The 16-team NBA postseason was set following the end of the regular 2026 season on April 13, based on the top 10 seeds from each conference.
Four teams each from the Eastern Conference and Western Conference, positioned between seventh and 10th, headed for play-in games.
Those contenders were competing for the right to meet the teams finishing first and second in each conference, who went straight to the first round of the play-offs along with the four teams immediately below them.
Here’s the latest on the NBA playoff schedule, which teams are involved and where to watch the action live.
NBA playoffs: Full bracket, confirmed standings 2026
Seventh seeds the Philadelphia 76ers will face the eighth-seeded Orlando Magic and the ninth-seeded Charlotte Hornets will meet 10th seeds the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference play-in games.
The winners of the game between the 76ers and Magic advance to the play-offs as the seventh seed, with the losers taking on the Hornets or Heat for the right to be eighth seeds and meet top seeds the Detroit Pistons in the first round.
The winners of that game advance to meet the victors of the game between fourth seeds the Cleveland Cavaliers and fifth seeds the Toronto Raptors.
Their Conference final will be against the winners of a semi-final set up by the games between third seeds the New York Knicks and sixth seeds the Atlanta Hawks and second seeds the Boston Celtics and the seventh seeds from the play-ins.
In the Western Conference, the seventh-seeded Phoenix Suns play the eighth-seeded Portland Trail Blazers and the Los Angeles Clippers, who finished ninth, take on the 10th-placed Golden State Warriors in the play-in games under the same format.
The eighth seeds in the Western Conference will meet top seeds Oklahoma City in the first round, with the winners advancing to meet the victors of the game between fourth seeds the Los Angeles Lakers and fifth seeds the Houston Rockets.
Their Conference final will be against the winners of a semi-final set up by the games between third seeds the Denver Nuggets and sixth seeds the Minnesota Timberwolves and second seeds the San Antonio Spurs and the seventh seeds from the play-ins.
The winners of the Conference finals then meet in the NBA Finals. All playoff rounds are best of seven-game series, with home-court advantage going to the higher-seeded teams and the team with the best regular-season record in the final.
The hosting schedule for each series adopts a 2–2–1–1–1 format. You can see the latest bracket on the NBA’s site.
NBA playoffs schedule: Play ins, first round, semifinals, finals
Here’s how the play-in schedule looks, with the winners of the ties between the seventh and eighth-placed teams advancing straight to the playoffs as seventh seeds.
Start times with an asterisk are the following day.
| Date | Conference | Fixture | ET start time | PT | BST |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tue, April 14 | East | Heat (10) vs Hornets (9) | 19:30 | 16:30 | 00:30* |
| Tue, April 14 | West | Trail Blazers (8) vs Suns (7) | 22:00 | 19:00 | 03:00* |
| Wed, April 15 | East | Magic (8) vs 76ers (7) | 19:30 | 16:30 | 00:30* |
| Wed, April 15 | West | Warriors (10) vs Clippers (9) | 22:00 | 19:00 | 03:00* |
| Fri, April 17 | East | 7/8 loser vs 9/10 winner | 19:30 | 16:30 | 00:30* |
| Fri, April 17 | West | 7/8 loser vs 9/10 winner | 22:00 | 19:00 | 03:00* |
Here’s the play-off schedule for the first games in the first round. Start times with an asterisk are the following day.
| Date | Conference | Fixture | ET | PT | BST |
| Sat, Apr 18 | East | (4) Cavaliers vs (5) Raptors | 13:00 | 10:00 | 18:00 |
| Sat, Apr 18 | West | (3) Nuggets vs (6) Timberwolves | 15:30 | 12:30 | 20:30 |
| Sat, Apr 18 | East | (3) Knicks vs (6) Hawks | 18:00 | 15:00 | 23:00 |
| Sat, Apr 18 | West | (4) Lakers vs (5) Rockets | 20:30 | 17:30 | 01:30* |
| Sun, Apr 19 | East | (2) Celtics vs (7) Seed | 13:00 | 10:00 | 18:00 |
| Sun, Apr 19 | West | (1) Thunder vs (8) Seed | 15:30 | 12:30 | 20:30 |
| Sun, Apr 19 | East | (1) Pistons vs (8) Seed | 18:30 | 15:30 | 23:30 |
| Sun, Apr 19 | West | (2) Spurs vs (7) Seed | 21:00 | 18:00 | 02:00* |
2026 NBA Finals schedule
The Conference semi-finals and final dates will be confirmed after each round. The Finals schedule looks like this, with seven games set if necessary in the first-to-four series.
| Date | Game | ET | PT | BST |
| Wed, June 3 | 1 | 20:30 | 17:30 | 01:30* |
| Fri, June 5 | 2 | 20:30 | 17:30 | 01:30* |
| Mon, June 8 | 3 | 20:30 | 17:30 | 01:30* |
| Wed, June 10 | 4 | 20:30 | 17:30 | 01:30* |
| Sat, June 13 | 5 | 20:30 | 17:30 | 01:30* |
| Tue, June 16 | 6 | 20:30 | 17:30 | 01:30* |
| Fri, June 19 | 7 | 20:30 | 17:30 | 01:30* |
How to watch NBA playoffs 2026: TV channel, live online stream
All play-in games are on Prime Video, who also have broadcast rights to the first round alongside ABC and NBC/Peacock.
Broadcast details for the Conference semi-finals and finals will be confirmed after each round. The finals are on ABC.
This is the broadcasting split for the first games in the play-off first round.
| Date | Fixture | TV/stream |
| Sat, Apr 18 | (4) Cavaliers vs (5) Raptors | Prime Video |
| Sat, Apr 18 | (3) Nuggets vs (6) Timberwolves | Prime Video |
| Sat, Apr 18 | (3) Knicks vs (6) Hawks | Prime Video |
| Sat, Apr 18 | (4) Lakers vs (5) Rockets | ABC |
| Sun, Apr 19 | (2) Celtics vs (7) Seed | ABC |
| Sun, Apr 19 | (1) Thunder vs (8) Seed | ABC |
| Sun, Apr 19 | (1) Pistons vs (8) Seed | NBC/Peacock |
| Sun, Apr 19 | (2) Spurs vs (7) Seed | NBC/Peacock |
In the US, Prime Video costs $8.99 monthly. Students pay $7.49 monthly or $69 yearly. A 30-day free trial is available.
ABC is available through ESPN Plus, starting at $29.99 per month.
Peacock costs $10.99 a month or $109.99 annually, or $16.99 per month ($169.99 a year) with downloads and no adverts.
In the UK, the NBA League Pass shows games live and costs £16.99 a month or £22.99 per month with no commercials, offline viewing and concurrent streams on up to three devices.
