⭐️ Warriors are back - Tom's Title Tiers #1
I'm putting the Golden State Warriors on the top tier. To win the 2026 Finals. Yes.
The 2025-26 NBA season is upon us. The NBA is back on NBC. What’s old is new again.
The same goes for the Golden State Warriors. With 39-year-old Al Horford and 36-year-old Jimmy Butler in the fold, the Warriors have eyes on a fifth title for Stephen Curry and Draymond Green. Can they hold up?
Welcome to another edition of Tom’s Title Tiers! A reminder: This is my subjective list based largely on objective data. This is not a pure, analytical ranking. You’re here because you want to know what I think, to get inside my brain a little bit. Consider this a weekly report of what I see on film; what I glean from the numbers; what I hear on the phone; what I read in the news; what I feel.
This week’s featured squad: the Golden State Warriors.
A reminder that teams are listed within each tier in alphabetical order, not in order of strength. Here’s a quick rundown of each tier:
Tom’s Title Tiers
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ This is a complete team, no notes.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Just missing that one thing.
⭐️⭐️⭐️ One move away from being one move away.
⭐️⭐️ So much has to break right.
⭐️ Sooo you’re saying there’s a chance.
For this year’s season preview, I will share one stat to know ahead of the 2025-26 for all of the title contenders on my list. Where does OKC land? What am I watching out for on the new-look Houston Rockets? Who’s coming out of the East? All that and more after the fold.
Let’s get to it.