The technology company Sportradar has used its AI-powered simulation of the 2025-26 NBA season to look at who the possible champions could be, with Oklahoma City Thunder coming out on top in the predictions.
A total of 50,000 AI-powered simulations of the regular season schedule has taken place, with the model also suggesting possibilities for the NBA Finals matchups and more despite the outcome of sporting events never able to be properly determined or predicted.
The results are in…
Through 50,000 AI-powered simulations, Sportradar projects the likeliest outcomes to this @NBA season, including the Finals winner, top conference seeds, and more.
View our full #NBA sim results here: https://t.co/olY4Zd8GMw pic.twitter.com/xnxrRhG8ue
— Sportradar (@Sportradar) October 16, 2025
According to Sportradar, it projects “the five most likely NBA Finals matchups, led by the Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Thunder at 9.2% probability.
“Of the five scenarios, the defending champion Thunder and Cavaliers appeared in three matchups while the Denver Nuggets, Houston Rockets, Orlando Magic, and New York Knicks were featured in one matchup apiece.”
The simulation project also predicts that the Thunder are the most likely team to win the 2026 NBA Finals, after they were crowned repeat champion in 27.3% of the 50,000 simulations conducted.
“Behind Oklahoma City, the Nuggets (10.3%) and Cavaliers (9.4%) were the next most likely teams to win the NBA Finals, while the Rockets (8.3%) and Knicks (7.0%) each earned strong odds to capture their first championship in 30 and 52 years, respectively.”
How do Sportradar NBA AI-powered simulations work?
The company has outlined how the project has been completed, with tens of thousands of data points having been inputted into its proprietary AI engine to analyze historical data.
It has been built on NBA data and team odds for winning the NBA Finals, with the simulation estimating team strength and expected scoring.
It has also attempted to predict the race to the NBA Playoffs in each conference: “In doing so, the simulation projects three teams that are most likely to return to the playoffs after missing out last season: the Atlanta Hawks (75.1%) and Philadelphia 76ers (70.0%) in the East, and the Dallas Mavericks (60.3%) — led by 2025 No. 1 overall pick Cooper Flagg — in the West.”
This is the latest technology to analyze sports data, but not all sporting events follow the same patterns or trends. The company has added a caveat to its latest article, saying “the above information should not be relied upon for betting purposes.”
Featured Image: AI-generated via Ideogram
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