With the 2025-26 NBA season right around the corner, we now know what teams will be reportedly featured on two of the league’s biggest days, Opening Night and Christmas Day.
Shams Charania shared the details on X (formerly Twitter) on Friday night.
Opening Night, Tuesday, Oct. 21, will feature a doubleheader.
The first game will see the Oklahoma City Thunder begin their NBA title defense at home against the Houston Rockets, featuring former Thunder star Kevin Durant. The second game will be a classic Steph Curry vs. LeBron James matchup, with the Golden State Warriors going on the road to take on the Los Angeles Lakers.
🚨🚨🚨Opening Night of the 2025-26 NBA season on NBC on Oct. 21, per sources:
– Houston Rockets at Oklahoma City Thunder
– Golden State Warriors at Los Angeles Lakers
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) August 8, 2025
Those games will air on NBC and Peacock.
All four of the teams featured on Opening Night will again be in action on Christmas Day, which falls on a Thursday.
The NBA’s Christmas Day slate will begin with the Cleveland Cavaliers going to Madison Square Garden to take on the New York Knicks. Oklahoma City will host the San Antonio Spurs in the following game, while the third matchup will feature a Durant vs. James matchup, with the Lakers hosting the Rockets. Top pick Cooper Flagg and the Dallas Mavericks will take on Curry and the Warriors in the fourth game, while the Denver Nuggets will host the Minnesota Timberwolves in the finale.
🚨🎄 NBA Christmas Day 2025 on ABC and ESPN, per sources:
– Cleveland Cavaliers at New York Knicks
– San Antonio Spurs at Oklahoma City Thunder
– Houston Rockets at LA Lakers
– Dallas Mavericks at Golden State Warriors
– Minnesota Timberwolves at Denver Nuggets
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) August 8, 2025
Those games will air on ABC and ESPN.

About Michael Dixon
About Michael:
-- Writer/editor for thecomeback.com and awfulannouncing.com.
-- Bay Area born and raised, currently living in the Indianapolis area.
-- Twitter:
@mfdixon1985 (personal).
@michaeldixonsports (work).
-- Email: mdixon@thecomeback.com
Send tips, corrections, comments and (respectful) disagreements to that email. Do the same with pizza recommendations, taco recommendations and Seinfeld quotes.
Recent Posts
Starz lands scripted adaptation of Shohei Ohtani translator gambling scandal
The series was initially having trouble finding buyers as MLB broadcast partners shied away.
ESPN executive exits to head theScore at Penn Entertainment
"I’ve long admired what theScore has been able to build and achieve in the incredibly-competitive landscape of mobile sports apps"
Indiana-Ohio State Big Ten championship game sets new ratings record
Even though there weren't any playoff implications, Indiana's victory over Ohio State in the Big Ten title game still drew a massive audience.
Nate Burleson likely out at ‘CBS Mornings’ amid overhaul
Fellow co-hosts Tony Dokoupil and Gayle King are also slated to leave the program.
Mike Francesa says he asked Bill Simmons, not Max Kellerman, about replacing Chris Russo
"There's not a word of truth to that."
Shannon Sharpe clarifies viral Shedeur Sanders comments
In case you needed more proof that the conversation around Cleveland Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders is one of...