The NBA is back on Tuesday. The 2026-27 regular season tips off on October 20 with three games on NBC, a championship banner in New York and a Philadelphia team that barely looks like last year’s. Here is when to watch, what to watch for and the milestones that could fall early in the season.
The 2026-27 NBA season starts Tuesday, October 20, 2026. Opening night has three games on NBC and Peacock: Celtics at Pistons at 3 p.m. ET, 76ers at Knicks at 7 p.m. ET and Thunder at Spurs at 9:30 p.m. ET.
Opening night schedule
| Time (ET) | Game | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| 3:00 p.m. | Boston Celtics at Detroit Pistons | The top two seeds in the East last season, Detroit first and Boston second |
| 7:00 p.m. | Philadelphia 76ers at New York Knicks | The Knicks raise their 2026 championship banner |
| 9:30 p.m. | Oklahoma City Thunder at San Antonio Spurs | A rematch of the 2026 Western Conference Finals |
The 3 p.m. start for Celtics and Pistons is unusual for a Tuesday. It turns opening night into a nine-hour basketball day, and it means the first game ends before most of the West Coast is out of work.
Three storylines for opening week
The Knicks start a title defense
New York beat San Antonio 4-1 in the 2026 Finals for its first championship since 1973. The banner goes up before the game against Philadelphia. Repeating is the hard part: every team now gets their best shot, starting with a 76ers team built to beat them.
Philadelphia looks completely different
No team was busier this summer. The 76ers traded Paul George and draft picks to Boston for Jaylen Brown, then signed LeBron James, who is starting his 24th NBA season. That is two new stars on a team that opens at Madison Square Garden on banner night, so there will be no easing into the season.
Thunder and Spurs pick up where they left off
San Antonio beat Oklahoma City in the Western Conference Finals and reached the Finals behind Victor Wembanyama. The Thunder still have Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who won his second straight MVP award last season and is now chasing a third in a row. If the West runs through either team again, this is the first look at how much both have changed.
Milestones to watch this season
Several all-time lists could change this season. The numbers below are how far each player was from the mark before opening night, as of October 19, 2026.
| Player | Milestone | Still needed |
|---|---|---|
| LeBron James | First player to 45,000 regular-season points | 1,560 points |
| LeBron James | Pass Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for most regular-season wins | 27 wins |
| LeBron James | Pass Jason Kidd for third in career assists | 76 assists |
| Kevin Durant | Pass Kobe Bryant for fourth in career points | 1,047 points |
| Nikola Jokic | 200 regular-season triple-doubles | 2 triple-doubles |
| Nikola Jokic | Pass Russell Westbrook for the all-time triple-double record | 12 triple-doubles |
| Klay Thompson | Pass Ray Allen for third in career 3-pointers | 75 threes |
Jokic is the one to watch first. He needs two triple-doubles to reach 200, which could happen in the first week, and passing Westbrook’s record of 209 is realistic well before the All-Star break. LeBron’s 45,000 points is the bigger number, but at his age the pace depends on how many games he plays. If he stays healthy, the record for wins could come before the points.
What comes next
- October 30: Emirates NBA Cup group games begin.
- December 11: NBA Cup final in Indianapolis.
- February 11, 2027: trade deadline.
- February 19-21, 2027: All-Star Weekend in Phoenix.
You can follow every date with a live clock on our NBA countdown, or size up any opening week matchup with the NBA win predictor.
Keep learning
- What is a double-double in basketball?
- How the three-point line changed basketball
- The 24-second shot clock explained
FAQ
When does the 2026-27 NBA season start?
The regular season starts on Tuesday, October 20, 2026, with three games. The first tips off at 3 p.m. ET.
What channel is NBA opening night on?
All three opening night games are on NBC, and they stream on Peacock.
Who won the 2026 NBA championship?
The New York Knicks. They beat the San Antonio Spurs 4-1 in the 2026 Finals, clinching it in Game 5, for their first title since 1973.