NBA releases full schedule for 2025-2026 season

The NBA has unveiled the complete 2025-26 regular-season schedule for all 30 teams.

This schedule marks a full 82-game slate – though two games per team will remain TBD and depend on the outcomes of the upcoming NBA Cup.

A landmark 11-year media rights overhaul introduces NBCUniversal and Amazon Prime Video into the mix alongside ESPN/ABC, replacing Turner Sports' TNT coverage. This reshuffles the national broadcast schedule:

• ABC: Saturdays and Sunday afternoons
• ESPN: Wednesdays and Fridays
• NBC & Peacock: Sundays and Tuesdays (NBC returns to NBA for first time in 24 years)
• Prime Video: Multiple slots, including Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays

Highlight Matchups & Calendar Showcase

• Opening Night (Oct 21): Thunder vs. Rockets (Durant returns home) and Lakers vs. Warriors (LeBron vs. Curry trailer), both airing on NBC.
• Thanksgiving Week: Kevin Durant debuts in Phoenix (Nov 24); Anthony Davis faces the Lakers (Nov 28).
• Key Rivalries:
• Celtics vs. Trail Blazers (Jrue Holiday's return and Lillard’s homecoming) on Jan 26
• Lakers in Cleveland on Jan 28—likely LeBron’s final Hometown game. 
• Christmas Day: A five-game slate with eight Western Conference teams among the ten participants. 
• Rivalry & Rookie Spotlights: Flagg’s debut vs. Wembanyama in opening week; You’ll also see showdowns like Ja Morant vs. Zion Williamson and a potential MLK Day Finals preview of Thunder vs. Cavaliers.

This scheduling is showing that the NBA is subtly balancing star-driven programming with strategic spacing – eight out of ten Christmas Day teams come from the West due to key Eastern injuries and reduced star movement. 

The teams are assigned 80 initial games, with the final two per team hinge on NBA Cup performance, weaving the in-season tournament into the broader schedule narrative.

This schedule launch marks a seismic shift in the NBA's presentation, distribution, and storytelling. With a newly-balanced media ecosystem, major returns (e.g., NBC), and a league structure built to showcase stars and rivalries, the 2025-26 season is set to redefine how basketball is broadcast – and how fans experience the game.