2026 NBA Preseason: How to Watch with Sling TV
Before the NBA regular season gets underway, subscribe to Sling Essentials + Sports Extra to watch NBA preseason games on NBA TV and ESPN.
The New York Knicks are defending champions for the first time in half a century. LeBron James is a Philadelphia 76er. Giannis Antetokounmpo wears a Miami Heat jersey. LaMelo Ball is a Minnesota Timberwolf, Kawhi Leonard is a Toronto Raptor again, and somewhere in Texas, Victor Wembanyama got even taller. If you blinked during the offseason, you missed a league that’s changed dramatically since the New York Knicks shocked the world in the NBA Playoffs; Jaylen Brown to Philly, Ja Morant on the move, Paul George relocated, and a draft class headlined by AJ Dybantsa and Cameron Boozer waiting in the wings.
Which is a long way of saying: the exhibition games, which began on Oct. 3, actually matter this year. Not on the scoreboard — nobody's hanging a banner for an October win — but as the first real look at rosters that read like a fantasy draft gone haywire. The 2026 NBA preseason runs October 3 through October 16, and the first slate worth clearing your calendar for lands Tuesday, October 6. Here's how to catch it all with Sling.
How to watch NBA Preseason basketball with Sling
Here's the good news for your wallet: the nationally televised preseason games live on two channels Sling carries — ESPN (and ESPN2) and NBA TV — so you don't need a top-shelf package to get in the door. Lead with the cheapest entry point that carries the game you want.
- Games on ESPN or ESPN2 — the bulk of the national slate — stream on Sling Essentials, the most affordable plan carrying the full ESPN family at $19.99/mo. ESPN and ESPN2 also come with Sling Orange at $45.99/mo if you want the wider Orange lineup.
- Games on NBA TV — including the October 6 opener — need the Sports Extra add-on, which you can bolt onto any base plan for $11/mo. NBA TV isn't in a base plan, so this is the one to remember for the early-week tip-offs.
No long-term contract, no cable install, no guy named Greg showing up in a four-hour window to drill a hole in your wall. Add it, watch, drop it when the games stop. That's the whole pitch.
What channels stream NBA basketball during the preseason?
Short version: a small handful of games are nationally televised, and the rest air on each team's regional sports networks — which Sling does not carry. And while you can purchase NBA League Pass and NBA Team Pass through Sling, those products are for regular season games only, so you can not stream NBA preseason games with NBA League or Team Pass. Here are the games you can see:
ESPN and ESPN2 carry the meat of the national schedule — five games across the two networks, from the Kings-Lakers opener on October 8 through the Nuggets-Lakers finale on October 16. Both channels stream with Sling Essentials or Sling Orange.
NBA TV handles the earliest national windows — including a Tuesday, October 6 doubleheader — and streams when you add Sports Extra to any base plan.
Two honest caveats. First, the October 13 Cavaliers-Magic rematch airs on Peacock and NBCSN — neither is available with Sling, so that one's off the table. Second, the dozens of non-national games (your Hawks-Grizzlies, your Pistons-Suns) run on regional sports networks Sling doesn't carry. We'll never tell you a game is streamable when it isn't — that's the deal.
NBA Preseason schedule: Best week 1 games
https://youtu.be/UrkOakPHHj4?si=lO5fZh4Rvg9t0okh
You don't watch the preseason for the final score. You watch for the first glimpse — the new jersey, the untested lineup, the rookie you'll be arguing about by December. These three games are the ones to circle.
Los Angeles Lakers at Golden State Warriors — Tuesday, October 6
The headliner of opening Tuesday, and a West Coast nightcap at 10PM ET on NBA TV. Stephen Curry and the Warriors hosting a reshaped Lakers squad led by Luka Dončić is appointment viewing even in October — the kind of game where the "meaningless exhibition" label falls apart the second the ball goes up. Watch it by adding Sports Extra to any base plan.
Philadelphia 76ers vs. Boston Celtics — Saturday, October 10
These two division rivals-turned-trade-partners face each other following the most consequential trade of the offseason. Ironically, the domino that set all of this in motion was the Sixers’ upset of the Celtics in Game 7 in the first round of the playoffs. Philly went on to get swept by the Knicks, which triggered the league-altering trade between the teams. TLRD: This is some weighty history for a preseason game that’s merely an appetizer for one of the most compelling rivalries of the next few years. Watch it by adding Sports Extra to any base plan.
Chicago Bulls at Denver Nuggets — Sunday, October 11
The nightcap of ESPN's Sunday doubleheader, tipping at 9PM ET on ESPN. Nikola Jokić running the Denver offense is must-watch television regardless of the month (no, seriously), and the preseason is the only time you get to see the Nuggets' retooled rotation stretch its legs before the games count. Watch it with Sling Essentials or Sling Orange.
Three games, two channels, one very reshuffled league. The preseason is the trailer; the regular season is the movie — but this year the trailer alone is worth the price of admission. Lead with the cheapest plan that carries your game, add Sports Extra for the NBA TV windows, and you're set from the October 6 tip through Opening Night.