NBA Western Conference rankings 1-15 entering 2026-27 season

The West has some upstart contenders this season who didn't feel like threats at this time last year. The Phoenix Suns and Portland Trail Blazers are coming off overachieving seasons, and will be looking to make the next step. The Utah Jazz are finally done tanking, and they want to start winning right now with star rookie Darryn Peterson on board. The Golden State Warriors may or may not have one more run left in them. If any of these teams can breakup the conference's top-six teams from last year, it would be a major accomplishment.

Let's rank every team in the Western Conference heading into the 2026-27 NBA season. These projections are for the regular season only. For more NBA preview content, check out my list of the 25 most explosive athletes in the league today .

The Spurs arrived ahead of schedule last year to jump from 34 to 62 wins, but they're not catching anyone by surprise going forward. San Antonio should be well positioned to be one of the best teams in the league for the next decade around 7'5 superstar Victor Wembanyama . Wembanyama is by far the best defensive player in the game, and there's not many offensive players better than him, either. I still think Wemby needs a mid-range game , but he might be the best player in the league regardless. I'm fascinated to see how the Spurs will manage the De'Aaron Fox /Dylan Harper situation. Harper feels like he should be ready for primetime entering his second season, but Fox can still be a very good player when he's not hampered by a sprained ankle like he was in the NBA Finals. While Wemby will get all of the attention, I really like the Spurs' collection of role players too, led by Julian Champagnie , Devin Vassell , and the newly signed Tobias Harris . Harper's ascent will only make the Spurs more terrifying. If Wembanyama stays healthy, there's no way this team finishes below the No. 2 seed.