In an NBA first, NBC Sports will present a quadrupleheader on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, which will take place on January 19, 2026, across NBC and Peacock. It’s all part of the NBA’s triumphant return to NBC!
The MLK Day basketball bonanza will feature a quartet of marquee matchups, starting with the Atlanta Hawks hosting the Milwaukee Bucks at 1 p.m. ET – the only game that will be exclusively shown on Peacock – followed by the world champions, the Oklahoma City Thunder taking on the Cleveland Cavaliers at 2:30 p.m. ET. The evening games begin with the New York Knicks hosting the Dallas Mavericks at 5 p.m. ET, followed by the Boston Celtics squaring off against the Detroit Pistons at 8 p.m. ET.
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Fans of the National Basketball Association are rejoicing because the only thing more high-profile than the games themselves this Martin Luther King Jr. day are the players in them. Barring injuries or other setbacks, a host of the league’s brightest stars will light up the hardwood.
Former NBA champion and MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo joins Trae Young to headline Bucks-Hawks, while reigning MVP and champion Shai Gilgeous-Alexander pairs with perennial All-Star Donovan Mitchell in the Thunder-Cavs showdown. In Dallas, the Mavs’ Duke-bred duo of No. 1 picks — Kyrie Irving and rookie phenom Cooper Flagg — will give Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns of the Knicks plenty to handle in the Big Apple. And in the Motor City’s Pistons-Celtics nightcap, Detroit’s Cade Cunningham and Tobias Harris face the tall task of slowing Boston’s title-winning tandem of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown.
NBA on NBC’s MLK Day quadrupleaheader schedule
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander #2 of the Oklahoma City Thunder drives to the basket against Nickeil Alexander-Walker #9 of the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Check out the full schedule for the NBA’s first-ever Martin Luther King Jr. Day quadrupleheader on January 19, 2026:
Milwaukee Bucks at Atlanta Hawks / 1:00 p.m. ET
Oklahoma City Thunder at Cleveland Cavaliers / 2:30 p.m. ET
Dallas Mavericks at New York Knicks / 5:00 p.m. ET
Boston Celtics at Detroit Pistons / 8:00 p.m. ET
The matchups on Martin Luther King Jr. Day are just a small taste of what NBC Sports has planned this NBA season, now that coverage has returned to the NBC family for the first time since the 2001/2002 season. In addition to All-Star Weekend and the NBA Playoffs, NBC will present 100 regular season NBA games. Additionally, a 30-minute studio program will lead into game coverage most nights except for Sundays, which will feature a one-hour, on-site studio program on NBC and Peacock.
The NBA on Peacock
All season long, Peacock Monday Nights will give NBA fans a host of new intuitive and interactive features designed to amplify the streaming experience, while also celebrating the NBA’s culture around the sport of basketball. These include Peacock Performance View, Peacock ScoreCard and Live in Browse, which allows fans to dive right into a game as soon as they open the streaming app.
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“Peacock will be the most fun and engaging place to stream NBA games for longtime basketball fans and new ones, too,” said Rick Cordella, President of NBC Sports. “We’re bringing the same level of innovation, inspiration and commitment that we’ve brought to so many other huge sports moments and leagues to deliver an intuitive, interactive and reliable streaming experience that the full range of NBA fans will enjoy.”
The NBA officially returns to NBC on October 21 at 7:30 p.m. ET with NBA MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and NBA Champion Oklahoma City Thunder hosting Kevin Durant and the Houston Rockets.