Last week, the NBA announced their schedule, revealing the dates and times for all the 82 games for the 30 teams in the league. Over the next couple of weeks, we will give a breakdown of the schedule, the key games and what to expect from some of the clashes, including NBA betting predictions for all the divisions and conferences in the league. But in the meantime, here is a skeletal look at some of the top dates and key nationally-televised games in this year’s calendar worthy of being earmarked in your basketball diary.
Thursday, Oct. 29Hawks at Knicks, TNT, 8 PM ETMavericks at Clippers, TNT, 10:30 PM ETFriday, Oct. 30Heat at Cavaliers, ESPN, 7 PM ETWarriors at Rockets, ESPN, 9:30 PM ETSaturday, Oct. 31Warriors at Pelicans, NBA TV, 7:30 PM ETKings at Clippers, NBA TV, 10:30 PM ET
MOST NOTABLE DATES AND TV SCHEDULES IN 2015-16 NBA SEASON
NBA Opening Week
Tuesday, Oct. 27Cavaliers at Bulls, TNT, 8 PM ETPelicans at Warriors, TNT, 10:30 PM ETWednesday, Oct. 28Spurs at Thunder, ESPN, 8 PM ETTimberwolves at Lakers, ESPN, 10 PM ETThursday, Oct. 29Hawks at Knicks, TNT, 8 PM ETMavericks at Clippers, TNT, 10:30 PM ETFriday, Oct. 30Heat at Cavaliers, ESPN, 7 PM ETWarriors at Rockets, ESPN, 9:30 PM ETSaturday, Oct. 31Warriors at Pelicans, NBA TV, 7:30 PM ETKings at Clippers, NBA TV, 10:30 PM ETNBA on Christmas Day – Friday, December 25th
Pelicans at Heat, ESPN, NoonBulls at Thunder, ABC, 2:30 PM ETCavaliers at Warriors, ABC, 5 PM ETSpurs at Rockets, ESPN, 8 PM ETClippers at Lakers, ESPN, 10:30 PM ETNBA Global Games London – Thursday, January 14
Raptors at Magic, NBA TV, 3 PM ETMartin Luther King Jr. Day – Monday, January 18
Pelicans at Grizzlies, ESPN, 2:30 PM ETMagic at Hawks, NBA TV, 5 PM ETWarriors at Cavaliers, TNT, 8 PM ETRockets at Clippers, TNT, 10:30 PM ETNBA Saturday Night on ABC – Starts January 23
Bulls at Cavaliers, ABC, 8:30 PM ETNBA Sunday Showcase – Starts January 31
Bulls at Clippers, ABC, 3:30 PM ET NBA All-Star Weekend 2016
Friday, Feb. 12: BBVA Compass Rising Stars ChallengeSaturday, Feb. 13: State Farm All-Star Saturday NightSunday, Feb. 14: 2016 NBA All-Star GameNBA Playoffs – Starts Saturday April 16 2016
MAJOR TAKEAWAYS FROM THE SCHEDULE
Fun Holidays!
Christmas and Martin Luther King Day feature a set of fun games, with top-tier teams like the Warriors, Cavaliers, Rockets and Clippers having very grueling schedules. A good number of these games, like the Spurs @ Rockets on Xmas Day and the Rockets @ Clippers on MLK Day, could end up determining the eventual playoff seeding for the teams, making them extra special. No Love for the Warriors and the West!
As if fighting to win in the Western Conference isn’t tough as it is, the defending NBA Champs, the Golden State Warriors, will have to fight extra hard in their bid to reclaim a league-best regular season finish. This is because they’ll have 20 back-to-backs this season, which is tied for the most in the league alongside a similar number of back-to-backs by the Rockets and Clippers. Deductively, this means that three of the teams expected to be in the top five in the West this season will be having the most trying schedules in the league, with the Spurs and Thunder (the remaining two of the projected top five) luckily dodging the bullet here.The Pistons are The Eastern Black Sheep
In the Eastern Conference, the Detroit Pistons are the lone team with the highest number of back-to-backs (at 20). Making matters worse, the Pistons have no national television appearances, something Andre Drummond felt was unfair for the franchise.
