10 Key Dates for the NBA Season (Can’t Get Enough New York Knicks)

The defending champions aren't the only highlight of a schedule that features packed holidays, international travel and honors for forgotten stars

Posted On: October 20, 2026 By : Ted Keith

Last year’s NBA season began with a throwback theme song and ended with a throwback champion. There was something fitting about the New York Knicks claiming their first title in 53 years the same season the NBA returned to NBC, which brought back the “Roundball Rock” anthem that had become popularized during the network’s previous stint carrying NBA games from 1990-2002.

The gritty Knicks were a postseason regular in those years, making two defensive-minded trips to the Finals only to come up short in an era that was otherwise dominated by Michael Jordan‘s Chicago Bulls (six titles from 1991 to 1998) and the Shaquille O’Neal–Kobe Bryant Lakers (a three-peat from 2000 to 2002).

The Knicks are not favored for a repeat this year, despite bringing back Finals MVP Jalen Brunson and every key contributor except backup center Mitchell Robinson, who moved on to Boston. That doesn’t mean New York is an afterthought, however.

In fact, the Knicks continue to command the limelight in a different way: They are a popular pick for many of the marquee games on the NBA calendar. New York will take part in the league’s Opening Day tripleheader of Tuesday, October 20 with a primetime matchup against the Philadelphia 76ers and their newest addition, LeBron James; on Christmas Day in a Finals rematch against Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs; and a showdown with the Minnesota Timberwolves on Martin Luther King Jr. Day. They’ll also play twice during Rivals Week, and in the second annual Pioneers Classic on February 3.

Here’s a look at 10 key dates on the NBA schedule, the full version of which can be found here:

Nov. 7: Mexico City, Mexico

This will be the NBA’s 16th game in Mexico City, but it’s the first time both the Denver Nuggets and Indiana Pacers have done so.

Dec. 25: Christmas Day

The NFL has made significant inroads on taking a day that had long been a staple of the NBA’s marketing efforts and made it into another football festival. Both leagues will offer the gift of attractive games to watch, with three NFL contests and five NBA matchups. The NBA will tip-off its marathon on ABC/ESPN with Knicks-Spurs at 12 p.m. ET and follow it with Heat vs. Celtics (2:30 p.m.), LeBron’s return to Los Angeles for 76ers vs. Lakers (5 p.m.), Thunder-Timberwolves at 8 p.m. and Nuggets vs. Warriors at 10:30 p.m.

Jan. 14: Paris, France

Surprisingly, it took until 2020 for Paris to host its first NBA regular-season game after the City of Light had hosted preseason games as far back as 1994. Nevertheless, Paris has since become a regular stop on the NBA calendar, with games in 2020, 2023 and 2024 and two in 2025. This will be the only game in France this season, and fittingly, it is a homecoming game for Wembanyama, the 7’4″ center nicknamed “The Alien,” who will bring the Spurs to his native country for a game with the Pelicans.

Jan. 17: Manchester, England

Three days later, the Spurs and Pelicans will match up again, this time in Manchester, England. This will be the city’s first regular-season NBA game and it will take place at Co-op Live, which opened in May 2024 after a building cost of more than $480 million. The NBA has been a frequent visitor to England, having played 10 games in London (though not as frequent as the NFL).

Jan. 18: MLK Day

While the NFL has encroached on Christmas, Martin Luther King Jr. Day remains an NBA stronghold and this season will be no exception. The Pistons and Cavaliers kick off a four-game slate at 12 p.m. ET, followed by 76ers-Hawks in King’s hometown of Atlanta at 2:30 p.m., Timberwolves-Knicks in New York at 5 p.m. and Rockets-Grizzlies at 7:30 p.m. All games will be on NBC and Peacock.

Jan. 26-30: Rivals Week

The league’s fifth-annual Rivals Week does not yet have the cachet of Christmas or MLK Day, but this five-day batch of games includes some intriguing matchups. Two Texas teams, the Spurs and Rockets, begin Rivals Week on January 26, and it ends with a Lakers-Knicks battle at Madison Square Garden on January 30. Some of the matchups that don’t quite scream “rivalry” yet, but there’s a method to the league’s madness. Neither the Charlotte Hornets nor the Minnesota Timberwolves have ever been to the NBA Finals — in fact, they’re two of only five teams to never make the Finals — but a trade this summer that sent All-Star guard LaMelo Ball north could spark some rivalry-related feelings among their fans.

Feb. 3: Pioneers Classic

The NBA kicks off Black History Month with its second annual game to once again honor three of the league’s earliest Black players: Chuck Cooper (the first Black player to be drafted in the NBA), Nat “Sweetwater” Clifton (the first Black player to sign an NBA contract) and Earl Lloyd (the first Black player to play in an NBA game). The Bucks and Celtics played the first such game last season, and this year’s edition will feature the Knicks and the Detroit Pistons at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN.

Feb. 15: President’s Day

Can’t get enough Timberwolves-Hornets excitement? You get another chance with this showdown at noon ET on President’s Day that begins a four-game slate on NBC and Peacock. Other matchups: 76ers vs. Mavericks at 2:30 p.m. ET, Spurs-Heat at 5 p.m. and Pacers-Warriors at 7:30 p.m.

Feb. 19: All-Star Game

The first three times the NBA brought its All-Star Game to Phoenix, in 1975, 1995 and 2009, it utilized the traditional East vs. West format. Over the past decade, however, the league has struggled to keep its All-Star Game relevant, and it has experimented with a variety of formats in hopes of injecting life into what had become a sloppy affair without a hint of defense or competitiveness.

The latest attempt from Commissioner Adam Silver is “United States vs. The Rest of the World.” Two teams of eight U.S.-born players will take part in a four-team tournament that also includes one team of eight players from other countries. The fourth team will be the winning team from the Rising Stars Challenge the day before that features rookies and second-year players. The tournament-style set-up is complicated, but it should be better than watching an endless parade of halfcourt three-point attempts.

April 17: Playoffs Begin

The Play-In tournament will take place from April 13-16, but once that has settled the final entrants into the field, the postseason will truly get underway on April 17. Don’t expect it to be all chalk, either. Last year’s Finals matched the third-seeded Knicks and the second-seeded Spurs. In fact, 2016 was the last time the Finals matched the top seeds in each conference. That year LeBron James delivered a title to Cleveland with a stunning 3-games-to-1 comeback against the defending champion Warriors and Steph Curry, ending the city’s title drought. Could he do the same for the 76ers this year?

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