NBA Playoffs 2026: Here’s Where to Watch the Eastern & Western Conference Finals Games Live Online
Here's how you can livestream basketball game online for free.
Black News 
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With the second round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs wrapping up, the start of the Eastern Conference Finals tipoffs on Tuesday, May 19. The top four teams in the basketball league are vying to hoist the highly-coveted Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy at the end of the season.
Want to watch postseason games online? The Eastern Conference Finals: Cleveland Cavaliers vs. New York Knicks broadcast live on ESPN, while the Western Conference Finals: San Antonio Spurs vs. Oklahoma City Thunder airs on NBC, as well as livestream on Peacock.
How to Watch 2026 NBA Playoffs, At a Glance:
- Date: Apr. 18-June 19
- Network: ESPN, NBC
- Online Streaming: DirecTV, Hulu + Live TV, Sling TV, Peacock
If you’re a sports fan, there are plenty of affordable streaming options that offer NBA coverage live and on demand. Read on for details on how to watch and stream the NBA playoffs without cable.
Where to Watch the NBA Playoffs 2026 Live Online
If you want to watch the NBA Playoffs, you can watch ESPN and NBC without cable with streaming platforms, such as DirecTV, Sling TV and others.
While most streamers offer a free trial or a discount at sign up, so you won’t necessarily have to spend anything up front. To help you shop for the right package, we collected a short list of some of the more affordable streamers and what they offer for NBA fans.
A subscription to DirecTV — which comes with ESPN and NBC — gets you access to live TV, local and cable channels with the streamer’s “Entertainment” package, starting at $84.99 per month for the first 24 months 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.
There are two Peacock plans you can choose from: The Premium Plan is ad-supported and goes for $10.99 per month, or the mostly ad-free Premium Plus plan for $16.99 per month.
Unfortunately, there is no free trial for new subscribers, but the streaming platform does come with various plans starting at $10.99 per month. However, you can sign up for a 30-day free trial for Walmart+, which comes with access to Peacock as part of the service. Learn more about Walmart+ here.
Sling TV offers Orange + Blue, which comes with ESPN and NBC. With more than 50 channels, you can combine both of the streamer’s main packages and get all of the channels it offers and the ability to stream on up to three devices at once. Please note: Pricing and channel availability varies from market-to-market.
For the best bundle, 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 ESPN and NBC). The streaming platform starts at $89.99 per month. And, for even more programming, the streaming service comes bundled with Hulu, Disney+ and ESPN Unlimited.
Which Celebrities Are Making Appearances During NBA Playoffs?
It’s likely there will be a number of celebrities and famous recording artists in attendance during the NBA Playoffs, such as NY Knicks fans Spike Lee, 50 Cent, Fat Joe and others; Cleveland Cavaliers fans Machine Gun Kelly, Usher, The Miz and others; and more. Just tune-in to postseason games to find out who’s sitting courtside.
NBA Playoffs 2026 Schedule
The 2026 NBA Playoffs start on Saturday, Apr. 18 and goes until late June for the NBA Finals. Check out a complete NBA Playoffs schedule and tournament bracket here.
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