Southwest Division 2026-27 preview: Spurs chase a title, Rockets reload, Dallas get a big piece back and two franchises hit reset

The Southwest Division heads into 2026-27 looking lopsided. The San Antonio Spurs come off a trip to the 2026 NBA Finals, where they lost, and they've kept Victor Wembanyama under a team-friendly extension. The Houston Rockets return a 52-win roster under Ime Udoka. The other three teams in the division are starting over. New Orleans hired Jamahl Mosley on May 18, 2026. Dallas hired Dusty May on June 22, 2026. And Memphis traded away both Jaren Jackson Jr. and Ja Morant within months of each other. Training camps open with one team built to contend, one with potential and three in rebuild mode.

San Antonio chases a title with Wembanyama's team-friendly extension

San Antonio's offseason starts with the bruise of a lost NBA Finals and ends with a roster built to go right back. Wembanyama signed his extension at 25% of the max rather than the 30% supermax he was eligible for, preserving long-term flexibility for a front office that already projects to stay under the luxury tax — a rare position among contenders. He averaged 24.6 points, 11.3 rebounds and 3.2 blocks across 87 games last season.

The Spurs added Tobias Harris (34 years old in July 2026) on a two-year, $31 million deal officially announced July 6, 2026, after he helped Detroit climb from 14 to 60 wins over two seasons. They re-signed Julian Champagnie to a three-year, $45 million contract through 2028-2029 after declining his $3 million team option, and Harrison Barnes stayed put. Kelly Olynyk, Mason Plumlee, Bismack Biyombo, Lindy Waters III, Jeremy Sochan and Jordan McLaughlin are all gone.

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San Antonio Spurs 2026-27 roster deep dive: the Fox-Harper question, Tobias Harris, and a Paris minicamp

3 août 2026

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The open question is at point guard. De'Aaron Fox, the roster's highest-paid player at $49.5 million, averaged 17.9 points and 6.2 assists last season, while Dylan Harper, the No. 2 pick in the 2025 draft, put up 12.5 points and 3.5 assists as a rookie. Stephon Castle has already locked down the starting shooting guard spot, leading the team in assists at 7.1 per game on a $10 million rookie-scale deal, pushing Devin Vassell to the wing. After the Finals loss, Fox hosted Wembanyama and teammates for workouts at his own house, and the French center ran a team minicamp in France before the season — Buford has confirmed a large group of players and coaches made the trip. San Antonio will also play regular-season games in Paris and Manchester in January 2027.

Houston reloads around Durant and Sengun, hard-capped at the apron

Houston finished 52-30 last season, fifth in the Western Conference, before falling to the Lakers 4-2 in the first round — a series NBA.com credited LeBron James with closing out via a "vintage performance" in Game 6. Ime Udoka is back for 2026-2027, and ESPN's August 11 preview noted the front office "will instead lean on growth from the team's collection of young talent" rather than chasing an outside star.

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Houston Rockets 2026-27 roster: Rockets look to get up off the mat with roster built to contend

4 sept. 2026

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The core is already paid. Kevin Durant signed a two-year, $90 million extension in October 2025, roughly $30 million below his max, with a player option for 2027-2028. He played 81 games last season at 25.3 points, 5.3 rebounds and 4.6 assists on 52.1% shooting. Jabari Smith Jr. locked in a fully guaranteed five-year, $122 million rookie extension through 2030. Alperen Sengun averaged 20.1 points, 8.9 rebounds and 6.0 assists, and Amen Thompson put up 17.9 points, 7.5 rebounds and 5.2 assists across 87 games.

Houston added Marcus Smart, reuniting with Udoka from their Boston days, Bogdan Bogdanović on a minimum deal after the Clippers declined his option, and drafted Bruce Thornton with the No. 31 pick. SI.com's projected starting five pairs Fred VanVleet with Thompson, Durant, Smith and Sengun, betting on VanVleet returning to form after tearing his ACL — an injury ESPN reported in September 2025 that cost him the entire 2025-2026 season. Spotrac has Houston's payroll at $212,396,723, and Bleacher Report reported the Rockets triggered a hard cap at the second apron by using the taxpayer mid-level exception to sign Smart. Bookmakers aren't buying Houston as a title threat: ESPN Bet and DraftKings had the Rockets at +5000 in late July, far behind co-favorites San Antonio and Oklahoma City at +270 apiece.

Dallas retools around Flagg with Kyrie Irving's return and a rookie coach

Dallas fired Jason Kidd on May 19, 2026, after a 26-56 season and five years on the bench, and replaced him with Dusty May — his first NBA head-coaching job after going 64-13 over two seasons at Michigan with a national title and a Final Four run at Florida Atlantic. He inherits a 27th-ranked offense and a roster rebuilt around Cooper Flagg, the No. 1 pick in the 2025 draft, who was named Rookie of the Year on April 27, 2026, over Charlotte's Kon Knueppel. Flagg averaged 21.0 points, 6.6 rebounds and 4.5 assists as a rookie.

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Dallas Mavericks 2026-27 Roster : A retool around Cooper Flagg, Kyrie Irving’s return and Dusty May’s debut

20 août 2026

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The roster around him changed almost entirely this summer. A three-team trade completed July 19-20 brought in Zaccharie Risacher, the No. 1 pick in 2024, while a six-team deal in early July added Santi Aldama and Marcus Sasser from Memphis and Detroit. Naji Marshall got a three-year, $52.2 million extension, and Dallas drafted Morez Johnson Jr. at No. 9. Kyrie Irving returns after tearing his ACL in March of the 2024-2025 season, projected by ESPN to start alongside Max Christie, Flagg, PJ Washington and Daniel Gafford. Yahoo Sports reported May's system leans on "ball movement, pace and bigs who screen, slip and make plays," pushing Washington into a third or fourth option role while Johnson's arrival adds competition for Gafford at center.

Klay Thompson's future is unresolved — Hoops Rumors reported no progress on trade talks as of August 15, with some suitors preferring a buyout and SI.com floating interest from the Lakers and Heat. Win-total projections are scattered: Yahoo Sports set the line at 35.5 wins, BetMGM at 34.5, while TeamRankings projects a 26-56 finish with 0.0% playoff odds.

Memphis hits reset, betting its future on rookie Cameron Boozer

No team in the division turned over as much as Memphis. In February 2026, the Grizzlies traded Jaren Jackson Jr. to Utah in an eight-player deal, sending out John Konchar, Jock Landale and Vince Williams Jr. and getting back Walter Clayton Jr., Taylor Hendricks, Kyle Anderson, Georges Niang and three future first-round picks, according to ESPN and The Athletic. Niang was waived on February 5, Anderson on February 27 — neither is on the current roster.

This summer brought a bigger split. Memphis traded Ja Morant to Portland for Jerami Grant and Kris Murray, ending seven seasons with the franchise, according to Yahoo Sports citing Shams Charania. The Grizzlies also sent Santi Aldama to Dallas for A.J. Johnson and draft compensation, and acquired Isaiah Stewart from Detroit for three second-round picks. D'Angelo Russell arrived via a six-team trade involving Washington.

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Memphis Grizzlies 2026-27 roster deep dive: A Franchise Restart

28 août 2026

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The long-term plan now centers on Cameron Boozer, selected No. 3 in the 2026 draft and described by ESPN as potentially "franchise-changing." Projected starting lineups diverge — ESPN has Scotty Pippen Jr., Cedric Coward, Grant, Boozer and Zach Edey, while SI.com swaps in Ty Jerome and Jaylen Wells. Tuomas Iisalo enters his second full season as coach facing what Yahoo Sports called "questions surrounding his long-term job security" while directing a roster almost entirely different from the one he inherited. Wells and GG Jackson II, at 11.4 and 9.3 points respectively last season, are among the few holdovers on a roster otherwise reshaped from top to bottom.

New Orleans starts fresh under Jamahl Mosley after a lost season

New Orleans finished 26-56 last season, 11th in the Western Conference, matching Dallas for the division's worst record. Willie Green was fired after a 148-180 run since 2021, and James Borrego ran things on an interim basis before the Pelicans hired Jamahl Mosley (47 years old) on May 18, 2026, to a five-year deal, according to The Athletic, after five seasons coaching Orlando.

The roster Mosley inherits is young and unsettled. New Orleans drafted Jeremiah Fears at No. 7 in 2025, then traded an unprotected 2026 first-round pick plus the No. 23 selection to move up to No. 13 and take Derik Queen. Dejounte Murray played just 16 games last season, averaging 14.6 points, 4.7 rebounds and 5.6 assists, and Jose Alvarado, who appeared in 44 games for the Pelicans last season, is no longer on the 19-man active roster.

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New Orleans Pelicans 2026-27 roster: a fresh start under Jamahl Mosley after a lost season

14 sept. 2026

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No official starting five has been confirmed, but last season's production points to the building blocks: Trey Murphy III at 21.2 points and 38.1% from 3-points, Zion Williamson at 20.3 points on 59.8% shooting, Saddiq Bey at 17.4 points, Fears at 14.3 points as a rookie, and Queen at 11.7 points and 7.1 rebounds. It's a roster with scoring talent scattered across it but no clear hierarchy yet — exactly the kind of group a new coaching staff spends a first season sorting out.

Predicted Southwest Division standings

1. San Antonio Spurs — The only team in the division that enters the season as a genuine contender, fresh off an NBA Finals trip and still projecting to stay under the luxury tax line of $200.428 million even with Fox and Vassell on the books.

2. Houston Rockets — A 52-win team a year ago with Durant, Sengun and Thompson still in place, but already hard-capped at the second apron and leaning on a health bet on VanVleet rather than a star addition.

3. Dallas Mavericks — The most talent-rich of the three rebuilding clubs, with Flagg and a returning Irving, but saddled with the uncertainty of a first-time NBA head coach and win projections ranging from 26 to 35.5.

4. Memphis Grizzlies — A full franchise reset after trading both Jackson Jr. and Morant within a year, now anchored by the hope that Boozer becomes the prospect ESPN described as potentially "franchise-changing."

5. New Orleans Pelicans — The division's steepest climb, sharing last season's worst record in the division and carrying the least proven roster, with Mosley just beginning to sort out a young core.

Compared with the chaos BeBasket already covered elsewhere — the Clippers' cap-cheating scandal and Kawhi Leonard trade under federal investigation in the Pacific, or Giannis Antetokounmpo's move to Miami breaking Milwaukee apart in the Central — the Southwest didn't produce a single scandal or superstar trade of that magnitude this summer. What it did produce is a division running at two speeds: one contender in San Antonio, and three franchises — Dallas, Memphis and New Orleans — in some stage of a full reset, a concentration of rebuilding that stands out even against a league already reshaped by turnover this offseason.