Three NBA experts at Playbook cooked up their 2026 NBA Playoffs bracket predictions to help you fill out your own NBA Playoffs bracket.
Two of the three picked the Oklahoma City Thunder to miss the 2026 NBA Finals entirely — even as the heavy favorites to win it all on PrizePicks Team Picks.
Below, find our expert 2026 NBA Playoff bracket predictions for every playoff series, and stay locked in on Playbook for more NBA picks and predictions in every playoff game.
Download or print your 2026 NBA Playoffs bracket here to follow along with the action. Make your NBA Playoff predictions on PrizePicks — from game winners to series to NBA Finals champs, you can earn money if you’re right during the Playoffs.
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2026 NBA Bracket Predictions – TL;DR
Here’s the quick summary of our expert 2026 NBA Playoffs bracket predictions, including what each of them has in common. Find the full bracket predictions below.
- Only one of three brackets has the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Finals. The Thunder have a 1.47x payout to win the West (2.56x payout on No) on PrizePicks.
- All three expert brackets picked the Boston Celtics to advance to the NBA Finals.
- All three brackets have the same four teams winning in the Western Conference first round: Thunder, Spurs, Nuggets, and Rockets.
- All three brackets have the Thunder vs. Spurs in the Western Conference Finals.
- In the East, all three brackets have the Celtics in the Finals.
- The only Eastern Conference upset prediction is the Hawks over the Knicks in one bracket.
- Two of three brackets have the Detroit Pistons advancing to the Eastern Conference Finals.
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All 2026 NBA Playoff bracket predictions are the opinions of writers who are NOT investment professionals. Picks are not based on PrizePicks Team Picks payout multipliers, and are NOT recommendations to trade.
Riley’s 2026 NBA Playoffs Bracket Predictions
Read more of Riley Thomas’ NBA Playoffs picks, predictions, and analysis.
2026 NBA Finals Prediction: Boston Celtics def. Oklahoma City Thunder
As usual, the NBA Playoffs could be “chalky,” with the top seed winning most matchups. In the first round, the No. 5 seed Houston Rockets is the only higher seed winning in my playoff predictions.
Even after losing Game 1, PrizePicks Team Picks labels Houston as the favorite with a 1.44x payout on “Yes” to win the series vs. the No. 4 seed Lakers, who have a 2.56x payout to win as of writing.
Download the 2026 NBA Playoffs Bracket here (PDF)
Moving on to the conference semifinals, the No. 4 seed Cavaliers over the No. 1 seed Pistons is our biggest upset on the bracket. Since February, when Cleveland acquired G James Harden, the Cavs rank fourth in NBA Advanced Stats’ net rating. That’s only 2.4 points behind Detroit’s 13.3 net rating in the split (2nd).
Furthermore, the Cavaliers have a strong interior defense that could help curb the Pistons’ 57.9 points in the paint per game (first). Cleveland also averages 14.3 made 3-pointers per game (eighth), compared to Detroit’s concerning 11.0 per-game average (28th).
Elsewhere, the Celtics simply look like the class of the East, likely leading to a win over the No. 3 seed Knicks. The Celtics are the favorites to win the East on PrizePicks, with a 2x payout — ahead of the Cavaliers at 3.57x.
The Thunder and Spurs have been on a collision course for the Western Conference Finals. This could be the best series of the postseason, assuming the two meet for the Western Conference crown.
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Ultimately, Oklahoma City’s championship DNA is trustworthy, while most of San Antonio’s roster has little playoff experience.
In the East, the Cavaliers may lack the wing defenders to keep up with Celtics SG/SF Jaylen Brown and now-healthy F Jayson Tatum.
In a matchup of the last two Finals champions meeting in the 2026 NBA Finals, the Thunder have allowed 14.3 made 3-pointers per game (28th), and the Celtics drain 15.5 triples per contest (3rd). If Oklahoma City’s perimeter defense fails to improve, the Celtics’ 3-point barrage can lead them to their second NBA Finals win since 2024.
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Bearman’s 2026 NBA Playoffs Bracket Predictions
2026 NBA Finals Prediction: San Antonio Spurs def. Boston Celtics
I have the NBA playoffs being very chalky until the conference finals. There’s a tremendous difference between the top seeds in both conferences and those that barely got in.
While the sixth-seeded Hawks will give the third-seeded Knicks a battle, with a possible upset, an upset in the East look unlikely. The top seeds in Detroit and Boston should move on to the Conference Finals, where I have the Celtics winning this behind Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum. Fully healthy, they have been the best team in the East.
Out West, I do have a “seed” upset with Houston over the Lakers, but Houston is favored in the series on PrizePicks (1.44x payout for Rockets to win), due to the Luka Doncic/Austin Reaves injuries, so it’s not really an upset.
The Rockets could win a game or two vs. the Thunder in the second round, but the Thunder will move on. The Nuggets will give the Spurs a tremendous battle, likely the best series of the postseason, but ultimately, I have the Thunder and Spurs meeting in the Conference Finals as everyone expects.
But I see an upset here, as the Spurs knock off the champs. They’ve already beaten them four out of five times this season, showing that inexperience isn’t too much of a hindrance to pull off a win. SGA didn’t play in all the games, but he did in the NBA Cup semis, won by the Spurs.
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In the NBA Finals, it’s Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs grabbing their sixth title, and the first of the new era. Regardless of who makes it from the West, they should have no issue with the Eastern Conference champion.
Read more of David Bearman’s NBA Playoffs picks, predictions, and analysis.
Chris Bengel’s 2026 NBA Playoffs Bracket Predictions
Read more of Chris Bengel’s NBA Playoffs picks, predictions, and analysis.
2026 NBA Finals Prediction: San Antonio Spurs def. Boston Celtics
In the 2026 NBA Playoffs, there looks to only be a few real contenders that are capable of capturing an NBA title.
In the Eastern Conference, the opening round is mostly chalk, outside of the Atlanta Hawks pulling off an upset over the New York Knicks; the Hawks currently have a 2.43x payout to win the series on PrizePicks, while the Knicks sit at 1.44x.
I’m not a huge believer in the Knicks roster, and I absolutely love the versatility that the Hawks’ core brings to the table with the emergence of Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Jalen Johnson.
In what would certainly be an upset, the Cavaliers also have what it takes to eliminate the top-seeded Pistons. Ultimately, the Celtics are the most well-rounded group in the East and have obviously been to the mountaintop before with this core.
It was absolutely massive to get Jayson Tatum ramped up before the playoffs, as he looks to be full strength, along with the rest of the team.
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In the Western Conference, dethroning the Thunder will be no easy feat for the field. In the opening round, I technically have an “upset” with the No. 5 seed Rockets defeating the No. 4 seed Lakers, but that shouldn’t be a tall task with Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves being banged up.
It would be quite a surprise if the Western Conference Finals didn’t wind up pitting the Thunder and Spurs against each other The Spurs went 4-1 against the Thunder throughout the regular season — though most of those wins came without Shai Gilgeous-Alexander playing — and proved that they have the roster pieces to hang with the defending NBA champions.
The Celtics and Spurs would be a very entertaining matchup in the NBA Finals, with two new teams in the championship.
Seeing Victor Wembanyama in the Finals in just his third NBA season would be quite a spectacle — and a win for the NBA. It would obviously be a tough ask for the Spurs to topple the Celtics in the NBA Finals, considering that the majority of this group hasn’t ever been to the postseason.
Still, the talent speaks for itself, and Wembanyama and company will take home the Larry O’Brien Trophy in the 2026 NBA Playoffs.
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Make Your NBA Playoff Predictions on PrizePicks
Three NBA experts, two different Finals predictions, and one long postseason to find out the best in the league.
Get the full 2026 NBA Playoffs bracket here, and make your own predictions. Once you’ve got your bracket on lock, you can make your NBA Playoffs predictions on PrizePicks and earn money if you’re right — from games to series to the NBA Finals champion
Stay locked in on Playbook for daily NBA Playoffs predictions, picks, and news every day all the way through the 2026 NBA Finals.
