Philadelphia picked up an 106-100 victory over New York on opening night to really announce themselves to the league. After landing Jaylen Brown and LeBron James in the offseason, there were some questions around how long it would take this new team to gel, but they showed few signs of lack of cohesion, especially as the game went on. A 21-6 run which extended into the fourth quarter gave Philly an 87-78 lead and although New York threatened to come back, the defending champions never regained the lead, making it a winning start for Philadelphia. Brown and James both looked comfortable, with JB dropping 19 points, eight rebounds and six assists and James providing 14 points, nine rebounds and seven assists, but Tyrese Maxey was the standout. The electric guard barely put a foot wrong on his way to 28 points, five assists, three steals and three blocks, while Joel Embiid and VJ Edgecombe often benefitted from NY’s aggressive double-teams.
Cleveland made it all the way to the conference finals in 2026, getting past a hampered Toronto team and Detroit in the opening two rounds before being swept by New York. On paper, that’s a very solid season for this version of the roster who had failed to make it past the second round at every hurdle, but it had to go down as a disappointment as they failed to trouble the only good postseason team that they came up against. All of their core returns for another run, bolstered by the addition of Peyton Watson on the wing. His three-and-D play will be a huge upgrade from that of Dean Wade and Max Strus, while Mario Hezonja also joins with a three-and-D profile, and Cleveland will surely want to get off on the right foot this season to help those new pieces settle in.
We have an interesting East showdown in front of us and on Friday and it will be interesting to see how Cleveland match up against what is already a firing Philly outfit. The hosts’ defence was perhaps their most impressive part of their game on Wednesday and that’s going to cause some issues for a Cleveland team who don’t like to push the ball. With Philly likely to slow down their play too, I like the under here.
Best
Under 235.5 ($1.90)
Oklahoma City really made a statement on Wednesday, beating San Antonio 116-104. It looked comfortable for the 2025 champions for much of the way, taking a 65-44 lead into halftime and never turning back, with their two-way play really throwing Victor Wembanyama and his team off. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander showed no signs of rust, posting 32 points, six rebounds, four assists, three steals and three blocks in the win, while Chet Holmgren really showed up for his big showdown against Wemby, with 14 points, seven rebounds and four blocks. The movement shooting of Jared McCain proved to be a huge weapon, as the likes of Jalen Williams and Ajay Mitchell really struggled in the paint, with McCain hitting six threes on his way to 20 points and six assists. Aday Mara and Alex Caruso had some big moments in the first half and were influential in OKC opening up a big buffer, as the visitors picked up a big road win.
Denver head into another season with Nikola Jokić at the helm and Jamal Murray alongside him, as they chase their second championship together. Aaron Gordon is also back for another run, as are Christian Braun and Cameron Johnson to see their starters reunite, but their bench looks almost completely different. DeMar DeRozan shapes up as an important addition, offering something that Denver have seldom had in the Jokić era, being reliable scoring and shot-creation off the bench, while Marvin Bagley III comes in as the latest back-up centre trying to save face while the Joker sits on the pine. Tim Hardaway Jr’s shooting will be sorely missed and Julian Strawther’s preseason knee injury has done them no favours, but Denver will again be a force in 2026/27.
Spencer Jones is questionable for Denver’s opener, further hurting their forward depth and I am picking the visitors to find themselves a bit out of their depth in this clash. Jokić will have his offensive success, but OKC have good defensive matchups for Murray, Gordon and the rest of Denver’s main pieces. On the flip side, I am not optimistic about the visitors’ defensive personnel, especially without Jones, so I will take OKC as single-digit favourites at home.
Best
Oklahoma City -8.5 ($1.94)