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The NBA postseason is underway, and the full schedule for the first round of the 2026 NBA playoffs is set. The playoffs tip off this Saturday (April 18) and the first round, with eight best-of-seven series, could run through May 3. The NBA revealed the full schedule for the first round late on Tuesday night.

The Play-In Tournament is underway. So far, the Trail Blazers and 76ers have earned the No. 7 seeds, the Hornets and Warriors have stayed alive, and the Heat and Clippers have been eliminated. The play-in wraps up Friday with Magic vs. Hornets and Suns vs. Warriors with the No. 8 seeds on the line.

While the play-in will determine the two other first-round matchups, we know six of the series. In the East, the second-seeded Celtics will take on the seventh-seeded 76ers, the third-seeded Knicks will face the sixth-seeded Hawks, and the fourth-seeded Cavaliers will square off with the fifth-seeded Raptors. In the West, it’s Spurs-Trail Blazers in the 2-7, Nuggets-Timberwolves in the 3-6 matchup and Lakers-Rockets in the 4-5. The Nuggets and Wolves are meeting in the postseason for the third time in four years. The Lakers vs. Rockets matchup, meanwhile, pits LeBron James against Kevin Durant in the playoffs for the first time since the 2018 NBA Finals when Durant’s Warriors beat James’ Cavaliers.

The No. 1 seeds in each conference need to await the results of the play-in to see who they face in the first round. The highest seeds also need to wait a day to get their first-round series started. The Pistons, Celtics, Thunder and Spurs will all host Game 1s on Sunday.

Play-In Tournament schedule, scores

Tuesday, April 14

  • No. 9 Hornets 127, No. 10 Heat 126 (OT) — Miami is eliminated
  • No. 8 Trail Blazers 114, No. 7 Suns 110 — Portland wins West No. 7 seed

Wednesday, April 15

  • No. 7 76ers 109, No. 8 Magic 97 — Philadelphia wins East No. 7 seed
  • No. 10 Warriors 126, No. 9 Clippers 121 — Los Angeles is eliminated

Friday, April 17

  • Magic vs. Hornets, 7:30 p.m. ET, Prime — Winner gets East No. 8 seed, loser is eliminated from postseason
  • Suns vs. Warriors, 10 p.m. ET, Prime — Winner gets West No. 8 seed, loser is eliminated from postseason

2026 NBA playoffs schedule: First round

All times Eastern. Games on ABC and ESPN are streaming on fubo (Try for free).

Saturday, April 18

  • Game 1: No. 4 Cavaliers vs. No. 5 Raptors, 1 p.m., Prime 
  • Game 1: No. 3 Nuggets vs. No. 6 Timberwolves, 3:30 p.m., Prime 
  • Game 1: No. 3 Knicks vs. No. 6 Hawks, 6 p.m., Prime 
  • Game 1: No. 4 Lakers vs. No. 5 Rockets, 8:30 p.m., ABC/fubo 

Sunday, April 19

  • Game 1: No. 2 Celtics vs. No. 7 76ers, 1 p.m., ABC/fubo 
  • Game 1: No. 1 Thunder vs. No. 8 TBD, 3:30 p.m., ABC/fubo
  • Game 1: No. 1 Pistons vs. No. 8 TBD, 6:30 p.m., NBC
  • Game 1: No. 2 Spurs vs. No. 7 Trail Blazers, 9 p.m., NBC

Monday, April 20

  • Game 2: Cavaliers vs. Raptors, 7 p.m., Peacock 
  • Game 2: Knicks vs. Hawks, 8 p.m., NBC 
  • Game 2: Nuggets vs. Timberwolves, 10:30 p.m., NBC

Tuesday, April 21

  • Game 2: Celtics vs. 76ers, 7 p.m., Peacock 
  • Game 2: Spurs vs. Trail Blazers, 8 p.m., NBC 
  • Game 2: Lakers vs. Rockets, 10:30 p.m., NBC

Wednesday, April 22

  • Game 2: Pistons vs. TBD, 7 p.m., ESPN/fubo
  • Game 2: Thunder vs. TBD, 9:30 p.m., ESPN/fubo

Thursday, April 23

  • Game 3: Hawks vs. Knicks, 7 p.m., Prime 
  • Game 3: Raptors vs. Cavaliers, 8 p.m., Prime
  • Game 3: Timberwolves vs. Nuggets, 9:30 p.m., Prime

Friday, April 24

  • Game 3: 76ers vs. Celtics, 7 p.m., Prime 
  • Game 3: Rockets vs. Lakers, 8 p.m., Prime 
  • Game 3: Trail Blazers vs. Spurs, 10:30 p.m., Prime

Saturday, April 25

  • Game 3: TBD vs. Pistons, 1 p.m., Peacock
  • Game 4: Hawks vs. Knicks, 6 p.m., NBC
  • Game 4: Timberwolves vs. Nuggets, 8:30 p.m., ABC/fubo

Sunday, April 26

  • Game 4: Raptors vs. Cavaliers, 1 p.m., ESPN/fubo
  • Game 4: Trail Blazers vs. Spurs, 3:30 p.m., ESPN/fubo
  • Game 4: 76ers vs. Celtics, 7 p.m., NBC
  • Game 4: Rockets vs. Lakers, 9:30 p.m., NBC

Monday, April 27

  • Game 4: TBD vs. Pistons, TBD 
  • Game 4: TBD vs. Thunder, TBD 
  • *Game 5: Nuggets vs. Timberwolves, TBD

Tuesday, April 28

  • *Game 5: Celtics vs. 76ers, TBD 
  • *Game 5: Knicks vs. Hawks, TBD 
  • *Game 5: Spurs vs. Trail Blazers, TBD

Wednesday, April 29

  • *Game 5: Pistons vs. TBD, TBD 
  • *Game 5: Cavaliers vs. Raptors, TBD 
  • *Game 5: Thunder vs. TBD, TBD 
  • *Game 5: Lakers vs. Rockets, TBD

Thursday, April 30

  • *Game 6: 76ers vs. Celtics, TBD 
  • *Game 6: Hawks vs. Knicks, TBD 
  • *Game 6: Timberwolves vs. Nuggets, TBD

Friday, May 1

  • *Game 6: TBD vs. Pistons, TBD 
  • *Game 6: Raptors vs. Cavaliers, TBD 
  • *Game 6: TBD vs. Thunder, TBD 
  • *Game 6: Rockets vs. Lakers, TBD

Saturday, May 2

  • *Game 7: Celtics vs. 76ers, TBD 
  • *Game 7: Knicks vs. Hawks, TBD 
  • *Game 7: Spurs vs. Trail Blazers, TBD 
  • *Game 7: Nuggets vs. Timberwolves, TBD

Sunday, May 3

  • *Game 7: Pistons vs. TBD, TBD 
  • *Game 7: Cavaliers vs. Raptors, TBD 
  • *Game 7: Thunder vs. TBD, TBD 
  • *Game 7: Lakers vs. Rockets, TBD

2026 NBA playoffs key dates

  • April 18-19: First-round series begin
  • May 2-4: Second round begins
  • May 10: 2026 NBA Draft Lottery
  • May 19: Eastern Conference Finals begin
  • May 20: Western Conference Finals begin
  • June 3: NBA Finals Game 1
  • June 19: NBA Finals Game 7 (if necessary)