The schedule rollout for the 2026-27 NBA season is complete. What started with Christmas Day games and the NBA Cup matchups finished Thursday with the full schedule* for all 30 teams. The new season, the 81st in the league’s history, will tip off on Oct. 20 and run through April 11.
The reigning champion New York Knicks will receive their rings and raise their banner to the Madison Square Garden rafters on Opening Night when they host LeBron James and the new-look Philadelphia 76ers, but in a surprise twist, that will not be the first game of the season.
NBA schedule release: 10 key dates to circle for 2026-27 season from big returns to rivalries renewed
Robby Kalland
Here are a few other key notes:
- Training camps for teams participating in overseas preseason games will start on Sept. 22, and all other teams will open camp on Sept. 29. Preseason games will start on Oct. 3.
- No games have been scheduled for Election Day on Nov. 3.
- The NBA Cup championship is set for Dec. 11 at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
- The NBA Paris Game is set for Jan. 14, and the NBA Manchester Game is set for Jan. 17. Both will feature the San Antonio Spurs against the New Orleans Pelicans
Now that the schedule is out and the 2026-27 season has become a bit more real, let’s take a look at some winners and losers from the release.
*Due to the NBA Cup format, each team has 80 of 82 games locked in. Their remaining two games will be determined based on how they fare in the group stage of the in-season competition.
Winner: The James family
Lakers vs. the 76ers on Christmas Day means a happy family reunion
LeBron James stunned everyone in the basketball world by signing with the Philadelphia 76ers in free agency. The move will take him back to the Eastern Conference for the first time since 2018, and away from Los Angeles, where his family has lived for nearly a decade.
Before he publicly announced his decision to sign with the Sixers, James talked about the family aspect of his move.
“I have an almost 22-year-old son who is now my former teammate, which is hilarious,” James said, referring to Lakers guard Bronny James. “I have a 19-year-old son (Bryce) that’s at the University of Arizona. But it’s my almost 12-year-old daughter (Zhuri) who is pulled away a lot (from me because of basketball).
“I pulled her to the side and I was like, ‘Baby, I’m letting you know. I don’t want you to hear from nobody else, but I won’t be playing for the Lakers next year. I will be playing somewhere else,'” James said. “‘I won’t be home all the time. And you may not have an answer right now. You can give me an answer now. We can wait; we can write it down. I just want to know how you felt about it because you mean a lot to me. Me being away from you means a lot.’ So, the family portion is a big thing, too.”
It’s unclear if James’ wife, Savannah, and Zhuri will move to Philadelphia, though that seems unlikely given that James himself reportedly wants to live in New York City and commute for work. In any case, they’ll all get to be in Los Angeles for Christmas, as Bronny and the Lakers are set to host LeBron and the 76ers in the holiday’s marquee game. To make matters even better, the Sixers will stay in L.A. to play the Clippers on Dec. 27.
Loser: Celtics and Pistons fans
Good luck watching at work, I guess
NBA Opening Night is no more. As of this season, it’s NBA Opening Day.
By far the biggest surprise from the schedule release was the news that the Boston Celtics and Detroit Pistons will play the first regular-season game on Tuesday, Oct. 20, at 3 p.m. ET at Little Caesars Arena.
Here’s ESPN’s Dave McMenamin on what he heard from people in the league on why they made this decision:
“I’ve talked to people around the league today and they’re like, we could sense the excitement for the NBA right now. Let’s experiment with this thing,” McMenamin said. “They talked with executives at NBC, and it was kind of a joint decision that this is something we can turn into a celebration of the game. It’s already a marquee moment for the league. Let’s see if we can enhance it and turn it into a major showcase.
“Maybe down the line, this becomes a tradition for NBA fans. It’s not that abnormal to see sporting events during the daytime. Also an added bonus, it’s an international game. Three p.m. Eastern is prime time viewing in Europe.”
Starting the season in the middle of the afternoon may be great for the league, TV executives and fans in Europe — though it’s worth noting that there are Champions League games scheduled for Oct. 20 — but it’s a tough blow for Celtics and Pistons fans, many of whom are now not going to be able to watch their teams’ first game, or at best second screen it at work.
Loser: Eastern Conference teams
Welcome to the new world order, where the East reigns supreme
Since the Chicago Bulls’ dynasty ended in 1998 with Michael Jordan’s second retirement, the NBA championship has been won by a Western Conference team 18 times and by an Eastern Conference team 10 times. For the vast majority of those three decades, the West has been, by far, the superior conference from top to bottom.
That is no longer the case.
The Eastern Conference has finally gained NBA supremacy, and LeBron James only cements that
Brad Botkin
Since last season’s trade deadline, LeBron James, Kawhi Leonard (still not officially), Anthony Davis, James Harden, Julius Randle and Ivica Zubac all moved to the East, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Jaylen Brown both stayed in the East and No. 1 overall pick AJ Dybantsa arrived in the East.
The San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder are arguably the two best teams in the league, but the overall level of talent and depth has shifted in the East’s favor. In the context of the schedule release and the regular season, that is significant. When East teams start to look at their path through the season, they’ll quickly realize there are no more free wins or nights off.
The Knicks are the reigning champs, the Sixers added James and Brown, the Celtics have a fully healthy Jayson Tatum and Paul George, the Pistons have one of the best defenses, the Raptors traded for Leonard (again, still pending), the Heat got Antetokounmpo, the Cavaliers are running it back, the Hawks boosted their depth, the Pacers have a fully healthy Tyrese Haliburton, the Magic are always a pain to deal with, the Hornets aren’t giving up even though they traded LaMelo Ball and even the Wizards are trying to win now.
The Chicago Bulls, Milwaukee Bucks and Brooklyn Nets are probably the three worst teams in the East. Here are their likely starting lineups:
- Bulls: Josh Giddey, Norman Powell, Matas Buzelis, Caleb Wilson, Nic Claxton
- Bucks: Ryan Rollins, Tyler Herro, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Kyle Kuzma, Myles Turner
- Nets: Mikel Brown Jr., Egor Demin, Michael Porter Jr., Julius Randle, Day’Ron Sharpe
That’s a lot of talent for the “worst” teams in the conference. Plus, the Bucks don’t own their 2027 first-round pick, so they have no incentive to tank.
Winner: Sixers get extra rest, more exposure
More national games, fewer back-to-backs for LeBron James and Joel Embiid
As James’ free agency decision dragged on into mid-July, NBA commissioner Adam Silver said the league was waiting on the all-time leading scorer to finalize the schedule.
“Where LeBron plays will affect the schedule,” Silver said during an appearance at a CNBC x Boardroom summit. “So I would like him to make his announcement already, so we can finish the schedule, because, as you might imagine, the teams are calling us, the networks are calling us, and everybody wants to lock in the schedule. But it will influence how we set the schedule, how we set opening week, Christmas Day, etc. So I need him to make a decision.”
James eventually signed with the Sixers, who are reaping the benefits.
To no surprise, the Sixers have been given 34 national TV games, the maximum allowed for one team, up from 14 national broadcasts last season. Even better, the Sixers only have 13 back-to-backs this season, down from a league-high 16 last season. Furthermore, they are tied for the fewest number of stretches with three games in four nights.
The latter two notes are tremendous news for the Sixers. Joel Embiid has not played both portions of back-to-backs since 2024, and presumably will never do so again. James only played in six back-to-backs last season, and his workload will also need to be managed as he turns 42.
On paper, the Sixers have the most talented starting lineup in the league, but their success will depend on keeping Embiid and James healthy. A good draw on the schedule will help them do so.
Loser: Bucks lose their national standing
Without Giannis Antetokounmpo, not much to watch in Milwaukee
After years of back-and-forth, the Bucks finally traded Giannis Antetokounmpo this summer. They sent him to the Miami Heat in exchange for a big package that included Tyler Herro, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Kel’El Ware, Kasparas Jakučionis, three first-round picks (including No. 13 selection Nate Ament), a first-round pick swap and a second-round pick.
Antetokounmpo missed the majority of last season due to an array of injuries, and the Bucks have no incentive to tank since they don’t own their 2027 first-round pick, so their record probably isn’t going to be all that much different than it was last season, when they went 32-50.
But the expectations have totally changed in Milwaukee, and so has their national standing. For a six-year period, which included their 2021 title, the Bucks were one of the best teams in the league. And though they declined in recent years, Antetokounmpo, Doc Rivers and some bizarre transactions ensured they were still one of the most talked-about teams in the league.
This season, the Bucks only have two national TV games, tied for the fewest in the league: Nov. 18 at Miami (ESPN) and Jan. 28 vs. Miami (Prime). The former is Antetokounmpo’s first game against his old team, and the latter is Antetokounmpo’s return to Milwaukee.