How to Watch Online Free

If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, Variety may receive an affiliate commission.

With the end of the 2025-26 NFL regular season, NBC is shifting from “Sunday Night Football” to “Sunday Night Basketball” with the NBA. After a nearly 25-year absence, the NBA on NBC is back, as the network devotes Sunday nights to the pro basketball league with an eight-week stint — ahead of the NBA Playoffs in April.

And WNBA superstar Caitlin Clark is set to join the “Basketball Night in America” pregame coverage as a special contributor. Clark joins host Maria Taylor and NBA analysts Carmelo Anthony, Vince Carter and Tracy McGrady for commentary.

On Sunday, Feb. 1, “Sunday Night Basketball” tips off with a doubleheader starting with the Los Angeles Lakers taking on the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden, with game time at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT.

In a marquee matchup of big market teams, the Lakers are still trying to find their footing in the west, while superstars Luka Doncic and LeBron James find themselves in-and-out of the starting lineup with injuries — along with the team’s third option Austin Reaves. Without consistent scoring, L.A. has been disappointing in the west, despite claiming the No. 5 seed in the playoff hunt.

Speaking of disappointing, the Knicks have been having a middling 2026, as the team loses 7 of their last 13 in the new year. Although the team is currently on a winning streak, New York is searching for an identity after having a hot start of the 2025-26 season. It seems that players are clashing with the new coaching staff with new hire Mike Brown running the show in “The Big Apple.”

Both L.A. and New York have to find some consistency, if they hope to make it to the NBA Finals this season.

Meanwhile, the second game in the doubleheader features the Oklahoma City Thunder battling the Denver Nuggets at Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado at 9:30 p.m. ET/6:30 p.m. PT.

Oklahoma City sits at the top of the NBA with the best record, but hopes of setting the top record in NBA history are now dashed. Maybe the team is just bored and not locked-in during the “dog days” of the season, but losing to lesser teams, like the Indiana Pacers, Charlotte Hornets, and Miami Heat, should concern the Thunder.

Denver, on the other hand, is still thriving without their superstar Nikola Jokic who is out of the rotation due to a left knee hyperextension injury. But, his teammates, namely Jamal Murray, is picking up the slack, while the Nuggets find themselves with the No. 3 seed in the west.

Additionally, the Denver Nuggets were the only team in the west who managed to take Oklahoma City to seven games during the playoffs last season, so they’re the best team to play spoiler for the NBA-champion Thunder.

Both games broadcast on NBC (airs in Spanish on Telemundo) and livestreams on Peacock.

Peacock has the livestream for “Sunday Night Basketball” games. In addition, the streaming service has access to hit movies and TV shows, such as “Jurassic World Rebirth,” “Bad Guys 2,” “Nobody 2,” “How to Train Your Dragon” (2025), “Love Island USA,” “Bel-Air,” “The Traitors,” “St. Denis Medical,” “Stumble,” “Saturday Night Live” and others. It also features sports leagues, including the, NBA on NBC and “Sunday Night Football,” NFL on NBC, Premiere League, PGA, NASCAR, IMSA, Big Ten Football and others. Peacock starts at $10.99/month for the ad-supported plan.

In addition, cord-cutters can watch games with any live TV streaming service that carries NBC, like DirecTV, Fubo, Hulu + Live TV and Sling TV.

DirecTV offers NBC with their “MySports” package and above with prices starting at $59.99 for the first two months of service ($69.99/month afterwards), while the service includes more than 20 channels — such as ABC, CBS, FOX, ESPN, FOX Sports, TNT and others.

The streamer has a free 5-day trial available, which is more than enough time to watch “Sunday Night Basketball” online for free. You can either cancel or keep the service after the free trial is over.

Sling is one of the best options for affordable live streaming is with the Sling Orange + Blue package, which goes for $29.99 for your first month of service ($65.99/month afterwards). The package includes NBC. Please note: Pricing and channel availability are subject to your local TV market.

Sports fans can add the Sports Extra package to their plan for an additional $11/month to gain access to the NFL RedZone network.

Fubo is one of the best options for streaming “Sunday Night Basketball” games on NBC. The service features four of the networks that broadcast post-season games, including FOX, ESPN, ABC and CBS (Fubo doesn’t include NBC). It even has more than 100 live TV channels for cable-free streaming. The streamer offers a 7-day free trial to try out the service before you commit.

Starting at $89.99/month, Hulu + Live TV is a great option for live channel streaming “Sunday Night Basketball” with access to NBC, along with more than 95 other channels, as well as access to hit originals on Disney+, Hulu and ESPN Unlimited.

On Sunday, Feb. 1, the 2026 “Sunday Night Basketball” games livestream and broadcast live on Peacock and NBC starting at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT. However, the best way to watch the game online without cable is with DirecTV.