Category: NBA

We have finally hit Day 3 of the NBA’s schedule release. We already knew that the Spurs would open at home against the Thunder on October 20 and get hosted by the Knicks on Christmas, as well as their NBA Cup schedule, and now we have the complete regular season schedule.

Observations

• 34 games will be nationally televised or streamed on NBC/Peakcock, ESPN or ABC and Prime, and a whopping 25 of them come in the second half of the season (game 42 or later). If you’re like me and use League Pass for local broadcasts, make sure you get to know whoever the Spurs new announcer is early, because you won’t hear him and Sean Elliott much after that.
• I count 12 back-to-backs, which isn’t bad. I also see four miniseries: their two Europe games against the Pelicans in mid January at Paris and Manchester, both games at Golden State at the end of January/beginning of February, and a home-away against the Nuggets at the end of February/beginning of March (with the “home” game being in Austin), and both home games against the Phoenix Suns at the end of March.
• Is it just me, or does it look like more away games than home? Those at’s stand out dramatically, especially since they’re so clumped together thanks to several long road trips. There are three four-game road trips plus the 8-game Rodeo Road Trip, with the Memphis and Denver games on Feb. 26 and 28 being in Austin. There’s also a 9-road-in-12-games stretch from December 15 through January 3, as well an 8-in-12 streak from March 14 to April 4.
• On the other hand, the Spurs only have two streaks of four or more home games in a row, with a streak of five January 2o through the 27th, and four straight to close the regular season. Speaking of which, the last three games are all against should-be playoff teams in the Cavaliers, Nuggets and Trail Blazers, which is notable assuming they’re in another battle for the top seed, which they barely missed out on last season.
• The Rodeo Road Trip itself will be no cakewalk either, with every game also being against playoff contenders except the two Memphis games. That March four-game road trip is also a bruiser as at least on paper, it could very well be against the four of the six playoff teams out of the East.

Other than that, not much stands out. It’s amazing the difference in looking at the schedule from a contender’s perspective compared to being a bubble or bad team. Fewer teams or stretches look “daunting”, and you just expect to win every game (knowing full well you won’t). What else stands out to you, Pounders?

It was a move that has left the NBA world in shock. And the deal was done astonishing quickly. The Los Angeles Lakers' record $12.5bn (£9.3bn) sale was agreed in the space of a weekend.

News broke on Wednesday that Josh Kushner, the brother of US President Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared, and former Disney chief executive Bob Iger were buying the controlling interest in one of the world's most iconic sports teams.

Kushner moved fast to get the deal done.

Only last Friday, he approached Mark Walter over the majority stake he purchased only last year. They got to work instantly to hammer out an agreement.

If approved by the NBA's board of governors, the deal will become the most expensive sports team sale ever reported - and Walter will have made a $2.5bn (£1.9bn) profit on his investment in next to no time.

Walter had not actively been looking to sell his majority stake in the NBA franchise, while Kushner's move was not influenced by the collapse of Fifa's controversial World Cup investment plan.

Thrive Eternal, an American venture capital firm founded by Kushner, had been expected to lead the proposed investor group for the Fifa Forward Enterprise (FFE) proposal before it was abandoned.

The speed of the Lakers agreement has added to the level of surprise surrounding the sale in the United States.

When ESPN broke the story on Wednesday, it sparked a flurry of reaction and comment. NBA executives, insiders and other figures within the sport were all stunned.

The Lakers were valued at $10bn (£7.4bn) in June 2025 - then a record for a sports team.

So where does this deal rank in world sport? And will the deal be a good thing for the Lakers?

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A record breaking sports deal

Walter said after the sale was announced that owning the Lakers had been "one of the great honours" of his life and described it as an "extraordinary investment".

Reasons for the sudden sale are unclear. Walter is facing an ongoing federal investigation into his company Delaware Life - but there is no suggestion that the Lakers sale was prompted by that investigation.

The numbers involved in the Lakers deal underline why it has caused such a stir.

It surpasses not only the Lakers valuation when Walter bought his stake in 2025, but also the $6.1bn (£4.5bn) valuation of the Boston Celtics when their controlling stake changed hands last year.

It is more than three times the value set for the Phoenix Suns when they were sold to Mat Ishbia for $4bn (£3bn) in 2023.

In addition, it beats the $9.6bn (£7.1bn) for which the NFL's Seattle Seahawks was sold last month.

The deal is also worth significantly more than those involving leading Premier League clubs.

Todd Boehly's consortium paid £2.5bn to buy Chelsea in 2022, although the overall deal amounted to£4.25bn ($5.7bn).

Manchester United's Glazer family were reported to want £10bn ($13.5bn) to sell the club, but that was an asking price rather than a completed transaction. Sir Jim Ratcliffe instead bought a 27.7% stake for about £1.3bn in 2024.

Magic Johnson backs the sale

Kushner and Iger are coming in at a time when the Lakers are in transition.

The Lakers have not won an NBA title since 2020, when LeBron James and Anthony Davis led them to their 17th championship.

With James confirming his exit at the end of June and Luka Doncic the team's leading man, the Lakers are facing another fresh start. Doncic is preparing to work under his fifth different owner across just the two NBA teams he has played for.

"I've gotten used to big changes over these last few years," he wrote on social media, before adding that he looked forward to "building something special in LA together".

Kushner and his company have been looking at investing in the NBA for some time, although the sale still brings uncertainty over how the Lakers will be run.

Basketball legend Earvin 'Magic' Johnson, a five-time NBA champion with the Lakers, backed the deal, though.

"Lakers fans, you couldn't have two better owners. I've known Bob personally for over 40 years," he said on social media.

"He has always loved the Lakers and basketball and he will bring championships back to LA."

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The Toronto Raptors have released their game schedule for the 2026-27 NBA season, and it looks like it’ll be starting off with a bang. The Chicago Bulls, who defeated the Raptors in the play-in in 2023, are coming to Toronto to show the 6ix their new-look lineup.

That first match on October 21st will have Caleb Wilson, Norm Powell, and Josh Giddey come to Toronto to test their mettle. The homecoming for Norm Powell will be an opportunity for Chicago to attempt to restart their blazing hot beginning to the season, as they had last year. Then, Toronto will hit the road for a game against the Wizards, getting a first look at what first overall pick AJ Dybantsa can do. Overall, our season begins with some opportunities to check out new-look teams with a trifecta of Chicago, Washington, and Minnesota, with the opportunity to pick up some easy wins against Orlando, who we play twice in October. November boasts a much harder schedule, with may premier teams from both East and West on the docket, with December looking not much lighter until its end. February and March are the beginning of some less stressful matches, as well as an exciting back-to-back on the road against Miami, where we’ll get to really see how well Giannis fares in South Beach.

The Raptors will get a nine day home stand in January, while road tripping for eleven days in March. With the Raptors playing their divisional opponents the most contention with the monstrous lineups in Philadelphia and New York start early, with three games back to back against the two teams in November, with the rest of the matches spread out through the year. Toronto’s last game will be the same as last year’s, a matchup against the Brooklyn Nets on April 11th, what will hopefully be a nice way to ease into the postseason. The NBA Cup will see four games played against Orlando on October 30th, Milwaukee on November 6th, Detroit on November 20th, and Brooklyn on November 27th. All together, a very manageable roster in my opinion, a perspective shared by our Editor-In-Chief, Kristian Cuaresma.

Raptors announced their NBA Cup Group games.

There’s a fun litmus test against the Pistons, but overall, a winnable group assuming Kawhi is on the team.#WeTheNorth@RaptorsHQpic.twitter.com/wCl8DsgkJn

— Kristian Cuaresma (@kriscuaresma_) August 12, 2026

I agree wholeheartedly that Kawhi’s presence would be the nail in the coffin for most of these teams, but that even without him, we proved to be able to manage all of these teams last year, winning every season series save for the one against Detroit. However, with Jalen Duren likely off the team, Motor City is looking much more manageable, and I believe we’ll be real contenders in the Cup this year.

The picture of the 2026-27 season is still up in the air for the Raptors due to the Kawhi Leonard debacle and the league’s sloppy and overly secretive handling of the investigation, which has left Raptors fans grasping at whispers and rumours rather than able to make full assessment of the team’s circumstances. Many NBA teams have gotten considerably better this past year, through massive trades, free agency, and last year’s stacked draft. That means that the Raptors will just have to push even harder, and hopefully, secure Leonard’s play for this season, as he’ll be a weapon I don’t think we can afford to leave at the gunshop if we want any chance of contending this year. While it’s difficult to say what exactly the Raptors will look like at this standpoint, building around Scottie Barnes has been working thus far, and with the right pieces, I can see the regular season schedule mattering little enough, as fans can shift their focus to the playoffs with certainty.

LeBron James has moved back to the Eastern Conference, but the Lakers remain a major box office draw for the NBA.

With an almost brand new rotation after a busy offseason that elevated Luka Doncic to the team’s unquestioned leader, the Lakers have the maximum amount of nationally televised games in the NBA this season with 34, according to the league schedule released Thursday. The Lakers open the season against the Golden State Warriors on Oct. 21 on ESPN.

The slate is highlighted by a much-anticipated Christmas Day reunion with James that will be televised at 2 p.m. on ABC. The matchup at Crypto.com Arena will be James’ return to L.A. after the four-time NBA champion signed with the Philadelphia 76ers this summer following eight seasons with the Lakers. James will play on Christmas Day for the 21st time in his 24-season career, and the Lakers will play on the holiday for the 28th consecutive time.

The Lakers don’t meet James in his new home until March 4, when they finish a four-game trip in Philadelphia.

The Lakers have a frantic start to the season, playing 13 games in the first four weeks. They have three back-to-back sets during the busy stretch from the opener to the end of a three-game trip in Milwaukee on Nov. 11.

The traditional Grammys trip begins in Indiana on Jan. 28 followed by a back-to-back set in New York (Jan. 30) and Charlotte (Jan. 31). The Lakers then continue the seven-game trip by circling back north from Charlotte to Boston (Feb. 2) and Brooklyn (Jan. 4), then heading West with stops in San Antonio (Feb. 6) and Phoenix (Feb. 8).

Read more:Bob Iger, Joshua Kushner to buy Lakers from Mark Walter's ownership group for $12.5 billion

The reigning NBA champion New York Knicks, Western Conference champion San Antonio Spurs and James’ 76ers each have 34 nationally televised games. The final two games of the 82-game season will be determined in December as the NBA Cup midseason tournament plays out.

Sign up for our weekly newsletter on all things Lakers.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green didn’t hesitate to call out the hypocrisy of basketball fans.

On his podcast, “The Draymond Green Show,” Green asked fans, “Why is it that Russell Westbrook has to announce his retirement unexpectedly to finally see the love that he deserves?”

Green opened the segment by telling basketball fans, “Y’all suck,” as he went on to defend Westbrook, who released a video on his social media Wednesday to make his retirement announcement.

“Because for the last 8 to 10 years, all this guy has heard is how bad he sucks, how he stat pads, and how he messes up teams,” Green said.

The four-time NBA champion continued to call out fans by addressing the nickname “Westbrick,” which was coined for Westbrook during the 2018–2019 season when his free-throw percentage dropped from 73.7% the year before to 65.6%.

“The moment he steps aside, ‘Oh man, y’all did Russ wrong. Can’t tell me he couldn’t be on a team. Wow, how he played the game. Gonna miss him,” Green said of NBA fans.

Westbrook had an 18-year career and at one point was considered a future Hall of Famer when he was leading the Oklahoma City Thunder, alongside Kevin Durant and James Harden.

During his time with the Thunder, Westbrook was the league’s MVP in 2017; he was selected as a nine-time All-Star and was the leader in triple-doubles.

At 24 years old, Westbrook led the Thunder to the franchise’s first NBA Finals appearance, but would ultimately end up falling to a LeBron James-led Miami Heat team through five games.

Harden would depart from the Thunder in the following offseason, and Durant would also end up leaving the team to join Green in the Golden State in 2016.

Westbrook would stay with the Thunder until 2019 and play for six more teams.

As a member of the Sacramento Kings last year, Westbrook averaged 15.2 points with 6.7 assists and 5.4 rebounds.

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The Nets will open the 2026-27 NBA regular season by hosting the Charlotte Hornets on Oct. 21, the league announced on Thursday.

Brooklyn, coming off a rough 20-62 season, has just two games on national television for the season: a visit to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Nov. 23, in JuliusRandle's first game after arriving in an offseason trade, and when they host the Chicago Bulls on Jan. 20. The Nets will also play 16 back-to-back games.

The Nets will lock horns with their defending champions from across the river four times, playing the first two games at Madison Square Garden on Nov. 2 and Dec. 27. They will host the Knicks on Feb. 1 and April 2. 

In the NBA Cup, New York will face Detroit (Oct. 30) and Orlando (Nov. 20) at home and travel to Milwaukee (Nov. 25) and Toronto (Nov. 27) in group play. The knockout round games will be on Dec. 4, 5, 8, 9, and the title game on 11, if they advance that far.

LeBron James and the new-look 76ers will visit Brooklyn for the first time on Nov. 16 and Feb. 25. The Nets will travel to face the Sixers on Jan. 14 and Feb. 8. 

The Nets will have a tough stretch toward the end of the season when they play just twice at home during an 11-game stretch, which includes five straight on the road from Feb. 27 through March 7 against the Bulls, the Nuggets, the Suns, the Clippers, and the Lakers.

They will have a stretch of seven of eight games at home, including six straight games at Barclays Center starting in mid-December. 

Here's the rest of Brooklyn's 2026-27 schedule:

Nets’ 2026-2027 regular-season schedule: pic.twitter.com/c29Tfs5iBA

— Ian Begley (@IanBegley) August 13, 2026

After a relatively quiet offseason for the Pistons and a pretty large Jalen Duren-sized elephant in the room yet to work itself out, it is time to generate some excitement with the release of the 2026-2027 schedule. We are now a couple months away from the return of NBA basketball! The biggest takeaway is that the Pistons play every team in the league once again. Here is the full schedule:

Here’s the full preseason and regular season schedule, and theme nights. Pistons have 12 games on ESPN or NBC and seven on Peacock or Prime. Essentially 1/4 of the schedule will air nationally pic.twitter.com/ODnVH4fvLU

— Omari Sankofa II (@omarisankofa) August 13, 2026

In all seriousness, there are a few standouts with the schedule. First off, the first four games of the season are pretty brutal with the 3 pm home opener against the Boston Celtics followed by three road games against likely-playoff teams in the Miami Heat, Philadelphia 76ers, and New York Knicks.

The Pistons are a good team now, so I don’t think you need to anticipate an 0-4 start like you would have during the dark days a few years ago, but it will definitely be a challenge early-on. They do follow up that difficult stretch with a few winnable games, so there is an opportunity to get back on track if they struggle early.

The Pistons will have 19 games in total on National Television with 12 on ESPN or NBC and 7 on Peacock or Prime. This is far and away the most they have had in recent memory, which also comes with the territory of being a good team. There is also a likelihood they get more National TV games added as the season plays out as long as they continue to build off the momentum of last season.

There’s only so much analysis you can do with a schedule in which you play every team in the league, but there are a few other things that stand out to me. The Pistons group for the NBA Cup is very favorable with Brooklyn, Orlando, Milwaukee, and Toronto. They have failed to make it out of the group stage since the introduction of the NBA Cup, so maybe this is the year it finally happens.

Another standout with the schedule is that all of the games against the New York Knicks will be on some National TV platform. The Knicks got the last laugh with winning the NBA Championship last season, but this is definitely a matchup from the East that the NBA is trying to heavily promote after their heavily contested playoff series a couple years ago.

We will have more analysis on the schedule and all things Pistons as we get closer to the start of the season, but it is nice to have something to look forward to and build hype during the dog days of the Summer.

The NBA is out with its 2026-27 schedule and the Brooklyn Nets will open at Barclays Center on October 21 vs the Charlotte Hornets. Game Time: 7:30 p.m. ET. The two teams opened last season as well with the game in Charlotte.

Here’s the details…

There will be two nationally scheduled games, same as last year as well. The Nets will face the Timberwolves on November 23, the return of Julius Randle to the Twin Cities on Peacock and the Bulls in Brooklyn on January 20, Nic Claxton’s reunion. With two games, the Nets are one of five teams with the minimum number of nationally televised slots. The others are the Pelicans, Bucks, Grizzlies and Kings. By comparison, the Knicks, 76ers, Spurs and Lakers will have 34.

As noted Wednesday, the Nets Emirates Cup games will take place October 30 vs. the Pistons; November 20 vs. the Magic, both at home, and the Bucks November 25 and the Raptors on November 27, both away. (The Magic game will be the first time Nets newcomer Moe Wagner will face his brother Franz in the NBA.)

The Nets will face their crosstown rivals, the defending NBA champion Knicks, four times:

—November 2 at MSG

—December 27 at MSG

—February 1 at Barclays Center

—April 1 at Barclays Center.

Three of the four will be 7:30 p.m. starts with December 27, a Sunday game, starting at 6:00 p.m. ET.

Some hightlights of the schedule release:

• The opening 10 games will be brutal, featuring some of the league’s top teams. In addition to the aforementioned Knicks game at MSG on November 2, the Nets will face the Cavaliers with James Harden and Donovan Mitchell on October 24 in Cleveland; the Pacers with a healthy Tyrese Haliburton on October 25 at home, then again on November 1 in Indianapolis; the Celtics with Jayson Tatum and Paul George on October 27 in Boston and the Mavericks with Cooper Flagg and Kyrie Irving on November 8 in Dallas.
• The 76ers with LeBron James, Jaylen Brown, Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey will make their Brooklyn debut on November 16. Other superstars making their Brooklyn debut in new uniforms will include Ja Morant with the Trailblazers on December 21, Giannis Antetokounmpo with the Heat on January 7, Kawhi Leonard with the Raptors on January 23.
• Victor Wembanyama (Spurs) will play his only game in Brooklyn this season on December 23, Luka Doncic (Lakers) on February 4 and Steph Curry (Golden State) on March 29. Kevin Durant plays his only game on the Barclays Center court January 9.
• As for rookie clashes, Mikel Brown Jr., the No. 6 pick, will face off against Keaton Wagler of the Clippers, the No. 5 pick on January 29 and Darius Acuff of the Kings, the No. 7 pick on March 21. The overall No. 1 pick, A.J. Dybantsa, will first show up in Brooklyn with the Wizards on December 20.
• Brooklyn will host 15 of its home games on a Friday, Saturday or Sunday which includes four Sunday afternoon contests on December 13 and 20 and March 21 and 28.

The Nets will also play four preseason games from October 6 through 14. Only one of the four, vs. the Wizards on October 12 at Barclays Center.

• Brooklyn Nets Season Schedule – Brooklyn Nets
• Nets’ first look at ‘Aura Bros’ headlines brutal 2026-27 opening stretch ($) – C.J. Holmes – New York Daily News

The Philadelphia 76ers full regular season schedule for 2026-27 is out!

Earlier this week, a few key dates and matchups were announced by the NBA as a preview to the full schedule release. We learned that the Sixers will open their season on Oct. 20 at Madison Square Garden against the defending-champion New York Knicks and will host their home-opener on Oct. 22 against the Cleveland Cavaliers. It was also revealed that the Sixers will spend Christmas Day on the west coast with LeBron James and the squad visiting the Los Angeles Lakers that evening. Finally, we learned the Sixers’ NBA Cup group play schedule.

Now, we have the full picture, with the entire schedule below.

Here’s a few things that stand out immediately:

• The Sixers are a hot commodity for the league in 2026-27. They will feature in a maximum-allowed 34 nationally-televised games this season. Guess it comes with the territory of having Lebron James on your team.
• They will play in 13 back-to-backs throughout the season. Last year, they played in 16, tied with a handful of other teams for the highest in the league.
• Jaylen Brown will face off with Jayson Tatum and the Boston Celtics as a Sixer for the first time on Nov. 10 in South Philadelphia. Brown’s first game back at TD Garden as a member of the away team will not come until Jan. 21, 2027, which will be broadcast on Amazon Prime.
• Speaking of Prime, the Sixers will have 13 games this season that require paid streaming services to watch (Peacock, Amazon Prime).
• The Sixers’ annual west coast trip will take place around the Christmas holiday, including the aforementioned Christmas Day matchup visiting the Los Angeles Lakers. They will be on the road from Christmas Day through January 1st. Gotta get out of the way for Disney on Ice, people!
• Busiest months for the Sixers will be January and March, with 16 games in each.

This is a particularly exciting regular season schedule release with so much anticipation around the new-look Sixers in the wake of the additions of LeBron James and Jaylen Brown. Not only that, but it’s also one of very few summers that Joel Embiid has not been recovering from some sort of major injury or surgery — and he’s looking slimmer to say the least! The prospect of that trio playing alongside Tyrese Maxey, VJ Edgecombe and the improved bench unit has fans around the city as excited as they’ve been about the team in… quite some time.

Six months (at least) of Sixers basketball awaits! Here’s the breakdown of each month of the upcoming campaign:

OCTOBER: 7 games (4 home, 3 away)

NOVEMBER: 14 games (7 home, 7 away)

DECEMBER: 13 games (5 home, 7 away, *2 to be scheduled)

JANUARY: 16 games (9 home, 7 away)

FEBRUARY: 11 games (6 home, 5 away)

MARCH: 16 games (7 home, 9 away)

APRIL: 5 games (2 home, 3 away)

The Washington Wizards have released their 2026-27 regular season schedule.

The Washington Wizards’ 2026-27 schedule: pic.twitter.com/HAJ7nG9rEe

— Greg Finberg (@GregFinberg) August 13, 2026

Washington opens the season at home against the Milwaukee Bucks on Oct. 21 at 7 p.m.

The Wizards will play six national TV games, which exceeds the five they’ve played over the previous five seasons. The additions of Trae Young and Anthony Davis, plus the popularity of AJ Dybantsa, have made Washington a team to watch entering the 2026-27 campaign.

ESPN (1): @ BOS

NBC (2): vs. BOS, @ PHI

Prime Video (1): @ UTA

Peacock (2): @ DET, @ PHX

AJ Dybantsa and Darryn Peterson will meet for the first time at 1 p.m. on Feb. 27 in Utah on Prime Video. The 2026 No. 1 and No. 2 selections will face off in Washington on March 6.

Washington will play four preseason games — two at home and two on the road.

10/8: @ New York Knicks

10/10: vs. Detroit Pistons

10/12: vs. Brooklyn Nets

10/16: @ New Orleans Pelicans

I released a full breakdown of the team’s schedule on the latest episode of The Wizards Podcast:

The title defense is on!

The NBA released the schedule for the 2026-27 regular season Thursday, as the Knicks, after ending a 53-year title drought, look to be greedy and become the league's first back-to-back champions in seven years.

The season, of course, will open with LeBron James and the new-look 76ers on Oct. 20 at 7 p.m., right after the Knicks raise their championship banner to the rafters at Madison Square Garden. That will be the first of the Knicks' 34 nationally televised games during the regular season.

Mike Brown's team will also play back-to-back games on 12 occasions.

Some other notable matchups include a visit to the Boston Celtics and old friend Mitchell Robinson for the second game of the season on Oct. 23 at 7 p.m. New York will go back to Boston on Jan. 13 before hosting the Celtics on March 14 and April 4.

The Knicks will face off against Cade Cunningham and the Detroit Pistons in the season's fourth game of the season at MSG on Oct. 27. New York then travels to Detroit on Feb. 3 and Feb. 17 before hosting the Pistons in the season's penultimate game on April 9.

The Knicks, who also took home the NBA Cup, will open group play in that competition against Philadelphia on Oct. 30. As they look for back-to-back titles in that, they have an uphill climb in a group with the Sixers, Pacers (Nov. 13), Cavaliers (Nov. 25), and Heat (Nov. 27). The NBA Cup Knockout Rounds will begin on Dec. 4 and 5 with the semifinals on Dec. 8 and 9, before the cup is decided on Dec. 11.

Once again, New York will face Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs on Christmas Day at MSG for a 12 p.m. tip-off in an NBA Finals rematch. The Knicks will visit the Spurs on March 7, in the middle of a four-game road trip that will see them play in Dallas on March 4, and at the Clippers on March 10 and the Lakers on March 11. 

In other Western Conference matchups, the Knicks will be at Minnesota on Nov. 19 and host them on Jan. 18. 

Nikola Jokić and the Denver Nuggets visit MSG on Jan. 11 after hosting the Knicks on Jan. 2.

Here's the rest of New York's 2026-27 schedule:

Knicks’ 2026-27 regular season schedule: pic.twitter.com/nfxwb0rvDy

— Ian Begley (@IanBegley) August 13, 2026

Every NBA season is different.

The storylines and the games that matter are constantly changing. With the Lakers overhauling their roster this summer, now contests that might’ve been just one of 82 last year will be some of the biggest hyped matchups this season.

Now that the entire Lakers schedule has been released, here are the five games that are must-see TV.

Lakers vs. Sixers, Dec. 25

LeBron James has left the Lakers and taken his talents to Philadelphia. His first time back in Los Angeles playing for the other side will be cinematic. The hype video will be iconic, the cheers he’ll get from fans will be loud and the game itself should be very competitive.

James made it clear his decision this summer was all about winning another title. The implied jab at the Lakers is that he believes the Sixers give him a better chance at winning ring No. 5.

So, even if Austin Reaves and Luka Dončić have love and respect for LeBron, they’ll want to beat him and prove they are doing just fine. And the same will be true for James, even if neither side will admit it.

Lakers at Spurs, Nov. 27

If you want to win the Western Conference, then you’ll have to go through San Antonio.

So, anytime the Lakers take on the Spurs, the intensity is going to turn up a notch. These matchups will be the closest thing to playoff-level competition we’ll see during the regular season.

How Austin Reaves and Walker Kessler perform in this game will matter more than almost any other contest. Reaves has struggled against the top teams in the West, and Kessler is unproven, having played only for the tanking Jazz during his career.

That will change this year, as the Lakers will have plenty of high-stakes games. But arguably none more important than this one.

Lakers at Knicks, Jan. 30

Madison Square Garden is a magical arena, and LA’s sole trip to New York this year will be one to remember.

The defending champs will get everyone’s best shot this season, and the Lakers are no exception. The stars will certainly come out for this one, and hopefully, Luka and company can put on a show that results in a Lakers win on the road.

Lakers vs. Thunder, Jan. 26

This game is an opportunity for LA to do two things: see how they measure up against another elite Western Conference team and get some revenge for last year’s playoff sweep against the Thunder.

Sure, a regular-season win won’t make up for how things ended last season, but it’s a start.

Even the most optimistic Lakers fans have the Thunder in front of them in the NBA hierarchy, so winning these games would be huge.

Lakers vs. Celtics, Jan.7

This will be Kessler’s first Lakers-Celtics matchup, so this is a great chance for him to establish himself with the franchise by doing what the LA bigs before him have done by dominating against Boston.

Anytime the Lakers play the Celtics, there should be added animosity and an increased desire to win. Last year, the Lakers fell short of that with an embarrassing performance.

Hopefully, this season, they bring the appropriate energy and, more importantly, win.

You can follow Edwin on Twitter at @ECreates88 or on Bluesky at @ecreates88.bsky.social.

The 2026-2027 NBA schedule is out, and it’s filled with must-watch Celtics games. The season tips off on Tuesday, October 20th in Detroit, and concludes at home against the Milwaukee Bucks on April 11th.

In between those games are 80 regular-season games: 40 home, 40 away. 

The Celtics schedule is out! pic.twitter.com/SldKP3xwCw

— Noa Dalzell 🏀 (@NoaDalzell) August 13, 2026

Here are the five games that stand out most from the slate: 

1. January 21: The Jaylen Brown return game

The Celtics will host the Philadelphia 76ers for the first time since the Jaylen Brown trade. Brown will undoubtedly receive a very warm welcome from a TD Garden crowd that watched him lace up as a Celtic for the past 10 years. This game also doubles as the one game 

The one downside is that this game is taking place on the second night of a back-to-back for the Celtics – it would be a massive bummer if Jayson Tatum or any other key player sat for it. 

2. October 23rd: Knicks at Celtics

Just a few days after raising their championship banner, the Knicks will travel to Boston for the Celtics’ home opener. There’s a lot in this match-up: Boston opens up the regular season against the team that won the title last year, and Mitchell Robinson faces his former team for the first time. 

Plus, Celtics-Knicks has felt extra juicy since the 2025 playoffs, when New York eliminated Boston in six games in the second round of the playoffs. 

3. November 10th: Celtics at 76ers

Jaylen Brown will face his former team for the first time on November 10th, a few months before he makes his official return to the Garden. So, we very well could see him matching up against Jayson Tatum, Derrick White, and the rest of the gang. 

This game, like the January match-up, is also on the first night of a back-to-back for Boston, so fingers crossed no major players are sidelined. It will also be the first time the Celtics face LeBron James in a 76ers uniform, and seek redemption against the squad they blew a 3-1 lead against in the first round of last year’s playoffs. 

4. December 25th: Celtics vs Heat on Christmas Day

After watching from the sidelines last year, the Celtics are back on the Christmas Day slate and will host the new-look Miami Heat. That will be a chance for fans to watch Giannis Antetokounmpo up close and personal, and envision what could have been, given the fact the team tried to trade for the Greek Freak this past offseason. There’s also the always-fun Celtics-Heat rivalry, which will live on as long as Pat Riley runs the show in Miami. 

5. October 20th: Opening Day in Detroit

I can’t lie: a 3pm tip-off on Tuesday afternoon against the Detroit Pistons is not the most thrilling way for the Celtics to start their regular season. But it’s the regular-season opener regardless, and it’s cool to see the Celtics among the six teams suiting up. Plus, after an extra-long and extra-tumultuous offseason, it will be interesting to see how this new-look squad fares against last year’s Eastern Conference top seed. 

The NBA offseason is a lull with the majority of signings and trades in the rearview window. Yet, this week brought hoops fans a bit of a reprieve with some news.

The league officially unveiled the full 2026-27 NBA schedule Thursday, August 13, after it had revealed its opening week slate, the Christmas Day matchups and other key dates earlier in the week.

That means that even though the start of the season remains a little more than two months away, NBA fans can start to circle dates on the calendar. And since stars like Giannis Antetokounmpo (Miami Heat), LeBron James (Philadelphia 76ers) and Jaylen Brown (76ers) moved teams, there will be plenty of intrigue around the big games of their new teams.

With the 2026-27 schedule officially dropping, here are the 10 NBA matchups we cannot wait to see:

NBA RELEASES 2026-27 SCHEDULE: See which teams take the spotlight this season

Philadelphia 76ers at New York Knicks

• Tuesday, Oct. 20 at 7 p.m. | NBC and Peacock

The defending champs host the winners of the offseason and newest contenders in the East. And it just so happens to be the second game of the triple-header that opens the regular season, when the Knicks will raise a championship banner for the first time in 53 years. LeBron James tends to have massive games in Madison Square Garden, though he figures to be more of a complementary player in Philadelphia. This gives fans the first opportunity to see what the Sixers offense will look like.

San Antonio Spurs at Miami Heat

• Monday, Feb. 15, 2027 at 5 p.m. | NBC and Peacock

The matchups between Victor Wembanyama and Giannis Antetokounmpo have been appointment viewing. Both respect each other, and both typically go all out when competing against each other. In the past, both Wembanyama and Antetokounmpo have sought out the matchup to guard the other. That has led to exceptional individual performances. This time, we get to see what it looks like with Antetokounmpo in Miami.

Philadelphia 76ers at Los Angeles Lakers

• Friday, Dec. 25, 2026 at 5 p.m. | ESPN/ABC

You knew LeBron James was going to play on Christmas Day; now he’ll get to do it in his first game back in Los Angeles, against his former team and his son, Bronny James. By all accounts, James’ departure from the Lakers was cordial and respectful. Despite that, there will clearly be an appetite to stick it to his former squad. Similarly, Luka Dončić and the Lakers – now under new ownership – will want to show they’re better off.

Minnesota Timberwolves at Denver Nuggets

• Monday, Dec. 28, 2026 at 10:30 p.m. | NBC/Peacock

These two squads have met in the playoffs in three of the past four postseasons, and the series have not disappointed. They’ve been physical and chirpy; as a reminder, in late April, Nuggets star Nikola Jokić took exception to Jaden McDaniels’ layup in the closing seconds of a blowout Minnesota victory and confronted him. More good news here is that these teams play four times this season.

Golden State Warriors vs. Philadelphia 76ers

• Wednesday, March 24, 2027 at 10 p.m. (at Golden State) | ESPN
• Wednesday, March 31, 2027 at 7 p.m. (at Philadelphia) | ESPN

This matchup may have lost some of its luster as both players have continued to age, but it’s another chance to see LeBron James and Stephen Curry compete.

Oklahoma City Thunder at San Antonio Spurs

• Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2026 at 9:30 p.m. | NBC/Peacock

After this series went seven games in the Western Conference finals in one of the more physical matchups in recent history, it’s always nice to renew what’s becoming a top rivalry in the league. It’s clear both these teams don’t like each other, as much as there is mutual respect. And after the upstart Spurs upset the Thunder to go to the NBA Finals, the Thunder presumably will come out of the gates with plenty to prove. It will also be interesting to see how a few new faces — Tobias Harrris on the Spurs and rookie Aday Mara on the Thunder, for example — alter the matchup.

Philadelphia 76ers at Boston Celtics

• Thursday, Jan. 21, 2027 at 7:30 p.m. | Amazon Prime

Jaylen Brown will be making his first trip to Boston as a member of another team, so it will be interesting to see how fans receive him at the TD Garden. Brown was the 2024 NBA Finals Most Valuable Player and helped deliver a title to Boston, so it should be (mostly) warm. Brown said during his introductory press conference that he and Celtics star Jayson Tatum, who were teammates for nine seasons, hadn’t really spoken since Brown’s trade. It also gives Paul George a chance to go up against his former side.

Indiana Pacers at New York Knicks

• Friday, Nov. 13, 2026 at 7 p.m. | Amazon Prime

People, for the most part, are sleeping on the Pacers. Yet, with Tyrese Haliburton seemingly poised to return to full health, Indiana should return to its previous levels of offensive proficiency. What better place to see if that proves to be true than Madison Square Garden against the defending champs. Haliburton has shined at the Garden, with no shot bigger than his miracle in Game 1 of the 2025 Eastern Conference Finals, a buzzer beater that bounced high off back rim before it swished through the net.

Miami Heat at Milwaukee Bucks

• Thursday, Jan. 28, 2027 at 9:30 p.m. | Amazon Prime

This might be a game that your turn on for the beginning but then cruise League Pass to see what else is out there, because the Heat should control the game. But it will be Giannis Antetokounmpo’s first trip back to Milwaukee after he spent the first 13 seasons of his career there. It should be an emotional night all around, especially after Heat captain Bam Adebayo struck former teammate Tyler Herro during Summer League. Interestingly, it will be the second time the two play, with the Bucks visiting Miami Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2026 at 7 p.m. on ESPN.

Washington Wizards at Utah Jazz

• Saturday, Feb. 27, 2027 at 3 p.m. | Amazon Prime

Both AJ Dybantsa and Darryn Peterson felt they were the best overall player in the NBA draft, though it was Dybantsa whom Washington selected with the No. 1 overall pick. This will be the first chance fans get to see the top two draft picks compete in the same NBA game, though they had memorable matchups in college. An added bonus: the Wizards and Jazz should both be significantly improved.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 10 matchups we can't wait to watch on the 2026-2027 NBA schedule

The NBA released the full schedule for the 2026-27 regular season on Aug. 13, highlighted by the Philadelphia 76ers, who will make 34 appearances on national television.

The 76ers' uptick in national exposure is a direct result of their offseason moves, including acquiring All-Star guard Jaylen Brown from the Boston Celtics and signing LeBron James, the NBA's all-time leading scorer, to a two-year deal. Philadelphia will begin its quest for its first championship since 1983 when it takes on the defending champions, the New York Knicks, at Madison Square Garden on Oct. 20.

That game is part of an opening-day triple-header, previously announced, with the Celtics taking on the Detroit Pistons in the afternoon, and the Western Conference Finals rematch between the Oklahoma City Thunder and San Antonio Spurs to cap off the night.

NBA OPENING WEEK: Ranking all the national TV games from worst to first

Other schedule highlights

There are no games on Nov. 3, which is Election Day in the United States, but all 30 teams will play the day before.

Other key dates include the Emirates NBA Cup 2026 Championship taking place at historic Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana, on Dec. 11 and the NBA trade deadline on Feb. 11.

The All-Star Game will take place on Feb. 21, 2027, at the Mortgage Matchup Center in Phoenix, Arizona. The regular season ends April 11, with all 30 NBA teams in action.

For the first time, outside of Christmas Day, four NBA regular-season games will be televised on national broadcast networks in a single day. The first instance will be Jan. 30, with additional quadrupleheaders on Feb. 28, March 7, and March 14, which will feature two doubleheaders each broadcast by ABC and NBC.

Teams will average 14.2 back-to-backs, a slight decrease from 14.4 last season.

TV appearances

The 76ers, Knicks, Spurs and Los Angeles Lakers will each make 34 appearances on national television.

Some teams you won't see much on the big stage include the New Orleans Pelicans, Sacramento Kings, Memphis Grizzlies and Milwaukee Bucks, who each will make only two appearances on national television. The Chicago Bulls have three such games. Giannis Antetokounmpo's new team, the Miami Heat, will appear 25 times.

Reunions

LeBron James

Along with the Christmas matchup with the Lakers, James will also visit the Cleveland Cavaliers on Nov. 6 and March 1 and the Miami Heat on Jan. 30 and April 8.

Giannis Antetokounmpo

The two-time MVP returns to Milwaukee to face the Bucks on Jan. 28.

Jaylen Brown

The five-time All-Star returns to Boston to face the Celtics with the 76ers on Jan. 21.

BEST NBA GAMES: 10 NBA matchups we can't wait to watch in 2026-2027 season

Christmas Day games

(all times Eastern)

• San Antonio Spurs vs. New York Knicks, 12 p.m.
• Miami Heat vs. Boston Celtics, 2:30 p.m.
• Philadelphia 76ers vs. Los Angeles Lakers, 5 p.m.
• Oklahoma City Thunder vs. Minnesota Timberwolves, 8 p.m.
• Denver Nuggets vs. Golden State Warriors, 10:30 p.m.

Martin Luther King Day games

• Detroit Pistons at Cleveland Cavaliers, 12 p.m.
• Philadelphia 76ers at Atlanta Hawks, 2:30 p.m.
• Minnesota Timberwolves at New York Knicks, 5 p.m.
• Houston Rockets at Memphis Grizzlies, 7:30 p.m.

President's Day games

• Minnesota Timberwolves at Charlotte Hornets, 12 p.m.
• Philadelphia 76ers at Dallas Mavericks, 2:30 p.m.
• San Antonio Spurs at Miami Heat, 5 p.m.
• Indiana Pacers at Golden State Warriors, 7:30 p.m.

International Games

• Nov. 7: Denver Nuggets vs. Indiana Pacers, Mexico City Arena (Arena CDMX), Mexico City, Mexico, 5 p.m.
• Jan. 14, 2027: San Antonio Spurs vs. New Orleans Pelicans, Accor Arena, Paris, France, 2 p.m.
• Jan. 17, 2027: San Antonio Spurs vs. New Orleans Pelicans, Co-op Live, Manchester, England, 10:30 a.m.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Knicks, 76ers, Spurs take spotlight as NBA releases 2026-27 schedule