When does the 2026-27 NBA season start?

The regular season starts Tuesday, October 20, 2026, with an NBC and Peacock tripleheader: Celtics at Pistons, 76ers at Knicks and Thunder at Spurs. The regular season ends Sunday, April 11, 2027.

Is the NBA still on TNT in 2026-27?

No. TNT's NBA game rights ended after the 2024-25 season. Under its settlement with the NBA, Inside the NBA moved to ESPN and ABC, and TNT Sports kept highlight and some international rights, but it shows no live NBA games in the US.

Which Peacock plan do I need for NBA games?

Peacock Premium ($12.99 a month) or Premium Plus ($19.99 a month, without ads). The Select tier does not include live sports. Peacock streams all 100 NBC Sports games, including the Monday games that are exclusive to Peacock and NBCSN.

Can I watch my local team on NBA League Pass?

Usually not live. Games televised in your local market are blacked out on League Pass and unlock three days later, and national games unlock at 6 a.m. ET the next day. Local fans need their team's local broadcaster, which in 2026-27 may be a free over-the-air station, a regional network or a streaming app such as DAZN.

What happened to FanDuel Sports Network?

Its operator, Main Street Sports Group, wound the network down after the 2025-26 season. Its 13 NBA teams signed new local deals for 2026-27, including over-the-air stations in Miami, Orlando, Charlotte and Detroit and DAZN streaming for several teams. Check your team's official site for its new home.

Does StreamVega have NBA channels?

On October 7, 2026, NBA TV, ESPN and NBA game slots were on all four StreamVega servers, and Server T had a dedicated NBA package group. Local ABC and NBC affiliates are on Servers G, T and D. Line-ups change with rights, so confirm the channels you need during the free 24-hour trial.

How to Watch the NBA in 2026-27 Without Cable (New TV Deal Explained)

Updated October 7, 2026 · 13 min read · New guide

Quick answer

In 2026-27, national NBA games air on NBC and Peacock (Mondays, Tuesdays and, from January, Sundays), ESPN and ABC (Wednesdays plus later-season weekends) and Prime Video (Thursdays and Fridays). TNT has no games. Out-of-market games stream on NBA League Pass, and local games moved to new over-the-air, team or DAZN homes.

The 2026-27 NBA season tips off on Tuesday, October 20, and it is only the second year of the league's 11-year TV deal. If you last paid attention two seasons ago, almost everything has moved: TNT is out, NBC and Peacock are back, Prime Video has its own nights, and ESPN now sells its networks directly through the ESPN app.

Local games changed even more. FanDuel Sports Network, which carried 13 NBA teams, wound down after the 2025-26 regular season, and those teams spent the summer signing new deals with over-the-air stations, team streaming services and DAZN. Depending on where you live, your team might now be on a free local channel or behind a new app.

This guide lays out where every kind of NBA game lives in 2026-27, what each official option costs as of October 2026, how League Pass blackouts work, and where a StreamVega subscription fits, using the channel data we checked on each of our servers on October 7, 2026. You can test the NBA channels yourself with a free 24-hour trial, no credit card required.

The 2026-27 NBA TV deal in one minute

The NBA's current national contracts started with the 2025-26 season and run for 11 years. Three companies hold the US rights: Disney (ABC, ESPN and the ESPN app), NBCUniversal (NBC, Peacock and the new NBCSN cable network) and Amazon (Prime Video). Nearly 240 regular-season games are scheduled nationally for 2026-27.

NBC and Peacock have the biggest package at 100 regular-season games, including opening night, the Holiday Hoops slate between December 21 and 29, the Martin Luther King Jr. Day and Presidents' Day quadrupleheaders, and All-Star Weekend in Phoenix from February 19 to 21, 2027. ABC and ESPN carry 80 games, including all five Christmas Day games and the regular-season finale. Prime Video streams 66 games, the Emirates NBA Cup knockout rounds and championship, and all six games of the SoFi NBA Play-In Tournament.

NBA TV is still the league's own channel. It has announced 60 regular-season games of its own for 2026-27, starting with a Saturday, October 24 doubleheader (76ers-Bucks and Warriors-Suns). Everything that is not national belongs to the teams' local broadcasters, which is where most of the 2026 upheaval happened.

Night by night: who has which national games

The NBA published a weekly map for 2026-27. Some windows start on opening week; others only begin around midseason, once the NFL season winds down. Here is the pattern, with start dates where the league or broadcaster has announced them.

✓Monday: Peacock NBA Monday, up to two games a night from October 26 through April 5. These Peacock games are also shown on NBCSN.
✓Tuesday: Coast 2 Coast Tuesday on NBC and Peacock, starting October 27. Check local listings for which game your NBC station carries.
✓Wednesday: ESPN, all season. Opening week also has ESPN doubleheaders on Wednesday and Thursday, October 21 and 22.
✓Thursday: Prime Video doubleheaders from January onward.
✓Friday: Prime Video all season, including the Friday NBA Cup group-play nights from October 30 to November 27. ESPN adds Friday games from midseason.
✓Saturday: ABC primetime games from midseason; Prime Video afternoon games from February 6; plus NBA TV's own Saturday games, starting October 24.
✓Sunday: NBC Sunday Night Basketball on NBC and Peacock from January 24, 2027, and ABC or ESPN afternoon games from midseason.

Key 2026-27 dates and where they air

If you only care about the tentpole nights, these are the dates to plan around. All of them come from the NBA's and NBC Sports' official schedule releases in August 2026.

✓Opening night, Tuesday, October 20: NBC and Peacock tripleheader, Celtics at Pistons (3 p.m. ET), 76ers at Knicks (7 p.m. ET, with the defending champion Knicks raising their banner) and Thunder at Spurs (9:30 p.m. ET).
✓Emirates NBA Cup: group play on Cup Nights from October 30 to November 27, knockout rounds December 4 to 9, and the championship on Friday, December 11 at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis on Prime Video.
✓Thanksgiving Eve, Wednesday, November 25: an ESPN tripleheader.
✓Christmas Day, Friday, December 25: five games on ABC and ESPN.
✓Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Monday, January 18, 2027: four games on NBC and Peacock.
✓NBA Global Games: Paris on January 14 and Manchester on January 17, both on Prime Video.
✓Presidents' Day, Monday, February 15: the first NBA Presidents' Day quadrupleheader, on NBC, NBCSN and Peacock.
✓All-Star Weekend in Phoenix, February 19 to 21: Rising Stars on Peacock; All-Star Saturday Night and the All-Star Game on NBC and Peacock.
✓Final day, Sunday, April 11, 2027: all 30 teams play, with an ESPN doubleheader. The Play-In Tournament that follows is exclusive to Prime Video.

What happened to the NBA on TNT?

TNT had carried NBA games since 1988 and lost them after the 2024-25 season, when the league gave the third package to Amazon. Warner Bros. Discovery sued, and the two sides settled in November 2024. Under the settlement, Inside the NBA is now produced for ESPN and ABC, and TNT Sports keeps international game rights in some countries plus a highlights licence, but no live NBA games in the United States.

None of the 2026-27 schedule announcements from the NBA lists TNT, TBS or truTV as a game partner. TNT still carries other sports, but if you are paying for it only for the NBA, that reason no longer exists. The channel you want for Tuesday and Sunday nights is now your local NBC station or Peacock.

NBA League Pass: prices and blackout rules

League Pass is the NBA's own streaming service, sold on NBA.com and in the NBA App. It is built for out-of-market fans: someone in Denver who follows the Celtics, or a fan who wants to channel-surf every non-national game in Multiview.

When we checked NBA.com on October 7, 2026, the season-long prepay prices were $109.99 for League Pass (with commercials, one device) and $159.99 for League Pass Premium (in-arena feed during breaks, three devices at once, offline downloads). Both include Multiview of up to four games and radio broadcasts of every game. Monthly billing and a single-team option have existed in past seasons, but NBA.com's purchase page did not list those prices when we checked, so confirm the current offer at checkout.

The blackouts are the part most people miss. League Pass does not show national games live: anything on ESPN, ABC, NBC, Peacock or Prime Video unlocks at 6 a.m. ET the next morning. Games televised locally in your area are also blacked out live and unlock three days later. In practice, League Pass covers your team only if you live outside its home market and the game is not national. If you live in your team's market, you need the local broadcaster instead.

Local team games: the RSN shake-up after FanDuel Sports Network

For years, most teams' non-national games aired on regional sports networks (RSNs) owned by Diamond Sports Group, rebranded as FanDuel Sports Network under Main Street Sports Group. In April 2026 the company said it would wind down at the end of the season, and the NBA told its 13 FanDuel teams to find new local deals for 2026-27: the Hawks, Hornets, Cavaliers, Pistons, Pacers, Clippers, Grizzlies, Heat, Bucks, Timberwolves, Thunder, Spurs and Magic. The league asked teams to keep deals short because it hopes to launch its own regional streaming platform by 2027-28.

The replacements fall into three groups. First, free over-the-air TV: the Heat moved all non-national games to WPLG Local 10 in Miami, the Magic and Hornets signed with Cox Media Group stations (WRDQ TV 27 and WFTV in Orlando; WSOC-TV and TV64 in Charlotte), and the Pistons are on The Spot - Detroit 20 for 71 regular-season games. Second, streaming: DAZN is the direct-to-consumer partner for several teams, with the Pistons' DAZN stream priced at $20 a month or $120 for the season, and it was reported as the exclusive local streaming partner for the Timberwolves, Cavaliers, Pacers, Spurs and Grizzlies. Third, hybrids that combine a local station with an app.

Teams outside the FanDuel group mostly kept their existing homes. The Knicks are still on MSG Network and the Nets on YES Network, with DAZN reported as their exclusive digital home this season. The Pelicans are on the Gulf Coast Sports and Entertainment Network (GCSEN), streaming on Pelicans+, with 20 games simulcast free on FOX 8 in New Orleans for the first time.

Because these deals were signed team by team, and many only for one season, the most reliable source for your team is its official website's broadcast page. Check it before paying for any service, and look at whether your team's games now air on a local channel you can receive with an antenna.

What it costs to watch the NBA legally in 2026-27

There is no single official service that carries every game. To cover all the national windows, you need three subscriptions, plus League Pass for out-of-market teams and possibly a local team stream. Prices below are what each provider charged as of early October 2026.

✓Peacock Premium: $12.99 a month or $129.99 a year after the August 18, 2026 price rise (Premium Plus, without ads, is $19.99 a month). The cheaper Peacock Select tier does not include live sports.
✓Prime Video: NBA on Prime is included with an Amazon Prime membership, $14.99 a month or $139 a year.
✓ESPN Unlimited: $31.99 a month or $319.99 a year from September 17, 2026. It streams ESPN's networks, including ESPN on ABC, in the ESPN app, and is included at no extra cost if your TV package already carries ESPN. The cheaper ESPN Select tier ($13.99) is essentially the old ESPN+ and does not include the main ESPN channels.
✓NBA League Pass: $109.99 (Standard) or $159.99 (Premium) for the season on NBA.com when we checked, with the blackouts above.
✓Live TV streaming services such as YouTube TV, Fubo and Sling are the cable-style route to ESPN. YouTube TV's base plan is $82.99 a month. Check each provider's current price, NBCSN availability and whether it carries your local ABC and NBC stations for your ZIP code.
✓An antenna: ABC and NBC national games, and teams that moved to over-the-air stations, are free to watch with a TV antenna if you are in range of the station.

Where StreamVega fits for NBA fans

StreamVega is a paid IPTV subscription that delivers live TV through apps such as TiviMate, IPTV Smarters Pro and IBO Player. It does not replace the rights holders, and line-ups vary by server and change as rights change, so treat what follows as what we found on each server's live channel index on October 7, 2026, not as a promise of any particular game. Your login lives on one server, so the server you pick matters.

NBA TV is on all four servers (T, G, D and K), as are ESPN and ESPN2; ESPNU is on T, G and D. NBA game slots, the channels that carry individual live games, also appear on all four servers. Server T goes furthest with a dedicated US| NBA PACKAGE group that holds live-event slots and replays.

For the NBC and ABC windows, what matters is local network affiliates. Server G lists about 214 NBC and 198 ABC entries for markets across the US, Server T about 200 NBC and 169 ABC, and Server D about 196 NBC and 165 ABC. Server K does not carry US local affiliates, so it is not the pick if NBC Tuesdays, Sunday Night Basketball or ABC weekend games are your priority. Browse the market list on our US local channels page.

Peacock and Prime Video event channels, which is where streaming-only games such as Peacock Mondays and Prime Video Thursdays and Fridays tend to appear, are on Servers T and G, with fewer on K and D. Regional sports networks such as MSG and YES are on all four servers, which is relevant for Knicks and Nets fans this season. Teams that moved to local over-the-air stations are a case-by-case check: Server T also carries CW and MyNetwork stations, but confirm that your specific station is listed before you rely on it.

If you follow other sports too, TNT, TBS, truTV and FS1 are on all four servers and CBS Sports Network is on T, K and G. See the full US channel list and sports channel list. Plans start at $10 a month for one connection on one server, or $85 a year, with multi-server plans available on the plans page.

How to check your team's games during the free trial

1Look up your team's 2026-27 broadcast page on its official site and note the local channel or app and whether your next few games are national (NBC, Peacock, ESPN, ABC, Prime Video or NBA TV).
2Pick a server based on what you need: Server T for the dedicated NBA package and the widest Peacock and Prime Video event coverage, Server G for the most local NBC and ABC entries, and avoid Server K if you rely on local affiliates.
3Start a free 24-hour trial on that server. No credit card is needed.
4Load the login into your player app. If you are new to this, our TiviMate setup and Firestick pages walk through it.
5Search the channel list for NBA TV, ESPN, the US| NBA PACKAGE group (Server T), your local NBC and ABC stations, and your team's regional network, if it has one.
6Time the trial so it covers a game night you care about, such as a Tuesday NBC game or a Wednesday ESPN game, and watch a live game to check picture quality and stability on your connection.
7If something you need is missing or not working, check server status and our IPTV troubleshooting guide before deciding. Only buy a plan once you have confirmed the channels you need.

Key takeaways

→Opening night is Tuesday, October 20, 2026: an NBC and Peacock tripleheader, with the regular season ending Sunday, April 11, 2027.
→National games are split three ways: NBC/Peacock (100 games), ABC/ESPN (80 games) and Prime Video (66 games). TNT has not carried NBA games in the US since the 2024-25 season.
→League Pass blacks out national games until 6 a.m. ET the next morning and local-market games for three days, so it is an out-of-market product, not an all-in-one.
→FanDuel Sports Network is gone. Former FanDuel teams now use free local stations (Heat, Magic, Hornets, Pistons), DAZN, or a mix, so check your own team before you buy anything.
→Covering every national window legally costs roughly $60 a month (Peacock Premium, Prime and ESPN Unlimited) before League Pass or a local team stream.
→On StreamVega, NBA TV and ESPN are on all four servers, Server T has a dedicated NBA package group, and local ABC and NBC affiliates are on Servers G, T and D, not K.

FAQ

When does the 2026-27 NBA season start?: The regular season starts Tuesday, October 20, 2026, with an NBC and Peacock tripleheader: Celtics at Pistons, 76ers at Knicks and Thunder at Spurs. The regular season ends Sunday, April 11, 2027.
Is the NBA still on TNT in 2026-27?: No. TNT's NBA game rights ended after the 2024-25 season. Under its settlement with the NBA, Inside the NBA moved to ESPN and ABC, and TNT Sports kept highlight and some international rights, but it shows no live NBA games in the US.
Which Peacock plan do I need for NBA games?: Peacock Premium ($12.99 a month) or Premium Plus ($19.99 a month, without ads). The Select tier does not include live sports. Peacock streams all 100 NBC Sports games, including the Monday games that are exclusive to Peacock and NBCSN.
Can I watch my local team on NBA League Pass?: Usually not live. Games televised in your local market are blacked out on League Pass and unlock three days later, and national games unlock at 6 a.m. ET the next day. Local fans need their team's local broadcaster, which in 2026-27 may be a free over-the-air station, a regional network or a streaming app such as DAZN.
What happened to FanDuel Sports Network?: Its operator, Main Street Sports Group, wound the network down after the 2025-26 season. Its 13 NBA teams signed new local deals for 2026-27, including over-the-air stations in Miami, Orlando, Charlotte and Detroit and DAZN streaming for several teams. Check your team's official site for its new home.
Does StreamVega have NBA channels?: On October 7, 2026, NBA TV, ESPN and NBA game slots were on all four StreamVega servers, and Server T had a dedicated NBA package group. Local ABC and NBC affiliates are on Servers G, T and D. Line-ups change with rights, so confirm the channels you need during the free 24-hour trial.