It’s been a mighty long offseason, but opening night in the NBA is finally upon us. That also means it’s time for the final part of Ballislife’s extensive preseason preview coverage, our long-awaited official 2025-26 preseason predictions for next Spring’s NBA playoffs.

RELATED: NBA Division Previews: Atlantic | Central | Southeast | Northwest | Southwest | Pacific

Eastern Conference Playoff Predictions

• 1 Cleveland Cavaliers (58-24)
• 2 New York Knicks (53-29)
• 3 Detroit Pistons (52-30)
• 4 Milwaukee Bucks (50-32)
• 5 Orlando Magic (48-34)
• 6 Atlanta Hawks (46-36)

Play-in

• 7 Philadelphia 76ers (43-39)
• 8 Boston Celtics (41-41)
• 9 Indiana Pacers (39-43)
• 10 Chicago Bulls (38-44)

Western Conference Playoff Predictions

• 1 Oklahoma City Thunder (61-21)
• 2 Houston Rockets (54-28)
• 3 Denver Nuggets (53-39)
• 4 Los Angeles Lakers (52-30)
• 5 Minnesota Timberwolves (50-32)
• 6 Los Angeles Clippers (49-33)

Play-In

• • 7 Golden State Warriors (47-35)
  • 8 Memphis Grizzlies (46-36)
  • 9 Dallas Mavericks (46-36)
  • 10 San Antonio Spurs (43-39)

Play-In Breakdown

Eastern Conference

(8) Boston Celtics defeat (7) Philadelphia 76ers (Celtics advance as No. 7 seed)

All signs are pointing to an ahead-of-schedule return for Jayson Tatum from the Achilles tendon rupture in the playoffs, and I believe the Celtics will do just enough in his absence to stay afloat in the playoff race until he can potentially return late in the regular season.

I expect a much better campaign in Philadelphia this year and I expect them to push 45 wins, but I’m worried about their efficacy in the playoffs, given Joel Embiid’s injury struggles and Paul George’s decline. Under the presumption that Tatum will be back in Boston’s lineup by this point, I’m rolling with the Celtics.

(9) Indiana Pacers defeat (10) Chicago Bulls (Pacers face 76ers, Bulls eliminated)

Tyrese Haliburton isn’t fast-tracking his return like Tatum, so it’s unlikely Indiana’s star point guard will be available for the postseason. Regardless, this is still a team led by a bona fide playoff riser in Pascal Siakam and the contributions from role players like Aaron Nesmith, TJ McConnell and Andrew Nembhard proved just as vital to the team’s run as Haliburton’s success.

The Bulls have some intriguing young talent in players like Josh Giddey, Matas Buzelis and Coby White, but it still feels like they’re a year or two away from meaningful playoff contention. 

(9) Indiana Pacers defeat (7) Philadelphia 76ers (Pacers advance as No. 8 seed, 76ers eliminated)

After the Pacers’ run last season proved just how deep they are, I simply trust their roster more in a one-game scenario than I do the 76ers. Even when Haliburton went down in the most deflating way possible to start Game 7 of the NBA Finals, the Pacers still managed to put together an impressive performance on the biggest stage despite the loss.

Western Conference

(7) Golden State Warriors defeat (8) Memphis Grizzlies (Warriors advance as No. 7 seed)

The Warriors might be the best team ever to be relegated to the Play-In Tournament this upcoming season, but the Western Conference is going to be such a bloodbath this season that their projected 47 wins will likely only be good for the seventh seed. 

Luckily, the Warriors have become quite accustomed to the Play-In after appearances in 2021, 2023 and 2025. This hypothetical matchup would actually be a grudge match of sorts, as the Grizzlies beat the Warriors in the ‘21 Play-In and the Warriors beat the Grizzlies in the ‘24 Play-In. 

I won’t bet against Stephen Curry in this one-game scenario, especially with Jimmy Butler as his sidekick.

(9) Dallas Mavericks defeat (10) San Antonio Spurs (Mavericks face Grizzlies, Spurs eliminated)

The Mavericks are another team that are going to be far more dangerous in the playoffs than their seeding and regular season record will suggest. Kyrie Irving will almost certainly be back from the torn ACL he suffered in early April, and the addition of generational prospect and No. 1 overall Cooper Flagg to a lineup that already includes two additional first-ballot Hall of Famers alongside Irving in Anthony Davis and Klay Thompson makes the Mavs dangerous.This will be the first year that the Spurs truly present as a playoff-worthy team, but the depth of the West and a tough Play-In draw against a far more experienced Mavericks team will lead to a premature elimination.

(9) Dallas Mavericks defeat (8) Memphis Grizzlies (Mavericks advance as No. 8 seed, Grizzlies eliminated)

The unfortunate part of this matchup is that both teams are good enough to not only make the playoffs but also pose a serious challenge to the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder in the first round, if healthy. 

At the end of the day, the Mavericks simply have more guys they can turn to in a one-game scenario and trust to get it done. We know Ja Morant is going to show up for Memphis–we expect the same from Jaren Jackson Jr. as well. But Dallas simply has more options. 

ABSOLUTE CHILLS.

Cue up Roundball Rock … the NBA is BACK on NBC and Peacock. 🏀🤩 pic.twitter.com/bd745aFqMg

— NBA on NBC and Peacock (@NBAonNBC) October 21, 2025

First Round Breakdown

Eastern Conference

(1) Cleveland Cavaliers defeat (8) Indiana Pacers, 4-0

This series presents immediate intrigue in the 1 vs. 8 line, as it was the upset-minded Indiana Pacers who shockingly sent the 64-win Cavaliers packing in the second round en route to their upset run to the NBA Finals. However, one thing that many people fail to mention when discussing that series is just how unhealthy Cleveland was. 

Not only were the Cavaliers missing star point guard Darius Garland for the first two games of the series, they were also without Defensive Player of the Year Evan Mobley in Game 2. The tides are turned this time around, as it will most likely be the Pacers who are missing star power as Haliburton spends this season recovering from his injury. 

As a result, I expect the Cavaliers to end the series in short order and make a statement by doing so in one less game than Indiana’s gentleman’s sweep took last season.

(4) Milwaukee Bucks defeat (5) Orlando Magic, 4-3

The Milwaukee Bucks have lost in the first round of the NBA Playoffs for three consecutive seasons, and the Orlando Magic are a team that is almost unanimously being considered a legitimate threat in the Eastern Conference this season following the acquisition of Desmond Bane from Memphis. 

And yet, I feel like this is the series where my projected MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo re-establishes his Milwaukee Bucks as a playoff threat by putting together a masterful performance in a seven-game triumph over Orlando that may go down as his last great dance in a Bucks uniform.

(3) Detroit Pistons defeat (6) Atlanta Hawks, 4-2

The Hawks, like Orlando, are another team that has renewed hope after a grand slam offseason rejuvenated the franchise around star Trae Young, who has already proven he can dominate a playoff series and take a team on a deep run as the catalyst. 

However, this just feels like the year Cade Cunningham and the Pistons make the jump from a reasonably competitive team in the Eastern Conference to a team that could legitimately become this year’s Pacers and contend for a berth in the NBA Finals or a deep playoff run. Pistons in six.

(2) New York Knicks defeat (7) Boston Celtics, 4-2

This is another first-round series in the East that carries some deep history, both recent and long-standing. Of course, it was in the closing moments of Game 4 against the Knicks that Tatum’s Achilles’ tendon ruptured, a moment that not only defined last season for the Celtics but also will define the upcoming one. 

The reality of that series and moment, however, is that the Knicks were already a hair away from securing what proved to be an insurmountable 3-1 series lead. Tatum likely won’t get too many games of regular-season action if he does return, and it’s hard to imagine he will have seamless reintegration back into a Celtics lineup that will look markedly different this season. 

Put simply, the Knicks are better than they were when they beat the Celtics last postseason, and the Celtics are worse. I think Tatum may will Boston to a few wins out of spite for last season’s heartbreaking ending, but the series will never truly be in doubt.

Western Conference

(1) Oklahoma City Thunder defeat (8) Dallas Mavericks, 4-2

The Mavericks will certainly be a tougher first-round series than Oklahoma City will have bargained for, but that’s just the reality of a Western Conference where the ninth-best regular-season team isn’t so much worse than the second-best team.

I say the second-best team because the Thunder are still clearly the class of the conference, and the gap between them and No. 2 is arguably as steep as it is between No. 2 and No. 9. The Mavericks can steal a game or even two off the experience of their star-laden roster, but the Thunder will prove within six games why they are still the end-all-be-all in the West.

(5) Minnesota Timberwolves defeat (4) Los Angeles Lakers, 4-2

The Lakers proved they never stood much of a chance against the Timberwolves in the first round last season, a series in which they entered as the decided favorites. They won’t be the favorites this team around, and “The Legend Killer” Anthony Edwards is undoubtedly the type of player highly motivated to send LeBron James into retirement and Luke Doncic to Cancun. 

This is big season for Edwards’ perception in the league, as his peer Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is coming off a banner season in Oklahoma City that will go down in the annals of NBA history. Edwards certainly wants that for himself, and the first step to getting to that level is by making a statement against the sport’s darling franchise for the second straight season.

(3) Denver Nuggets defeat (6) Los Angeles Clippers, 4-1

A common theme of this first round, as you can probably tell, is rematches from last season. Unfortunately for the Clippers, their best effort against Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets is likely behind them after taking the league’s best player seven games in the first round last season. 

Eventually, I expect the weight of all the offseason drama and the wear and tear of the long NBA season to take its toll on the Clippers’ aging roster. I also know that Nikola Jokic is Nikola Jokic, and it takes a championship effort to eliminate him, even if you do have depth and health on your side. The Clippers likely won’t, and thus, I don’t expect this to be a very long series. 

(7) Golden State Warriors defeat (2) Houston Rockets, 4-3

Surprise, surprise. Another rematch. And this one might be the most intriguing of the bunch. Kevin Durant, in his first season with the Rockets, would be looking to help the franchise avenge a heartbreaking Game 7 loss from last season on this exact seed line against the organization with which he won his two NBA titles and refused a trade to at last February.

After it took the Warriors seven games to eliminate a Durant-less Rockets team last season, the logical conclusion would be that it’s Houston’s turn to flip the script this season. Well, not so fast. 

The Warriors’ recent acquisition of Al Horford injected more championship experience into their lineup, and when push comes to shove, I’m still taking the team with proven playoff performers in Stephen Curry and Jimmy Butler over the one whose most accomplished player’s two championships came alongside Curry.

Second Round Breakdown

Eastern Conference

(1) Cleveland Cavaliers defeat (4) Milwaukee Bucks, 4-2

Giannis and the Bucks will make this a hard-fought, competitive, and likely chippy series. I wouldn’t be surprised if they gave the Cavaliers some trouble deep into Game 6, but ultimately, the Cavaliers’ depth will push them through to the Eastern Conference Finals. 

The part that struck me most about the Cavaliers was the respect they received from their opponents throughout all of last season, and the sheer terror that opposing coaches had when forced to scheme against them on both ends of the floor. Like I mentioned previously, I truly feel the Cavaliers’ second-round loss to the Pacers last postseason was flukier than it gets credit for. There will be no flukes here. 

(2) New York Knicks defeat (3) Detroit Pistons, 4-3

This will be the series that finally commands national respect for Cunningham and the Pistons, but the Knicks will find their way back to the Eastern Conference Finals led by the now extensive postseason experience that Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns, and company now have. 

This will be a series we remember for years to come, I believe, as a changing of the guard of sorts in the Eastern Conference. The immediate comparison that comes to mind is the Warriors’ seven-game loss to the Clippers in the first round of the 2014 playoffs, which ended up being one of the last hurrahs for an established “Lob City” team in LA, while at the same time being Golden State’s last failure before dynastic triumph.

Western Conference

(1) Oklahoma City Thunder defeat (5) Minnesota Timberwolves, 4-2

As much as my heart would like to pick Ant-Man and the Timberwolves to continue what would certainly be a stamping run through the playoffs by beating his most accomplished peer in SGA, my brain just won’t allow me to go there. 

When you strip these rosters down, aside from Ant-Man and SGA, the Thunder are just undeniably deeper, stronger, and it’s hard to argue that they aren’t better at the top, too. Part of me feels wary to be so confident in the Thunder again this upcoming postseason after they got a handful of fortunate breaks to survive last year’s championship run. 

Ultimately, that experience will bode well for a team that was clearly over its head at times during the playoffs, despite the successful result. 

(3) Denver Nuggets defeat (7) Golden State Warriors, 4-2

A playoff matchup between Jokic and Curry is simply the stuff of legend, but the reality is that one of those legends is still at the apex of his career, while the other is starting to approach the back nine. It also doesn’t help that the player approaching the back nine will also be entering said series with a roster full of teammates who, despite their collective championship experience, are also approaching the back nine.

You can’t completely count a team with Curry on it out until the final buzzer of the series sounds, but Jokic and this rejuvenated Nuggets roster will simply be too much for the aging Warriors, despite how high many are on them this season.

Conference Finals Breakdown

Eastern Conference

(1) Oklahoma City Thunder defeat (3) Denver Nuggets, 4-2

In a postseason that I predict will be defined by rematches, this is the one that everyone wants to see. Jokic and the Nuggets very nearly ended the Thunder’s storybook NBA Finals run in the second round last season, pushing the eventual champions to Game 7 in a series that many have ended up giving more credit to Denver for than Oklahoma City in hindsight. 

The common prediction heading into this series, even among pundits, will be that Jokic and the Nuggets are bound to send the Thunder packing after falling just a smidge short last season. That’s how the script would be written, right? Jokic, the league’s consensus best player, reclaiming his own individual crown as the MVP while avenging what has become a defining loss. Probably. But there’s no script in sports, and sports often lead to enormous disappointment. 

If you’re one of those fans who didn’t enjoy the Thunder’s run to the NBA Finals last season, prepare for that disappointment again. Because they’re going back and their trek through the West will be far less strenuous than it was last season. 

(1) Cleveland Cavaliers defeat (2) New York Knicks, 4-1

The New York Knicks and Indiana Pacers treated us to a spectacular Eastern Conference Finals last season, one of the best in recent memory, even. But the uncomfortable reality of that series is it was so close because the Pacers presented a much better matchup for the Knicks than the Cavaliers would have. 

We already know what I believe would have happened if Indiana met a fully healthy Cavaliers team in the second round, but I also think that a recovered Cavaliers team (they would have been mostly healthy the next round) would have made relatively quick work of the Knicks. 

I suspect the Cavaliers will see a bit more health luck this time around and will prove that hypothesis true with a dominant gentleman’s sweep over the New York Knicks. There won’t be much taunting from Spike Lee in this series.

2026 NBA Finals Prediction

(1) Cleveland Cavaliers defeat (1) Oklahoma City Thunder, 4-2

One of my favorite tropes in all of sports is the dominant regular-season team that suffers an unthinkable and catastrophic loss during a postseason in which it had the highest aspirations, just to pull it all together and complete a championship run the following season after being counted out as frauds. 

The most prominent example in recent history was the 2019 Virginia basketball team, ironically nicknamed the Cavaliers, who went on a dominant run through the NCAA tournament that season after becoming the first No. 1 seed in the history of the men’s tournament to lose to a 16 seed the previous season. Enter Cleveland, who is about to exorcise similar demons in 2026.

It seems the Cavaliers have become an afterthought to win the title and even an afterthought to win their own conference in comparison to the media darling Knicks. The Vegas odds and essentially every reliable statistical model point to the undeniable fact the Cavaliers are the overwhelming favorite in the Eastern Conference.

The Thunder, of course, are a historically great team themselves. But last season’s NBA Finals and even their series against the Nuggets proved they are more impressive when you look at the cumulative data over a season than they are when these matchups with elite teams actually present themselves.

The Thunder had their toughest defensive test against Indiana’s offense, from the movement to the team’s shot-making capabilities, and those problems will again come to light against the Cavaliers. Led by the reigning DPOY Mobley and stalwart Jarett Allen on the defensive end, the Cavaliers will also bring a level of intensity that will make Oklahoma City more uncomfortable than the Pacers made them in last season’s edition of the Finals. 

I make the comparison between this Cavaliers team and last year’s Pacers team, not only because I believe a healthy Cavaliers team would have won that series last year, but also because we saw just how much trouble the Thunder had with an Indiana team that I believe was less equipped than the Cavaliers would have been if things had gone right. 

The kicker? I don’t even think this goes seven games. Cavaliers in six.

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