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Oct. 21, 2025, 2:15 PM EDTBy Andrew Greif and Rohan NadkarniCue “Roundball Rock” — the NBA is back. The 2025-26 season opens Tuesday with a doubleheader on NBC and Peacock — backed by the percussive theme song last heard in 2002, when NBC last had broadcast rights — from Oklahoma City, where the Thunder will receive their championship rings, and Los Angeles, before opening league-wide in the coming days.This season will be a collision between youth and experience. In June, the Thunder became the youngest team to win a title since the 1977 Portland Trail Blazers. To do it again, however, they will have to go through opponents led by veteran superstars including Denver’s Nikola Jokic, Houston’s Kevin Durant, Golden State’s Steph Curry, LeBron James of the Lakers and Kawhi Leonard and James Harden of the Clippers. “Everybody is saying ‘defending,’ but we’re trying to be on the offensive as well,” Oklahoma City star Jalen Williams said during preseason. “So we’re coming in with more motivation to do that every year.”NBC News reporters Rohan Nadkarni and Andrew Greif and three-time NBA champion Danny Green discuss what they are watching for as the season begins.Who is your MVP pick and why?Green: I’m going to go with Nikola Jokić. He had an unbelievable year last year but they didn’t want to give him his fourth one. This year he comes back on a tear and makes the league give him his fourth MVP. Denver has a really good squad this year, and I feel like they’re going to be one of those teams at the top. The only thing that kind of hurt him last year was not being one of the top-seeded teams. They’re going to be a top-three seed this year. They have really good squad, if they stay healthy. But I’m seeing Jokić coming back with a vengeance, because people didn’t want to give him his fourth.I remember playing him in San Antonio, even when I was in Toronto, he wasn’t MVP Jokić just yet. But I remember those times when we didn’t guard him with the double team like we should have. We had certain guys on him that probably shouldn’t have guarded him. We had Kawhi [Leonard] guard him at one point. That’s definitely a mismatch. Myself, I’ve tried to guard him enough times. He was very good at drawing fouls, but his passing ability has been unbelievable since then. He was obviously a good passer, but he’s become one of the best passers the game has seen. And then, of course, how he can score the ball.Nadkarni: Give me the player who has finished first or second in MVP voting in each of the last five seasons: Nikola Jokić. The Joker arguably should have won the award in 2025, when he averaged 29.6 points, 12.7 rebounds and 10.2 assists per game while shooting 57.6% from the field. Voter fatigue, whether voters want to admit it or not, is certainly a factor here. But Jokić’s brilliance is undeniable, and after the Nuggets beefed up their rotation with a series of smart moves in the summer, Denver should have the team success to give a boost to Jokić’s case. Luka Doncic of the Los Angeles Lakers during a preseason game against the Phoenix Suns on Oct. 14.Kelsey Grant / Getty ImagesGreif: Is there any player seemingly more intent on seeking revenge than the Lakers’ Luka Doncic? After last season’s stunning trade from Dallas, the Mavericks seemed intent on telling anyone who asked that his body wasn’t right. Luka has since acknowledged that the out-of-nowhere nature of the trade left his head not in quite the right place, either. Now, he’s entering his first full season with Los Angeles in much better shape and with the security of both a contract extension and the knowledge that the franchise is effectively building around him. Who is your championship pick?Green: OKC. You have to give them that respect. Getting everybody back and being the best team last year. What impressed me last year was how mature they were or how fast they grew up. Usually you got to take a year of getting your lumps. I still thought they were very green, and they needed some more maturity or another year of taking lumps before they could do it. But to see them grow up in real time and actually bounce back. And Shai being the leader that he is for them, showing mental toughness through fatigue. I thought he ran out of gas in that Finals. There was a very pivotal game in Indiana where they needed to win to even the series. He had some big buckets toward the end of the game, but you can tell him from the start of the game — like he was off the ball. He was jogging, he was trying to conserve his energy. And he did, rightfully so. But that was that was a key, mature moment for him and for that group to get through that game four and even out the series.Nadkarni: Well, if I’m picking Jokić to win MVP, I’m going to double down and pick the Nuggets to win the Finals. Is this partly wishful thinking? Perhaps. But it feels harder than ever to repeat in the NBA. And as much of a juggernaut the Thunder were last season, they were still pushed to seven games twice in the playoffs. (Oklahoma City also benefitted from one of the most unfortunate injuries in recent league history when Tyrese Haliburton tore his Achilles in Game 7 of the Finals.) This isn’t an anti-OKC case, though. It’s more about what the Nuggets did in the offseason. Cam Johnson is a better fit than Michael Porter Jr. Jonas Valanciunas is an actual, honest-to-god backup center. Bruce Brown is more steady than Russell Westbrook. In most playoff series, Denver should not only have the best player, but actual playable depth the team didn’t have last year. Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander shoots against Minnesota Timberwolves guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker on May 26 in Minneapolis.Matt Krohn / AP fileGreif: The NBA hasn’t had a repeat champion since 2018, a run of seven consecutive seasons with seven different winners. Given every major contributor returns from last season’s title team, Oklahoma City appears as heavy a favorite as we have seen in some time. They’re an incredible team that will be fortified by the confidence of knowing what it takes to win. But so does Denver, from 2023. The Nuggets gave the Thunder their hardest matchup of the postseason of any West team, then spent the offseason getting deeper. For as difficult a time as I had splitting hairs between these two teams, I had an even more difficult time arguing against Nikola Jokic, and Denver’s home-court advantage. Denver over New York for the title.What is one offseason acquisition you’re most excited to see?Green: There’s a couple guys I’m biased to see I was teammates of. I’m a Desmond Bane fan and his situation in Orlando. I’m excited to see what some of my old teams can do this year. The San Antonio Spurs. I want to see Wemby and De’Aaron Fox together, and then of course Dylan Harper, the new draftee. And even though Dallas is not a former team of mine, I want to see when Kyrie comes back, what the Mavericks look like and with him and Anthony Davis. I’m interested to see what Houston does with Kevin Durant, but I think Fred VanVleet was a big key to that. With him going down, that’s tough for them. Nadkarni: Kevin Durant and the Houston Rockets are a match made in NBA nerd heaven. Giving the rough-and-tumble, defensively charged Rockets one of the greatest scorers of all time is going to be incredibly fun to watch. Coach Ime Udoka will get to play mad scientist during the regular season, figuring out the best lineup combinations to unleash his roster’s unique blend of athleticism and size. Houston so clearly needed a halfcourt bucket getter in the playoffs last season, and it added someone who is going to the Hall of Fame because of that very trait. As a bonus, we may also get a chance to see Durant try to take down some of his old teammates and longtime rivals in a loaded West? I can’t wait to see him give the Rockets an extra dose of swagger. Greif: Golden State is in the waning years of viable championship contention with Steph Curry now 37 and Draymond Green 35. Every season counts. How they attempt to maximize this one is particularly fascinating. Notable offseason signings include Al Horford, a 39-year-old forward who remains durable and effective. On this team of elders, one of the few young potential bright spots is Jonathan Kuminga, but the relationship has been strained between the 23-year-old who views himself as an All-Star-caliber piece and an organization and its coach who have been reluctant to give him big minutes in the past or money this offseason. A free-agency negotiation that dragged on for months and whose details became unusually public was only resolved before training camp, when Kuminga agreed to a deal that could be flipped into a trade. There is talent here but the length of the dug-in negotiations hinted at tension. Getting another team to offer something significant in return for Kuminga will require him playing well. But if he gets such opportunities, how will he take advantage of them? What player should fans keep an eye on?Green: Cade Cunningham may be a household name now, but I feel like he’s going to be one of those guys that could be in the All-NBA First Team or MVP conversation. He’s another mature kid. He’s beyond his years. He’s obviously an unbelievable talent, but the way that he’s progressed in his first three or four years has been unbelievable. In the playoffs last season, he showed some maturity, but he also showed some signs of, ‘I need to learn.’ And I think he’s going to take those things back to the drawing board and come back with a chip on his shoulder. That was a series that I felt like Detroit had a chance. Obviously, there was a missed call or so, but even with that, I feel like they had a chance. They’ll come back different. Nadkarni: Once one of the most-hyped players entering the NBA, Lonzo Ball’s career has been beset by injuries. After missing two straight regular seasons, Ball returned in 2024-25 to play in 35 games for the Chicago Bulls. In July, Ball was traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers, where he could be a perfect fit on a team with title aspirations. Before the injuries, Ball had blossomed into such a good player, hitting a good percentage of his outside shots on high volume, making plays for his teammates and defending multiple positions. With Darius Garland recovering from toe surgery, Ball could get a great opportunity to make an impact for the Cavs. If he can regain his previous form, I wouldn’t be surprised to see him closing big games. Greif: When it comes to promising young NBA talents worth tracking, there are almost too many. But may we interest you in Toumani? Obsessive basketball fans have been noticing Toumani Camara’s potential for two seasons, since he was a throw-in by Phoenix to a larger trade and sent to Portland, where he blossomed into a 6-foot-7 terror on the defensive end. He’s one of the league’s best and most versatile wings on that end, but there is still time to join the Trail Blazer wing’s bandwagon, however. At only 25, Camara could make an offensive leap forward this season. Most likely to exceed expectations?Green: Indiana. Even with Haliburton being out, they’re still going to be pretty solid. They still have some great point guards, with Andrew Nembhard and T.J. McConnell. I’m very impressed with what Rick Carlisle has done throughout the years, to adapt and adjust, that’s what makes him a basketball genius. He has a beautiful mind even outside the game. He’s very much well respected throughout the league. Indiana has a really good team. They have some great guys who can hoop — Pascal Siakam is unbelievable — and a team camaraderie. There’s a reason why Carlisle has been successful over so many years in different organizations and able to bring multiple groups to the Finals. Nadkarni: Caw-caw! The Atlanta Hawks had a great offseason, and I believe they have a great chance to play spoiler in the Eastern Conference. After acquiring Dyson Daniels before last season, the Hawks added Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Kristaps Porzingis this summer, bringing in players with playoff experience who can play on both ends of the floor. Combine those guys with young forward Jalen Johnson (who was breaking out last year before an injury) and rising second-year player Zaccharie Risacher (the 2024 first overall pick who improved significantly after the All-Star break), Atlanta seems to have found the right talent to complement star guard Trae Young. If this team gels quickly, they could be as good as anyone in the East. Greif: Some oddsmakers have pegged Orlando with the third-best chance of making the Finals out of the East, a number that implies a certain amount of confidence in the Magic; the expectations are not low, in other words. But to fully turn the corner after two seasons of respectability into a full-blown contender ready to challenge Cleveland and New York, the Magic will have to stop being routinely limited by their offensive shortcomings. I think this is the season it happens, with Desmond Bane adding a threat for defenses that could create space for Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner.Andrew GreifAndrew Greif is a sports reporter for NBC News Digital. Rohan NadkarniRohan Nadkarni is a sports reporter for NBC News. 

- Latest News - October 21, 2025

Cue “Roundball Rock” — the NBA is back.

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Savewith a NBCUniversal ProfileCreate your free profile or log in to save this articleOct. 21, 2025, 2:08 PM EDTBy Rob WileIf you get a raise next year, there’s a chance your tax rate won’t change thanks to new tax brackets recently released by the Internal Revenue Service.And if you earn the same amount or less, your rate may even decrease. The IRS usually adjusts tax brackets every year for inflation. This way, a household that reports nominally higher income — but not an increase in buying power — doesn’t tip over into a higher tax.When taxpayers file returns in April 2027, they will see tax bracket thresholds that have increased by about 2.7% over the prior year, to account for inflation, according to the Tax Foundation. #embed-20251010-tax-rate-change-calculator iframe {width: 1px;min-width: 100%}This means a household that reports income near the top of a specific bracket in 2025 — and then reports slightly more income for 2026 — may not necessarily be bumped up to the next income bracket and face a higher tax rate.Some taxpayers who report the same amount of income in 2026 as they did in 2025 could even see their taxes decrease. For example, an individual filer who earns $100,000 in 2026 will owe approximately $13,170 in federal income tax — which is $279 less than that taxpayer would have owed the year before, according to NBC News calculations. “We call it ‘bracket creep’ — where you would end up going into a higher tax bracket if they didn’t end up being adjusted for inflation,” said Tom O’Saben, director of tax content and government relations at the National Association of Tax Professionals, a trade group for accountants. The IRS has also increased the standard deduction, or the amount a household can write off if they choose not to itemize their deductions. For tax year 2026, the standard deduction will increase by 7.3% for all filers over the 2025 rate: This will come to $32,200 for married couples filing jointly, to $16,100 for single taxpayers and married individuals filing separately, and to $24,150 for individual filers who are heads of households. The IRS released the new brackets this month despite the government shutdown, which has caused half its staff to be furloughed.The Trump administration laid off nearly 1,500 Treasury Department employees earlier this month, according to court filings by the government. The cuts reportedly had an outsized impact on the IRS, especially its human resources and IT workforce. Rob WileRob Wile is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist covering breaking business stories for NBCNews.com.

- Latest News - October 21, 2025

New tax brackets recently released by the Internal Revenue Service mean that if you get a raise next year, there’s a chance your tax rate won’t change

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Oct. 21, 2025, 12:50 PM EDTBy Alexander SmithLONDON — Prince Andrew may have given up his titles, but the questions about his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein haven’t given up on him — or Britain’s embattled royal family.Seemingly every day, damaging new reports emerge about Andrew, 65, his friendship with the late pedophile financier, and allegations the prince had sex with trafficked Epstein victim Virginia Roberts Giuffre when she was 17, which he denies.In her posthumous memoir “Nobody’s Girl” released Tuesday, Giuffre, who died by suicide in April at age 41, said Andrew acted as though having sex with her “was his birthright.” Andrew, who in February 2022 reached a legal settlement with Giuffre after she filed a civil case against him in a New York court, has repeatedly denied having met her.’Nobody’s Girl’ by Virginia Giuffre on display at a bookshop in London on Tuesday.Ming Yeung / Getty ImagesBut the rolling scandal refuses to go away, and has the potential to inflict further damage on a monarchy whose popularity continues to dwindle after the death of the widely beloved Queen Elizabeth II in 2022. King Charles III has sought to insulate “the Firm” from the cloud over his younger brother. Andrew said in a statement last week that with Charles’ “agreement,” he would “no longer use my title or the honours which have been conferred upon me,” including Duke of York.But there are still unanswered questions about what the palace knew, and when, with calls from lawmakers and others for the royals to oust Andrew entirely.“The deep and wide support for the queen meant the family was able to better weather all the controversies that could emerge — and this is a bad one,” said Craig Prescott, who teaches law at Royal Holloway, University of London and specializes on the constitutional and political role of the monarchy.“These specific allegations are, of course, extraordinarily damaging in the first place, but they also run counter to some of the causes that members of the royal family take up,” he said.Jeffrey Epstein in 2017.New York State Sex Offender Registry via AP fileFriday’s agreement for Andrew to relinquish his titles came after emails published in documents for a court case not involving the prince showed he had been in contact with Epstein for longer than he previously admitted.That “makes him look, in black and white, a liar,” NBC News’ royal contributor Daisy McAndrew told “TODAY” on Sunday. “And so how can you trust anything else he says?”Then Sunday, London’s Metropolitan Police said it was investigating reports that Andrew had asked one of its officers to dig up dirt on Giuffre. A Buckingham Palace official told NBC News these reports should be “examined in the appropriate way.”Virginia Giuffre (then Roberts) with Prince Andrew and Ghislaine Maxwell at Prince Andrew’s London home, in a photo released with court documents.Monday brought two further revelations: First that Andrew had not paid rent on his Royal Lodge residence for 20 years, revealed in a Freedom of Information request by The Times newspaper to the Crown Estate, which handles royal finances. Neither Andrew nor Buckingham Palace have responded to the report.Then came the publication of Giuffre’s posthumous memoir.She wrote that she had sex with the prince on three occasions, including an “orgy” involving “eight other young girls” who “appeared to be under the age of 18 and didn’t really speak English.”She then suffered three weeks of “irregular bleeding,” before waking up in a “pool of blood” and being taken to hospital by Epstein, she wrote. Epstein, who died by suicide in jail in 2019 shortly after he was arrested on federal sex trafficking charges, later told her she had suffered a miscarriage, and she suspected him of conspiring with the doctor to keep it quiet, Giuffre said.On seeing a photo of Andrew and Epstein walking in New York’s Central Park in 2010 — after Epstein was convicted of soliciting prostitution of someone under the age of 18 — Giuffre wrote she was “revolted to see two of my abusers together, out for a stroll.” But “mostly I was amazed that a member of the Royal Family would be stupid enough to appear in public with Epstein.”Andrew has previously denied these allegations, saying that he has “no recollection of ever meeting this lady, none whatsoever.” In his statement announcing the relinquishment of his titles, he said, “I vigorously deny the accusations against me.”Virginia Giuffre, center, leaves federal court in New York on Aug. 27, 2019.Jeenah Moon / Bloomberg via Getty Images fileThe civil sex abuse lawsuit brought by Giuffre against Andrew was settled out of court for an undisclosed sum.Though Buckingham Palace routinely says it does not speak for the prince, Andrew has enjoyed a prominent role at some recent royal events, including the queen’s funeral.Some lawmakers are demanding that Andrew be formally stripped of his titles by an act of Parliament — a rare foray into regal matters by Britain’s supposedly separate government.The last time this happened was in 1917, when Parliament used the Titles Deprivation Act to strip German members of the British royal family of their titles during World War I.That’s not without risks, according to Prescott at Royal Holloway.”If you have legislation removing the dukedom from Prince Andrew, might a cheeky MP want to table an amendment and remove the dukedom of Sussex from Prince Harry?” he said.The government indicated it does not support this. Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said Monday that while “our thoughts have to be with the victims of Jeffrey Epstein, these “are matters for the royal family.”The nuclear option would involve the king himself using something called “Letters Patent” to strip Andrew of his designation as prince.In doing so, the palace must weigh distancing itself from Andrew with ensuring the blowback from any further censure does not do even more damage to an institution that requires public buy-in.“It’s true that the monarchy isn’t voted in,” Prescott said. “But if the public mood shifted and people no longer wanted to have the monarchy, then you imagine that politics would follow.”Alexander SmithAlexander Smith is a senior reporter for NBC News Digital based in London.Mahalia Dobson, Max Taylor and Jackson Peck contributed.

- Latest News - October 21, 2025

King Charles III is facing pressure after more reports concerning his brother, Prince Andrew, Jeffrey Epstein and their alleged abuse of Virginia Giuffre.

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