The 75th season game schedule for the NBA is here and ready to go. This season will be an entire season that includes the Play-In Tournament.
Buckle up.
Miami Heat fans, quick note. Six-time NBA All-Star Kyle Lowry of Miami, who played the previous nine seasons with the Raptors and helped the franchise win the NBA championship in the 2018-19 season, leads the Heat in a road game against Toronto on Thursday, February 3 on TNT (7:30 p.m. ET). The matchup is the first of the Heat’s two road games against the Raptors this season.
The NBA detailed throughout the season, the league will feature 75 Classic Matchups to celebrate the teams, players, coaches, and moments that have defined 75 years of NBA basketball. Below are some of the Classic Matchups that will be highlighted during the season:
- NBA TV will present a matchup between the New York Knicks and Toronto Raptors on Monday, November 1 (7:30 p.m. ET), marking the 75th anniversary of the league’s first regular-season game, which was played between the Knicks and Toronto Huskies on November 1, 1946.
- The three franchises that have played in every NBA season – the Knicks, Boston Celtics, and Golden State Warriors (who began as the Philadelphia Warriors) – will face each other across three nationally televised games during a five-day stretch in December: Warriors at Knicks on Tuesday, December 14 (7:30 p.m. ET, TNT); Warriors at Celtics on Friday, December 17 (7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN); and Knicks at Celtics on Saturday, December 18 (8:30 p.m. ET, NBA TV).
- On Friday, January 7, the Los Angeles Lakers will host the Atlanta Hawks on ESPN (10 p.m. ET). The matchup will take place 50 years to the day (January 7, 1972) that the Lakers defeated Atlanta for their 33rd straight victory, which remains the longest winning streak in NBA history.
The NBA previously announced its national television schedule for the first four days of the season and Christmas Day. Kia NBA Tip-Off 2021 will begin on Tuesday, October 19 with a TNT doubleheader as the defending NBA champion Milwaukee Bucks host the Brooklyn Nets (7:30 p.m. ET) and the Warriors visit the Lakers (10 p.m. ET).
On Wednesday, October 20, the Knicks will host the Celtics (7:30 p.m. ET), and the Denver Nuggets will visit the Phoenix Suns (10 p.m. ET) in an ESPN doubleheader. TNT will have a doubleheader on Thursday, October 21 (Dallas Mavericks at Hawks, 7:30 p.m. ET; LA Clippers at Warriors, 10 p.m. ET), and ESPN will have a doubleheader on Friday, October 22 (Nets at Philadelphia 76ers, 7:30 p.m. ET; Suns at Lakers, 10 p.m. ET).
Christmas Day will feature five games across ESPN and ABC on Saturday, December 25: Hawks at Knicks (12 p.m. ET, ESPN); Celtics at Bucks (2:30 p.m. ET, ABC); Warriors at Suns (5 p.m. ET, ABC); Nets at Lakers (8 p.m. ET, ABC/ESPN); and Mavericks at Utah Jazz (10:30 p.m. ET, ESPN).
There are more highlights that cannot go without noting:
- TNT will air 18 Tuesday doubleheaders and 12 Thursday doubleheaders in the 2021-22 season, while ESPN will televise 21 Wednesday doubleheaders and 13 Friday doubleheaders. Every doubleheader across both networks on those four nights will begin at 7:30 p.m. ET/10 p.m. ET.
- NBA TV will tip off its live game coverage for the 2021-22 season on Saturday, October 23 with a doubleheader as the Indiana Pacers host the Miami Heat (7 p.m. ET) and the Suns visit the Portland Trail Blazers (10 p.m. ET).
- NBA TV’s Center Court franchise will make its season debut on Monday, October 25, with the Washington Wizards visiting the Nets (7:30 p.m. ET) and continue the following week with the NBA 75 Classic Matchup between the Knicks and Raptors. Center Court, which includes 20 games throughout the season, incorporates enhanced viewing options such as unique camera angles, next-gen analytics and social media integrations into the originally produced telecast.
- The top two overall picks in the NBA Draft 2021 presented by State Farm, the Detroit Pistons’ Cade Cunningham (No. 1) and the Houston Rockets’ Jalen Green (No. 2), are scheduled to meet in the regular season for the first time when Detroit visits Houston on Wednesday, November 10 on ESPN (7:30 p.m. ET).
- A TNT doubleheader will highlight the Martin Luther King Jr. Day schedule on Monday, January 17. First, the Memphis Grizzlies will host the Chicago Bulls (3:30 p.m. ET) in Memphis’ 20th annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day Celebration Game. In the second game, the Bucks will face the Hawks in Atlanta (6 p.m. ET) in a rematch of the 2021 Eastern Conference Finals. The national television schedule for Martin Luther King Jr. Day will also include a matchup between the Jazz and Lakers in Los Angeles on NBA TV (10:30 p.m. ET).
- The seventh season of NBA Saturday Primetime on ABC will premiere on Saturday, December 11 when the Warriors visit the 76ers (8:30 p.m. ET). The Primetime series will have a game each Saturday from January 29 – March 12 except February 19 during the All-Star break.
- The ABC Sunday Showcase series will return on Sunday, February 13, when the Hawks visit the Celtics (2 p.m. ET). ABC will air Sunday Showcase doubleheaders at 1 p.m. ET/3:30 p.m. ET on February 27, March 6, March 13 and April 3.
- TNT will broadcast the first matchup between the Bucks and Suns since the NBA Finals 2021 presented by YouTube TV when the teams meet on Thursday, February 10 in Phoenix (10 p.m. ET). In the second meeting, Milwaukee will host Phoenix on Sunday, March 6 on ABC (3:30 p.m. ET).
- ESPN and TNT will both televise doubleheaders on the final day of the regular season, Sunday, April 10. The matchups for ESPN (1 p.m. ET/3:30 p.m. ET) and TNT (7:30 p.m. ET/10 p.m. ET) will be determined at a later date.
- The NBA on TNT, ESPN, ABC, and NBA TV will present flexible scheduling throughout the regular season to provide the most compelling matchups to a national audience.
- ESPN Radio will broadcast 24 games in the regular season, including Nets-Bucks on opening night and Warriors-Suns and Nets-Lakers on Christmas Day. It will also provide coverage from NBA All-Star 2022 in Cleveland and air the NBA Finals 2022 presented by YouTube TV.
The 2022 NBA Play-In Tournament will take place April 12-15 (Tuesday – Friday), followed by the start of the 2022 NBA Playoffs on Saturday, April 16. TNT will present the 2022 Western Conference Finals, and ESPN/ABC will present the 2022 Eastern Conference Finals. ABC will televise the NBA Finals 2022 presented by YouTube TV, marking its 20th consecutive season as the exclusive home of the league’s championship series. Game 1 of the NBA Finals is scheduled to be played on Thursday, June 2.
NBA League Pass will offer live, out-of-market games all season through the NBA App, NBA.com, connected televisions and TV providers. Fans can unlock direct access to stream matchups featuring their favorite teams and players with NBA League Pass (blackout restrictions apply). For more information, visit NBA.com/leaguepass.
For the 2021-22 season, 46-weekend games will air in primetime in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa as part of the league’s “NBA Saturdays and NBA Sundays presented by NBA 2K22” primetime initiative.