The 2016-17 NBA schedule was released to the public on Thursday, with few leaks springing before the announcement. With much of the public’s attention turned to the 2016 Olympics, the annual mid-summer unveiling flew under the radar. But now we know that the 2016-17 NBA season will officially begin on Oct. 25, with both the defending champion Cleveland Cavaliers and Golden State Warriors in action.
Every important date and matchup in the 2016-17 NBA schedule
The 2016-17 NBA schedule is out! Here are the important dates you need to know, plus places to find even more information.
There will be a total of 164 national television games, which we’ll define as ESPN, ABC or TNT. With the addition of Kevin Durant, the Warriors are obviously the national darlings, appearing on ESPN, ABC or TNT 28 times. Golden State will face Cleveland in the marquee regular-season matchup on Christmas and also appear on ABC’s newly popular Saturday night series three times.
By contrast, fans of the Orlando Magic will have to enjoy their team on local channels only except for one game: a March 3 ESPN contest against the Miami Heat. That could change if any team surprises and the league deems them worthy of flexing into a national TV slot later in the year. Every team has at least one national TV slot.
TNT will also be introducing a new 10-week Monday night slate, beginning with a doubleheader on Martin Luther King Jr. Day. The only weeks skipping will be Feb. 20 (post-All-Star Game) and April 3 (NCAA title game).
Here are some of the schedule’s highlights and a rundown of what every fan needs to know about their team.
All times Eastern
8 p.m.: Knicks at Cavaliers (TNT)
10 p.m.: Jazz at Blazers (NBA League Pass)
10:30 p.m.: Spurs at Warriors (TNT)
Noon: Celtics at Knicks (ESPN)
2:30 p.m.: Warriors at Cavaliers (ABC)
5 p.m.: Bulls at Spurs (ABC)
8 p.m.: Timberwolves at Thunder (ESPN)
10:30 p.m.: Clippers at Lakers (ESPN)
- Golden State Warriors: 28
- Los Angeles Clippers: 26
- Cleveland Cavaliers: 25
- Chicago Bulls: 25
- San Antonio Spurs: 23
- New York Knicks: 22
- Boston Celtics: 22
- Oklahoma City Thunder: 22
- Los Angeles Lakers: 15
- Portland Trail Blazers: 14
- Houston Rockets: 13
- Indiana Pacers: 11
- Minnesota Timberwolves: 11
- Dallas Mavericks: 9
- Atlanta Hawks: 8
- Utah Jazz: 7
- Toronto Raptors: 6
- Detroit Pistons: 6
- Washington Wizards: 5
- Miami Heat: 5
- Memphis Grizzlies: 5
- New Orleans Pelicans: 4
- Phoenix Suns: 4
- Charlotte Hornets: 3
- Milwaukee Bucks: 3
- Philadelphia 76ers: 3
- Denver Nuggets: 3
- Sacramento Kings: 2
- Orlando Magic: 1
- Brooklyn Nets: 1
OUR 10 FAVORITE GAMES
While this year’s schedule is loaded with intriguing matchups, there are a handful of games that stand out to us off the bat. We hope the grind of the long season doesn’t take away from any of these games. Here is a more detailed rundown of why we chose these 10 matchups:
10. Lakers at 76ers (Dec. 16)
9. Timberwolves at Pelicans (Nov. 23)
8. Knicks at Bulls (Nov. 4)
7. Spurs at Warriors (Oct. 25)
6. Raptors at Celtics (Dec. 9
7. Cavaliers at Raptors (Oct. 28)
5. Warriors at Clippers (Dec. 7)
4. Cavaliers at Raptors (Oct. 28)
3. Bulls at Heat (Nov. 10)
2. Warriors at Cavaliers (Dec. 25)
1. Warriors at Thunder (Feb. 11)
The NBA has done yeoman’s work limiting the most grueling parts of the NBA schedule, but the annual tradition of back-to-back games remains. This year, the Thunder caught a break with just 13 back-to-backs, while the Hawks have drawn a short stick with 19. At least the league continues to make progress on eliminating the four-game-in-five-night stretches that caused most NBA clubs to play like zombies. Those are almost all off the calendar.
TEAM | BACK TO BACKS | 4 GAMES/5 NIGHTS |
| Atlanta Hawks | 19 | 1 |
| Boston Celtics | 17 | 1 |
| Brooklyn Nets | 14 | 0 |
| Charlotte Hornets | 16 | 1 |
| Chicago Bulls | 15 | 1 |
| Cleveland Cavaliers | 17 | 0 |
| Dallas Mavericks | 15 | 1 |
| Denver Nuggets | 16 | 1 |
| Detroit Pistons | 17 | 1 |
| Golden State Warriors | 17 | 1 |
| Houston Rockets | 16 | 1 |
| Indiana Pacers | 16 | 0 |
| Los Angeles Clippers | 18 | 1 |
| Los Angeles Lakers | 16 | 1 |
| Memphis Grizzlies | 17 | 1 |
| Miami Heat | 15 | 1 |
| Milwaukee Bucks | 18 | 0 |
| Minnesota Timberwolves | 14 | 0 |
| New Orleans Pelicans | 17 | 0 |
| New York Knicks | 14 | 1 |
| Oklahoma City Thunder | 13 | 1 |
| Orlando Magic | 15 | 1 |
| Philadelphia 76ers | 17 | 1 |
| Phoenix Suns | 14 | 0 |
| Portland Trail Blazers | 15 | 1 |
| Sacramento Kings | 14 | 0 |
| San Antonio Spurs | 15 | 1 |
| Toronto Raptors | 17 | 0 |
| Utah Jazz | 17 | 1 |
| Washington Wizards | 16 | 1 |
EVERY TEAM’S SCHEDULE
Here are links to the actual schedules for every team. For deeper analysis of each club, check out your local SB Nation team site.
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