NBA Schedule 2021-22: Key Dates for Regular Season, Playoffs, Play-In Tournament

The NBA announced key dates for the 2021-22 season on Tuesday, with the regular season running from Oct. 19, 2021 through April 10, 2022.

Game 7 of the 2022 NBA Finals will be June 19 (if necessary), and the 2022 NBA draft will follow on June 23.

The league had already announced the schedule for its upcoming free-agency period. Teams will be able to negotiate with free agents beginning Aug. 2 at 6 p.m. ET.

The season schedule represents somewhat of a return to normalcy after the past two years were adjusted because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The league utilized a condensed 72-game regular-season schedule in 2020-21, and the postseason was marred by injuries to key players.

The league will also welcome back Las Vegas Summer League from Aug. 8-17 after it was canceled during the 2020 offseason. That will provide rookies and other young players a chance to get acclimated to the NBA after some were rushed into action this past season. Undrafted players will also get more chances to earn contracts before the upcoming year.

The play-in tournament was approved Tuesday to return for the 2021-22 season. This year's version will run from April 12-15, once again featuring teams finishing seventh through 10th in each conference trying to earn the No. 7 and No. 8 seeds in the playoffs.

After the 2021 play-in tournament featured high-profile squads like the Los Angeles Lakers, Golden State Warriors and Boston Celtics, the NBA and television executives will likely hope for more of the same in 2022.