NBA Teams Average 14.4 Back-To-Backs In 2025/26
Five NBA teams will play a league-high 16 back-to-back sets during the 2025/26 regular season, while six clubs will have just 13 instances of back-to-back games on their schedules. The remaining 19 teams will play either 14 or 15 back-to-backs.
[RELATED: 2025/26 NBA Schedules By Team]
Those totals – along with an overall average of 14.4 back-to-backs per team – are about what we’ve come to expect in recent years.
Prior to the COVID-shortened seasons of 2019/20 and ’20/21, the NBA’s regular season consisted of 177 days, and the league had made a concerted effort to reduce instances of back-to-backs. When the league announced its initial schedule in ’19/20, its press release boasted that teams were averaging a record-low 12.4 back-to-backs that season, marking the fifth straight year in which that number had reached an all-time low.
However, since 2021/22, NBA regular seasons have spanned just 174 days, making it a little more difficult for schedule-makers to avoid back-to-back sets. The average number of back-to-backs per team is still well below where it once was (teams averaged 19.3 in 2024/25), but it’s no longer at a record low.
Here are the back-to-backs by team in 2025/26:
- Charlotte Hornets: 16
Denver Nuggets: 16
Philadelphia 76ers: 16
Phoenix Suns: 16
Washington Wizards: 16 - Golden State Warriors: 15
Los Angeles Clippers: 15
Miami Heat: 15
New Orleans Pelicans: 15
Portland Trail Blazers: 15
Toronto Raptors: 15
Utah Jazz: 15 - Brooklyn Nets: 14
Cleveland Cavaliers: 14
Dallas Mavericks: 14
Detroit Pistons: 14
Houston Rockets: 14
Los Angeles Lakers: 14
Memphis Grizzlies: 14
Milwaukee Bucks: 14
New York Knicks: 14
Orlando Magic: 14
Sacramento Kings: 14
San Antonio Spurs: 14 - Atlanta Hawks: 13
Boston Celtics: 13
Chicago Bulls: 13
Indiana Pacers: 13
Minnesota Timberwolves: 13
Oklahoma City Thunder: 13
Warriors, Lakers, Knicks, Thunder Get Most Nationally Televised Games For 2025/26
Having gone from two national broadcasting partners (ABC/ESPN and TNT) to three (ABC/ESPN, NBC, and Amazon Prime) ahead of the 2025/26 season, the NBA’s schedule will feature a significant increase in nationally televised games.
When the league unveiled its full regular season schedule on Thursday, it announced 237 nationally televised regular season matchups, along with the seven knockout round NBA Cup games whose participants aren’t yet known, for a total of 244 contests.
As Colin Salao of Front Office Sports writes in a subscriber story, the total number of nationally televised games is up by more than 40% from last season, when the league’s partners nationally broadcasted a total of 172 games.
Salao also points out that beginning in the middle of the season, when the NFL schedule starts winding down, the NBA will have national games every day of the week: Peacock on Monday; NBC/Peacock on Tuesday; ESPN on Wednesday; Amazon on Thursday; Amazon and ESPN on Friday; Amazon and ABC on Saturday; and ABC, NBC, and Peacock on Sunday.
Every team will be featured at least twice on the national TV broadcast schedule, with the Warriors, Lakers, Knicks, and defending champion Thunder leading the way with 34 appearances apiece.
Here’s the full breakdown of nationally televised games by team:
- Golden State Warriors: 34
- Los Angeles Lakers: 34
- New York Knicks: 34
- Oklahoma City Thunder: 34
- Houston Rockets: 28
- Minnesota Timberwolves: 28
- Denver Nuggets: 26
- Boston Celtics: 25
- Cleveland Cavaliers: 24
- Dallas Mavericks: 23
- San Antonio Spurs: 22
- Los Angeles Clippers: 21
- Milwaukee Bucks: 18
- Detroit Pistons: 16
- Orlando Magic: 14
- Philadelphia 76ers: 14
- Atlanta Hawks: 13
- Memphis Grizzlies: 10
- Indiana Pacers: 9
- Phoenix Suns: 9
- Sacramento Kings: 9
- Portland Trail Blazers: 8
- Miami Heat: 5
- Charlotte Hornets: 3
- Chicago Bulls: 3
- Brooklyn Nets: 2
- New Orleans Pelicans: 2
- Toronto Raptors: 2
- Utah Jazz: 2
- Washington Wizards: 2
Since nationally televised matchups are subject to change, there’s no guarantee that every team will ultimately end up being featured multiple times on the national stage.
As Salao points out, all 30 clubs showed up at least once on the national broadcast schedule initially announced for 2024/25, but the Wizards didn’t get any nationally televised games after having their lone contest replaced by a showdown between Cleveland and Oklahoma City.
Additionally, not every team this season will have a game aired on a traditional, non-streaming network — the only games featuring the Raptors or Wizards will air on either Peacock or Amazon Prime.
Giannis Antetokounmpo Still Awaiting Bucks’ Approval For EuroBasket
Giannis Antetokounmpo hasn’t taken part in any team activities as Greece prepares for EuroBasket because he’s still waiting for the Bucks to provide written permission for him to participate, according to Aris Barkas and Stavros Barbarousis of Eurohoops.
While most players don’t need permission from their NBA clubs to play in international tournaments, Antetokounmpo is an exception due to the size of his contract, sources tell the authors. They explain that the FIBA insurance policy, which is covered by the Greek federation, doesn’t pay enough to cover Antetokounmpo’s NBA contract in case he suffers a serious injury. Because there’s a cap on the insurance payout, he can’t proceed without authorization from the Bucks.
Barkas and Barbarousis note that Nuggets center Nikola Jokic and Lakers guard Luka Doncic are also affected by that stipulation, but they are both practicing and participating in exhibition games with their EuroBasket teams.
The FIBA-NBA agreement permits NBA players to join their national team’s training camp 28 days before the start of a major FIBA competition. Greece’s first EuroBasket game will take place on August 28, so Antetokounmpo would have been permitted to start training at the beginning of the month if not for the insurance snag.
Antetokounmpo has already missed three Greek exhibition contests, and he isn’t expected to play against Montenegro on Thursday. The authors state that Greece will participate in the Acropolis tournament before wrapping up exhibition play August 24 against France, but it’s still uncertain whether Antetokounmpo will be cleared to suit up for any of those contests.
The issue comes amid continuing uncertainty over Antetokounmpo’s future in Milwaukee. Trade speculation was rekindled earlier this month when Shams Charania of ESPN reported that the two-time MVP remains uncertain that he can achieve his goal of winning at least one more NBA title while playing for the Bucks.
And-Ones: Dynasties, Wolves, Concern-O-Meter, Traded Picks
It may seem like the Thunder have the makings of dynasty, but ESPN’s Tim Bontemps details why it’s tougher than ever to build a dominant team. He outlines how the tax aprons make it more difficult for teams to run it back with the same core of players and that roster mistakes can haunt contenders for several years.
“You have to be right on every decision,” one Western Conference scout told Bontemps. “Now, you have to look at things in not a one-year window, but a three-year window. You literally can’t mess anything up. It puts pressure on the organization to think differently and smartly to make sure you are best-positioned to make the right decisions.”
We have more from around the league:
- Point guard Mike Conley will turn 38 before opening night and finding a suitable replacement could be difficult for the Timberwolves. Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report gets creative in an effort to solve that problem, proposing a four-team trade in which Minnesota winds up with Magic guard Anthony Black.
- The Athletic’s Zach Harper provides his ratings for the ‘concern-o-meter’ regarding 10 potential red flags that have popped up around the league this offseason. Rating high on the ‘concern-o-meter’ is the demise of free agency, the moves made by the Pelicans and the continued health issues for the Sixers.
- Speaking of the Pelicans, Sam Quinn of CBS Sports takes a look at every future traded first-rounder, ranking them from least valuable to most valuable. New Orleans’ unprotected 2026 pick, which its new front office dealt to the Hawks in a draft-night trade, is considered the most valuable among those picks. The Bucks‘ 2029 pick, which could go to either the Trail Blazers or Wizards, is ranked No. 2, followed by the 2027, ’29 and ’31 first-rounders the Suns dealt away.
Cole Anthony Excited To Play For Bucks After ‘Bittersweet’ Departure From Orlando
Cole Anthony admits he’s having difficulty adjusting to the fact that he’s a former member of the Magic.
“I’ve literally said this to several people … I still feel like I’m on the Magic a little bit,” Anthony told Jason Beede of the Orlando Sentinel.
Anthony spoke to Beede during a community appearance in Orlando. Anthony was dealt to the Grizzlies along with fellow guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and four future first-round picks in June in exchange for Desmond Bane.
His stay in Memphis was brief. He reached a buyout agreement with the Grizzlies, giving up $2MM of his $13.1MM expiring contract. He then signed a one-year, veteran’s minimum deal with the Bucks after clearing waivers.
“I remember that whole week, it was just crazy,” Anthony said. “I’ve been here five years, haven’t played for another team, was drafted here, so it’s something for me that definitely is bittersweet and I’m going to miss it.”
Anthony appeared in 32o regular season contests during his five seasons with Orlando. Last season, he appeared in 67 games (22 starts) and averaged 9.4 points, 3.0 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 18.4 minutes per night.
He’ll now compete for backcourt minutes in Milwaukee.
“I look at it as a great opportunity to enter another team where they have a playoff pedigree and a championship pedigree,” Anthony said. “They’ve won a ‘chip there. I just want to get in there, contribute and do whatever I can for the team. I want to be a part of winning.”
International Notes: Giannis, Jokic, Doncic, Osman
Giannis Antetokounmpo will represent Greece when EuroBasket begins later this month, but he hasn’t been active for any of the team’s preparation games, writes Aris Barkas of Eurohoops. The Bucks star will miss his third straight contest today as his team faces Israel.
Antetokounmpo is training on his own in Athens, and Greek national team coach Vassilis Spanoulis isn’t sure if he’ll join the squad for the next game against Montenegro, which is set for Thursday in Thessaloniki.
“We don’t know yet if he will play in Thessaloniki,” Spanoulis told Greek national television. “Giannis will be on the court when he should be.”
While it’s not unusual for a player of Antetokounmpo’s status to get star treatment, his absence has caused some consternation among Greece’s opponents. Serbian coach Svetislav Pesic expressed disappointment that Antetokounmpo didn’t take part in Saturday’s contest, Barkis adds in a separate story.
“I’m sorry that Giannis is not here; that’s why we scheduled this tournament,” Pesic said. “We have a good relationship with the Greeks; they always respond to us.”
There’s more international news to pass along:
- While Antetokounmpo missed a potential battle of perennial MVP candidates, Serbia’s Nikola Jokic dominated with 23 points, 19 rebounds and four assists in a 76-66 victory, according to Eurohoops. The Nuggets star controlled the paint area as Serbia pulled away from Greece in the second quarter.
- Slovenian teammates have noticed a change in Luka Doncic that goes beyond his slimmed-down appearance, per Martin Pavncik of Sport Klub. Playing in his first international tournament since joining the Lakers, Doncic has become more of a vocal leader than he was in the past. “Already at the first training session, I noticed that he talks significantly more than in previous years,” longtime teammate Klemno Prepelić said. “I believe this is a challenge that awaits him at the club as he takes on the role of the first face of the franchise. His word carries a lot of weight just because of his exceptional basketball knowledge and incredible feeling. At the same time, he does it with great enthusiasm and a desire to make every individual in training better.”
- Former NBA player Cedi Osman, who’s part of Turkey’s EuroBasket roster, enjoys playing in Europe because it allows him to participate in more international competitions, BasketNews relays. “The difference between the NBA and Europe is that here, I can also take part in the FIBA windows,” Osman said. “That’s very important. When I was in the NBA, there were long breaks in between. But now, every two or three months, I get the chance to come to Turkey and play for the national team. I think this helps both me and the team a lot. The same goes for other players returning from the NBA — their involvement during the windows builds continuity and chemistry.”
Lillard Reunion With Blazers Facilitated By 2024 Meeting Between Agent, GM
The seeds for Damian Lillard‘s reunion with the Trail Blazers were planted during his first season with the Bucks, as ESPN’s Jamal Collier details.
Lillard’s agent, Aaron Goodwin, and Portland general manager Joe Cronin spoke in January 2024. During that conversation, they identified the gaps in their communication and agreed there were no hard feelings between the parties.
Lillard requested a trade to the Heat in the summer of 2023. When that trade failed to materialize by September, Goodwin told the Blazers that Lillard would stay in Portland. However, the front office wanted to resolve the situation by training camp and traded him to Milwaukee.
“More than anything, it was miscommunications and misunderstandings,” Lillard said. “Joe and I never talked about [a potential return]. It just sat out there and we let it be what it was, I think that was the mistake.”
Lillard always saw himself ending his career with the Blazers, even before he was dealt. The reunion came in unexpected fashion after Lillard suffered a torn Achilles during this past season’s playoffs. Milwaukee decided to waive him and use the stretch provision, allowing the Bucks to make a bold free agent signing, securing top available center Myles Turner.
Collier reports that trading Lillard had been a consideration for Milwaukee if he did not suffer a long-term injury. The Bucks’ front office considered a number of different strategies, with a Lillard trade viewed as a last-ditch attempt to find another star to pair with Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Lillard chose to return to Portland on a three-year, $42MM contract after being waived. Cronin met Lillard at his Portland home to check on how he was doing, both mentally and physically with the rehab of his torn Achilles and spoke of the team’s progress during its rebuild. At that time, Lillard expressed that he felt the Blazers were on the upswing. An agreement was reached a short time later.
Lillard is expected to spend the entire 2025/26 season rehabbing the injury. Goodwin believes he’ll come back strong.
“It’s Dame. I know Dame,” he said. “I know the desire. I know the fight. I know how hard he works. And I didn’t see this as anything that was going to shut down his career. It’s going to be something that was going to maybe even prolong his career because he goes so hard that he’s got to give his body a break.”
Southwest Notes: Lively, Flagg, Giannis, Wembanyama, Sengun, Durant, Smith Jr.
Mavericks center Dereck Lively II has only two years of NBA experience but he’s playing a mentorship role to top pick Cooper Flagg, according to Jake Rogers of Dallas Hoops Journal. Naturally, they have a college connection, as both were one-and-dones at Duke.
“I’ve probably known him for a couple of years now, at least two or three,” Lively said. “He’s always been the same smiling, joking kid. I’m glad he’s been able to stay grounded, not letting the spotlight overwhelm him. Whether he’s in the gym or hanging out at the house, he’s always just being Coop.”
Lively has stayed in frequent contact with Flagg since the draft.
“I’m making sure he feels as comfortable as possible, giving him any little detail or advice. I remember how frightened I was at 19. He’s only 18,” Lively said.
Here’s more from the Southwest Division:
- Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo has carved out a Hall of Fame worthy career but he’s also into collecting memorabilia of other NBA superstars. His current target is Spurs big man Victor Wembanyama, he told Brooks Peck of The Athletic during an appearance at the National Sports Collector Convention. “I want Wemby’s first rookie card ever,” Antetokounmpo said. “I think he’s gonna be one of the best players in the league in the next couple of years. I think he will have a very great career moving forward, so — maybe like a jersey, his first jersey or his first basketball shoe when he played his first NBA game, or the first ball that he played with and scored his very first point. You gotta go with Wemby, Steph (Curry), LeBron (James), MJ (Michael Jordan). Those are great investments.”
- Rockets center Alperen Sengun believes the offense will thrive with the addition of Kevin Durant. Sengun, who will play for Turkey in EuroBasket, made his comments to Anadolu, Turkey’s state-run news agency (hat tip to RocketsWire). “I’m excited to play with Durant. Everyone is excited to play with him. It doesn’t matter his age — ultimately, he’s Kevin Durant. I have no doubt he will bring a lot to the team,” Sengun said. “He’s very experienced, and we have some very young players. I think he’ll open up the game for us. He’s incredibly effective both offensively and defensively.”
- Along the same lines, Rockets forward Jabari Smith Jr. said he believes playing with Durant will be a learning experience, RocketsWire relays via an interview with Space City Home Network’s Vanessa Richardson. “Kevin Durant is one of the greatest players to ever touch a basketball,” Smith said. “It’s going to be great for me to learn from him, and see what he does, day-to-day… and just soak up as much game as I can. It’s going to be fun playing alongside him and going to battle with him.”
Giannis Antetokounmpo’s Future In Milwaukee Remains Unsettled
Giannis Antetokounmpo trade rumors have died down in recent weeks, but the two-time MVP hasn’t reached a decision on whether he wants to continue playing for the Bucks, ESPN’s Shams Charania said this morning during an appearance on “Get Up.” (Twitter video link).
“Sources tell me there’s still nothing set in stone about whether Giannis Antetokounmpo will stay in Milwaukee or whether he will be leaving,” Charania said.
There have been past reports that Antetokounmpo might consider leaving Milwaukee to improve his chances of winning at least one more NBA title. Speculation began to grow after the Bucks were eliminated in this first round of this year’s playoffs and star guard Damian Lillard suffered an Achilles tear that’s expected to sideline him for all of next season.
Bucks general manager Jon Horst responded by retooling the team’s roster this summer. He waived and stretched the $112.6MM that Lillard had left on his contract for the next two years and used the newfound cap space to sign center Myles Turner away from the Pacers.
Horst also added Gary Harris, Jericho Sims and Cole Anthony in free agency and re-signed several of the team’s own free agents, such as Bobby Portis, Gary Trent Jr., Kevin Porter Jr., Ryan Rollins and Taurean Prince.
The aggressive move with Turner was viewed as an important step toward convincing Antetokounmpo that the Bucks could remain competitive in the Eastern Conference. Although there hasn’t been much trade talk over the last month, Charania insists that Antetokounmpo’s situation hasn’t been resolved.
“There’s been some very real conversations over the last week or so,” Charania said. “The constant question that Giannis has, though, is can I win a championship with this roster? … He wants to win a second championship, so he’s asking that question over and over.”
He added that there are “multiple teams waiting in the wings” to make offers if Antetokounmpo decides he wants out.
Latest From Stein, Fischer: Paul, Smart, Thomas, Kuminga
Chris Paul returned to Los Angeles and signed with the Clippers on a one-year deal last week. Paul showed strong interest in playing for one of his other former teams before making his decision, according to the latest Substack article from Marc Stein and Jake Fischer of The Stein Line.
The other team that Paul considered rejoining was the Suns. The team’s star, Devin Booker, was intrigued by the potential reunion, given how they meshed during Phoenix’s run to the 2021 NBA Finals. There was also seemingly a spot for Paul at the point, since Tyus Jones chose to sign with Orlando.
The Suns’ front office decided to go in another direction. Phoenix was much more interested in defensive stalwart Marcus Smart, who chose to sign with the Lakers after reaching a buyout with Washington. Phoenix’s brass also had some concerns how the future Hall of Famer’s presence might create some awkward situations for first-year head coach Jordan Ott.
The Suns wound up claiming Jordan Goodwin off waivers and signing Jared Butler to a non-guaranteed contract. Paul also drew interest from the Hornets, Mavericks and Bucks, as previously reported.
Citing a source, Stein said Dallas had D’Angelo Russell higher on its wish list than Paul. The Mavs’ brass believed Russell would be more comfortable in a complementary role once Kyrie Irving returns from his knee ailment. They also felt Russell was a better fit with Anthony Davis, considering they had played together with the Lakers. Russell signed a two-year deal with the Mavs.
Here’s more nuggets from The Stein Line:
- The Hawks considered absorbing Smart’s contract into its $25MM traded player exception prior to his buyout. Atlanta opted instead to acquire Kristaps Porziņgis and make a sign-and-trade transaction for Nickeil Alexander-Walker. The Bucks explored potential trades for Smart and the Heat‘s Andrew Wiggins with the aid of Pat Connaughton‘s expiring $9.4MM contract. They instead dealt him to Charlotte for two future second-round picks.
- Fischer reiterates that the Nets’ offers to restricted free agent Cam Thomas have yet to exceed two-year proposals featuring an annual average value in the range of the league’s $14.1MM non-taxpayer mid-level exception. Those offers also include a team option for the second year. Brooklyn appears to be in no rush to ramp up negotiations with Thomas’ representation, given Thomas’ lack of leverage.
- Regarding another prominent restricted free agent, Jonathan Kuminga has not gotten an offer from the Warriors close to his reported $30MM annual asking price. The Warriors’ best offers to Kuminga have topped out in the two-year, $40MM range, per Stein. As previously reported, the Kings and Suns are regarded as the top suitors but Golden State wants a first-round pick in any sign-and-trade deal. Phoenix is unable to offer a first-rounder.