The NBA playoffs are about to begin. And it might be a wide-open race to the title again

There was Toronto in 2019, the Los Angeles Lakers in 2020, Milwaukee in 2021, Golden State in 2022, Denver in 2023 and Boston in 2024.

Six different seasons, six different champions. A run of parity like none other in NBA history.

And now the Celtics get their turn at bucking that trend. Boston will try to win back-to-back NBA titles, something no franchise has managed since Golden State did it in 2017 and 2018. The NBA playoffs start Saturday with four Game 1s, continue Sunday with four more Game 1s and just like that a 16-team, two-month journey will be off and running.

“It's the best time of the year,” Golden State coach Steve Kerr said.

Favored to win the title, according to BetMGM Sportsbook, are the 68-win Oklahoma City Thunder, the top overall seed and No. 1 seed in the Western Conference — a team that set an NBA record this season by outscoring teams by 12.9 points per game. Their fellow No. 1 seed out of the Eastern Conference: the 64-win Cleveland Cavaliers, a group that put together the second-best regular season in franchise history.

The Thunder haven't been to the NBA Finals since 2012. The Cavaliers haven't been there since the end of LeBron James' second era in Cleveland in 2018. Over the last six seasons, nine different franchises have made at least one finals appearance — further speaking to the parity leaguewide right now, and the Thunder and Cavs both have eyes on adding to that list.

“This is what you compete for, is to be able to compete on the biggest stages,” Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said. “We're now entering that. We've earned the opportunity to be there just like everybody else. We're certainly excited.”

The Cavs aren't even favored to win the East; oddsmakers list Boston as the pick to represent that side of the league in the NBA Finals. Cleveland — a team that led the NBA in scoring this season and finished second in field-goal percentage — may be turning that into fuel.

“I think I've been saying we're humble and hungry,” Cleveland coach Kenny Atkinson said. “I don't know if that rings, but it's kind of who we are. ... Within the humility, there's a hunger in that locker room. They want to prove people wrong.”

Among the others in the playoff field: James and the Lakers, Stephen Curry and the Warriors, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Milwaukee, Nikola Jokic and Denver. All past MVPs, all past champions, and all of them looking to do what Boston did last year.

“We're not defending a championship. We won last year. Can't nobody take it from us," Celtics forward Jayson Tatum said. “But last year was last season. That's out the window. We're not worried about anything besides the Magic right now.”

It's Boston vs. Orlando, New York vs. Detroit and Indiana vs. Milwaukee and Cleveland vs. Miami in the East. In the West, it's Oklahoma City vs. Memphis, Houston vs. Golden State, the Lakers vs. Minnesota and Denver vs. the Los Angeles Clippers. The Heat and Grizzlies both got the last spots and No. 8 seeds on Friday night with play-in, win-or-go-home victories. And Dallas' loss means the West won't have a repeat champion; the Mavericks — with Luka Doncic, now James' teammate with the Lakers — made the finals last season.

James and Curry have four titles apiece. Nobody has gotten to five as a player since Tim Duncan in 2014, when San Antonio won its most recent title. And both have to believe they have a realistic chance of getting through a loaded Western Conference — James and the Lakers bolstered by the addition of Doncic, Curry and the Warriors bolstered by the addition of Jimmy Butler.

“Means a lot to match up against him,” Minnesota star Anthony Edwards said of facing James, his Olympic teammate last summer, in Round 1. “Probably goes down as the greatest player to ever play basketball. So, trying to get putting him out of the playoffs under my belt is going to be a tough one — but it’s going to be a fun road.”

There's one Round 1 rematch from last season: Milwaukee vs. Indiana. The Pacers took advantage of a hobbled Bucks team last year and won in six games, and this year they'll be facing a Bucks team that doesn't have Damian Lillard for at least Game 1. Lillard has been sidelined by a blood clot, though was cleared to resume basketball activity this week.

“We're always going to get their best shot. They’re always going to get our best shot,” Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton said. “Plain and simple, we don’t like each other."

There are tons of other storylines.

Denver is seeking its second title in three years, only this time with interim coach David Adelman — who replaced Michael Malone with three games left — at the helm, and the Nuggets open against Kawhi Leonard, James Harden and the airtight defense that the Clippers bring. Detroit is back in the playoffs, now with eyes on ending a 14-game postseason losing streak that goes back to 2008. Houston is back in the field, ending a five-year drought and climbing all the way to the No. 2 seed out West.

The Thunder are the favorite. The Cavs — who will face a 37-45 Heat team in Round 1 — and Celtics both won 60-plus games. The Lakers, Warriors and Nuggets certainly have reasons for confidence. The Timberwolves were the surprise team that made a deep run last year. The Pacers might be that team this year.

Parity may reign again.

“We have something to look forward to now,” Curry said. “And I'm excited about the challenge.”

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA

Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards (5) reacts during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Utah Jazz, Sunday, April 13, 2025, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

Boston Celtics' Jayson Tatum reacts after scoring a three point basket during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the New York Knicks, Tuesday, April 8, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Pamela Smith)

Los Angeles Lakers' Luka Doncic (77) and LeBron James, center, right, hug and celebrate late in the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Dallas Mavericks in Dallas, Wednesday, April 9, 2025. (AP Photo/LM Otero)

Houston Rockets forward Amen Thompson (1) and Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green , left, compete for possession of the ball during the second half of an NBA basketball game Sunday, April 6, 2025, in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez)

Houston Rockets center Steven Adams (12) blocks a shot by Golden State Warriors guard Gary Payton II (0) during the second half of an NBA basketball game Sunday, April 6, 2025, in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez)

Los Angeles Lakers guard Austin Reaves, left, and forward LeBron James celebrate at the bench during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Houston Rockets Friday, April 11, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Fans react as Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) celebrates after making a 3-point basket during the second half of an NBA play-in tournament basketball game against the Memphis Grizzlies in San Francisco, Tuesday, April 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

BANGKOK (AP) — Asian shares slipped further on Thursday after declines for AI stocks dragged the U.S. market to its worst day in nearly a month.

Traders are waiting for an update on U.S. inflation, and on a decision Friday by Japan’s central bank on interest rates. The Bank of Japan is expected to raise its key rate by 0.25 percentage point to tamp down price pressures, despite a contraction in the July-September quarter.

Tokyo's Nikkei 225 lost 1.2% to 48,929.95, with technology shares leading the decline.

Computer chip maker Tokyo Electron lost 3.5% while chip testing equipment maker Advantest dropped 4.1%.

Honda Motor Corp. fell 2.9% after reports said it was suspending production at some plants in Japan and China due to shortages of computer chips.

South Korea’s Kospi sank 1.8% to 3,989.06, also pulled lower by selling of shares in electronics companies and automakers. LG Electronics declined 4.3%, while Samsung Electronics lost 1.6%.

Chinese markets were mixed as Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell 0.4% to 25,357.64, while the Shanghai Composite index edged 0.2% higher, to 3,876.40.

In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 edged 0.1% lower to 8,575.50.

Later Thursday, the U.S. government will report on inflation last month. Economists expect that report to show prices for U.S. consumers continue to rise faster than anyone would like.

On Wednesday, the S&P 500 fell 1.2% to 6,721.43 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 0.5% to 47,885.97. The Nasdaq composite dropped 1.8% to 22,693.32.

Slightly more stocks rose within the S&P 500 than fell, but they got drowned out by the drops for companies in the artificial-intelligence industry.

The sector is being pressured by questions over whether Big Tech companies' share prices have shot too high, whether all the investment in AI will be profitable and productive enough to justify the costs, and by worries over stratospheric levels of debt some companies are taking on to pay for it all.

Broadcom dropped 4.5%, Oracle fell 5.4% and CoreWeave sank 7.1%. Nvidia, the chip company that’s become Wall Street’s most influential stock because of its tremendous size, fell 3.8% and was the day's heaviest weight on the S&P 500.

Power companies that jumped earlier in the year on expectations for stronger demand from electricity-sucking data centers also lost some of their shine. Constellation Energy fell 6.7%.

On the winning side of Wall Street were oil companies, after President Donald Trump ordered a blockade of all “sanctioned oil tankers” into Venezuela.

That sent the price of a barrel of benchmark U.S. crude higher by 1.2% to $55.94. just a day after it sank to its lowest level since 2021.

Early Thursday, U.S. crude was up 43 cents at $56.24 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, gained 40 cents to $60.08 per barrel. It had climbed 1.3% on Wednesday.

That in turn helped ConocoPhillips rise 4.6%. Devon Energy rallied 5.3%, and Exxon Mobil climbed 2.4%.

Oil prices have been falling for most of this year on expectations that companies are pumping more than enough crude to meet the world’s demand.

Netflix added 0.2% after Warner Bros. Discovery’s board said it still recommends shareholders approve a buyout offer from the streaming giant for its Warner Bros. business, rather than a competing hostile bid from Paramount Skydance for the entire company.

Warner Bros. Discovery fell 2.4%, while Paramount Skydance dropped 5.4%.

In other dealings early Thursday, the U.S. dollar rose to 155.75 Japanese yen from 155.70 yen. The euro slipped to $1.1740 from $1.1743.

Dealers work near the screens showing the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won, left, and the Korean Securities Dealers Automated Quotations (KOSDAQ) at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

Jim Boyle, CEO of Medline Industries, poses for a picture outside the Nasdaq MarketSite, Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

Dealers work near the screens showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), left, and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

A dealer watches computer monitors at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)