The Denver Nuggets learned on Thursday exactly when and where they’ll be playing as the NBA released its full 2025-26 schedule.
Among the best dates and matchups is a Christmas night showing against the rival Minnesota Timberwolves, home opener against the Phoenix Suns, a few Sunday matinees late in the season, and a rematch with the NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder, which won’t come until February 1. The late-season games between Denver and OKC may once again decide both the West and MVP between Nikola Jokic and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
The NBA had already outlined Denver’s In-Season Tournament nights, which came out on Wednesday. That event will start on Halloween for the Nuggets, as they take on the Warriors, Spurs, Rockets, and Trail Blazers in West Group C.
The Nuggets’ 16 back-to-backs are tied for the most in the NBA, so Denver’s new depth will be utilized — more on that soon.
The Nuggets have a seven-game road trip after Christmas through the first week of the new year. That East Coast swing is going to be daunting. But Denver will also host seven of their final nine games.
New this year is the TV contracts, with NBC/Peacock and Amazon broadcasting games now and TNT out of the fold. With it comes the new 9 p.m. Denver time tip, which will happen for two road games. The Nuggets are going to play 26 games on national TV, which is the seventh most appearances in front of the country.
Nuggets among the teams with the most national tv games pic.twitter.com/E9O7sNyAWG
— Jake Shapiro (@Shapalicious) August 14, 2025
Look for rookie head coach David Adelman to rest the Nuggets stars a bit more this regular season, given the aging nature of the core, the amount of games they’ve played in the past few years, and the depth this roster boasts. Speaking of, many believe the Nuggets are among the winners of the offseason, trading Michael Porter Jr. for Cameron Johnson, swapping Dario Saric for Jonas Valanciunas and then signing Bruce Brown Jr. and Tim Hardaway Jr.
The Nuggets’ win total was set at 53.5 by oddsmakers before the schedule dropped. The team has won 50 or more games in every full season that Jokic and Jamal Murray have been healthy, going back to 2018-19. Their championship year was a 53-win team and they followed that up with a franchise-best for NBA play 57-win campaign.
Speaking of Jokic, he needs just 18 triple-doubles to pass Oscar Robertson for second all-time in that stat-stuffing feat. He’s had 19 or more in each of the last four seasons.
We’ll find out a lot about the Nuggets and just how good their offseason was during the full 82, but everyone will be waiting for later in April, when the playoffs tip.
