On Tuesday, the league unveiled a partial release of the schedule for the 2026-27 NBA regular season.
Three games were announced to inaugurate the season on Tuesday, October 20, with matchups involving the Boston Celtics, Detroit Pistons, New York Knicks, Philadelphia 76ers, San Antonio Spurs, and Oklahoma City Thunder.
Yet the timing of the televised season-opener left many fans bewildered and frustrated, prompting a vigorous reaction across social media.
The curtain-raiser will pit the Celtics against the Pistons at 3 p.m. ET, a time during which a sizable portion of fans nationwide may still be on the job and unable to watch.
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“A 3 p.m. game on a Tuesday is fantastic news for the unemployed,” wrote an X user, @antafterdark126, about the NBA schedule, adding, “Whose idea was that, though?”
“A 3 p.m. on a Tuesday might be the dumbest thing I have ever seen,” added X user @PropositionNick in a separate tweet criticizing the start time.
After the Pistons and Celtics showdown, the reigning champions, the New York Knicks, will host the LeBron James–led Philadelphia 76ers at 7:30 p.m. ET.
Following the Knicks’ ring-night clash with the 76ers, the Spurs—defeated by the Knicks in last season’s NBA Finals—will close the opening night by welcoming the Oklahoma City Thunder to town.
Although NBA commissioner Adam Silver and NBC faced some online criticism, not everyone was upset about the early start to the season opener.
“I kind of like the 3 p.m. weekday game,” wrote X user @Ds0859. “They should do that more often, on occasion.”
“I can’t recall the last time there was a 3 p.m. season opener,” added X user @jetboiiitnt, “Silver is really cooking with this new media deal.”
The NBA is entering the second year of an 11-year media rights contract with The Walt Disney Company, NBCUniversal (NBCU) and Amazon under which ABC/ESPN, NBC/Peacock and Prime Video are telecasting NBA games.
The media rights contract is worth approximately $76 billion in total over the 11 years.
Last month, while James was vacillating on where to continue his NBA career as a free agent, Silver put pressure on the veteran superstar to pick a new team so that the TV schedule could be finalized; James still waited a week longer to announce he was headed to Philadelphia.
James and the 76ers will also be in action against his former team, the Los Angeles Lakers, on Christmas Day. Other matchups on the marquee holiday slate include: Spurs-Knicks in a Finals rematch, Miami Heat-Celtics, Thunder-Minnesota Timberwolves, and Denver Nuggets-Golden State Warriors.
The full NBA schedule is expected to be released at 3 p.m. ET on August 13.
