Predicting the 5 worst offensive teams in the 2021-22 NBA season

#3 - Houston Rockets

The Rockets have one of the worst offensive teams in the NBA

The Houston Rockets' offensive future is bright, but the present may look foggier than some realize. The core of Jalen Green, Kevin Porter Jr., and Christian Wood will be entertaining but could be notably inefficient.

John Wall is just waiting to be moved to another team, and Eric Gordon is likely hoping for the same, although his substantial contract makes that difficult. If Wall is not apart of this roster, I am not sure where the playmaking comes from.

Last season, the Rockets were 24th in assists per game, 28th in field goal percentage, and 23rd in turnovers. Second overall pick Jalen Green could end up being one of the best scorers in the NBA one day, but he is not ready to initiate an offense with subpar playmaking for others.

Kevin Porter Jr. may be the best option as he averaged 6.3 assists throughout his 26 games in Houston last season. Those assists also came with 3.5 turnovers per night. The offensive potential of reigning Turkish League MVP Alperen Sengun is intriguing, but will take time.

None of D.J. Augustin, Josh Christopher, Khyri Thomas, or Jae'Sean Tate are impressive initiators either. Houston has substantial offensive ceilings in some of its talent, but lacks the playmaking and/or experience to fully unlock that in the 2021-22 NBA season.

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#2 - Orlando Magic

Brooklyn Nets v Orlando Magic

The Orlando Magic recorded the second-worst offensive rating in the NBA last season, and only worsened their roster in that regard. Last season included 44 games from Nikola Vucevic, 26 games from Evan Fournier, and 25 games from Aaron Gordon. That's three of their top four scorers from the year prior, now on different rosters.

Terrence Ross is the lone remaining offensive difference-maker, and he joins the young guard group of Cole Anthony, R.J. Hampton, and Jalen Suggs. All three have tremendous potential in the NBA, but guards take longer than most positions to get comfortable and acclimated, and two of them are sophomores while Suggs is a rookie.

Markelle Fultz and Jonathan Isaac could help the cause on both ends, but their statuses are in question while returning from unfortunate injuries. Gary Harris may prove to be as impactful as he probably hopes for a trade, but I doubt it will be enough.

Wendell Carter Jr. and Franz Wagner are promising defensive prospects with solid connector traits on offense, but they need efficient, high-use players around them.

The future of Orlando may hold promise, but next season could have an abysmal record.

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#1 - Oklahoma City Thunder

Oklahoma City Thunder v Cleveland Cavaliers

After the lottery odds worked out about as poorly as possible for Sam Presti's Oklahoma City Thunder, 2021-22 seems like another season where wins are not a priority. Future development and a willingness to let your young talent play through their mistakes yield poor immediate results with an emphasis on the long term.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is already a top-tier point guard in the NBA and could find himself on the NBA All-Star roster next season. After that, next year's production is full of question marks.

The potential of Aleksej Pokusevski, Theo Maledon, Josh Giddey, and Tre Mann is nothing to scoff at, but their 2021-22 production is likely to be negative.

The Oklahoma City Thunder recorded a 102.8 offensive rating last season, the last in the NBA. The 29th rated Orlando Magic finished with a 104.6 rating, leaving about a two point gap. The Thunder offseason has given no reason to expect that margin to significantly shrink or be overcome.