Cue “Roundball Rock” — the NBA is back.
The 2025-26 season opens Tuesday with a doubleheader on NBC and Peacock — backed by the percussive theme song last heard in 2002, when NBC last had broadcast rights — from Oklahoma City, where the Thunder will receive their championship rings, and Los Angeles, before opening league-wide in the coming days.
This season will be a collision between youth and experience. In June, the Thunder became the youngest team to win a title since the 1977 Portland Trail Blazers. To do it again, however, they will have to go through opponents led by veteran superstars including Denver’s Nikola Jokic, Houston’s Kevin Durant, Golden State’s Steph Curry, LeBron James of the Lakers and Kawhi Leonard and James Harden of the Clippers.
“Everybody is saying ‘defending,’ but we’re trying to be on the offensive as well,” Oklahoma City star Jalen Williams said during preseason. “So we’re coming in with more motivation to do that every year.”
NBC News reporters Rohan Nadkarni and Andrew Greif and three-time NBA champion Danny Green discuss what they are watching for as the season begins.
Who is your MVP pick and why?
Green: I’m going to go with Nikola Jokić. He had an unbelievable year last year but they didn’t want to give him his fourth one. This year he comes back on a tear and makes the league give him his fourth MVP. Denver has a really good squad this year, and I feel like they’re going to be one of those teams at the top. The only thing that kind of hurt him last year was not being one of the top-seeded teams. They’re going to be a top-three seed this year. They have really good squad, if they stay healthy. But I’m seeing Jokić coming back with a vengeance, because people didn’t want to give him his fourth.
I remember playing him in San Antonio, even when I was in Toronto, he wasn’t MVP Jokić just yet. But I remember those times when we didn’t guard him with the double team like we should have. We had certain guys on him that probably shouldn’t have guarded him. We had Kawhi [Leonard] guard him at one point. That’s definitely a mismatch. Myself, I’ve tried to guard him enough times. He was very good at drawing fouls, but his passing ability has been unbelievable since then. He was obviously a good passer, but he’s become one of the best passers the game has seen. And then, of course, how he can score the ball.
Nadkarni: Give me the player who has finished first or second in MVP voting in each of the last five seasons: Nikola Jokić. The Joker arguably should have won the award in 2025, when he averaged 29.6 points, 12.7 rebounds and 10.2 assists per game while shooting 57.6% from the field. Voter fatigue, whether voters want to admit it or not, is certainly a factor here. But Jokić’s brilliance is undeniable, and after the Nuggets beefed up their rotation with a series of smart moves in the summer, Denver should have the team success to give a boost to Jokić’s case.
Greif: Is there any player seemingly more intent on seeking revenge than the Lakers’ Luka Doncic? After last season’s stunning trade from Dallas, the Mavericks seemed intent on telling anyone who asked that his body wasn’t right. Luka has since acknowledged that the out-of-nowhere nature of the trade left his head not in quite the right place, either. Now, he’s entering his first full season with Los Angeles in much better shape and with the security of both a contract extension and the knowledge that the franchise is effectively building around him.
Who is your championship pick?
Green: OKC. You have to give them that respect. Getting everybody back and being the best team last year. What impressed me last year was how mature they were or how fast they grew up. Usually you got to take a year of getting your lumps. I still thought they were very green, and they needed some more maturity or another year of taking lumps before they could do it. But to see them grow up in real time and actually bounce back.
And Shai being the leader that he is for them, showing mental toughness through fatigue. I thought he ran out of gas in that Finals. There was a very pivotal game in Indiana where they needed to win to even the series. He had some big buckets toward the end of the game, but you can tell him from the start of the game — like he was off the ball. He was jogging, he was trying to conserve his energy. And he did, rightfully so. But that was that was a key, mature moment for him and for that group to get through that game four and even out the series.
Nadkarni: Well, if I’m picking Jokić to win MVP, I’m going to double down and pick the Nuggets to win the Finals. Is this partly wishful thinking? Perhaps. But it feels harder than ever to repeat in the NBA. And as much of a juggernaut the Thunder were last season, they were still pushed to seven games twice in the playoffs. (Oklahoma City also benefitted from one of the most unfortunate injuries in recent league history when Tyrese Haliburton tore his Achilles in Game 7 of the Finals.)
This isn’t an anti-OKC case, though. It’s more about what the Nuggets did in the offseason. Cam Johnson is a better fit than Michael Porter Jr. Jonas Valanciunas is an actual, honest-to-god backup center. Bruce Brown is more steady than Russell Westbrook. In most playoff series, Denver should not only have the best player, but actual playable depth the team didn’t have last year.
Greif: The NBA hasn’t had a repeat champion since 2018, a run of seven consecutive seasons with seven different winners. Given every major contributor returns from last season’s title team, Oklahoma City appears as heavy a favorite as we have seen in some time. They’re an incredible team that will be fortified by the confidence of knowing what it takes to win. But so does Denver, from 2023. The Nuggets gave the Thunder their hardest matchup of the postseason of any West team, then spent the offseason getting deeper. For as difficult a time as I had splitting hairs between these two teams, I had an even more difficult time arguing against Nikola Jokic, and Denver’s home-court advantage. Denver over New York for the title.
What is one offseason acquisition you’re most excited to see?
Green: There’s a couple guys I’m biased to see I was teammates of. I’m a Desmond Bane fan and his situation in Orlando. I’m excited to see what some of my old teams can do this year. The San Antonio Spurs. I want to see Wemby and De’Aaron Fox together, and then of course Dylan Harper, the new draftee.
And even though Dallas is not a former team of mine, I want to see when Kyrie comes back, what the Mavericks look like and with him and Anthony Davis.
I’m interested to see what Houston does with Kevin Durant, but I think Fred VanVleet was a big key to that. With him going down, that’s tough for them.
Nadkarni: Kevin Durant and the Houston Rockets are a match made in NBA nerd heaven. Giving the rough-and-tumble, defensively charged Rockets one of the greatest scorers of all time is going to be incredibly fun to watch. Coach Ime Udoka will get to play mad scientist during the regular season, figuring out the best lineup combinations to unleash his roster’s unique blend of athleticism and size. Houston so clearly needed a halfcourt bucket getter in the playoffs last season, and it added someone who is going to the Hall of Fame because of that very trait. As a bonus, we may also get a chance to see Durant try to take down some of his old teammates and longtime rivals in a loaded West? I can’t wait to see him give the Rockets an extra dose of swagger.
Greif: Golden State is in the waning years of viable championship contention with Steph Curry now 37 and Draymond Green 35. Every season counts. How they attempt to maximize this one is particularly fascinating.
Notable offseason signings include Al Horford, a 39-year-old forward who remains durable and effective. On this team of elders, one of the few young potential bright spots is Jonathan Kuminga, but the relationship has been strained between the 23-year-old who views himself as an All-Star-caliber piece and an organization and its coach who have been reluctant to give him big minutes in the past or money this offseason. A free-agency negotiation that dragged on for months and whose details became unusually public was only resolved before training camp, when Kuminga agreed to a deal that could be flipped into a trade.
There is talent here but the length of the dug-in negotiations hinted at tension. Getting another team to offer something significant in return for Kuminga will require him playing well. But if he gets such opportunities, how will he take advantage of them?
What player should fans keep an eye on?
Green: Cade Cunningham may be a household name now, but I feel like he’s going to be one of those guys that could be in the All-NBA First Team or MVP conversation. He’s another mature kid. He’s beyond his years. He’s obviously an unbelievable talent, but the way that he’s progressed in his first three or four years has been unbelievable.
In the playoffs last season, he showed some maturity, but he also showed some signs of, ‘I need to learn.’ And I think he’s going to take those things back to the drawing board and come back with a chip on his shoulder. That was a series that I felt like Detroit had a chance. Obviously, there was a missed call or so, but even with that, I feel like they had a chance. They’ll come back different.
Nadkarni: Once one of the most-hyped players entering the NBA, Lonzo Ball’s career has been beset by injuries. After missing two straight regular seasons, Ball returned in 2024-25 to play in 35 games for the Chicago Bulls. In July, Ball was traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers, where he could be a perfect fit on a team with title aspirations.
Before the injuries, Ball had blossomed into such a good player, hitting a good percentage of his outside shots on high volume, making plays for his teammates and defending multiple positions. With Darius Garland recovering from toe surgery, Ball could get a great opportunity to make an impact for the Cavs. If he can regain his previous form, I wouldn’t be surprised to see him closing big games.
Greif: When it comes to promising young NBA talents worth tracking, there are almost too many. But may we interest you in Toumani?
Obsessive basketball fans have been noticing Toumani Camara’s potential for two seasons, since he was a throw-in by Phoenix to a larger trade and sent to Portland, where he blossomed into a 6-foot-7 terror on the defensive end. He’s one of the league’s best and most versatile wings on that end, but there is still time to join the Trail Blazer wing’s bandwagon, however. At only 25, Camara could make an offensive leap forward this season.
Most likely to exceed expectations?
Green: Indiana. Even with Haliburton being out, they’re still going to be pretty solid. They still have some great point guards, with Andrew Nembhard and T.J. McConnell. I’m very impressed with what Rick Carlisle has done throughout the years, to adapt and adjust, that’s what makes him a basketball genius. He has a beautiful mind even outside the game. He’s very much well respected throughout the league.
Indiana has a really good team. They have some great guys who can hoop — Pascal Siakam is unbelievable — and a team camaraderie. There’s a reason why Carlisle has been successful over so many years in different organizations and able to bring multiple groups to the Finals.
Nadkarni: Caw-caw! The Atlanta Hawks had a great offseason, and I believe they have a great chance to play spoiler in the Eastern Conference. After acquiring Dyson Daniels before last season, the Hawks added Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Kristaps Porzingis this summer, bringing in players with playoff experience who can play on both ends of the floor. Combine those guys with young forward Jalen Johnson (who was breaking out last year before an injury) and rising second-year player Zaccharie Risacher (the 2024 first overall pick who improved significantly after the All-Star break), Atlanta seems to have found the right talent to complement star guard Trae Young. If this team gels quickly, they could be as good as anyone in the East.
Greif: Some oddsmakers have pegged Orlando with the third-best chance of making the Finals out of the East, a number that implies a certain amount of confidence in the Magic; the expectations are not low, in other words. But to fully turn the corner after two seasons of respectability into a full-blown contender ready to challenge Cleveland and New York, the Magic will have to stop being routinely limited by their offensive shortcomings. I think this is the season it happens, with Desmond Bane adding a threat for defenses that could create space for Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner.
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