NBA 2026-27 Preview: Four Teams at the End of the Road

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With the 2026-27 season just days away, teams are prepping for the eight-month grind to June. For some teams, they have gotten closer to June year after year, while others have been moving farther away from June. For those teams, their current iterations are nearing an end. If the 2026-27 NBA season ends in disappointment again, these teams should expect big changes.

Orlando Magic

The Orlando Magic is entering their fifth season with the duo of Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner. In the four seasons the Magic has had their duo, they have finished .500 or better in three of those seasons but have also had a first-round exit in those three seasons. Franz Wagner would have an injury-plagued season, only playing 34 games. Banchero would have a bounce-back season, playing 72 games after only playing 46 the season before. In the summer of 2025, the Magic would make a big splash in the East, trading for Desmond Bane. Bane would play all 82 games and would look like he did in Memphis.

Last season, the Magic would finish 45-37 and would lose in the Play-In Tournament. Orlando would have three players averaging more than 20.0 PPG but would fail to make the playoffs. Head coach Jamal Mosely would be fired and replaced by Sean Sweeney, giving the Magic hope, but the financial end is right around the corner for Orlando. Orlando will be in the second apron of the NBA’s salary cap this upcoming season and will be an apron repeater if they keep their current roster. With the risk of penalties and no improvement, the front office will be forced into changes. Unless the Magic can make a deep playoff run this upcoming season, one or more of Orlando’s star trio could be put on the trade block.

Cleveland Cavaliers

For the first four seasons of the Donovan Mitchell era of the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Cavs have been one of the best regular-season teams but have flopped in the playoffs. Over the last four years, the Cavs have lost in the first round once, lost in the second round twice, and were swept in the Eastern Conference Finals in 2026. Darius Garland was swapped out for an aging James Harden, and bigs Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen would take a dip in the playoffs. The Cavs would make several moves in the offseason, including a trade for Denver Nuggets guard Peyton Watson and signing Mario Hezonja from overseas.

The Cavs will be a second apron team over the next couple of seasons, with Mitchell making over $50 million over each of the next five seasons, Mobley making over $50 million for each of the next four seasons, and Harden and Allen making near or above $30 million for t each of the next three seasons. Peyton Watson will also be making over $20 million for each of the next four seasons as a part of his sign-and-trade from Denver. While Cleveland made the Eastern Conference Finals in 2026, they were swept and did not put up the best performance against the eventual champion New York Knicks. If the Cavs have another repeat season of succeeding in the regular aseason nd falling apart in the playoffs, a major shakeup will have to be discussed.

feels good to be home https://t.co/h7kFqMKQcs

— New Orleans Pelicans (@PelicansNBA) October 15, 2026

New Orleans Pelicans

For the New Orleans Pelicans, management has been their own worst enemy. Entering year 8, Zion Williamson has yet to play a playoff game. Williamson would have the healthiest year of his NBA career, playing 62 games. He is still under contract through 2028 before becoming a free agent. There has been a lack of extension talks, something that Williamson has expressed disappointment in. Trey Murphy III, on the other hand, had a career year, averaging over 21. PPG in 66 games. In the last six seasons, the Pelicans have only made the playoffs twice.

New Orleans has several promising pieces, though. Jeremiah Fears and Derrik Queen both looked good in their rookie year and have the potential to be the core of the Pelicans’ future, if management can get past their current era. Pelicans management has turned down numerous offers for players, including Trey Murphy and Herb Jones, believing both players’ trade value is superstar-level trade packages. The Pelicans would not improve over the summer, and oddsmakers set the over/under for the Pelicans at just 28.5 wins for the 2026-27 season. While this should be a make-or-break season for New Orleans after years of failure, Pelicans management is the biggest hurdle in the team making changes.

Denver Nuggets

The Denver Nuggets have been one of the best teams in the NBA in the 2020s but have failed to maintain a contender around superstar Nikola Jokic following the team’s 2023 championship. Since winning the championship, the Nuggets lost in the second round in 2024 and 2025 and were eliminated in the first round in 2026. The current iteration of the Nuggets starts with Nikola Jokic. Jokic’s contract extension looms over the team, even if he’s said he wants to be a Nugget for life. He remains signed through 2028 (with a player option), but the team around him is expensive and not performing to its expected level.

Jamal Murray is making $50m+ per season but had a career year last season. Aaron Gordon is making over $30 million per year but has been hampered by injuries in recent years. Entering the first year of his five-year, $125 million deal, Christian Braun’s contract is seen as one of the worst in the league by many due to his play last season. Peyton would break out in Nikola Jokic’s absence last season but would be traded to Cleveland to help the Nuggets avoid the second apron. The big offseason signing for Denver would be veteran DeMar DeRozan, with many in the media questioning his fit. As long as Nikola Jokic is on the Nuggets, they will be in the championship conversation, but things can change in the NBA, a nd a bad season for Denver should change their immediate future.