NBA opening night live: Thunder-Rockets; Lakers-Warriors
NBA fans couldn’t have asked for much more than what the 2025-26 season opener had offered.
Behind clutch baskets – and free throws – from MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the Oklahoma City Thunder outlasted the Houston Rockets in double overtime…on ring night…against former franchise icon Kevin Durant. KD’s new team looked strong, however, showing the defending champions that they had yet another challenger in the loaded Western Conference.
Speaking of the West, the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Lakers are set to close out opening night. Luka Doncic debuts his first full season with the Lakers – however, it will be without LeBron James, who is expected to miss three or four weeks with sciatica.
As we prepare for the NBA’s 80th season, here are highlights from the opening games plus postgame takeaways from our ESPN insiders.
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Points to remember about rockets and thunder | Warriors-Lakers
Highlights from Warriors to Lakers
The SGA clutch knows no limits
The scoring title was sweet. The MVP was a monumental achievement.
But what Shai Gilgeous-Alexander wants most is to be remembered as one of the NBA’s all-time winners.
On a night that celebrated the first major milestone in this journey – seeing the 2024-25 championship banner raised to the rafters of the Paycom Center – Gilgeous-Alexander demonstrated the remarkable blend of courage and skill that gives him a chance to accomplish all of his lofty goals.
2h10
Thunder and Rockets open NBA season with 2OT thriller
The Thunder prevail on ring night with a hard-fought victory over the Rockets in double overtime.
Nothing came easy for Gilgeous-Alexander against a huge Houston team with a ferocious defense featuring one of the best perimeter guards in the NBA, Amen Thompson. A difficult task was made even more difficult with co-star Jalen Williams (wrist) relegated to wearing a black leather trench coat while watching from the bench. Double teams came early and often to Gilgeous-Alexander.
Gilgeous-Alexander waited patiently as he was held to five points in the first half, fewer than any of his halftime totals last season. He only had 11 at the end of the third quarter.
Then Gilgeous-Alexander took over to put the Thunder in position to win. He had a dozen points in the fourth quarter, including a few tough pull-ups, the last against Thompson to tie the score with seconds remaining.
Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 35 points, plus five rebounds, five assists, two steals, two blocks and several key plays that didn’t show up in the box score. He made the game-winning free throws after drawing Kevin Durant, the former Thunder great who has drawn the ire of the OKC crowd since his departure, into a foul while faking a pump.
And Gilgeous-Alexander once again emerged victorious.
-Tim MacMahon
Led by Sengun, Houston’s massive lineup is promising
Alperen Sengun flourished in his growing role as the Rockets’ offensive engine, hitting a career-high five 3-pointers while becoming just the second player in franchise history to open a season multiple times with at least 25 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists. The fourth-year veteran started most of Houston’s offense in the loss to OKC, scoring a game-high 39 points with 11 rebounds and a team-best seven assists while leading a starting unit that measured an average height of 82.2 inches — the tallest starting group in a debut game since starters were first tracked in 1970-71, according to the Bureau Elias sports.
Expect the Rockets to continue experimenting with this lineup, which featured Thompson and Kevin Durant at guard, Jabari Smith Jr. and Sengun on the wings and Steven Adams at center. The offense remains a work in progress, but Houston held OKC’s starters to 2-of-22 in full regulation.
-Michael C. Wright
Amen Thompson is a problem, but that 3-point jumper…
Thompson’s development is one of the biggest storylines in the NBA this season, and the opener featured highs and lows for the young guard, before he left the game in overtime with an apparent injury.
On the plus side, Thompson was the primary defender keeping Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in check for most of the night – Gilgeous-Alexander was noticeably more comfortable attacking any Rockets defenders other than Thompson – and he shot 8 of 10 from 2-point range. Thompson is so fast in his drives and fights so hard during contact that he seemed almost unstoppable at the rim.
But on the negative side, the most important number for Houston on Tuesday was zero. In other words, no 3-pointers from Thompson, who shot 0 of 7 from distance, with several ugly misses. Opposing defenses will happily give Thompson all the open 3s he wants, since he only made 14% as a rookie and 27% as a sophomore.
Thompson is a valuable player regardless of his 3-point percentage, but if he can’t improve significantly from distance, Houston’s offense could remain cramped throughout the season. This stat alone could determine how high the Rockets’ ceiling is as a potential championship contender.
-Zach Kram
