2025-2026 NBA Playoff Predictions

The NBA Playoffs will tip-off Saturday afternoon in Cleveland, Ohio as the Cleveland Cavaliers host the Toronto Raptors in the Eastern Conference 4/5 matchup. The Raptors hold a 3-0 advantage in the series despite being the lower seed. No other series has a team holding an undefeated season record against their first-round opponent. Contrary to the regular-season dominance by the Raptors the Cavs stand as the early favourite to win the opening round matchup.

The Oklahoma City Thunder finished atop the Western Conference and boast the top record in the NBA looking to defend the Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy. This year’s playoff bracket features six new teams with Toronto, Atlanta, Philadelphia, San Antonio, Portland, and Phoenix all joining the 16-team field. While OKC likely remains the favourite, the West is loaded with high-end teams looking to steal the crown. In the East, the Pistons took the top seed, but many have the two seed Celtics making it to the NBA Finals. Who will be lifting the Larry O.B. this season? Let us dive into the predictions.

Eastern Conference

Detroit Pistons (1) vs Orlando Magic (8): A dominant 30-point win in the final play-in game saw the Magic snatch the eighth seed to setup a first round battle with the top seeded Pistons. In their four regular season games they split them evenly with two wins each. Paolo Banchero and Cade Cunningham will be the two main characters in this series. In the three games each player played in the season series they both led their teams in scoring. Cunningham is averaging 32.7 points per game and 10.3 assists per game in these matchups. Cunningham and Banchero will likely get their share of points in this series, but it could come down to which supporting cast is able to better insulate their star player. Pistons’ center Jalen Duren is averaging a double-double across the four games. Tobias Harris and Duncan Robinson are two veterans with extensive playoff experience that should provide depth scoring behind the Cunningham/Duren duo. Harris will likely be tasked with slowing down Banchero on the defensive end and Robinson will be leaned on as a top three-point shooter. Ausar Thompson is a key player on the defensive end to shutdown the Magic guards. The Pistons backcourt is much stronger defensively than the Magic. Overall, the Pistons dominate the advanced stats with a top ten offensive rating alongside top two defensive and NET ratings. The Magic rank outside the top ten in each of those categories. Desmond Bane and Franz Wagner are the top contributors behind Banchero for the eight seed. The trio combines for 62.9 points per game for the Magic. Jalen Suggs operates as the point guard, but the offence runs as more of a committee facilitation, compared to the Pistons who run through Cunningham at the one spot. Pistons in 6 games. Look out for Ron Holland as the X-factor of a Pistons’ Finals run. The 20-year-old is a key piece of the bench for the one seed. Holland’s offence will not always excite you, but the 6’8 forward is a strong defender that will be pivotal in shutting down elite wings like Banchero throughout the postseason. Cunningham dominates this series as he shows no rust from a punctured lung that kept him out at the end of the season.

Boston Celtics (2) vs Philadelphia 76ers (7): This series could be very different if Joel Embiid was healthy and in the lineup for the duration of this matchup. The missing dominant presence of Embiid should allow the Celtics to throw their defensive efforts fully at dynamic guard Tyrese Maxey. The 76ers are 1-1 against the Celtics with Embiid active with the big man not having too much of an impact averaging 22:30 of paying time across the two games. The other two games in the season series were split with a two-point Sixers win and an emphatic 16-point Celtics victory in their most recent matchup where they dominated the boards in the absence of Embiid. Most notably, Celtics’ star Jayson Tatum did not play in any of these games. The injection of Tatum to a lineup that has had Jaylen Brown torching teams, Derrick White providing a two-way impact, Neemias Queta dominating the glass, and Payton Pritchard being a spark plug off the bench since being moved there with the return of Tatum. The Celtics sport a team with a top five offensive and defensive rating despite their 2024-2025 All-NBA forward playing just 16 games. In those 16 games, Tatum is averaging 21.8 points per game and 10 rebounds per game. The Celtics hold the advantage in star power and depth. The 76ers will need a gigantic series from Maxey and rookie VJ Edgecombe if they want to challenge this dominant Celtics team. Can the Sixers get Embiid back for Game 3? Will they be able to come home with a series split after the first two games in Boston? Is Andre Drummond enough to hold off Nikola Vucevic and Queta in the paint? Celtics in 5 games. This Celtics team is too well-rounded and deep to lose to a Sizers team without Joel Embiid. The Sixers do not have enough depth behind Maxey to deal with the onslaught of Tatum, Brown, Pritchard, and White.

New York Knicks (3) vs Atlanta Hawks (6): The haunting figure of Trae Young will not be gracing the floors at Madison Square Garden this year after the Knicks’ nightmare was traded to the Washington Wizards at the trade deadline. On paper this series should not be close, but an overturned buzzer beater was also that separated these two teams and overtime in an April thriller. The Hawks lack a true superstar following Young’s departure, but Jalen Johnson has become a threat in every offensive aspect averaging 22.5/10.3/7.9 as the driving force behind this Atlanta team. The six-seeded Hawks have experience with veteran guard CJ McCollum, but every other starter is 27 or younger with Jonathan Kuminga and Zaccharie Risacher at 23 and 21 as their primary bench options. The Knicks on the other hand sport a starting lineup with no player under 28 years old. This series plays out as the youth movement versus the veterans looking to put it all together. The Knicks hold a massive advantage in the experience category. The three seed also boasts top five offensive and NET ratings; while also having a top seven defensive rating, the Hawks are tenth in NET rating but remain just outside the top ten in offensive and defensive ratings. Both teams heavily rely on their starting five with one or two guys coming off the bench making an impact. The Knicks starting five is loaded with playoff performers and elite superstars with Jalen Brunson coming off a 2024-2025 season where he was named to the second All-NBA team and Karl-Anthony Towns (KAT) who was named to the All-NBA third team. Can the Knicks finally put it all together? Can Atlanta’s youth hang around with the veteran experience of the Knicks? Can Dyson Daniels shutdown Brunson? Can Nickeil Alexander-Walker or CJ McCollum emerge as a consistent second option? Can KAT be stopped? Knicks in 5. The Knicks have the advantage in experience, star power, and depth. Atlanta would need massive performances from all of Alexander-Walker, Johnson, and McCollum to trouble this Knicks squad.

Cleveland Cavaliers (4) vs Toronto Raptors (5): As previously mentioned, the Raptors dominated the season series against the Cavaliers winning all three games they played by 11, 13, and 11 points. Despite this the Raptors open the first game of the playoffs as 8.5-point underdogs. So why have the odds swung so heavily to Cleveland? This matchup features the 3^rd and 4^th overall picks from the 2021 draft as Evan Mobley goes toe-to-toe with Scottie Barnes. The two versatile two-way forwards are defensive stalwarts for their teams. The Raps hold the fifth spot in defensive rating, while the Cavs have the sixth best offensive rating and ninth best NET rating. The Cavs have a dynamic guard duo of James Harden and Donovan Mitchell who can both take over a game with their attacking, driving style of play. The two guards lack defensive prowess, but the frontcourt of Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen is one of the best defensive frontcourts in the NBA. The three-spot is where the Cavs are the weakest and the Raptors will look to exploit that with Brandon Ingram having the distinct advantage over any of Dean Wade, Jaylon Tyson, or Sam Merrill lining up across from the two-time All-Star. The Raptors frontcourt will have their hands full, but Jakob Poeltl and Barnes have had the upper hand over Mobley and Allen in their previous matchups. Immanuel Quickley and RJ Barrett do not strike as much fear into a team as the backcourt duo of Harden and Mitchell, but the Raptors have a free-flowing offence that averages the most assists per game out of the playoff field. Both teams are efficient at protecting the ball as the eighth and ninth best turnover per game teams. A series that many view as an easy go for the Cavs looks to be more even than most expect. Can the Raptors continue their regular season success against the Cavaliers? Who can take over a game on this Raptors roster? Can the Raptors limit second chance opportunities from a superior rebounding team? Whose bench will have the biggest impact? Cavaliers in 6 games. The Raptors should not be looked over by the Cavaliers, but they do not have a game breaker like Mitchell or Harden to take over a game. Ingram will be an X-Factor for the Raptors with his favourable positional matchups, but the Cavs depth and star power outshine the Raptors and see them advance in a series that is closer than most people think.

Western Conference

Oklahoma City Thunder (1) vs Phoenix Suns (8): Oklahoma City are the overwhelming favourites with implied odds to win this series that rivalled that of NCAA Champion Michigan in their first-round matchup against 16-seed Howard. No one thinks the Suns have a chance in this series, and to be honest I agree. The Thunder are a juggernaut. If Devin Booker was unhappy with off-season double teams in pickup games, he will not be a fun of the hounding Thunder defence. OKC ranks as the top team in both defensive and NET rating, while sporting a top ten offensive rating. The Suns rank ninth in defensive rating but are outside the top ten in the other two categories. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is the heavy favourite to take home the MVP award averaging 31.1/4.3/6.6. The Canadian guard has an NBA record streak of 140 consecutive games with 20+ points. The Thunder essentially brought back their whole team from last year’s Championship. An early season tear had many thinking this team could challenge the Golden State Warriors historic record, but a few stretches of struggles and an inability to beat San Antonio proved to end the dream of a new record. Chet Holmgren is one of the best defensive frontcourt players in the NBA and is the secondary scoring option. Jalen Williams had a year plagued with injuries but still is a huge part of the offensive attack for the Thunder. The Suns will look to kill you with ISO guard play. The trio of Booker, Dillion Brooks, and Jalen Green drives the Suns offence. Green had 36 points in their play-in matchup against Golden State to secure the eighth seed. Golden State’s defence is nowhere close to the level of OKC’s though. It will be a struggle for the Suns to generate offence. Thunder in 4 games. Phoenix won the season series two to one, but the final game was the season finale where both teams rested their key rotation players. Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein should dominate a Suns team that has a very weak frontcourt, and SGA will continue his 20+ point streak in a dominant four game sweep as they look to defend their title.

San Antonio Spurs (2) vs Portland Trailblazers (7): Deni Avdija dropped a 41/7/12 stat line willing the eighth seeded Trailblazers to a 114-110 victory over the Phoenix Suns in the play-in tournament to lock them in the seven seed and a date with Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs. The Spurs hold a significant betting odds advantage as the two seed won 20 more games than the play-in winners. Both teams have young cores, but the Blazers do not have a match for the freak athlete superstar that is Wembanyama. Avdija is the star for Portland and with a supporting cast of Jrue Holiday, Shannon Sharpe, and Jerami Grant the Trailblazers are not a bad team. Donovan Clingan, who dominated college bigs in his time at UConn winning two titles, will have his hands full trying to slow down the Spurs’ 7’4 Frenchman. Wembanyama is obviously the star for the second seed, but they have a strong core around him with veteran guard De’Aaron Fox, dynamic guard Stephon Castle, former UConn teammate of Clingan, and role players like Devin Vassell, Keldon Johnson, and rookie Dylan Harper. Veterans Harrison Barnes and Luke Kornet round out a very deep and strong Spurs roster. Besides the obvious record discrepancy, a key factor in this series will be turnovers. The Spurs rank fifth in the NBA with a 13.3% turnover ratio, whereas the Trailblazers rank dead last with a 17.9% turnover ratio. San Antonio also boasts the third best defensive, offensive, and NET ratings. Portland sits outside the top ten in all those categories and have the worst offensive and NET ratings among teams in the playoffs. In three matchups in the regular season the Spurs hold the edge two games to one and Wembanyama played in none of those matchups. Avdija averaged 31.7/7.3/8 and will have to carry the brunt of the offence for this Blazers team to keep up with the high-octane offence and elite defence of the Spurs. Can Wembanyama be stopped? Will Avdija be able to carry the Blazers offence? Can the Trailblazers stay out of a track meet? Will turnovers haunt the Trailblazers? Spurs in 4. Despite similarities in key stats among their players, this series should not be close. The combination of Fox, Castle, and Wembanyama should be enough for the Spurs to cruise to victory in this series. It will take an Avdija masterclass plus some help from his supporting cast to steal a game against this lethal San Antonio team.

Denver Nuggets (3) vs Minnesota Timberwolves (6): The Nuggets are the hottest team heading into the playoffs riding a 12-game win streak and Nikola Jokic remains one of the greatest players in the NBA leading the league in rebounds and assists per game while being eighth in points per game. The Nuggets won the championship three years ago and made some big off-season moves to get back to that level. Flipping Michael Porter Jr. to Brooklyn to acquire Cam Johnson may not have worked in their favour, but the addition of Bruce Brown and Tim Hardaway Jr. have helped round out their depth and provided some three-point pop for a Nuggets team that was lacking perimeter shooters. The Nuggets rank top in the NBA shooting the three-ball at a 39.6% success rate. Jamal Murray continues to be the Robin to Jokic’s batman averaging 25.4/4.4/7.1 on the season. Star guard Anthony Edwards leads the Timberwolves. The six seed does not have a legit playmaker on their roster and could be a major downfall if they are not able to attack a weaker defensive Nuggets team in ISO plays. Rudy Gobert will have the task of trying to shutdown Jokic, who could easily win another MVP if not for voter fatigue. In my opinion Gobert is a terrible defender, and this matchup will get eaten up in the patented pick ‘n roll between Jokic and Murray which kills immobile bigs like Gobert who can not guard outside of the paint. Julius Randle could get this matchup, but that would allow Aaron Gordon or Cam Johnson to get a more favourable matchup and Jokic’s playmaking ability and IQ would be able to pick up on that and attack in another way. The Nuggets won the season series three games to one. Outside of Edwards and Randle the Wolves do not possess an offensive threat that should worry the Nuggets. The Nuggets are a lethal offensive team possessing the best offensive rating in the NBA, but they have the worst defensive rating of playoff teams ranking 21^st in the league. If this series comes down to close games the Nuggets hold the fifth best free throw percentage at 80.8% while the Timberwolves struggle from the line ranking 29^th in the NBA shooting 75.2% from the charity stripe. Can Naz Reid, Randle, and Gobert slow down Jokic and the pick ‘n roll? Can the Nuggets outscore their lack of a shutdown defence? Do the Timberwolves have a consistent third offensive option? Can Edwards consistently execute an ISO offence? Nuggets in 5. Edwards is an exciting young player, but he cannot do it all himself and he cannot stop Jokic. Jokic and Murray are lethal in the pick ‘n roll game and Gobert’s perimeter defence resembles a pylon for them to perfect this play around. If Jaden McDaniels, Reid, or Randle cannot slow down the Nuggets’ two-man pick ‘n roll offence Jokic and Murray could single-handedly take down this T-Wolves team.

Los Angeles Lakers (4) vs Houston Rockets (5): The Houston Rockets maintained the same record as last year’s team despite not having starting point guard Fred Van Vleet for the whole season. Despite the same 52-30 record, the Rockets find themselves in the fifth seed without home court advantage after holding down the two seed in last year’s postseason. The loss of Van Vleet hurt, but off-season signing Kevin Durant led this team offensively. The Rockets surrounded Durant with a plethora of effective young players including rising two-way star Amen Thompson and playmaking Turkish center Alperen Sengun. Sengun possesses a similar skill set to Nuggets star center Jokic with a better defensive acumen. Jabari Smith Jr. rounds out the core four on this Rockets team. These four players all average over 33 minutes per game not even the Knicks, who are notoriously known for heavily relying on their starting five, have more than two guys averaging over 33 minutes. The Lakers however have three guys averaging over 33 minutes per game with Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves, and Lebron James all achieving that feat. Both teams rely heavily on these core players with the Lakers trio accounting for an average of 77.4 points per game, the Rockets’ quartet average 80.5 points per game. This series could come down to the supporting casts as both team’s stars are guaranteed to put points on the board, but who can string together the additional points from the role players to pull out a win. The Lakers seem to have a stronger group of players available outside of their core minute eaters with Rui Hachimura, DeAndre Ayton, Marcus Smart, Luke Kennard, and Jake LaRavia outshining a Houston contingent of Reed Sheppard, Tari Eason, Clint Capela, and Josh Okogie. Lakers in 7. At the end of the day the backcourt of Doncic and Reaves has no match on this Rockets’ roster. Despite the significant advantage in the frontcourt, the elite guard play the Lakers possess pushes them ahead of the Rockets. The Rockets rank top ten in offensive, defensive, and NET rating but the star power of Doncic, James, and Reaves trumps any statistics when you have a game on the line in the playoffs.

Second Round

Pistons over Cavaliers in 6 games: These teams split the season series two-two and everything in my head tells me the Pistons have significantly over-achieved this season and shouldn’t make it past this extremely talented Cavs team, but my prediction before the season had the Pistons playing the Nuggets in the Finals so I am sticking to it. Cunningham shines as Cleveland’s lack of defence in its backcourt sinks them. Allen and Mobley disappear in the playoffs again as Duren dominates the paint. Cunningham and Thompson disrupt Harden and Mitchell’s rhythm, and the Pistons continue their dominant season.

Knicks over Celtics in 7 games: This may be my Toronto bias and hate for all teams in the Boston area, but the Knicks repeat last year’s triumph and topple the Celtics to reach the Eastern Conference Finals for a second straight year. This series was overshadowed last year by the abrupt exit of Tatum to an Achillies injury that kept him out for the majority of the 2025-2026 season. The Celtics star is back but it will be the same result for his team as Brunson and KAT terrorize the Celtics and silence the critics who said they only won the series last year because of Tatum’s injury.

Thunder over Lakers in 6 games: This Thunder team is not unbeatable, but the Lakers are not the team that can topple the defending champs. Doncic and SGA squaring off will be a masterful display of talent at the guard position. The defensive efficiency and aggression that Oklahoma City plays with will cause issues for the Lakers. OKC’s depth and frontcourt emphasizes the divide between these two teams as James, and the Lakers cannot keep up after a seven-game thriller versus the Rockets. Holmgren, Hartenstein, and Williams all deliver big games as SGA gets some help from his supporting cast to dismiss Doncic and the Lakers.

Nuggets over Spurs in 6 games: Experience topples the youth movement. Wembanyama versus Jokic will provide fireworks watching an athletic freak of nature in Wemby against the calculated and clunky play of the Joker. The Nuggets took the season series three games to one and the experience of Murray and Jokic will carry them to a Western Conference date with the Thunder. Gordon and Hardaway play key roles in big moments to support the dominant performances of Murray and Jokic. If you like offence these games will be your cup of tea as three of the four regular season matchups had both teams scoring 130+ points. At the end of the day the top ranked offensive team takes the series with the experience of being in these big moments before.

Conference Finals

Pistons over Knicks in 6: Contrary to the Western Conference Final, the Pistons on paper may be the worse team but they won the season series three games to none against the Knicks. Duren and Cunningham outduel Brunson and KAT as Detroit’s depth shines as the Knicks starters are gassed after their battle with the Celtics. Thompson is able to cause Brunson fits with his length and athleticism, and Duren imposes his physicality against Towns. Holland, Jenkins, and LeVert all have a big impact as the Pistons make it back to the Finals for the first time since 2004-2005.

Nuggets over Thunder in 7: Given the regular season head-to-head records this does not make sense, but once again I am backing my pre-season Pistons-Nuggets prediction. The Nuggets won just one of the five meetings in the regular season, and it came in their second last game where both teams rested their top players. Jokic outduels Gilgeous-Alexander, Murray gets hot, and Hardaway rains down threes as the Nuggets end the Thunder’s title defence.

NBA Finals

Denver Nuggets over Detroit Pistons in 6 games: The duo of Jokic and Murray outduels the Cunningham and Duren pair. Denver’s experience shows as they handle the spotlight and flip the script on their regular season where they lost twice to this Pistons team. Cunningham has a sensational finals averaging 31/6/12 in the loss. Jokic wins Finals MVP averaging 27/12/14 in the six games. The offseason addition of Hardaway was the perfect compliment to Murray and Jokic leading the Nuggets to their second title in the last five seasons.