With the 2026-27 NBA season here, it's time to make our championship predictions. Who will win it all? Our writers make their picks.
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Who will win the East?
Kelly Iko: New YorkKnicks. I have a gut feeling that some of New York's very public, very unfortunate and very off-court stuff could be a distraction, but this team hasn't changed too much and still has the wherewithal to go the distance. The other challengers — Raptors, Pacers, 76ers, Celtics, Pistons, Cavs — have too many questions in one department or the other. There's not a true hole on this Knicks roster or coaching staff, which is always the key.
Dan Devine: New York Knicks. I can't believe we've arrived at a place where I trust the Knicks more than any other team in the field, but we have. Yes, they've logged a ton of miles over the past two seasons, and yes, we're in an era where conference champions don't tend to repeat. But while I'm only guessing at the ceilings of the other Eastern contending hopefuls, I know how high a level the Knicks can hit. For now, that's enough.
Tom Haberstroh: Philadelphia 76ers. You can probably talk me into something like six different teams here. The East is absolutely loaded. So far, LeBron James and Joel Embiid are healthy. Until I hear otherwise on that health front, I'll go with the team with four All-NBA guys, a championship-winning head coach and sneaky depth.
Steve Jones: New York Knicks. The East will finally get respect this season. The competition will be stacked: The Knicks, Cavs and Pistons have continuity, the Sixers, Heat and Raptors made moves, the Celtics never leave, and Tyrese Haliburton is back! I believe the Sixers are absolutely built for the playoffs and am curious where their regular season adventure lands them, but I had the Knicks last year, changed the pick at the last minute to Cleveland (that got funny), and will not be doing that this year. Give me the Knicks building on their championship formula.
Nekias Duncan: Boston Celtics. There are plenty of great options to choose from, highlighted by the defending champs who lost [checks notes] one (1) player from their top-10 playoff rotation. I'm just a huge believer in what Boston has built structurally, headlined by an MVP-caliber talent in Jayson Tatum, who I think is primed for a huge year. They shoot, they rebound, they defend, they don't turn the ball over … they have my eye right now.
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Who will win the West?
Duncan: Oklahoma City Thunder. That the Thunder dealt with as many injuries as they did and still managed to flirt with 70 wins and go seven in the Western Conference finals against an alien — while having a fourth-quarter lead! — is a testament to how great this team is. There's top-end talent to be excited about, internal development to bank on, elite coaching on the sidelines, and they should have a chip on their shoulder after how last season ended.
Haberstroh: San Antonio Spurs. A healthy Jalen Williams may have tilted the scales in OKC's favor last May, but I just can't shake how inconsequential Chet Holmgren looked against Wemby. I'm going with the still-rising Spurs.
Jones: San Antonio Spurs. The Spurs are going to have to deal with a different level of attention after surprising the league last year. But I feel like that, combined with an endless desire for revenge, ends up helping them out more than anything. They make it back to the Finals.
Devine: Oklahoma City Thunder. I'll take the Thunder, getting their lick back in a Western Conference finals rematch with the Spurs.
Iko: San Antonio Spurs. San Antonio has identified its mortal enemy, and nothing will take the Spurs off the collision course for a rematch.
Who will be the NBA champs?
Devine: Thunder over Knicks. New York takes the title defense as far as it can go before running out of gas, but Oklahoma City stakes its claim as the league's premier team, and SGA becomes one of just seven players ever with multiple regular-season and Finals MVPs, joining Michael Jordan, LeBron James, Tim Duncan, Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Larry Bird. Pretty decent company.
Duncan: Thunder over Celtics. The star power of SGA and Tatum. The coaching battle of Mark Daigneault and Joe Mazzulla. The pageantry of a Paul George "revenge" series, and the bounceback campaign of Jalen Williams. Derrick White and Cason Wallace flying around. Alex Caruso and Hugo González also flying around. A fun, stylistic clash of the frontcourts — and plenty of screening goodness for nerds like me. I'd love every second of this. Ultimately, I think the Thunder are the best team in the league, and should be favored to add another title to the chamber.
Iko: Spurs over Knicks. We were treated to an absolute feast of a Finals a few months ago. Brilliant coaching, subtle in-game tweaks, star moments, press conference soundbites and more. Let's do this again, shall we? The only difference is I think San Antonio, now with Tobias Harris in tow and a new lineup look, has the tools to withstand the brilliance of Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns, and OG Anunoby. (Sleeper prediction: A key member of this Knicks team gets traded by February.)
Jones: Spurs over Knicks. Who doesn't love a good rematch: The Knicks and their ability to poke at the Spurs' defensive rotations (and moving Wembanyama around the board), and the Spurs working to showcase an improved offensive attack and erase the memory of last year. It would be a blast, and I think the Spurs take it.
Haberstroh: Spurs over Sixers. Big Vic finally gets crowned as the champ. Rookie of the Year. All-Star in Year 2. Top 3 in MVP in Year 3. Champ in Year 4. Seems like a natural order of things. Only two other players in NBA history can claim that exact progression. Bob Pettit and Dave Cowens. It hasn't happened in over 50 years. Wemby is that dude.