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The 2026 NBA season gave us a Finals matchup nobody will forget. The New York Knicks ended a 53-year championship drought by beating Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs in five games, with Jalen Brunson delivering a 45-point masterpiece to close out the title. New York went 16-3 during the postseason, turning an already memorable run into one of the most dominant playoff performances of the modern era. Now, the fun part begins. The 2026-27 season has no shortage of potential heavyweight showdowns. LeBron James is back in the Eastern Conference with the Philadelphia 76ers alongside Jaylen Brown; Luka Doncic is the centerpiece of the Los Angeles Lakers; the Oklahoma City Thunder are going nowhere, and Wembanyama might be on the path to dominance next season. Here are the 10 Finals matchups we’d most want to see, ranked from No. 10 to No. 1. 10. Indiana Pacers vs. Oklahoma City Thunder There is something about Indiana and Oklahoma City that just makes sense as a matchup in a rematch of the 2025 Finals. Both teams want to play fast, and neither is particularly interested in grinding out 88-84 games if it can be avoided. If the Pacers can get back to the level that made them such a dangerous Finals team with Tyrese Haliburton cleared for action next season, this could be an exciting basketball storyline in the best possible way. Of course, assuming Haliburton is back to his All-NBA best. The Thunder, meanwhile, want to prove that they can beat the Pacers without a Tyrese Haliburton Achilles injury. Some still argue that they would have lost that Game 7 had Haliburton played. A Finals series between these teams could give each team a chance to prove they are the better squad. 9. New York Knicks vs. Minnesota Timberwolves The defending champions against one of the NBA’s most talented young teams that just added LaMelo Ball and Jonathan Kuminga to Anthony Edwards? Sign us up. New York spent the 2026 postseason proving that they are tough as nails, overcoming double-digit deficits throughout their championship run and refusing to panic when games started going sideways. Minnesota would bring a completely different kind of problem. The Timberwolves have retooled with fast and energetic players, and seeing this franchise in the Finals for the first time would be incredible to see so soon. The high-scoring games would be incredible to witness. A series like this would be decided in the margins: fast-break points, three-pointers made, and which team’s stars can consistently create something when the offense inevitably gets ugly. LaMelo vs Brunson? Edwards defended by Anunoby? What a matchup. 8. Detroit Pistons vs. San Antonio Spurs This could be the matchup that announces the arrival of two teams that believe their time has come. The Detroit Pistons have shown tremendous improvement over time, finishing 1st in the conference last season and making it to the second round of the playoffs. Seeing them make a run to the Finals despite the Jalen Duren contract drama would be incredible. Meanwhile, San Antonio already has the ultimate centerpiece in Wembanyama. The Frenchman is likely hungry to avenge his Finals defeat from last season and take out another young star in Cade Cunningham. The fascinating part is how different the two teams could look. Detroit can make games uncomfortable with its size, athleticism, and defensive approach, assuming Duren returns to the team. The Spurs can counter with Wembanyama’s ridiculous defensive and offensive versatility. For those who want a fresh Finals, the Pistons usurping everyone in the East to make the Finals would be exciting. Seeing them taking the challenge of the Spurs would be far more exciting. 7. Denver Nuggets vs. Philadelphia 76ers Few Finals matchups would put more pressure on a single superstar than this one. Nikola Jokic would be staring down a Philadelphia superteam with a chance to elevate his legacy to a different level. But for Jokic, this would be about more than beating another contender. He already has three MVPs and a championship, including a Finals MVP from the Denver Nuggets‘ 2023 title run. Another championship, particularly against a team this loaded, would make the argument that Jokic belongs unequivocally in the top five centers in NBA history much harder to debate. Kareem, Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain, Hakeem Olajuwon, and Shaquille O’Neal are the names that typically occupy that territory. Jokic is already knocking on the door, and another dominant postseason could kick it open. And then there’s the Joel Embiid angle. For years, the Jokic-Embiid debate defined the center position, with Jokic ultimately separating himself through sustained dominance and postseason success. But Embiid might believe he is the more dominant individual player on both ends. Now they could meet with everything on the line, while LeBron stands beside Embiid. That is the kind of matchup where Jokic could cement his legacy in one seven-game series. Beat a superteam led by LeBron and Embiid, win his second championship and potentially add another Finals MVP? We want to be there to see him try. 6. Boston Celtics vs. San Antonio Spurs This is the basketball nerd’s Finals. Jayson Tatum leading the Boston Celtics without Jaylen Brown to the Finals would be unprecedented. Boston’s ability to manipulate matchups, space the floor and create advantages would run directly into the biggest defensive problem in basketball: Victor Wembanyama. The Spurs star averaged 26.0 points and 11.2 rebounds during the 2026 Finals against New York, showing that he can dominate a championship series even when the result doesn’t go his way. For Boston, the challenge would be figuring out how to attack a player who seemingly erases entire areas of the floor. For San Antonio, it would be about forcing Boston’s stars into uncomfortable decisions and making the Celtics beat them possession after possession. This would be a chess match disguised as a seven-game series, with every lineup change and defensive adjustment potentially swinging an entire game. 5. Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Minnesota Timberwolves Want a different challenge? How about Donovan Mitchell and James Harden leading the Cleveland Cavaliers to the NBA Finals in a showdown with the Timberwolves? Mitchell has yet to play in the Finals, and Harden hasn’t made the Finals since he was Sixth Man of the Year back in 2012. The Timberwolves are also a team that has not won an NBA championship before, and we all want to see a new champion instead of the usual powerhouses. Seeing Mitchell, Harden, or Edwards winning their first NBA championship would be something special to witness. Are the chances of either team making the Finals high? No. Is this matchup impossible, though? No, it isn’t. The Cavaliers would find it immensely difficult to overcome the Knicks and 76ers to make the Finals, but injuries happen. The Timberwolves would need to navigate the West over the Spurs and Thunder. But if it happens, the NBA world would be put on notice. Time for a new superstar to become an NBA champion in a league controlled by parity. 4. New York Knicks vs. Los Angeles Lakers Madison Square Garden versus Los Angeles. New York’s championship swagger versus the Lakers’ Hollywood aura. Jalen Brunson versus Luka Doncic. There would be storylines everywhere you looked, and the insanity in New York and Los Angeles would be sights to behold. The Lakers have the natural star power that makes every game feel bigger, and Doncic gives them a singular weapon capable of taking over a Finals series. We saw it already in the 2024 Finals, where Luka averaged 29.2 points, 8.8 rebounds, and 5.2 assists per game in a 5-game series loss. The Knicks, meanwhile, would walk into the matchup as defending champions with a completely different identity. They earned their 2026 title through resilience and late-game execution, with Brunson averaging 32.6 points in the Finals and taking home Finals MVP. And then there’s the obvious: the NBA’s two biggest basketball stages. Los Angeles and New York. If this series went seven games, the television audience would be enormous, the celebrity courtside shots would be relentless, and every Brunson-Doncic fourth quarter would feel like history on its own. 3. Philadelphia 76ers vs. Oklahoma City Thunder The 76ers are no longer simply another Eastern contender after the arrival of LeBron James. They’re the league’s biggest superteam. Can LeBron, Joel Embiid, Brown, Tyrese Maxey, and Philadelphia actually become a championship force? That’s the question. And Oklahoma City would be the perfect opponent to answer it. The Thunder counter with two-time MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander leading the way, and conquering this Sixers superteam would catapult his legacy to a different stratosphere. There would also be an intriguing legacy component. LeBron would be attempting to win another championship at an age (42) when most players are long retired, while Oklahoma City’s stars would be trying to take the league away from the veterans who have dominated it for so long. If Philadelphia reached the Finals, this would be the ultimate test of whether the LeBron-Embiid-Maxey-Brown experiment was genuinely special or simply spectacular on paper. 2. New York Knicks vs. Oklahoma City Thunder The defending champions against the team many believe could be the NBA’s next champion. That’s the pitch, and this was the predicted Finals matchup as the playoffs were happening last year. New York just completed one of the most remarkable championship runs in franchise history, winning 16 of 19 playoff games and overcoming huge deficits throughout the postseason. The Knicks won it in a way that made them incredibly difficult to count out. They already took out the Spurs, so why not the other elite team in the West? Oklahoma City would bring a completely different challenge, even if they lost some players, including starting player Luguentz Dort. The Thunder’s two-way talent, led by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Chet Holmgren, could test every weakness New York has. And unlike San Antonio, Oklahoma City wouldn’t be walking into the Finals simply happy to be there. This is a team expected to contend for championships for years. A series against the Knicks would be a fascinating battle between the established champion and the team trying to take its place. If the Thunder are truly ready to own the NBA, beating New York would be one heck of a statement. 1. Philadelphia 76ers vs. San Antonio Spurs This is the one we want to see. LeBron James, Joel Embiid, Jaylen Brown, and Tyrese Maxey facing Victor Wembanyama. There isn’t another matchup on this list that offers the same mix of superstar power and legacy stakes. The 2026 Finals already gave us the first chapter of the Wembanyama era, with the Spurs reaching the championship series only to fall to the Knicks in five games. Wembanyama was spectacular, averaging 26.0 points and 11.2 rebounds in the series, but San Antonio ultimately ran into a New York team that simply wouldn’t break. A year later, Wembanyama would have another opportunity, and this time, LeBron would be waiting. That is what makes this matchup impossible to top. LeBron is now in Philadelphia for the final championship push of his legendary career, while Wembanyama is beginning what could become one of the greatest careers basketball has ever seen. The old king against the player who may eventually take the throne. Also, there is the story of Embiid trying to finally get his championship. Jaylen Brown is hungry to win his second ring. Wembanyama trying to finish the job after coming up short in 2026. And LeBron trying to add one more ring to a resume that already has very little left to prove. If these teams meet in June 2027, the Finals would be a passing-of-the-torch moment with a championship attached. Can anybody name a more interesting storyline?