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10/21/2025

How to Watch the 2025 NBA Season Online Without Cable

The season opener between the Houston Rockets vs. the Oklahoma City Thunder tips-off on Tuesday, Oct. 21.

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When Does the 2025 NBA Season Start?

The 2025 NBA season tips off with an incredible doubleheader with the Houston Rockets vs. the Oklahoma City Thunder followed by the Golden State Warriors vs. the Los Angeles Lakers. Opening night airs on Tuesday, Oct. 21 on NBC, which can be streamed online with Peacock.

How to Watch the 2025 NBA Season Without Cable

The 2025 NBA season will air across NBC and ESPN while streaming on Peacock, DirecTV, Prime Video, Hulu + Live TV and Sling TV. Don’t have cable? Here’s everything you need to know on how to stream NBA games online for free.

DirecTV

Join DirecTV with a five-day free trial to enjoy your favorite sports and other entertainment. The streaming service’s signature packages feature more than 90 channels: ABC, TNT, ESPN, NBA TV, ESPN2, FS1, SEC, MLB Network, TLC, CBS, USA, Bravo, E!, BET, MTV and more.

A subscription to DirecTV — which comes with NBC and ESPN for NBA games — gets you access to live TV, local and cable channels, starting at $49.99 for the first month of service ($89.99 per month afterwards). The service even offers a five-day free trial to watch for free, if you sign up now.

Get: DIrectv Free Trial Here

Peacock

With the NBA on NBA, fans can now catch games streaming on Peacock. While there is no free trial for new users, the platform offers cheap plans starting at just $10.99 per month, or you can get an annual plan for $109.99 per year (which gets you 12 months of streaming for the price of 10). Sign up below.

get: peacock here

Sling TV

Sling TV offers the Blue package, which comes with NBC. Blue is one of the most affordable options and comes with more than 40 channels and can be streamed on up to three device at a time. Please note: Pricing and channel availability varies from market-to-market.

Sling TV is another streaming option for sports fans on a budget. With Sling Orange + Blue package, you can stream ESPN, ESPN2, ABC, TNT and other channels for starting at $33 for the first month ($65.99 per month afterwards).

You’ll also get more than 45 other networks, including Disney Channel, ESPN2, NBC, Fox, TBS, Bravo, Discovery Channel, Fox News, MSNBC, National Geographic, USA Network, Fox Sports and more. Please note that channel availability and price depends on your local TV market. Learn more about Sling TV here.

get: sling tv here

Hulu + Live TV

For the most content offerings, you can sign up for Hulu + Live TV and get access to the Hulu library in addition to more then 95 live TV channels (including NBC). The streaming platform starts at $64.99 per month for the first three months of service ($82.99 per month afterwards).

And, for even more programming, Hulu + Live TV now comes bundled with Disney+ and ESPN Unlimited, which gives you everything within the Hulu library, in addition to exclusive content on ESPN for even more sports coverage.

get: hulu + live tv

Prime Video

Amazon Prime Video is the exclusive home for the NBA’s Friday night doubleheaders — and it’ll be the exclusive streaming home for Thursday night NBA games starting in 2026.

To watch Friday Night NBA games, you’ll need a Prime Membership. Signing up will grant you access to Prime Video to watch the basketball games as well as a whole suite of benefits, including fast same-, next-, or two-day free shipping; discounts at Whole Foods Market, access to exclusive shopping events — like Prime Day and Black Friday — and more.

Amazon is offering a 30-day free trial for new users who want to test out the service. When the trial is up, you can either cancel the streaming service altogether, or you can keep watching for $8.99/month for the base Prime Video plan. But, if you want all the perks that come with Amazon Prime, it goes for $14.99/month (or $139/year) — a nearly 25% savings.

Get: Prime Video Free Trial here

What’s the 2025 NBA Season Opening Week Schedule?

Don’t miss any of the on court action this week with must-see matchups including Golden State vs. Los Angeles Lakers (Oct. 21), Boston Celtics vs. New York Knicks (Oct. 24) and Oklahoma City vs. Dallas Mavericks (Oct. 27). See full schedule as well as where to watch each game below.

Tuesday, Oct. 21

Houston vs. Oklahoma City — 7:30 p.m. (NBC/Peacock)
Golden State vs. Los Angeles Lakers — 10:00 p.m. (NBC/Peacock)

Wednesday, Oct. 22

Cleveland vs. New York Knicks — 7:00 p.m. (ESPN)
Brooklyn vs. Charlotte — 7:00 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
Miami vs. Orlando — 7:00 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
Toronto vs. Atlanta — 7:30 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
Philadelphia vs. Boston — 7:30 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
Detroit vs. Chicago — 8:00 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
New Orleans vs. Memphis — 8:00 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
Washington vs. Milwaukee — 8:00 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
LA Clippers vs. Utah — 9:00 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
San Antonio vs. Dallas — 9:30 p.m. (ESPN)
Sacramento vs. Phoenix — 10:00 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
Minnesota vs. Portland — 10:00 p.m. (NBA League Pass)

Thursday, Oct. 23

Oklahoma City vs. Indiana — 7:30 p.m. (ESPN)
Denver vs. Golden State — 10:00 p.m. (ESPN)

Friday, Oct. 24

Atlanta vs. Orlando — 7:00 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
Cleveland vs. Brooklyn — 7:30 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
Boston vs. New York Knicks — 7:30 p.m. (Prime Video)
Milwaukee vs. Toronto — 7:30 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
Detroit vs. Houston — 8:00 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
Miami vs. Memphis — 8:00 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
San Antonio vs. New Orleans — 8:00 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
Washington vs. Dallas — 8:30 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
Minnesota vs. Los Angeles Lakers — 10:00 p.m. (Prime Video)
Golden State vs. Portland — 10:00 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
Utah vs. Sacramento — 10:00 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
Phoenix vs. Los Angeles Clippers — 10:30 p.m. (NBA League Pass)

Saturday, Oct. 25

Chicago vs. Orlando — 7:00 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
Oklahoma City vs. Atlanta — 7:30 p.m. (NBA TV)
Charlotte vs. Philadelphia — 7:30 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
Indiana vs. Memphis — 8:00 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
Phoenix vs. Denver — 9:00 p.m. (NBA League Pass)

Sunday, Oct. 26

Brooklyn vs. San Antonio — 2:00 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
Boston vs. Detroit — 3:30 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
Milwaukee vs. Cleveland — 6:00 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
New York Knicks vs. Miami — 6:00 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
Charlotte vs. Washington — 6:00 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
Indiana vs. Minnesota — 7:00 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
Toronto vs. Dallas — 7:30 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
Portland vs. Los Angeles Clippers — 9:00 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
Los Angeles Lakers vs. Sacramento — 9:00 p.m. (NBA League Pass)

Monday, Oct. 27

Cleveland vs. Detroit — 7:00 p.m. (Peacock)
Orlando vs. Philadelphia — 7:00 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
Atlanta vs. Chicago — 8:00 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
Brooklyn vs. Houston — 8:00 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
Boston vs. New Orleans — 8:00 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
Toronto vs. San Antonio — 8:00 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
Oklahoma City vs. Dallas — 8:30 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
Phoenix vs. Utah — 9:00 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
Denver vs. Minnesota — 9:30 p.m. (Peacock)
Memphis vs. Golden State — 10:00 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
Portland vs. Los Angeles Lakers — 10:30 p.m. (NBA League Pass)

Tuesday, Oct. 28

Philadelphia vs. Washington — 7:00 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
Charlotte vs. Miami — 7:30 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
New York Knicks vs. Milwaukee — 8:00 p.m. (NBC/Peacock)
Sacramento vs. Oklahoma City — 8:00 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
Los Angeles Clippers vs. Golden State — 11:00 p.m. (NBC/Peacock)

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