The schedule for this season is not up yet on NBA.com. It will not be for a few more days.
What is up though are pictures of NBA players and stories about current NBA players — things that were not on the site during the lockout. Images of current players were banned, which gave the site an odd feel. It looks like NBA.com again now, and NBA TV also is not just running classic games anymore. They are building toward a season. Finally.
NBA TV will host an NBA schedule release show next Tuesday (Dec. 6) at 7 p.m. Eastern.
This will be a 66-game schedule that will be tightly condensed, with teams playing a lot of back-to-backs and all teams playing at least one back-to-back-to-back. There will be one break for the All-Star Game in Orlando on Feb. 26.
A lot of details of the schedule will likely leak before then, but next Tuesday will be the big, official unveiling. For example, we already know four of the five Christmas Day games — Boston at New York, Miami at Dallas (so LeBron James gets to watch Dirk Nowitzki get his ring), Chicago at the Los Angeles Lakers, and the Los Angeles Clippers at Golden State. The fifth game is rumored to involve Oklahoma City as host, but nothing is confirmed yet.
It’s just good to be talking about games and schedules rather than antitrust law. And it’s good to log on to NBA.com and see current players again. As it should be.