Results
NBA results Saturday 17 October 2026: AI predictions review
NBA results Saturday 17 October 2026: our ten-model AI panel called 5 of 8 games correctly, but two unanimous picks fell flat. Full review and model…
Eight games went to the board on Saturday, and the ten-model panel that runs every fixture before tip-off finished the night 5 of 8. It is a workable return for a slate this unpredictable, though the shape of the record matters more than the number: the panel's two most confident calls were both beaten.
The biggest surprise came in Phoenix, where all ten models backed the Suns and the Utah Jazz left with a 119-116 win. Dallas, a 70% pick, was blown out at home by Atlanta. The cleanest hits were the ones with the least doubt attached: San Antonio's 126-97 rout of Sacramento and New Orleans edging Washington by a single point.
The panel finished the night 5 of 8, with two unanimous calls beaten.
Where the AI got it right
San Antonio Spurs vs Sacramento Kings prediction — Nine of ten models backed San Antonio and the Spurs delivered the most emphatic result of the night, 126-97. The consensus scoreline of 118-112 undersold the margin, but the direction was never in question.
Memphis Grizzlies vs Charlotte Hornets prediction — A 60% split in Memphis's favour looked cautious by the final buzzer. The Grizzlies won 117-98, comfortably clearing a consensus score of 107-101.
New Orleans Pelicans vs Washington Wizards prediction — The panel was unanimous here and got the winner right, though not the comfort. New Orleans won 107-106 against a consensus of 118-108, a ten-point miss on the margin that still counts as a correct call.
Chicago Bulls vs Minnesota Timberwolves prediction — The tightest split of the day, just 50% on Chicago, and the models landed on the right side. The Bulls ran out 133-116 winners, a long way from the 108-114 scoreline the panel had sketched.
Golden State Warriors vs Portland Trail Blazers prediction — An 80% majority for Golden State held up. The Warriors won 128-118, ten points clear of the 118-112 consensus.
Where it got it wrong
The night's worst miss was in Phoenix. Every one of the ten models picked the Suns, with a consensus score of 115-108. Utah won 119-116 instead — a unanimous call overturned, and the kind of result that exposes how narrow the gap between certainty and coin-flip can be on a single evening.
Dallas was the second costly error. Seven of ten models backed the Mavericks at 70%, projecting a 118-112 home win. Atlanta won 135-121, a 24-point swing against the consensus and the largest margin of defeat suffered by any favoured side on the slate.
The third miss came in Los Angeles, where the panel split 50-50 on the Lakers and leaned towards a 108-112 scoreline. Denver won 121-106. With the pick effectively a coin toss, the models had little protection when the game broke the other way.
Across all eight fixtures the average stated confidence sat at 47%, a figure that sits oddly beside two unanimous selections. The panel was, in aggregate, far less sure of itself than the top-line percentages suggested.
Models of the day
MiMo V2.5 Pro topped the table with 7 of 8 correct, the only model to separate itself from a bunched field. Claude Sonnet 5 followed on 6 of 8. Grok 4.6, Gemini 3.8 Flash and GLM 5.3 each finished on 5 of 8, matching the panel's overall record.
Below the line, GPT-5.6 Luna, DeepSeek V4 Pro and Qwen 3.8 Max all posted 4 of 8. The back of the field was shared by Mistral Medium 3.5 and Kimi K3, each on 3 of 8 — five games adrift of the leader on a night when two unanimous consensus calls went astray.
Full results
- NBA: Dallas Mavericks 111–135 Atlanta Hawks — consensus Dallas Mavericks (70%) WRONG
- NBA: San Antonio Spurs 126–97 Sacramento Kings — consensus San Antonio Spurs (90%) RIGHT
- NBA: Memphis Grizzlies 117–98 Charlotte Hornets — consensus Memphis Grizzlies (60%) RIGHT
- NBA: New Orleans Pelicans 107–106 Washington Wizards — consensus New Orleans Pelicans (100%) RIGHT
- NBA: Chicago Bulls 133–116 Minnesota Timberwolves — consensus Chicago Bulls (50%) RIGHT
- NBA: Golden State Warriors 128–118 Portland Trail Blazers — consensus Golden State Warriors (80%) RIGHT
- NBA: Phoenix Suns 116–119 Utah Jazz — consensus Phoenix Suns (100%) WRONG
- NBA: Los Angeles Lakers 106–121 Denver Nuggets — consensus Los Angeles Lakers (50%) WRONG
The panel returns for the next slate, with all ten models and their pre-match scorelines published before tip-off. Today's predictions are available on the TuringStats NBA predictions page.
Next up: today's nba predictions from the same panel, and the results archive with every graded call. Forecasts are informational only.
