With the regular season over, 10 clubs that missed the 2026 playoffs have officially shifted to offseason mode. Each of them faces a different mix of draft positioning, salary-cap flexibility and looming extension deadlines that will shape the summer market.
Washington Wizards
Record: 17-64
June draft picks: 1, 51 (via MIN), 60 (via OKC)
Top free agents: D’Angelo Russell (player option, $6 million), Trae Young (player option, $49 million)
Key issue: Ownership must decide whether to keep Young and newly arrived Anthony Davis long-term or risk losing both. The club sits $19 million below the tax line and still controls eight first-rounders over the next seven years.
Indiana Pacers
Record: 19-62
June draft pick: 2 (falls to Clippers if it lands at 5)
Top free agent: Micah Potter (team option, $2.8 million)
Key issue: Indiana projects $11.7 million over the tax and must replace departed center Myles Turner while working to extend Pascal Siakam. President Kevin Pritchard could shop the pick if it conveys.
Brooklyn Nets
Record: 20-61
June draft picks: 3, 33, 43 (via LAC)
Cap space: Roughly $31 million if team options on Day’Ron Sharpe, Ziaire Williams and Josh Minott are picked up.
Key issue: Decide whether Michael Porter Jr. — eligible for a four-year, $234 million extension — is part of the long-term core or a trade chip to add to nine movable first-rounders.
Sacramento Kings
Record: 22-59
June draft pick: 4 or 5 (tie with Utah to be broken)
Key contracts: Zach LaVine (player option, $49 million), DeMar DeRozan ($25.7 million, $10 million guaranteed)
Key issue: The league’s fourth-oldest roster needs to get younger while paying luxury tax; Sacramento already projects $3.9 million above the second apron.
Utah Jazz
Record: 22-59
June draft pick: 4 or 5 (tie with Sacramento)
Cap outlook: Team is expected to operate above the cap after trading for Jaren Jackson Jr. and carrying Walker Kessler’s $14.6 million free-agent hold.
Key issue: Negotiating a new deal with restricted free agent Kessler while preserving mid-level flexibility.
Memphis Grizzlies
Record: 25-56
June draft picks: 6 or 7*, 17 (best of ORL/PHX), 32 (via IND) (*tie with Dallas)
Key trade asset: $28.9 million trade exception from the Jaren Jackson deal.
Key issue: Front office continues to explore Ja Morant trades; the guard has two years and $87 million left on his deal.
Dallas Mavericks
Record: 25-56
June draft picks: 6 or 7*, 49 (via PHX) (*tie with Memphis)
Financials: $38 million below the tax and $45 million under the first apron.
Key issue: Pairing another lottery talent with 2025 No. 1 overall pick Cooper Flagg while assessing Kyrie Irving’s fit after the veteran missed the season with an ACL tear.
New Orleans Pelicans
Record: 26-55
June draft pick: 58 (via DET) — no lottery selection
Cap status: $4.8 million below the tax.
Key issue: President Joe Dumars must settle on a permanent coach and determine long-term plans for Zion Williamson, who becomes extension-eligible again this summer.
Chicago Bulls
Record: 31-50
June draft picks: 9, 38 (via NOP); could add Portland’s pick if it lands 15-30
Cap space: League-high $60 million if all free agents are renounced.
Key issue: Newly vacant front-office posts must chart a rebuild around a likely top-10 pick and abundant spending power.
Milwaukee Bucks
Record: 32-49
June draft pick: 10 (they receive the less favorable of their own and New Orleans’ pick after previous trades)
Key contract: Giannis Antetokounmpo becomes eligible Oct. 1 for a four-year, $275 million extension or can be traded if no agreement is reached.
Key issue: Ownership has signaled it will either extend or move the two-time MVP before he enters his 2026-27 player-option year.
Lottery odds, payroll projections, extension windows and available exceptions vary widely, but each of these 10 organizations has already begun mapping the transactions that will define its 2026-27 campaign and beyond.
Source: ESPN
