST, STL, and BLK, while being not very good at REB and FG% as well, that’s not just Games Played issues.

After stumbling out of the gate with a 0-9 loss to ILCN in WK1, and then coming within twenty-something-ish PTS of taking down SCRM in WK2, it’s all been downhill for ABCX ever since. LaMelo Ball’s slow start, combined with the absence of Ja Morant, had likely preordained ABCX to the cellar early. Add in a punishing schedule that had ABCX facing four current playoff teams in their first seven weeks—with four more 0.500+ matchups to follow—and ABCX can lay claim to the hardest schedule in SlamNation.

So, can Morant’s return boost ABCX to some wins? Matching last season’s six wins is going to be a Herculean task and would require quite the run—especially with Ball on the mend. Not that there’s not an outside chance of that run happening, as Tim Hardaway Jr., Kelly Oubre Jr., and Malcolm Brogdon are all scoring more than expected. (And in theory 2024 RD1.7 Jaden Ivey will stop getting buried in Detroit.) If Morant and Ball can get back in time, there could be an offensive powerhouse ready to go here.

The defense and efficiency are unlikely to get better—RIP Robert Williams III, as the oft-injured big man’s fantasy career remains mostly a tease—but when you’re gunning for a handful of wins and hopefully a deeper Toilet Bowl run, being good at just a few things might be enough.