Playoffs officially start
The 2026 NBA playoffs tip off this weekend, shifting the calendar from single-elimination play‑in drama to full series basketball. Sports outlets list the full bracket and opening‑round schedule as teams move into best‑of‑seven matchups this weekend (si.com) and note market favorites entering the weekend — the Thunder and Celtics lead title odds in early betting (espn.com).
The National Basketball Association playoffs begin Saturday, April 18, with the play-in over and every first-round matchup now set. (nba.com) The first four Game 1s are Cleveland Cavaliers-Toronto Raptors at 1 p.m. Eastern, Denver Nuggets-Minnesota Timberwolves at 3:30 p.m., New York Knicks-Atlanta Hawks at 6 p.m., and Los Angeles Lakers-Houston Rockets at 8:30 p.m. Eastern. (nba.com) The other four series open Sunday, April 19: Philadelphia 76ers at Boston Celtics, Phoenix Suns at Oklahoma City Thunder, Orlando Magic at Detroit Pistons, and Portland Trail Blazers at San Antonio Spurs. (nba.com) The format changes now from single-game elimination to best-of-seven series, with higher seeds hosting Games 1, 2, 5 and 7 if needed. The play-in ran April 14-17 to decide the No. 7 and No. 8 seeds in each conference. (nba.com) That shift ends the week’s win-or-go-home sprint and starts the part of the postseason where depth, adjustments and home court usually matter more over two weeks than they do in one night. The first round is scheduled to run through as late as May 3 if any series reach seven games. (nba.com) The bracket now reads Pistons-Magic, Celtics-76ers, Knicks-Hawks and Cavaliers-Raptors in the East, with Thunder-Suns, Spurs-Blazers, Nuggets-Timberwolves and Lakers-Rockets in the West. (nba.com) Two of those pairings were finalized Friday. Orlando claimed the East’s No. 8 seed and drew Detroit, while Phoenix took the West’s No. 8 seed and will face defending champion Oklahoma City. (nba.com) Betting markets enter the weekend with Oklahoma City as the title favorite at +110, while Boston is listed at +550 to win the championship and +155 to win the Eastern Conference. DraftKings odds cited by ESPN also had San Antonio at +500 and Denver at +850 on Friday. (espn.com) The weekend also opens with two veteran storylines at center stage: LeBron James and the Lakers draw Houston on Saturday, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s Thunder begin their title defense Sunday. By Sunday night, all 16 playoff teams will be in a series instead of a one-game chase. (nba.com)
