Putting together a championship roster is all about finding the right value, so Boardroom laid out the most valuable NBA teams relative to their respective players’ current salaries.
To be successful in the NBA, a team has to spend money. Since 2018, the Golden State Warriors have finished with the highest team salary four times, winning the championship twice (2018, 2022). The other champions in that same span were also high spenders, with the Denver Nuggets recording the eighth-highest cap in 2023, the Milwaukee Bucks with the sixth-highest in 2021, and the Los Angeles Lakers boasting the ninth-highest in 2020.
(The Toronto Raptors, who claimed the title in 2019 over the Warriors behind Kawhi Leonard’s heroics, finished that campaign with the 13th-highest payroll in the league. It’s the lone time in the last five seasons when the NBA champion didn’t crack the top 10.)
You know what else leads to championships? Value. Sure, star-level talent is required to elevate a franchise to that next level, but so is being able to find the right deals for the right money and success in the draft to get quality production on an entry-level deal. Succeeding on the margins is how titles are won.
Thanks to Spotrac’s handy NBA Value Rankings, which uses a mathematical comparison of players’ current salaries against their cumulative “production points” to determine a “true value score,” we know which players carry the most “value” in the league. Now, let’s figure out which teams boast the highest collective TVS.
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Note: These NBA value team rankings are based on numbers through Dec. 30. They are subject to — and likely will — change as the season goes on. Boardroom will update accordingly.
The NBA Value Team Rankings
1. Indiana Pacers
Team Cap: $129,565,784
PROD/GM: 236.27
TVS: 96.58
Best Value: Tyrese Haliburton (100.00)
2. Oklahoma City Thunder
Team Cap: $153,066,395
PROD/GM: 227.87
TVS: 94.76
Best Value: Chet Holmgren (97.73)
3. Boston Celtics
Team Cap: $187,301,958
PROD/GM: 228.79
TVS: 93.92
Best Value: Jayson Tatum (98.92)
4. Milwaukee Bucks
Team Cap: $189,643,786
PROD/GM: 229.40
TVS: 90.13
Best Value: Giannis Antetokounmpo (89.80)
5. Philadelphia 76ers
Team Cap: $186,951,242
PROD/GM: 230.53
TVS: 86.87
Best Value: Tyrese Maxey (100.00)
6. Sacramento Kings
Team Cap: $148,266,949
PROD/GM: 221.66
TVS: 82.14
Best Value: Domantas Sabonis (99.63)
7. Denver Nuggets
Team Cap: $185,751,085
PROD/GM: 226.88
TVS: 81.30
Best Value: Nikola Jokić (98.58)
8. Orlando Magic
Team Cap: $139,355,784
PROD/GM: 216.83
TVS: 80.84
Best Value: Paolo Banchero (96.96)
9. Minnesota Timberwolves
Team Cap: $196,900,364
PROD/GM: 218.17
TVS: 74.53
Best Value: Anthony Edwards (99.44)
10. Utah Jazz
Team Cap: $135,979,552
PROD/GM: 219.22
TVS: 58.54
Best Value: Lauri Markkanen (99.46)
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11. Dallas Mavericks (TVS: 57.63)
12. Houston Rockets (58.06)
13. New Orleans Pelicans (55.18)
14. Brooklyn Nets (54.04)
15. Atlanta Hawks (53.16)
16. Cleveland Cavaliers (52.11)
17. LA Clippers (51.16)
18. New York Knicks (49.63)
19. Los Angeles Lakers (47.92)
20. Toronto Raptors (38.53)
21. Phoenix Suns (38.12)
22. Miami Heat (37.02)
23. Chicago Bulls (24.75)
24. Golden State Warriors (15.40)
25. San Antonio Spurs (14.28)
26. Memphis Grizzlies (10.92)
27. Charlotte Hornets (9.12)
24. Chicago Bulls (18.29)
25. San Antonio Spurs (15.35)
26. Golden State Warriors (10.93)
27. Memphis Grizzlies (6.74)
28. Portland Trail Blazers (4.21)
29. Washington Wizards (4.14)
30. Detroit Pistons (2.84)
