NBA 2026-27 Season: Opening Week Results, Key Dates and How to Watch

The 2026-27 regular season started on Tuesday, October 20, 2026, the league's 81st regular season, with a three-game slate on NBC and Peacock. The first full night followed on Wednesday, October 21, with 11 games. Preseason had begun on October 3. Sources: NBA, NBC Sports.

Pistons 121, Celtics 113: Detroit was down 22 and won it with a 23-0 run, led by a big fourth quarter from Duncan Robinson. 76ers 106, Knicks 100: Philadelphia spoiled New York's banner night, Tyrese Maxey scoring 28, Jaylen Brown 19 and LeBron James adding 14 points, 9 rebounds and 7 assists in his Sixers debut (Brunson had 21). Thunder 116, Spurs 104: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 32, while Victor Wembanyama shot 1 of 13 for 12 points but blocked 6 shots. Source: ESPN.

Oklahoma City, 96-84, on Thursday, October 22 in the Thunder's home opener, Denver's first game of the season. Jalen Williams led OKC with 21 points and Chet Holmgren had 12 points and 17 rebounds. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander went 6 of 19 for 17 points, missing all seven of his first-half shots, and the game ended his long run of 20-point games: it was the first time in 141 regular-season games he was held under 20. For Denver, Aaron Gordon scored 20, Nikola Jokic and DeMar DeRozan 13 each. Sources: AP (via TSN), Denver Stiffs.

Oct. 21: Lakers 127, Warriors 105 (Walker Kessler 26 points on 12 of 12, Luka Doncic 28), Timberwolves 131, Heat 106 (Anthony Edwards 45 points with 9 threes; Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 35 in his Miami debut), Grizzlies 123, Jazz 103 (Ty Jerome career-high 45), Wizards 128, Bucks 116 (Anthony Davis 34 and 12), Rockets 128, Mavericks 110 (Cooper Flagg 32), Pacers 123, Pelicans 120 (Tyrese Haliburton 23 points and 12 assists in his return), Trail Blazers 124, Suns 83, Raptors 135, Bulls 92. Oct. 22: 76ers 114, Cavaliers 106 and Thunder 96, Nuggets 84. Source: NBA.

Yes. On October 22, in LeBron James's first home game for Philadelphia, the Sixers trailed Cleveland 69-40 in the first half and won 114-106. Tyrese Maxey scored 32, Joel Embiid 24 (including seven straight in the fourth quarter to take the lead), Jaylen Brown 21 and LeBron 17 points and 10 rebounds. AP called it the biggest comeback win of LeBron's career. Donovan Mitchell had 32 for Cleveland. Philadelphia is 2-0. Sources: AP (via Fox Sports), CBS Philadelphia.

It is far too early for standings to mean much, but after the games of October 22, Oklahoma City (2-0) and Philadelphia (2-0) had both won twice, OKC against the Spurs and Nuggets, Philadelphia against the champion Knicks and the Cavaliers. San Antonio, New York and Boston all lost their openers. Check NBA.com for live standings. Sources: NBA, ESPN, AP.

Fri. Oct. 23 (Prime Video): Knicks at Celtics 7 p.m. ET, Rockets vs. Spurs in Austin 9:30 p.m. Mon. Oct. 26 (Peacock): Warriors at Nuggets 10 p.m. Tue. Oct. 27 (NBC/Peacock): Pistons at Knicks 8 p.m. ET, Trail Blazers at Lakers 8 p.m. PT. Already played on ESPN: Timberwolves-Heat and Warriors-Lakers (Oct. 21), Cavaliers-76ers and Nuggets-Thunder (Oct. 22). Source: NBA.

The New York Knicks, who beat the San Antonio Spurs 4-1 in the 2026 Finals, clinching with a 94-90 Game 5 win in which Jalen Brunson scored 45 points. It is the franchise's third title and its first since 1973. Brunson was named Finals MVP after averaging 32.6 points in the series. Sources: NBA, ESPN.

On opening night, October 20, before hosting Philadelphia at Madison Square Garden, New York's first championship banner since 1973. The night did not end well: the 76ers won 106-100, with Karl-Anthony Towns kept quiet and Jalen Brunson scoring 21. Sources: NBA, ESPN.

Yes. LeBron James signed with Philadelphia in July 2026 on a reported two-year, $8 million deal with a player option, after eight seasons with the Lakers. The move followed the Sixers' trade for Jaylen Brown from Boston. He debuted with 14 points, 9 rebounds and 7 assists in a 106-100 win at the Knicks on October 20, then had 17 and 10 in the 29-point comeback against Cleveland on October 22. He returns to Los Angeles on Christmas Day. Sources: NBA, ESPN, AP.

Badly by his standards. In the 116-104 home loss to Oklahoma City on October 20, he shot 1 of 13 from the field and scored 12 points, 10 of them at the free-throw line, with 13 rebounds and 6 blocks. Stephon Castle led San Antonio with 24. He admitted afterwards he had not been himself. The Spurs face Houston in Austin on October 23. Sources: ESPN, Eurosport, Bebasket.

Jaylen Brown went from Boston to Philadelphia (Paul George and picks went the other way), then LeBron James signed with the 76ers. Giannis Antetokounmpo was traded from Milwaukee to Miami for a package built around Tyler Herro, Kel'el Ware, Jaime Jaquez Jr. and picks. Ja Morant went from Memphis to Portland for Jerami Grant and Kris Murray, and Kawhi Leonard returned to Toronto in a deal that sent Brandon Ingram to the Clippers. Russell Westbrook and Kyle Lowry retired. Sources: ESPN, NBA.

Oklahoma City and San Antonio. FanDuel's mid-August board had the Thunder at +230 and the Spurs at +270, well ahead of the Knicks (+950), 76ers (+1000) and Celtics (+1400). Power rankings are split: NBC Sports' preseason ranking (October 12) put the Knicks first, then the Spurs, Thunder and 76ers. Odds move with injuries and trades, so treat them as a snapshot. Sources: Fox Sports, NBC Sports.

AJ Dybantsa, the BYU forward who led Division I in scoring at 25.5 points per game, went first to the Washington Wizards. Next came Darryn Peterson (Utah), Cameron Boozer (Memphis), Caleb Wilson (Chicago) and Keaton Wagler (LA Clippers). Dybantsa missed the October 21 opener against Milwaukee (a 128-116 Wizards win) with a mild left ankle sprain from the preseason finale; his next chance to debut is Friday, October 23 at home against Toronto. Sources: NBA, Flashscore, Newsweek.

Out for the season: Ariel Hukporti (76ers, torn right Achilles in the October 5 preseason opener) and Otega Oweh (Thunder, torn Achilles). Missed the start: AJ Dybantsa (Wizards, ankle, day-to-day), Brandon Ingram (Clippers), Jimmy Butler (Warriors), Kristaps Porzingis (Warriors), Jusuf Nurkic (Jazz) and Maxime Raynaud (Kings). Tyrese Haliburton is back for Indiana after his Achilles injury (23 points and 12 assists in his first game in 486 days), and Joel Embiid's knees remain Philadelphia's biggest question. Check the official injury report before each game. Sources: NBC Sports, Philadelphia Inquirer, CBS Sports.

2026-27 is year two of the league's 11-year U.S. deals. ABC/ESPN (80 regular-season games, Wednesdays, Saturday and Sunday showcases, the Finals; streams on the ESPN app), NBC/Peacock (100 games: Peacock Mondays from October 26, NBC Tuesdays from October 27, Sunday Night Basketball from January 24) and Prime Video (66 games, mainly Fridays, plus NBA Cup knockouts and the Play-In). Out-of-market games are on NBA League Pass. Source: NBA.

Friday, October 23: Knicks at Celtics at 7 p.m. ET, followed by Rockets vs. Spurs at the Moody Center in Austin at 9:30 p.m. ET. Prime Video also streams the NBA Cup final on December 11. Source: NBA.

Group play: Fridays from October 30 to November 27, plus November 24 and 25. Quarterfinals December 4-5, semifinals December 8-9, and the final on Friday, December 11 at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, on Prime Video. Moving the final from Las Vegas to a 1928 college gym is the biggest format change. Sources: NBA, CBS Sports.

Five games on Friday, December 25, on ABC/ESPN: Spurs at Knicks (noon ET), a Finals rematch, Heat at Celtics (2:30 p.m.), 76ers at Lakers (5 p.m.), LeBron's return to Los Angeles, Thunder at Timberwolves (8 p.m.) and Nuggets at Warriors (10:30 p.m.). Source: NBA.

Thursday, February 11, 2027. It sits just over a week before All-Star Weekend, the usual placement, which compresses the window in which contending teams decide whether to buy or hold. Source: NBA.

February 19 to 21, 2027, in Phoenix, on NBC and Peacock. The All-Star Game itself is on Sunday, February 21 at the Suns' arena. Sources: NBA, NBC Sports.

Sunday, April 11, 2027, with all 30 teams in action. The Play-In Tournament runs April 13-16, the playoffs start April 17, and the NBA Finals are in June 2027. Sources: NBA, NBC Sports.

Yes, three of them. Denver plays Indiana in Mexico City on November 7. San Antonio plays New Orleans in Paris on January 14 and again in Manchester on January 17, the league's first regular season game in Manchester. Both European games stream on Prime Video. Sources: NBA, NBC Sports.

Saturday, October 3, 2026, with Toronto against Miami in Quebec City. Preseason ran for roughly two and a half weeks before the October 20 opener. Sources: NBA, NBC Sports.

82 games per team, from October 20 to April 11, which is 174 days. NBA Cup group games count toward that total; only the knockout rounds and the final sit outside the regular season standings. Source: NBA.