2026-27 NBA season schedule announced: Knicks-76ers game on opening night

The NBA has announced the full schedule for the 2026-27 regular season. Accordingly, the new season will begin on October 20, and the regular season will conclude with games played on April 11.

Three games will be played on opening night. The defending champion New York Knicks will host LeBron James and the Philadelphia 76ers at Madison Square Garden. Before the game, the Knicks will raise their championship banner to the rafters.

In the other games of the night, the Boston Celtics, who are in a rebuilding process, will travel to face the Detroit Pistons. The Oklahoma City Thunder will once again face the San Antonio Spurs, whom they met in the Western Conference Finals last season.

The NBA Cup, which will be held for the fourth time this year, will begin on October 30. Ten games will be played on the opening day of the tournament. The defending NBA Cup champion Knicks will begin their title defense on the road in Philadelphia.

The NBA's traditional Christmas schedule will feature five games. The program will open with the Knicks hosting the Spurs at Madison Square Garden in a rematch of last season's NBA Finals. Following that, Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Miami Heat will visit the Boston Celtics.

In one of the marquee games on Christmas Day, LeBron James will return to Los Angeles to face the Lakers. The other games of the day will feature the Oklahoma City Thunder against the Minnesota Timberwolves, and the Denver Nuggets against the Golden State Warriors.

The schedule also includes notable return games. Jaylen Brown, who was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers, will face his former team, the Boston Celtics, in front of their fans on January 21. Giannis Antetokounmpo will return to his former city on January 28 when he visits the Milwaukee Bucks while wearing a Miami Heat jersey.

News Source: 12punto