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2026 NBA Season Preview: Southeast Division
The Southeast Division was by far the weakest in the NBA last year, with no teams attaining a record of over .500. That does not seem like it will be the case this season, with up to three teams making postseason pushes, including a potential top seed in the East in Orlando.
Orlando Magic
Additions: Desmond Bane, Tyus Jones, Jase Richardson (25th pick in 2025 Draft), Noah Penda (32nd pick in 2025 Draft)
Subtractions: Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Cole Anthony, Caleb Houstan, Gary Harris, Cory Joseph
Other: Extended Paolo Banchero for 5 years $239M, Re-signed Mo Wagner
Outlook: The Magic had one of the best offseasons in the entire NBA. While they paid a lot to acquire Desmond Bane, Bane is a perfect fit next to Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner as an exceptional off-ball shooter that adds downhill scoring juice. Tyus Jones has been overrated for much of his career, but as a backup point guard he’s still a steadier option than Cory Joseph, Markelle Fultz, or other Magic options in recent years. The Magic’s defense under Jamahl Mosley has been consistently excellent, setting a nice floor on a nightly basis. Add in a strong draft with Jase Richardson and Noah Penda plus a young roster full of developing players and you have a team that should be very good in the regular season with potential upside as a legitimate contender. I don’t think they quite get there this year, but third-best team in the East seems like a very reasonable goal.
Prediction: 51-31 (Last year predicted 49-33, actually 41-41)
Atlanta Hawks
Additions: Kristaps Porzingis, Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Luke Kennard, Asa Newell (23rd pick in 2025 Draft), N’Faly Dante
Subtractions: Clint Capela, Caris Levert, Terance Mann, Georges Niang, Larry Nance Jr.
Other:
Outlook: The Hawks had a very good offseason. That being said, I think people are getting a bit over their skis with them. The Hawks’ best move this past summer will not have an impact on their 2026 roster, as it involved swindling the Pelicans out of their 2026 first round pick just to move back 10 spots in the 2025 Draft. Kristaps Porzingis is theoretically a good fit, but I don’t trust him to stay healthy and I also don’t believe he’ll be as impactful outside of Boston. Nickeil is a very nice wing, but is he really a needle mover? Hawks believers would point to rising star Jalen Johnson, second-year wing Zach Risacher, and fifth-year big Onyeka Okongwu as candidates for internal improvement, and that’s certainly fair, but I can’t get to contender status with them. Still, they should be pretty good, and in the East maybe that’s enough.
Prediction: 46-36 (Last year predicted 37-45, actually 40-42)
Miami Heat
Additions: Norman Powell, Kasparas Jakucionis (20th pick in 2025 Draft), Simone Fontecchio, Ethan Thompson
Subtractions: Duncan Robinson, Haywood Highsmith, Kevin Love, Kyle Anderson, Alec Burks
Other: Re-signed Davion Mitchell, Re-signed Dru Smith
Outlook: The Heat’s roster sure looks a lot different than when I last did this exercise last summer. Jimmy Butler is gone, as are other long-time mainstays like Duncan Robinson and Haywood Highsmith. Picking up Norm Powell for cheap is a good movie, and Jakucionis was a theoretical steal in the draft, but are those moves strong enough to turn around a Heat team that seems sunk in mediocrity? I don’t really think so. Bam Adebayo, Tyler Herro, Powell, Andrew Wiggins, and decent depth plus Erik Spoelstra as coach is certainly enough for competence, but there’s not much upside here outside of Kel’el Ware or maybe Nikola Jovic. It’s possible the Heat get into the mid-40s in wins, but I think they’re going to be in the play-in.
Prediction: 40-42 (Last year predicted 44-38, actually 37-45)
Charlotte Hornets
Additions: Kon Kneuppel (4th pick in 2025 Draft), Collin Sexton, Liam McNeeley (29th pick in 2025 Draft), Mason Plumlee, Pat Connaughton, Ryan Kalkbrenner (33rd pick in 2025 Draft), Sion James (34th pick in 2025 Draft)
Subtractions: Mark Williams, Seth Curry, Jusuf Nurkic, Vasilije Micic, Josh Okogie, Taj Gibson
Other:
Outlook: In terms of pure talent, the Hornets should be better than they are. Unfortunately, they’re the Hornets, and things just don’t seem to work out well for them. LaMelo Ball’s health is the most important variable for them – he’s played 36, 22, and 47 games in the past three years, and they just aren’t going to be good without him having a healthy season. I like Kon Kneuppel, and Brandon Miller remains a very promising young wing, but the rest of the Hornets roster doesn’t have a ton of upside without LaMelo. There is also the rather large issue that the Hornets have the worst center rotation in the NBA, consisting of an ancient Mason Plumlee, the hungry but limited Moussa Diabate, and rookie Ryan Kalkbrenner. Even if Kalkbrenner is ok as a rookie, the Hornets are going to be outplayed at that position almost every night, and that’s a major disadvantage. Between that, LaMelo’s health, and too many guards, I just don’t see this as being close to a winning season.
Prediction: 27-55 (Last year predicted 29-53, actually 19-63)
Washington Wizards
Additions: Tre Johnson (5th pick in 2025 Draft), CJ McCollum, Cam Whitmore, Will Riley (21st pick in 2025 Draft), Marvin Bagley, Malaki Branham
Subtractions: Jordan Poole, Marcus Smart, Malcolm Brogdon, Saddiq Bey, Richaun Holmes, Colby Jones
Other: Re-signed Anthony Gill
Outlook: The Wizards are in year three of their long-term rebuild and this season is probably going to be just as bad record-wise as the previous two. The Wiz have added a lot of young talent, but still don’t have a north star to build around (unless one of their youngsters pops) and are clearly trying to tank for the loaded 2026 draft. I think they’ll probably be fun to watch for diehard NBA fans – Tre Johnson is a bucket, Alex Sarr and Bilal Coulibaly both flash potential, and CJ McCollum and Khris Middleton are still good – but are definitely going to compete for a bottom-three record in the NBA with the Nets and Jazz. Tre is the young guy I’m going to have my eye on the most; he doesn’t do much besides score, but he’s tremendous at putting the ball in the hoop and his heaters are legendary.
Prediction: 19-63 (Last year predicted 20-62, actually 18-64)