The 2009 NBA schedule was released today. The 2009 NBA schedule features quite a few intriguing games, starting with the opening tip-off to the season. The first games of the 2009 NBA schedule will take place on Tuesday, October 27th and work its way through the end of the season in April. This is the 2009-2010 NBA Schedule, as the games will cross over to the new year in January, and each team will play 82 regular season games on this new 2009-2010 NBA schedule. The NBA will again be working with TNT to present games during the first few months of the 2009-2010 NBA schedule, and there are quite a number of exciting games lined up.
The opening night game for the 2009 NBA schedule is going to be a multi-faceted affair. The NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers and Kobe Bryant will play host to the Los Angeles Clippers and #1 draft pick Blake Griffin. It’s an odd opening night for the Clippers, as they share the building with the Lakers, and it will be interesting to see if the crowd supports Griffin during his NBA debut. The quirky schedule has the two teams facing each other again to end the season, with the Los Angeles Clippers playing host to the Los Angeles Lakers in game #82 for both of their schedules.
Some noteworthy items from the 2009-2010 NBA schedule are the number of games that will be televised nationally. That NBA national television schedule features 239 games, and will be close to a record for the number of games shown to such a wide audience. The networks that will be covering all of these games, are TNT, ESPN, ABC, and NBA TV. This doesn’t even account for all of the local affiliates which will increase the viewership for their own local teams. TNT will also open the Eastern Conference season as the Cleveland Cavaliers take on the Boston Celtics. This is going to be quite the match-up, as LeBron James and newly acquired Shaquille O’Neal try to prove they are the heirs to the thrown against an improved Boston Celtics team that has added Rasheed Wallace to a line-up of Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, and Ray Allen.
The Los Angeles Lakers won the NBA title in the 2008-2009 season over the Eastern Conference Champion Orlando Magic. The Magic had defeated LeBron and his Cavs in the Eastern Conference Finals, while the Lakers had made quick work of their opponents as well. Now everyone wants another chance at the Lakers, and the 2009-2010 NBA schedule will definitely afford them that opportunity. The first game is set for Tuesday, October 27th, and it should start off the season right.
Source: Full NBA Schedule
