2019-20 Kia Season Preview

NBA unveils 2019-20 game and national television schedules

NBA unveils 2019-20 game schedule

Official release

NEW YORK — The NBA on Aug. 12 released its complete game schedule and broadcast schedules for TNT, ESPN, ABC, NBA TV and ESPN Radio for the 2019-20 regular season. The league’s 74th regular season will tip off on Tuesday, Oct. 22, 2019, and conclude on Wednesday, April 15, 2020.

Below are 2019-20 schedule highlights:

  • In an effort to present national television games to the largest possible audience, the NBA worked closely with its teams and domestic broadcast partners to schedule earlier start times for doubleheaders. This season, 12 of TNT’s 31 doubleheaders and 22 of ESPN’s 36 doubleheaders will tip off at 7:30/10 p.m. ET or 7/9:30 p.m. ET instead of 8/10:30 p.m. ET. The number of doubleheaders at 8 p.m./10:30 p.m. ET on the two networks has been reduced by a combined 42 percent from last season (57 in 2018-19 compared with 33 in 2019-20).
  • TNT: The 8 p.m./10:30 p.m. ET starts for TNT’s Tuesday doubleheaders have been reduced from nine last season to two this season. Of the network’s 12 Tuesday doubleheaders this season, nine will begin at 7:30 p.m./10 p.m. ET and one will tip off at 7 p.m./9:30 p.m. ET.
  • ESPN: There will be no 8 p.m./10:30 p.m. ET Wednesday doubleheaders on ESPN this season, down from 18 last season. Of the network’s 21 Wednesday doubleheaders this season, 15 are scheduled for 7:30 p.m./10 p.m. ET and six are set for 7 p.m./9:30 p.m. ET.
  • Instances of teams playing games on back-to-back days will be an all-time low for the fifth straight season. Teams will play an average of4 back-to-backs in the 2019-20 season, down 36 percent since the 2014-15 season (19.3 per team) and a 7 percent reduction from last season (13.3 per team).
  • For the third season in a row, no team is scheduled to play a stretch with four games in five days.
  • A record 48 games will air in primetime in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, with 24 games each on Saturday and Sunday. Those regions will have a full slate of primetime games on both Saturday and Sunday for the first time.
  • The NBA will again label its schedule by week to enhance fans’ ability to follow the 1,230-game regular season. Starting with Week 1 and ending with Week 26, each week will run Monday through Sunday.
  • The NBA on TNT, ESPN, ABC and NBA TV will present flexible scheduling throughout the regular season to provide the most compelling matchups to a national audience.
  • The fifth season of NBA Saturday Primetime on ABC will premiere on Jan. 18 (see below for more).

Kia NBA Tip-Off 2019

The first five days of the 2019-20 season (Oct. 22-26) will showcase 16 different teams playing 11 national television games across TNT, ESPN and NBA TV as part of Kia NBA Tip-Off 2019.

Tuesday, Oct. 22: TNT Doubleheader

TNT will have an opening-night doubleheader for the 24th consecutive season, marking Turner Sports’ 36th straight year of NBA coverage.

  • New Orleans at Toronto (8 p.m. ET): The defending NBA champion Raptors receive their championship rings and unveil their banner for the 2018-19 season before facing the Pelicans in the debut of New Orleans’ Zion Williamson, the No. 1 overall pick in NBA Draft 2019 presented by State Farm.
  • Los Angeles Lakers at LA Clippers (10:30 p.m. ET): Six-time All-Star Anthony Davis makes his Lakers debut and four-time Kia NBA MVP LeBron James opens his 17th season in a matchup with the Clippers, now with 2019 Bill Russell NBA Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard and six-time All-Star Paul George.

Wednesday, Oct. 23: ESPN Doubleheader

ESPN will tip off its 18th consecutive year of NBA coverage with the following doubleheader:

  • Boston at Philadelphia (7:30 p.m.): Five-time All-Star Al Horford of the 76ers and three-time All-Star Kemba Walker of the Celtics debut with their respective teams.
  • Denver at Portland (10 p.m.): The Trail Blazers and Nuggets meet in a rematch of their dramatic seven-game series in the 2019 Western Conference Semifinals. Portland has won an NBA-record 18 straight home regular-season openers.

Thursday, Oct. 24: TNT Doubleheader

  • Milwaukee at Houston (8 p.m.): The three most recent Kia NBA MVP Award winners are in action as 2016-17 winner Russell Westbrook makes his Rockets debut alongside 2017-18 winner James Harden against last season’s top regular-season team, led by reigning MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo.
  • LA Clippers at Golden State (10:30 p.m.): Two-time Kia NBA MVP Stephen Curry and the Warriors play their first regular-season game at Chase Center in San Francisco.

Friday, Oct. 25: ESPN Doubleheader

  • Dallas at New Orleans (8 p.m.): The new-look Pelicans’ home debut this season comes against 2018-19 Kia NBA Rookie of the Year Luka Dončić and the Mavericks.
  • Utah at Los Angeles Lakers (10:30 p.m.): Two-time reigning Kia NBA Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert and the Jazz are one of five teams to win at least 48 games in each of the last three seasons.

Saturday, Oct. 26: NBA TV Tripleheader

  • Miami at Milwaukee (5 p.m.): Four-time All-Star Jimmy Butler’s first road game with the Heat is in Milwaukee, where he starred in college at Marquette.
  • Boston at New York (7:30 p.m.): RJ Barrett, the No. 3 overall pick in NBA Draft 2019 presented by State Farm, makes his home debut with the Knicks.
  • LA Clippers at Phoenix (10 p.m.): Leonard and the Suns’ Devin Booker both averaged 26.6 points per game last season.

Christmas Day

The NBA will feature five games on Christmas Day (Wednesday, Dec. 25 in Week 10) for the 12th year in a row. ABC or ESPN will televise all five matchups during the 72nd edition of the NBA on Christmas Day.

  • Boston at Toronto (12 p.m., ESPN): The Raptors host a Christmas Day game for the first time.
  • Milwaukee at Philadelphia (2:30 p.m., ABC): The 76ers last hosted a Christmas game in 1988.
  • Houston at Golden State (5 p.m., ABC): The rivals have met in the playoffs in four of the last five years.
  • LA Clippers at Los Angeles Lakers (8 p.m., ESPN/ABC): The Lakers have won an NBA-record 23 games on Christmas.
  • New Orleans at Denver (10:30 p.m., ESPN): The Nuggets’ last Christmas home game was 25 years ago.

Martin Luther King Jr. Day

A TNT tripleheader and an NBA TV matinee will highlight the schedule on Martin Luther King Jr. Day on Monday, Jan. 20 during Week 14.

  • Toronto at Atlanta (2:30 p.m., NBA TV): Five-time All-Star Kyle Lowry of the Raptors and 2018-19 NBA All-Rookie First Team selection Trae Young of the Hawks are two of the four NBA players to average at least 8.0 assists per game last season.
  • New Orleans at Memphis (5 p.m., TNT): The Grizzlies’ 17th Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration Game marks the first matchup between the top two picks in NBA Draft 2019, Williamson and Morant.
  • Los Angeles Lakers at Boston (7:30 p.m., TNT): In last season’s meeting in Boston, Rajon Rondo’s buzzer-beating jump shot gave the Lakers a 129-128 victory over the Celtics.
  • Golden State at Portland (10 p.m., TNT): The Warriors and Trail Blazers have squared off in the playoffs in three of the last four seasons, including the 2019 Western Conference Finals.

NBA on TNT

TNT will televise 19 Thursday doubleheaders and 12 Tuesday doubleheaders during the 2019-20 season. All TNT games will be streamed live via tntdrama.com/watchtnt and the Watch TNT App.

TNT’s schedule includes:

  • Week 3: Boston at Charlotte (Thursday, Nov. 7, 8 p.m.) – The Celtics’ Walker, who is Charlotte’s all-time leader in points and three-pointers made, returns to Spectrum Center.
  • Week 12: Houston at Oklahoma City (Thursday, Jan. 9, 9:30 p.m.) – Westbrook, an eight-time All-Star with the Thunder, plays his first game at Oklahoma City as a member of the Rockets.
  • Week 20: Toronto at Golden State (Thursday, March 5, 10:30 p.m.) – The Raptors and Warriors meet for the first time since the NBA Finals 2019 presented by YouTube TV.

In addition to its regular-season coverage, TNT will air NBA All-Star 2020 events from Feb. 14-16 in Chicago, culminating with the 69th NBA All-Star Game on Sunday, Feb. 16.

TNT will also exclusively televise the 2020 Western Conference Finals.

NBA on ESPN

ESPN will present 21 Wednesday doubleheaders and 15 Friday doubleheaders this season. All ESPN and ABC telecasts will be available via the ESPN App.

ESPN’s schedule includes:

  • Week 4: Utah at Memphis (Friday, Nov. 15, 8 p.m.) – This marks the return to Memphis for the Jazz’s Mike Conley, who is the Grizzlies’ career leader in points, assists, steals and games played.
  • Week 6: Brooklyn at Boston; Los Angeles Lakers at New Orleans (Wednesday, Nov. 27) – Nets guard Irving’s return to Boston (7 p.m.) is followed by Lakers forward Davis’ return to New Orleans (9:30 p.m.).
  • Week 8: LA Clippers at Toronto (Wednesday, Dec. 11, 7 p.m.) – Leonard and the Clippers make their one regular-season visit to Toronto.

ESPN will be the exclusive network of the 2020 Eastern Conference Finals.

NBA on ABC

In addition to its Christmas Day telecasts, ABC will have the following regular-season series:

  • NBA Saturday Primetime on ABC: The fifth season of NBA Saturday Primetime on ABC will feature nine games, each scheduled to air at 8:30 p.m. ET. The series will tip off on Jan. 18 (Week 13) with the Lakers visiting the Rockets and conclude on April 11 (Week 25) with the Clippers hosting the Warriors.
  • NBA Sunday Showcase on ABC: ABC will air six Sunday afternoon games, starting on Feb. 2 (Week 15) with the Pelicans taking on the Rockets in Houston (2 p.m.) and concluding on April 5 (Week 24) with the Bucks visiting the Celtics (3:30 p.m.).

ABC will also televise the NBA Finals 2020 presented by YouTube TV – its 18th straight season as the exclusive home of The Finals.

NBA on NBA TV

All 30 NBA teams are scheduled to appear multiple times on NBA TV in the 2019-20 season.

NBA TV’s schedule includes:

  • Week 8: NBA Mexico City Games 2019 (Saturday, Dec. 14, 5 p.m.) – Phoenix and San Antonio play the second of the NBA’s two games in Mexico City during the 2019-20 season.
  • Week 9: LA Clippers at Oklahoma City (Sunday, Dec. 22, 7 p.m.) – George and the Clippers make the first of two regular-season visits to Oklahoma City to take on nine-time All-Star Chris Paul and the Thunder.
  • Week 14: NBA Paris Game 2020 presented by beIN SPORTS (Friday, Jan. 24, 3 p.m.) – Charlotte and Milwaukee meet in the NBA’s first regular-season game in France.

NBA on ESPN RADIO

ESPN Radio will air 25 games during the regular season, including Lakers vs. Clippers on opening night and Warriors vs. Rockets and Lakers vs. Clippers on Christmas Day. It will also provide coverage from NBA All-Star 2020 and present NBA Finals 2020.