NBA playoff schedule, scores, news, and highlights for 2026
The 2026 NBA playoffs will start on Saturday and last through mid-June. The NBA Finals, which start on June 3 and will be televised by ABC, will undoubtedly be an intriguing run.
Can the Oklahoma City Thunder, who secured the top seed in the Western Conference for the third time in a row, win the championship again? In a packed East field, whose team will win? Is there a chance that the entire field will be upset?
However, the playoff schedule is still up in the air. The teams ranked seventh through tenth will compete in the play-in tournament on Tuesday to determine which teams advance to play the top two teams in each conference.
The playoffs start with four games on Saturday following the conclusion of the play-in competition on Friday. In order to advance, eight teams from each conference advance to the first round and compete in a best-of-seven series. Teams are not reseeded after each of the playoffs' four best-of-seven rounds. Home-court advantage will go to the team with the superior regular-season record in each series. The side with the higher record hosts Games 1, 2, 5, and 7. All series are played in a 2-2-1-1-1 format.
Here's what we know about the Eastern and Western Conference playoff brackets:
Full NBA playoff bracket
Eastern Conference
1. Detroit Pistons vs. 8. Play-in winner TBD
2. Boston Celtics vs. 7. Play-in winner TBD
3. New York Knicks vs. 6. Atlanta Hawks
4. Cleveland Cavaliers vs. 5. Toronto Raptors
Eastern Conference play-in
7. Philadelphia 76ers vs. 8. Orlando Magic
9. Charlotte Hornets vs. 10. Miami Heat
Loser 7/8 vs. Winner 9/10
Western Conference
1. Oklahoma City Thunder vs. 8. Play-in winner TBD
2. San Antonio Spurs vs. 7. Play-in winner TBD
3. Denver Nuggets vs. 6. Minnesota Timberwolves
4. Los Angeles Lakers vs. 5. Houston Rockets
Western Conference play-in
7. Phoenix Suns vs. 8. Portland Trail Blazers
9. LA Clippers vs. 10. Golden State Warriors
Loser 7/8 vs. Winner 9/10
Play-in tournament schedule
Eastern Conference
(8) Orlando Magic at (7) Philadelphia 76ers
Wednesday, 7:30 p.m. ET
(10) Miami Heat at (9) Charlotte Hornets
Tuesday, 7:30 p.m. ET
Winner 9/10 at Loser 7/8
Friday, 7:30 p.m. ET
Western Conference
(8) Portland Trail Blazers at (7) Phoenix Suns
Tuesday, 10 p.m. ET
(10) Golden State Warriors at (9) LA Clippers
Wednesday, 10 p.m. ET
Winner 9/10 at 7/8 Loser
Friday, 10 p.m. ET
How the games will work:
Game 1s: Each conference's No. 7 team in the standings will host the No. 8 team, with the winner earning the No. 7 seed in the playoffs. The losing teams get another chance in their respective conference's Game 3.
Game 2s: Each conference's No. 9 team will host the No. 10 team, with the winner moving on to Game 3. The losers are eliminated and enter the NBA draft lottery.
Game 3s: The losers of the No. 7 vs. No. 8 matchups will host the winners of the No. 9 vs. No. 10 matchups, with the victors grabbing each conference's No. 8 seed in the postseason. The losers of Game 3 enter the NBA draft lottery.
Eastern Conference first round
(1) Detroit Pistons vs. (8) Play-in winner
Game 1: at Detroit on Sunday, April 19, 6:30 p.m. ET
Game 2: at Detroit
Game 3: at Play-in winner
Game 4: at Play-in winner
Game 5 (if necessary): at Detroit
Game 6 (if necessary): at Play-in winner
Game 7 (if necessary): at Detroit
Eastern Conference first round
(1) Detroit Pistons vs. (8) Play-in winner
Game 1: at Detroit on Sunday, April 19, 6:30 p.m. ET
Game 2: at Detroit
Game 3: at Play-in winner
Game 4: at Play-in winner
Game 5 (if necessary): at Detroit
Game 6 (if necessary): at Play-in winner
Game 7 (if necessary): at Detroit
New York Knicks vs. (6) Atlanta Hawks
Game 1: at New York on Saturday, 6 p.m. ET
Game 2: at New York
Game 3: at Atlanta
Game 4: at Atlanta
Game 5 (if necessary): at New York
Game 6 (if necessary): at Atlanta
Game 7 (if necessary): at New York
Cleveland Cavaliers vs. (5) Toronto Raptors
Game 1: at Cleveland on Saturday, 1 p.m. ET
Game 2: at Cleveland
Game 3: at Toronto
Game 4: at Toronto
Game 5 (if necessary): at Cleveland
Game 6 (if necessary): at Toronto
Game 7 (if necessary): at Cleveland
Western Conference first round
Oklahoma City Thunder vs. (8) Play-in winner
Game 1: at Oklahoma City on Sunday, April 19, 3:30 p.m. ET
Game 2: at Oklahoma City
Game 3: at Play-in winner
Game 4: at Play-in winner
Game 5 (if necessary): at Oklahoma City
Game 6 (if necessary): at Play-in winner
Game 7 (if necessary): at Oklahoma City
San Antonio Spurs vs. (7) Play-in winner
Game 1: at San Antonio on Sunday, April 19, 9 p.m. ET
Game 2: at San Antonio
Game 3: at Play-in winner
Game 4: at Play-in winner
Game 5 (if necessary): at San Antonio
Game 6 (if necessary): at Play-in winner
Game 7 (if necessary): at San Antonio
Denver Nuggets vs. (6) Minnesota Timberwolves
Game 1: at Denver on Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET
Game 2: at Denver
Game 3: at Minnesota
Game 4: at Minnesota
Game 5 (if necessary): at Denver
Game 6 (if necessary): at Minnesota
Game 7 (if necessary): at Denver
Los Angeles Lakers vs. (5) Houston Rockets
Game 1: at Los Angeles on Saturday, 8:30 p.m. ET
Game 2: at Los Angeles
Game 3: at Houston
Game 4: at Houston
Game 5 (if necessary): at Los Angeles
Game 6 (if necessary): at Houston
Game 7 (if necessary): at Los Angeles
NBA Finals schedule
The 2026 NBA Finals will begin Wednesday, June 3, with each game tipping off at 8:30 p.m. ET. ABC will broadcast each game.
Game 1: Wednesday, June 3
Game 2: Friday, June 5
Game 3: Monday, June 8
Game 4: Wednesday, June 10
Game 5 (if necessary): Saturday, June 13
Game 6 (if necessary): Tuesday, June 16
Game 7 (if necessary): Friday, June 19
NBA intel: What execs, coaches, scouts are watching this postseason
March and April might be a mirage in the NBA.
The greatest teams are getting ready for the playoffs in the last few weeks of the regular season, while the worst teams are collapsing, star players with injuries are being sidelined, and many outlier situations are taking place.
The final result? The future of the league, its teams, and its stars can't always be predicted by performances and narratives at this stage of the season. (You could call it the Malachi Flynn Principle.)
Because of this, one thing executives, coaches, and scouts do during this time of year is determine whether or not what they see on the court is genuine. As the final weekend of the 2025–26 regular season approaches, we asked league insiders which late-season trends will carry over to the playoffs and which could reverse once the stakes become greater.
Can the Lakers win a series without Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves?
Brian Windhorst: It is important to understand that both Doncic (hamstring) and Reaves (oblique) were diagnosed with Grade 2 strains. Both players will absolutely try to find a way to come back in time to make an impact on the first round, but these are significant injuries. Who can say how a soft tissue injury will feel two weeks from now, but the Lakers have to operate as if Doncic and Reaves will miss the entire series.
With 41-year-old LeBron James leading the Lakers against their most likely opponent, the Houston Rockets, the question becomes: Can the Lakers win four of seven games?
"There's tactical stuff I'm sure [Lakers coach JJ Redick] and his staff are examining, and they're running through lineup ideas," an Eastern Conference scout told ESPN. "But honestly, the Lakers need LeBron to have a hot shooting series and for the Rockets to have a cold shooting series. That's possible, and when LeBron gets his 3-pointer going, it opens up the entire game."
"They need Marcus Smart to be healthy," a Western Conference scout said. "He's an important point-of-attack defender for them. They can't afford to lose another starter, and he's been out."
Tim Bontemps: The sad irony is that James, Doncic, and Reaves had finally found success, largely due to James's acceptance of a "third star" role.
"Someone always has to sacrifice in that role," an East executive said. "In the past, that's been Chris Bosh or Kevin Love. This time, it was him."
James will now be relied upon by the Lakers to lead lineups that essentially lack ball handling and shot creation. You may create a scenario in which the Lakers are able to accomplish that—James gets hot, the Lakers' backup players make jumpers, and Houston falters in crucial situations—but that would also ignore the obvious talent disparity between the two teams in the absence of Doncic and Reaves.
"Houston's defense," a West executive said, "will just swallow them up."
Windhorst: When James' teams have struggled for the past 20 years, the tried-and-true method has been to give him the ball, spread the floor, and let him make the best shot. James has appeared healthy for the last four to six weeks, but it's unclear if he can still outplay opponents off the dribble in the half court. (He is still highly effective in transition, where he has done a lot of damage during the Lakers' second-half surge.)
"I'd love to be able to see LeBron have a vintage series," a second West executive said. "But I'm afraid the teams that win the play-in might give OKC and San Antonio a better series than the Lakers can give Houston without AR and Luka."
