The Philadelphia 76ers are going to be a magnet for cameras in the 2026-27 season, and one of the marquee stops on that schedule lands in Oklahoma City.
Philadelphia’s makeover was one of the loudest stories of the offseason. The Sixers added LeBron James and Jaylen Brown, turning a roster that already featured Joel Embiid, Tyrese and VJ Edgecombe into what looks like the league’s most star-packed starting five. Brown arrived in the blockbuster deal that sent Paul George and four future draft picks to the Boston Celtics, a move that shocked the NBA and brought the 2024 NBA Finals MVP to an arch-rival after a career year that had him in MVP conversations.
Then came the bigger surprise. Philadelphia emerged as the winner of the final James sweepstakes, landing the 41-year-old after he left the Los Angeles Lakers and walked away from a possible third reunion with the Cleveland Cavaliers. James showed last season he still has plenty left, and the move signals a push to chase a ring in the closing stretch of his career.
The schedule-makers clearly leaned into the spectacle. The Sixers are tied with the Lakers, New York Knicks and San Antonio Spurs for the most national TV games, with a maximum of 34 appearances.
One of those nationally spotlighted games comes in Oklahoma City. Philadelphia’s only regular-season trip to face the Thunder - unless the 2027 NBA Finals bring them back - is set for Saturday, Feb. 13 at 4:30 p.m.
CT. The game will air on Amazon Prime.
That matchup also adds another chapter to the James-Shai Gilgeous-Alexander storyline after Gilgeous-Alexander’s Thunder swept James in Round 2 of last year’s playoffs. There are still a couple of meetings left between those two basketball pantheons, and this one should draw plenty of attention.
Most people expect Oklahoma City to be right back in the mix for the top seed, but the real question is how Philadelphia looks by mid-February. With this team, it feels like the night will either go very well or go completely off the rails.
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Kawhi Finally Returns To OKC In A Full Circle Thunder Moment
Kawhi Leonards name still sits in the middle of one of the most consequential detours in recent Thunder history, because his push for a co-star helped set in motion the Clippers move for Paul George. Oklahoma City cashed in on that chain reaction in a way that reshaped the franchise, turning those dealings into the foundation for a roster built around Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams.
Now Leonard is set to come through Oklahoma City again with the Toronto Raptors, a reminder of how much has changed since the Clippers era that once revolved around him. The Clippers later cap-circumvention penalty only deepened the strange full-circle feel around the whole saga, but the next chapter for Thunder fans is the visit itself, and what kind of reception follows when Leonard steps back into that building. [Read more 🡒]
Thunder Spurs Suddenly Feels Like The NBAs Biggest New Grudge Match
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There is also the schedule itself, which will keep the conversation alive even before the stakes rise again in the spring. The teams will see each other only a handful of times in the regular season, and the first one already has the feel of an event, a reminder that these meetings are starting to matter well beyond one playoff series. If the last postseason was the introduction, this season is shaping up to be the stretch where the NBA learns whether this is a one-off showdown or the start of something bigger. [Read more 🡒]
Mark Daigneault Faces A Tougher Thunder Challenge Than Last Season
Mark Daigneault is heading into next season with a different kind of Thunder puzzle on his hands. Oklahoma City has become used to asking its coach to balance development and winning at the same time, but the roster will look different enough to make the task a little tougher. The team will have to replace familiar pieces while still trying to keep the standard high in a league where every night asks something new of a contender.
The challenge is not just about filling minutes, either. Daigneault will be working under the same collective bargaining agreement pressures that have made roster management more intricate across the NBA, all while trying to fold more young talent into a rotation that cannot afford to drift. Nikola Topic, Thomas Sorber, Aday Mara and Bennett Stirtz could all come into the mix, and how quickly that group fits will go a long way toward shaping what Oklahoma City looks like if injuries start to test the depth chart again. [Read more 🡒]