What does your NBA team need? Biggest hole on all 30 rosters - ESPN

In the NBA's second apron era, deep rosters don't stay deep forever, team identities can flip at a moment's notice, and money can prompt painful divorces.

This summer alone, the 2026 champion New York Knicks lost beloved backup center Mitchell Robinson, the 2025 champion Oklahoma City Thunder shed three rotation players in cost-cutting trades, and the 2024 champion Boston Celtics traded away Finals MVP Jaylen Brown. Meanwhile, the Minnesota Timberwolves sacrificed frontcourt depth to assemble a tantalizing backcourt duo, and LeBron James said goodbye to the Los Angeles Lakers after eight seasons.

Let's take stock of all 30 teams now that the offseason dust has settled and the preseason is in full swing. With so many salary cap rules preventing teams from aggregating talent, everybody is missing something, even the leading title contenders. But what, exactly, is each team's biggest hole?

Jump to a team:
ATL | BOS | BKN | CHA | CHI | CLE
DAL | DEN | DET | GS | HOU | IND
LAC | LAL | MEM | MIA | MIL | MIN
NO | NYK | OKC | ORL | PHI | PHX
POR | SAC | SA | TOR | UTAH | WAS

Roster hole: Superstar centerpiece

The Hawks have methodically constructed a balanced rotation with healthy doses of ballhandling, outside shooting and on-ball defense. After adding championship experience by nabbing Luguentz Dort and Aaron Wiggins from the Oklahoma City Thunder in offseason trades, Atlanta's biggest question is whether Jalen Johnson can elevate from All-Star to superstar.

The do-everything forward saw his impressive regular-season numbers dip dramatically in a first-round series loss to the Knicks, but he's still only 24 years old. Can he develop into an offensive fulcrum capable of leading a deep playoff run?

The Hawks can be patient in