Power Ranking Every NBA Team's 3-Year Window

For example, a team that is a lottery club might be higher in the rankings than a current contender.The criteria are how the team’s current roster looks, cap management, draft equity and overall place in the league.Every year, we are waiting for the Spurs to begin their rebuild, and every year they find a way to stay competitive. Oklahoma City also has even younger talent it needs to develop in Aleksej Pokusevski, Theo Maledon and Darius Bazley.The Thunder's tank job last season put them in a position to pick in the top four, but their luck in the draft lottery dropped them down two spots. Minnesota will most likely be over the cap next season, and its draft pick is heading to Golden State as part of the D’Angelo Russell trade. With Washington's only great trade chip being Beal and not a lot of cap space to work with for the next year, their future looks unclear.It has been 15 years since the Sacramento Kings have made the playoffs. That is the longest current playoff drought in the NBA.The team is led by young star De'Aaron Fox, who averaged 25.2 points and 7.2 assists last season. The Kings are one of the youngest teams in the NBA with Barnes and Hield as the elder statesmen at 28 and 29 years old.Sacramento's cap sheet is fairly clean with Barnes and Hield's contracts both descending as Fox's max rookie extension kicks in next year. The Kings are well-positioned cap-wise, with draft capital and some interesting players to make a big move in the next year or two to help them break the drought. Golden State has some decisions to make: Do the Warriors start building a bridge from the current era to the new one, or do they make one last run at a championship?They could try to package last year's second pick, James Wiseman, and the seventh and 14th picks in this year's draft for a current star. They are set up nicely with two picks in this draft, a future Dallas pick in 2023 or later and lots of cap space for the next few years. The good news for the Pelicans is they have several draft assets and a relatively clean cap sheet for the next three seasons, depending on how they handle Lonzo Ball's restricted free agency.New Orleans is set up with draft picks and soon-to-be expiring contracts in Steven Adams and Eric Bledsoe to pounce on some trade packages for a third star.The Grizzlies could not ask for things to be shaping up better for them in the short and long term. Cap-wise, Memphis will need to decide on what its plans are with both Valanciunas and Anderson, who are heading into contract years next season. Even with that Porzingis contract, the Mavs have a ton of cap space, but this year's free-agent class is not as loaded as it often is. Their pick in this year's draft is heading to New York, along with their 2023 pick, which is top-10 protected. As it stands now, the Sixers are likely to be over the cap the next two years and most likely the year after if/when they sign Embiid to a supermax contract that would kick in for the 2023-24 season. Next season might be a wash if Leonard misses a large chunk of it, and after this year's draft, the Thunder will control their draft picks for the foreseeable future. That is a lot to sort out and it will surely make the cap gymnastics a challenge.The Nuggets are set up with their own draft pick for the next two drafts but will most likely send their 2023 pick to the Thunder.Next season might be a step back depending on Murray’s recovery time, but the two best Nuggets players are 23 and 25 years old, with a promising talent in Porter who is 22. The Heat can kick the can to next season by re-signing Duncan Robinson and Kendrick Nunn to hopefully team-friendly deals and then pick up the options on Goran Dragic and Andre Iguodala's contracts. Both have signed extensions: Brown has three more years left on his, and Tatum's five-year extension kicks in next season. The best of the bunch is Robert Williams, who projects to be a long-term starter at center.Boston's cap sheet clears up after this season with both Smart and Tristan Thompson on the last year of their deals. Besides having to attach this year's draft pick to Kemba Walker in the Oklahoma City trade, the Celtics have all their draft picks available to them. The Celtics are not far away from contending for a championship, and with a couple of shrewd moves by new president Brad Stevens, they could be in a position to remain regular contenders in the East.Utah had a very successful regular season, finishing with the best record in the NBA, but could not get out of the second round of the playoffs.The Jazz have both of their cornerstone pieces under contract for the next four years. The Lakers hold the 22nd pick in this year’s draft, and it is the last pick they will get to make that won’t be controlled in one way or another by the Pelicans for the next few years.The Lakers will contend as long as James and Davis stay healthy, but finding some younger talent needs to be a priority because as last season showed, the drop-off is steep if one or both of those guys are not able to go. Assuming Phoenix either agrees to extend contracts or matches any contract Ayton and Bridges receive in the 2022 offseason, this young core should be together for a long while.Add in Jae Crowder, who is signed with the team for the next two seasons, the Suns' core is almost completely locked up. The big question is whether Chris Paul will opt into his contract for next season.Even if Paul leaves, Phoenix has plenty of talent on the roster and with this recent run could bring in a younger replacement who fits the team's timeline better.The Suns have only one draft pick outgoing, and that is to Oklahoma City for the Paul trade. It is most likely to be conveyed in the 2022 draft, so Phoenix would be free to move future picks or add more talent to its roster.Ultimately, this team is built well for both the short and long term. Middleton and Holiday proved their worth during this playoff run and are in the middle of their prime years as well.The challenge for the Bucks will be building out the rest of the roster beyond this season.