The Five Players Who Will Define the 2026-27 NBA Season

The NBA is, at its core, a star-driven league.

The story of every season is written by the superstar talents who dot the league and the remarkable heights they can reach through their basketball prowess. Last season, Jalen Brunson wrote the Knicks’ championship story as Victor Wembanyama penned a breakout campaign. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander proved, again, his greatness is undeniable and Jaylen Brown established himself as a floor-raising superstar. Cade Cunningham brought grit back to the Motor City while Nikola Jokić continued to make us reconsider what’s possible.

Banners hang forever, and most seasons are casually defined by whoever won that year’s championship. But only in retrospect, of course. Week by week, game by game, it’s the players who shine brightest and upheave expectations who will be remembered by those watching.

In anticipation of the upcoming 2026–27 season, we chose five players we believe will write the story of this campaign—the names that will echo throughout history when we look back on everything that is to come. Thus, last week Sports Illustrated published five essays breaking down the season ahead for those players.

Here you’ll find all the essays in one place. Enjoy.

Jayson Tatum, Celtics

The Celtics traded Tatum’s career-long partner-in-crime, Jaylen Brown, in July. The front office’s reasoning for the trade can be chalked up to one word—“optionality”—while a number of advanced analytics were thrown around suggesting it was Boston’s system, rather than Brown, that made the team great.

Unspoken was the obvious: This was a bet on Tatum.

We’ve never seen a roster built solely around his star talents. Neither have the Celtics. Yet they have decided it’s the best way forward. The two-star system that won Boston its 18th banner had peaked, the organization concluded. The training wheels are off their 28-year-old franchise star. Title hopes and expectations now rest entirely upon his shoulders. It’s responsibility unlike Tatum has ever experienced. Read the full article here.

Victor Wembanyama, Spurs

Are we witnessing the dawn of the Wembanyama era in the NBA?

It’s hard to shake the feeling, isn’t it? Wembanyama is capable of basically any feat you can think of on a basketball court. Rack up six blocks? Just another Tuesday. How about draining a half-dozen threes? Easy work. A 40-point, 10-rebound performance in a clutch win over an elite opponent? A sweat must’ve been broken, but we couldn’t tell. His talent is both singular and all-consuming to a degree reserved for only the greatest two-way players in the history of the game.

And he can get so much better. The gigantic center is in the middle of his progression arc; 22-year-olds are supposed to be improving year-over-year. Read the full article here.

Anthony Edwards, Timberwolves

Edwards has established his place as a tier-one superstar in the NBA; an elite scorer, two-way player and dazzling personality around which an empire could be built. He can now pass out of a double team and can understand the long-term benefits of settling for lay-ups sometimes instead of trying to dunk over every opponent in his path. Yet, even as his counting stats and accolades piled up, Edwards wasn’t quite able to breach the true upper crust of NBA stardom. His play, while excellent, remained a level below genuine championship cornerstones and annual first-team All-NBA members.

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That’s far from a disappointment, of course. The Timberwolves are undoubtedly thrilled he’s gotten to this level (particularly in light of the organization’s deeply depressing history). But there’s another rung to climb. Minnesota is hoping the dramatic roster overhaul of the offseason will unlock Edwards and allow him to do so ... which is an intimidating proposition given how good he already is. Read the full article here.

Cooper Flagg, Mavericks

In case it’s not yet clear, Flagg is freaking good. Not “good for a rookie” or “good for a main option on a bad team.” He is good no matter which way you slice it. And, obviously, still has quite a bit to improve on with merely one professional season under his belt. Flagg was a terrible three-point shooter, turned the ball over a lot and struggled to make impact plays as a defender. All weaknesses we expected to see coming into the NBA and nothing at all out of the ordinary for a rookie. Everything else was nothing short of extraordinary.

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Think of the great Year 2 leaps we’ve seen from guys who performed on Flagg’s level as a rookie. Dončić leapt from 21 to 28 points per game and earned a top-five finish in MVP voting. LeBron enjoyed a similar statistical leap while increasing his efficiency by a huge amount. They elevated from good players capable of great nights to great players who were undeniably among the very best the NBA had to offer. Inescapable talents who could not be gameplanned for. Must-see TV. Box office. Pick your descriptor. You know the guys who have that it factor—and everything about Flagg’s first season is pointing towards him joining that group sooner rather than later. Read the full article here.

Kevin Durant, Rockets

Durant is one of the greatest scorers in NBA history. This was true three years ago, it’s true today and it’ll be true 50 years from now.

Over the offseason, the front office didn’t do much to fix the biggest perceived problem of a lack of offense around Durant, though. They added more capable offensive players to handle the ball in Marcus Smart and Bogan Bogdanovic. They’ll also welcome back Fred VanVleet from a torn ACL. But crunch time will largely run the same as last season: get Durant the ball and let him work. The Rockets clearly believe to their core that’s a winning strategy when paired with great defense, above-average athleticism across the roster and a dedication to hitting the offensive glass.

Can Durant prove them right? Read the full article here.

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