G League expands playoffs, reveals 2025-26 schedule

The NBA G League is getting bigger in more ways than one.

For the first time, eight teams from each conference will qualify for the playoffs, expanding the postseason field from six per side to eight.

That means more teams, more games and more opportunities for prospects to show what they can do in meaningful minutes.

The league also announced its 2025-26 schedule. Things start with the Tip-Off Tournament on Nov. 7, the fall competition that runs into the Winter Showcase. Teams will play 14 games, with 16 advancing to a single-elimination event in Orlando from Dec. 19-22.

The regular season tips off immediately after the Showcase and runs through March 28, with each team playing 36 games. From there, the expanded playoff bracket begins.

For the second straight year, all 30 NBA teams will have a one-to-one G League affiliate. The only independent left is the Mexico City Capitanes.

No new expansion clubs are joining this season, but the Pacers’ affiliate is changing names and addresses. The Indiana Mad Ants are now the Noblesville Boom, set to play home games at The Arena at Innovation Mile.

The rest of the affiliates remain the same, from the Cleveland Charge to the Maine Celtics to the Rio Grande Valley Vipers. And yes, the Stockton Kings, South Bay Lakers and Sioux Falls Skyforce are all back, too.

The message is simple: the G League keeps growing, both in stature and structure. And now more teams than ever will have a shot at the spring playoffs.

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