SAN ANTONIO, TX – JANUARY 24: Chet Holmgren #7 of the Oklahoma City Thunder fights for rebounding position with Victor Wembanyama #1 of the San Antonio Spurs in the first half at Frost Bank Center on January 24, 2024 in San Antonio, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Ronald Cortes/Getty Images)
Getty Images
The NBA’s full upcoming regular season schedule isn’t expected to be released for at least another week, but in the meantime, some of the marquee games of the 2025-26 campaign are starting to be revealed.
As first reported by Shams Charania of ESPN, the Oklahoma City Thunder will play not only on opening night of the regular season, shortly after a championship ring ceremony, but the team will also be featured on Christmas, one of the biggest days of basketball action during the NBA’s calendar year.
Opening night will feature a matchup between the Thunder and the Houston Rockets, with the Thunder hosting at Paycom Center, as Oklahoma City celebrates its recent championship. The Rockets are expected to be among the best teams in the entire NBA this upcoming season, which makes them a suitable competitor to kick off the NBA’s regular season. But there’s much more to the intricacies of this opening night matchup.
Kevin Durant was traded to Houston this offseason and is now expected to be a player who can bring that young roster to contention. While it’s been nearly 10 years since he left Oklahoma City, the irony of Durant watching the franchise hoist its first-ever championship banner will create tremendous buzz and hype to open up the regular season.
He’s won multiple championships of his own, but it was always anticipated that he would be the hero to bring the Thunder its first-ever championship in Oklahoma City. That never happened, as he left to play for the Golden State Warriors. But it’s still a significant storyline nonetheless. Durant will be in attendance to watch the Thunder unveil its championship banner — and the rings to go along with it.
While there’s less historical significance for the Christmas Day game, the Thunder will play against the San Antonio Spurs in what will be highly anticipated. There are still storylines that make that particular matchup pretty interesting. Chet Holmgren and Victor Wembanyama have been somewhat of rivals since their teenage years, when they played in FIBA competition.
Those two also battled for the NBA Rookie of the Year award, despite being from two different draft classes, as Holmgren missed his entire first season due to a foot injury. While both players always suggest to the media that playing against each other is just another game, there is absolutely some significance to that head-to-head matchup.
Furthermore, the Thunder and Spurs have gone through spurts in the last 20 years in which they were legitimate rivals. The early contending Thunder teams in Oklahoma City often had to face San Antonio in pivotal playoff moments to achieve their goals. Since then, rosters have completely turned over, and it’s a fresh era for both franchises. But given the trajectory that the Spurs are on, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Oklahoma City and San Antonio once again be rivals over the next half-decade.
As reigning champions, the Thunder will be a team that is circled by opponents every single night. The full schedule is expected to be released relatively soon, but in the meantime, at least we know that Oklahoma City will be featured on two of the biggest nights of the regular season — and they will be against teams that hold more significance than just competitive basketball.