It is fitting that the busiest off-season in the history of the National Basketball Association (NBA) history would be followed up by a regular season that will be even more crazy and them some. An early glance of the most anticipated rookie in nearly two decades; renewed rivalries; anticipated return games; a stellar Christmas Day and MLK Day slate of games; a plethora of juicy storylines and all the drama that will surely come with them are what can be expected for the 74th NBA season. With the release of the 2019-20 NBA schedule on Monday, fans and all 30 teams can plot their set their course on the most entertaining season, where fans thanks to the league working with the teams will have a chance to catch all the action with earlier starting times.
The league worked very closely with all 30 teams and its domestic partners of Turner Network Television (TNT), ESPN, the American Broadcasting Company (ABC), NBA TV and ESPN Radio to schedule earlier starting times for the back end of the four networks doubleheader broadcasts to be viewed by those watching on the East Coast.
Of the 31 doubleheaders that will be broadcasted on TNT this upcoming season, 12 of them will tip off at 7:30 p.m./10 p.m. eastern standard time or 7 p.m./9:30 p.m.
ESPN will have 22 of their 36 double dip games tip off at 7:30 p.m./10 p.m. or 7 p.m./9:30 p.m. eastern standard time, doing away with the 8 p.m./10:30 p.m. start times.
The 8 p.m./10:30 p.m. starts for the doubleheaders on both networks have been cut from a combined 42 percent from 2018-19, going from 57 combined doubleheader nights last season to 33 for 2019-20. The NBA on TNT will only have two doubleheader nights for the upcoming season, which will be down from this last one. The 12 Tuesday double dips for 2019-20, nine of them will tip off at 7:30 p.m./10 p.m., with just one at 7 p.m./9:30 p.m.
There will be no games beginning at 8 p.m./10:30 p.m. Wednesday nights on ESPN, where they had 18 such games that started in those time slots a season ago. The 21 games that “The Worldwide Leader in Sports” will broadcast a doubleheader on “Hump Day,” 15 of them will tip off at 7:30 p.m./10 p.m., with one double dip tipping off at 7 p.m./9:30 p.m.
One of the biggest issues the league has had to deal with the last couple of seasons is the term “Load Management,” where healthy players, particularly stars sit out games to rest themselves, especially the star players like four-time Kia MVP and three-time NBA Finals MVP LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers, two-time NBA Finals MVP now of the Los Angeles Clippers Kawhi Leonard, the now Brooklyn Nets All-Star guard Kyrie Irving and many more.
To remedy that from consistently happening for the upcoming season, the league has dropped those dreaded to an all-time low of for a fifth consecutive season to an average of four each of the 30 teams. The average total of back-to-back to be played for the 2019-20 NBA campaign will be 12.4. That is down from the 13.3 that teams played on average in 2018-19.
To put that into context, the amount of back-to-backs in the NBA has gone down 36 percent since the 2014-15 NBA campaign, which equates to an average of 19.3 back-to-backs. That number went down by seven percent from a season ago.
“It’s great that the schedule continues to be more spread out. Fewer back-to-backs. No four-in-fives. No eight-in-twelves. Fewer games in seven nights,” former Atlanta Hawks general manager from 2015-17, now NBATV analyst Wes Wilcox said on the NBATV 2019-20 Schedule Release Show on Monday afternoon.
“And really the NBA has done this by a shorter preseason, which was a number of years ago and a computerized schedule process, which ultimately is good for the teams and the players, specifically as we get to this whole ‘Load Management’ conversation.”
As NBATV’s Jared Greenberg pointed out on Monday afternoon, up until a couple of years ago, the NBA game schedule was done by hand.
For the third straight season, none of the 30 teams will playing four-games-in-5 days and for the second straight season the NBA will not have its teams play eight games in 12 days.
Wilcox, who also served as Director of Player Personnel for the Cleveland Cavaliers from 2008-10 pointed out that we will still see players be rested strategically this upcoming season. When it comes to “Load Management,” he pointed out that it is always easier for the “good teams” to rest players.
“When you’re a young team, and you’re trying to play your way in, we don’t have to deal with this ‘Load Management’ situation,” Wilcox said. “But ultimately the ‘Load Management’ thing it’s not just about resting players and managing injury and managing careers. Teams like to do it, specifically coaches because it’s a good way to manage the roster. Give, you know everybody-the backup and the third string guy-get a chance to play one level up as maybe a starter and a backup. And in the player development process too. Help a young player get a chance to play and show it on the court, what he’s been working on in practice.”
Also, ESPN, ABC, NBA TV, and TNT will also present flexible scheduling during the regular season to provide the most compelling matchups for the national audience to view.
The tip-off of the 74th NBA season, presented by Kia begins on, Oct. 22, 2019 on TNT, presented by Autotrader with the Zion Williamson era beginning as the New Orleans Pelicans take on the defending NBA champion Toronto Raptors, who will get their championship rings and raise their title banner to the roof of Scotiabank Arena.
Four of the first five games the Pelicans will play to start this season will be on national television, where the entire nation will get to see Williamson, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft out of Duke University.
Of the teams that will play at least 20-plus total games on TNT ESPN, and ABC, the Lakers lead with 31 appearances for this upcoming NBA season, followed by the Warriors with 27; Clippers and Rockets tied with 26; Celtics with 25; 76ers and Bucks each with 24; and the Trail Blazers and Pelicans with 20 each.
The teams with less than 20 games on national television for the 2019-20 season consist of the Denver Nuggets with 17; the Utah Jazz with 16; the Dallas Mavericks with 13; the Brooklyn Nets with 12 and the defending NBA champion Toronto Raptors with just 11.
Last season with perennial All-Star Anthony Davis on the roster, the Pelicans had a total of 11 of their games that were national televised. That is the impact that Williamson has had on the Hornets, who played just a few minutes during NBA Summer League last month, who recently just signed a huge shoe contract with Nike.
“First of all, when you’re the No. 1 pick there’s automatically gonna be built in pressure,” Hall of Famer and NBA on TNT studio analyst Charles Barkley said on NBATV’s 2019-20 Schedule Release Show. “He’s a great kid. I think he’s got great potential. I know Alvin Gentry gonna do a fantastic job trying to shield him away, to relax and just play. But man, he looks so exciting. I look forward to seeing him not on television, I wanna go see him play in person.”
That will be followed by the first of four battle for bragging rights and more in the battle of L.A. between the Lakers, led by James and newest addition Anthony Davis taking on the co-tenants of Staples Center the Los Angeles Clippers, and their new dynamic All-Star duo of Leonard and perennial All-Star Paul George, who the Clippers acquired from the Oklahoma City Thunder earlier this summer. George is still a question mark as he is recovering from surgery on both shoulders earlier this off-season.
“I’m really looking forward to that game,” Barkley said. “You know what would be even better? If they play each other in the Western Conference Finals and we just have to stay in L.A. and wouldn’t have to do any traveling. That would be my perfect scenario for the Western Conference Finals, since we got that this year.”
ESPN coverage of the 2019-20 NBA regular season begins one night later when the Boston Celtics and their newest addition in All-Star Kemba Walker play at the Philadelphia 76ers and their one-two All-Star punch of Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons at 7:30 p.m.
The backend of the doubleheader will feature a rematch of last season’s Western Conference Semifinals with the Denver Nuggets at the Western Conference runner-up the Portland Trail Blazers at 10 p.m.
The NBA on TNT starts its Thursday schedule with the Eastern Conference runners-up the Milwaukee Bucks, led by reigning Kia MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo at the Houston Rockets, and their newest backcourt tandem of James Harden and Russell Westbrook, who they acquired from the Thunder in the middle of July.
If Westbrook gets a triple-double in Game 1 of the regular season, he will move into second place, all-time in NBA history, passing Hall of Famer Earvin “Magic” Johnson for.
The backend of this twin-bill will feature the anticipated grand opening of the new state of the art Chase Center in San Francisco, CA as the Clippers visit the Warriors in San Francisco, CA.
ESPN kicks off their Friday night slate with a doubleheader, beginning with the home debut of Williamson, the No. 1 overall pick in 2019 draft makes his home debut at Smoothie King Center as the Pelicans host the Dallas Mavericks, with their reigning Kia Rookie of the Year Luka Doncic and Kristaps Porzingis, who will be making his long awaited debut and the Dallas Mavericks on Friday, Oct. 22 at 8 p.m.
That will be followed by the Lakers hosting back-to-back reigning Kia Defensive Player of the year Rudy Gobert and new edition Mike Conley and the Utah Jazz, who were one of five NBA squads to win at least 48 games for three straight seasons. That will be the first of 10 times the Jazz will be seen on ESPN this upcoming season.
“It’s exciting. I think all of us that are a part of the Jazz organization, the city, we’re all excited,” Conley told ESPN’s Rachel Nichols at the opening of the NBA Experience at Walt Disney World in Orlando, FL Monday afternoon. “And we feel like we have a chance to do something really special.”
“Have a great group of guys, great coaching staff and the season for most teams feel like its wide open. And a lot of teams have a chance to do something big. So, we feel like we’re one of those teams.”
NBATV closes out Week 1 of the new season with a triple-header on Oct. 26, beginning with the Miami Heat and their prize free agent addition in four-time All-Star Jimmy Butler at the Bucks at 5 p.m.
The middle game will feature the Madison Square Garden debut of No. 3 overall pick in the 2019 draft, presented by State Farm RJ Barrett as the New York Knicks host the Celtics at 7:30 p.m.
The night cap will feature the Clippers at the Phoenix Suns, and their new head coach Monty Williams.
The biggest day for the NBA season will feature five matchups on Christmas Day, Wednesday Dec. 25, 2019.
The quintet of games will begin at 12 p.m. on ESPN with the first Christmas Day contest for the Raptors as the defending NBA champs will host the Celtics.
ABC will take the lead of the schedule with a doubleheader, that starts with the first 76ers home game on Christmas Day since 1988 as they host the Milwaukee Bucks at 2:30 p.m.
That will be followed by the only playoff rematch from last spring between the five-time defending Western Conference champion Golden State Warriors hosting the Rockets at 5 p.m. on ABC.
The fourth game of St. Nick’s day will feature the second tilt between the Lakers and Clippers that will be simulcasted on ESPN and ABC at 8 p.m. The 16-time NBA champion Lakers will be looking to add to their NBA-record of 23 wins on Christmas Day. They will two more times following that meeting Jan. 28, 2020 and Mar. 8, 2020.
The Christmas Day quintet concludes with the first Christmas home game in a quarter century for the Nuggets versus the Pelicans at 10:30 p.m. on ESPN.
The other marquee day on the NBA calendar is Martin Luther King Day, Jr., which will begin with a matinee tilt on NBA TV, followed by a TNT tripleheader on Jan. 20, 2020.
It all begins at 2:30 p.m. with as five-time All-Star Kyle Lowry leads the defending NBA champions to State Farm Arena to take on 2018-19 NBA All-Rookie First Team selection Trae Young and the Atlanta Hawks.
TNT’s triple dip begins with the 17th Annual MLK, Jr. Celebration Game from Memphis, TN between the Pelicans at the Grizzlies in the first tilt between the top two draft picks in the 2019 NBA Draft in Williamson and Ja Morant at 5 p.m.
The NBA’s biggest rivals renew acquaintances at 7:30 p.m. as the 16-time NBA champion Lakers visit the 17-time NBA champion Celtics on TNT. In their matchup at TD Garden last season on this day, former Celtic Rajon Rondo hit a jumper at the buzzer that gave the Lakers a 129-128 win against his former team.
The concluding game at 10 p.m. will feature a Western Conference Finals rematch with the Warriors visiting the Portland Trail Blazers. The Warriors swept the Trail Blazers 4-0 in the Conference Finals last spring and have won 12 of the 13 times they have met in the postseason in three of the last four seasons.
For the fifth straight season, the NBA will take centerstage to close out the week with NBA Saturday Primetime beginning Jan. 18, 2020 with the Week 13 contest of the Lakers at Rockets. There will be nine games featured, with each scheduled to air at 8:30 p.m. Eastern, that will conclude in Week 25 with the Warriors at Clippers on Apr. 11, 2020.
The NBA Sunday Showcase on ABC, where six Sunday afternoon games will air, beginning on Feb. 2 with the Week 15 clash between with the Pelicans visiting the Rockets at 2 p.m. and the Bucks versus the Celtics wrapping up the slate at 3:30 p.m. in Week 24 on Apr. 5, 2020.
While opening night of “The Association;” the Christmas Day quintet and the quartet of games on MLK, Jr. Day will be grabbing our attention, the 1,230 scheduled games will also consist of some notable return games that will feature some serious fireworks.
Leonard as previously mentioned helped lead the Raptors to their first NBA title in their 24-year history after they took down the defending champion Warriors 4-2 back in June. However, he left in free agency to sign with the Clippers. He should receive a hero’s welcome from Raptors nation when he makes his return to ‘The North’ on Dec. 11 at 7 p.m. on ESPN.
Perennial All-Star Paul George spent two seasons with the Oklahoma City Thunder before requesting a trade to team up with Leonard and the Clippers earlier this summer. He will make his first of two return visits to Chesapeake Arena as an opponent when the Clippers meet up with the Thunder and nine-time All-Star lead guard Chris Paul on Dec. 22 at 7 p.m. on NBATV.
There is no question that Perhaps the Westbrook will be given a vociferous ovation when the all-time leading scorer in Thunder history returns on Jan. 9, 2020 at 9:30 p.m. when the Rockets visit the Thunder on TNT.
The same can be expected in the “Queen City” when three-time All-Star Kemba Walker, the all-time leader in points and three-pointers made in Charlotte Hornets’ history returns to Spectrum Center when the Hornets host the Celtics on Thursday, Nov. 7 at 8 p.m. on TNT.
Walker went to the Celtics via a sign-and-trade for reserve guard Terry Rozier on a four-year, $141 million deal.
Wilcox said of Walker’s career with the Hornets, “One of the all-time great players for the organization, you know?”
“The expectation was he was going to re-sign. It did not work out. Tough situation for the Charlotte Hornets with Kemba making All-NBA. But he certainly ended up in a great spot in Boston.”
The exact opposite ovation will be given to All-Star Kyrie Irving, who is expected to be booed vociferously when he and the Brooklyn Nets visit the Celtics at TD Garden on Nov. 27 at 7 p.m. on ESPN.
“There’s going to be a lot of booing,” Amin Elhassan said on Monday’s edition of “NBA: The Jump” on ESPN about the reception Irving will get from Celtics’ nation. “There’s going to be a lot of booing because of that promise. Because of the chemistry issues that happened through the year. Then also the Celtics have done a great job of framing him as a villain.”
Fellow perennial All-Star Anthony Davis will get the same treatment and maybe more plenty of boos from the faithful of “The Big Easy” for the first time as a visitor when the Lakers visit the Pelicans Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram and Josh Hart will be looking for revenge of their own against their former team at 9:30 p.m. on ESPN. Ball, Ingram, and Hart were what the Pelicans got in return for Davis earlier this summer.
“I can see a situation where they don’t boo him,” Elhassan said. “If the Pelicans are playing well-this is about a month or so into the season, I think everybody’s going to feel good like, ‘Hey man, you moved on. We got better as a result. Everyone’s happy. If they are struggling, then yeah, the boos are gonna come out.”
Back in 2015, the Knicks selected power forward/center Kristaps Porzingis with the No. 4 overall pick in the draft. While he earned his first All-Star selection in 2018, injuries have robbed him of fully displaying his potential as the centerpiece in the “Big Apple,” as he spent all of last season out due to a torn ACL sustained in his left knee two seasons back.
He was traded last January to the Dallas Mavericks along with Tim Hardaway, Jr. last season, and both will make their returns to Madison Square Garden as visitors when the boys from “Big D” make their only appearance at the Knicks on Thursday Nov. 14 at 8 p.m. on TNT.
Lead guard Mike Conley makes his return to Fed EX Forum, also known as the “Grindhouse,” where he spent the first 12 years of his NBA career, becoming the all-time leader in points, assists, steals and games played, and the backbone of a team that was a playoff perennial in the middle of the 2000s. His new team the Utah Jazz visit the Memphis Grizzlies Friday, Nov. 15 at 8 p.m. on ESPN.
On Dec. 12, Al Horford, who declined the last year of contract of close to $30 million with the Celtics earlier this summer and signed with the 76ers will make his return to TD Garden when the boys from the city of “Brotherly Love” play at the C’s at 8 p.m. on TNT. Horford played three seasons in “Beantown,” where he served as the backbone on both ends for a Celtics teams that reached the Eastern Conference Finals in the springs of 2017 and 2018. It will be interesting to see how the Boston faithful will react to him that night.
While he only played a total of 67 combined regular-season and playoff games for the 76ers this past season after being acquired from the Minnesota Timberwolves in Nov. 2018, he is now with the Miami Heat after a sign-and-trade earlier this summer.
He will make his return to Philadelphia when the Heat come to town to take on the 76ers on Saturday night Nov. 23 at the Wells Fargo Center.
It will be interesting to see how the crowd on that night reacts to Butler’s return. Will they boo him, as they have been famous of doing to visiting players as well as their own sometimes or not?
There is one serious under-radar-game on Jan. 3, 2020 with the Hawks visiting the Celtics on Jan. 3, 2020. If the recently re-signed Vince Carter has a dunk at any point in the new year, he will become the first player in NBA history to dunk a basketball in four different decades.
“He’s incredible,” Wilcox said of Carter, the 20th all-time leading scorer in NBA history who will play in an NBA record 22nd season when things tip off in late October. “It’s great to see him too mentoring the younger kids here in Atlanta.”
The 2019-20 NBA campaign will also feature three games outside the United States beginning with two contests at the Arena Ciudad de Mexico in Mexico City, which will mark the first time four NBA squads will play in Mexico in one regular-season, which began in 1992.
The fourth straight season of two regular-season games being played in Mexico City will begin with a tilt between the Dallas Mavericks and Detroit Pistons on Thursday, Dec. 12, followed by the San Antonio Spurs and Phoenix Suns on Saturday, Dec. 14.
These will be the 29th and 30th regular-season games held in Mexico City, the most held in any country outside the U.S.A. and Canada.
The games will be broadcasted live on ESPN Deportes, Televisa and Directv’s “NBA League Pass in Mexico, that will reach fans in over 200 countries and territories.
“NBA Games in Mexico City are a core part of our efforts to reach and engage basketball fans throughout Mexico and Latin America,” NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said back in early June. “With a record four NBA teams visiting Mexico City next season, we expect an unprecedented level of interest and excitement around these games and our surrounding community events.”
Zignia Live Director of Business Development & Strategic Partnerships Ignacio Saenz added, “We have a great partnership with the NBA and are proud of everything we have achieved together.”
“The road has been very satisfying and filled with many happy moments thanks to the effort of all the teams. Thanks to the unconditional support of the fans, we can say that the best basketball in the world will come once again to Mexico on December 12 and 14 as both Zignia and the NBA will continue their commitment to grow the game in Mexico.”
The NBA will also be in Paris this season for the NBA Paris Game 2020, presented by beIN SPORTS as the Hornets and Bucks will square off in the league’s first regular-season contest in France on Jan. 24 at 3 p.m.
The first matchup between the league’s NBA Finalists from this past June in the Warriors and Raptors will not take place until March 5 when the two teams meet at the Chase Center on Mar. 5, 2020 on TNT.
ESPN, TNT, and ABC will have you covered in what is likely going to be the most anticipated NBA Playoff action starting on April 18, 2020.
TNT will have exclusive coverage of the 2020 Eastern Conference Finals, while the Western Conference Finals will be exclusively televised on TNT, which will also air nearly all the events for the 2020 NBA All-Star Weekend in Chicago, IL from Feb. 14-16, with the main event the 69th NBA All-Star Game on Sunday, Feb. 16, 2020 from the United Center.
Other important dates to focus on for the 2019-20 NBA season include the free agency trade date of Dec. 15, which means any player that was signed during free agency would not be trade eligible until this date, which is nearly 40 percent of “The Association.”
This date will be focused on more than ever because there are some notable players that are rumored to be on the move around this date like All-Star and NBA champion Kevin Love of the Cleveland Cavaliers, who signed a four-year, $120 million contract extension on July 24, 2018.
Two-time All-Star Bradley Beal of the Washington Wizards, who was offered a three-year, $111 million extension earlier this summer. Beal has up until the day of the start of this upcoming regular season to inform the Wizards that he will accept or decline that extension.
Paul, who was dealt earlier this summer to the Thunder from the Rockets for Westbrook, who the Thunder tried to move, but could not because of the three years and nearly $124 million left on his contract.
Phoenix Suns star guard Devin Booker, who just signed a five-year, $158 million max contract extension on July 7, 2018.
The underachieving Andrew Wiggins of the Minnesota Timberwolves, who also signed a contract extension two summers back.
Perhaps the one player who will be the most sought after is three-time NBA champion with the Warriors is All-Star Andre Iguodala, who is with the Grizzlies right now and who want to get some asset(s) in return for him, and not just buy him out of what is left on his contract.
The trade deadline will be on Feb. 6, 2020, which is eight days prior to the start of All-Star Weekend on Valentine’s Day-Feb. 14, 2020.
Of those six names, Paul and Iguodala are available on the trade market after Dec. 15, according to Wilcox. Booker and Wiggins are more so down the road if the Suns or Timberwolves front office feel a serious shakeup on their respective teams is necessary.
The two players to watch as the 2019-20 NBA season begins are Love and Beal.
The Cavaliers are clearly in the process of a rebuild, which makes Love name one to keep a serious eye on, especially if he starts this season strong right off the bat, and shows he is healthy.
In the case of Beal, it has been reported as previously mentioned that the Wizards front office, led by Tommy Sheppard reportedly offered the aforementioned two-time All-Star a three-year contract extension.
If he says no to that extension, which he has up until Monday Oct. 21 to inform the Wizards whether he will accept for decline the extension.
Wilcox pointed out that the good news for the Wizards is that they have one of the most respected and seasoned executives in “The Association” running the show in their front office. He will need that and then some to deal not just with the uncertainty of All-Star lead guard John Wall, who is likely out for the entire 2019-20 season recovering from an Achilles injury and that the four-year, $171 million max contract extension he signed in July 2017 starts this upcoming season.
“If he does not sign the extension, I would think they would look at it very, very seriously at the trade deadline,” Wilcox said about the possibly of the Wizards trading Beal.
The 2020 NBA Finals presented by YouTube TV will be televised exclusively on ABC for the 18th consecutive season.
It has been a crazy summer of drastic change in the National Basketball Association, where a number of teams will come into the 2019-20 season with hopes of winning the Larry O’Brien trophy. With the schedule out for the upcoming NBA season, the anticipation has been raised in a major way. It all gets underway on Oct. 22 on TNT.
Information and quotations are courtesy of 7/25/19 https://www.nbcsports.com/washington story, “John Wall’s New Contract with Wizards, By The Numbers,” by Chase Hughes; 8/12/19 3 p.m. edition of “NBA: The Jump” on ESPN with Rachel Nichols and Amin Elhassan; 8/12/19 3 p.m. NBATV’s “2019-20 Schedule Release Show,” with Jared Greenberg and Wes Wilcox; 8/12/19 www.nba.com story, “NBA Unveils 2019-20 Game and National Television Schedules; https://hoopshype.com/player/chris-paul/salary; https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kevin_Love#2018-19_season; and https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Devin_Booker#2018-19_season.
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