2019-20 NBA Schedule: Breaking Down Top 10 Games of the Season
Welcome to the age of NBA parity.
The league took a step toward its new reality last season when LeBron James ended his run of eight straight NBA Finals appearances from the Eastern Conference by heading west. The Toronto Raptors filled the void and appeared to end the Golden State Warriors’ dynastic run with a victory in the NBA Finals.
Golden State has reached the last five NBA Finals but watched Kevin Durant join the Brooklyn Nets this offseason and Klay Thompson suffer a torn ACL that will keep him out for much of the upcoming campaign.
The door is now open for a line of new contenders, including the Los Angeles Lakers, Los Angeles Clippers, Houston Rockets, Utah Jazz, Portland Trail Blazers, Denver Nuggets, Milwaukee Bucks, Philadelphia 76ers, Boston Celtics and Nets to make their own run at a championship.
The regular season comes first, though, and Monday's schedule release provides fans a glimpse at the roadmap of the most anticipated games of the year.
Here is a look at the top 10, which were chosen based on a combination of how they will impact the playoff race, the stars involved and the overall storylines setting the stage for the matchups.
Oct. 22: Los Angeles Lakers vs. Los Angeles Clippers
1 of 10
Los Angeles was the epicenter of the offseason and will likely be the epicenter of the regular season as well.
The Los Angeles Lakers traded for Anthony Davis, only to be overshadowed by the Los Angeles Clippers, who added both NBA Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard and 2018-19 MVP candidate Paul George to a roster that made the playoffs last season.
Leonard was even tied to the Lakers during the offseason and could have formed a superteam with Davis and LeBron James, but he chose elsewhere.
The natural rivalry between two teams in the same city serves as the backdrop, especially with the Clippers attempting to finally not be second fiddle to the Lakers.
There is also the sheer amount of talent on the court in what could be a Western Conference Finals preview. This Staples Center matchup will give the Lakers a chance to test the James-Davis pairing against elite competition and the Leonard-George combination the chance to face the King in pressure-packed situations again.
Leonard played James in back-to-back NBA Finals when he was on the San Antonio Spurs and LeBron was on the Miami Heat. George battled James in back-to-back Eastern Conference Finals as a member of the Indiana Pacers.
Their next playoff matchup could happen soon—but only after they battle for Los Angeles supremacy in the regular season.
Oct. 23: Boston Celtics vs. Philadelphia 76ers
2 of 10
There aren't many rivalries in the NBA better than the one between the Philadelphia 76ers and Boston Celtics, and their first matchup this season features a new wrinkle.
Al Horford joined the 76ers this offseason after spending the last three campaigns on the Celtics. His ability to anchor Boston's interior defense against Joel Embiid was a primary reason it defeated the 76ers in the 2018 playoffs and consistently served as a roadblock for Philadelphia in its efforts to reach the top of the East.
He is now playing alongside Embiid, which is one reason Philadelphia is on the short list of teams that could reach the NBA Finals.
This matchup will also provide a glimpse at the overall ceiling for the new-look Celtics with Kemba Walker at point guard instead of Kyrie Irving. They aren't going to advance deep in the Eastern Conference playoffs if they cannot get past Philadelphia, and Walker's ability to play well against Ben Simmons will go a long way toward determining if that becomes a reality.
Oct. 23: Denver Nuggets vs. Portland Trail Blazers
3 of 10
The Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Lakers, Houston Rockets, Utah Jazz and Los Angeles Clippers are not the only contenders in the West.
The Portland Trail Blazers reached the Western Conference Finals last season, while the Denver Nuggets finished with the No. 2 seed. They both return many of their key pieces and represent one of the most exciting matchups of the upcoming season after they played a thrilling seven-game series in the second round of the playoffs.
Portland escaped Game 7 with a comeback victory after CJ McCollum caught fire, and Denver will surely want to enact a level of revenge this season.
There are also MVP candidates in Nikola Jokic and Damian Lillard to go with talented supporting casts, and the head-to-head results could go a long way toward seeding and home-court advantage for another potential playoff matchup.
Nov. 6: Golden State Warriors vs. Houston Rockets
4 of 10
The Houston Rockets have nightmares about the Golden State Warriors.
Golden State eliminated Houston in the second round of the 2019 playoffs even though Kevin Durant was sidelined by an injury, in Game 7 of the 2018 Western Conference Finals, in the first round of the 2016 playoffs and in the 2015 Western Conference Finals.
It reached a point where the Rockets were complaining about the refs with data and reports.
If the odds are ever going to tilt in Houston's favor, it is this year with Durant, DeMarcus Cousins and Andre Iguodala no longer on the Warriors and with Klay Thompson recovering from a torn ACL. Houston also has Russell Westbrook to play alongside James Harden, and the 2016-17 MVP has never backed down in showdowns with Stephen Curry.
These two teams may not be the surefire top two rosters in the Western Conference like in years past, but they are still title contenders. Golden State will be dangerous with Curry, Draymond Green and D'Angelo Russell—especially once Thompson returns—and Houston has a backcourt of MVPs leading the way.
Nov. 27: Brooklyn Nets vs. Boston Celtics
5 of 10
The Boston Celtics reached Game 7 of the 2018 Eastern Conference Finals with Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward sidelined with injury and were widely expected to take the next step in 2019 after LeBron James left the East, especially with both returning.
Instead, they stumbled to a No. 4 seed and a quick second-round exit as clear chemistry problems between Irving and his teammates derailed the season.
Boston fans will not hesitate to remind Irving about those failures in his first game back with the Brooklyn Nets. Those fans expected to compete for championships with Irving and instead saw the team’s most successful run during his two years come when he wasn’t even playing.
Look for the Celtics fans to see every positive from Kemba Walker in these matchups as a referendum against the Irving era and react accordingly during what will surely be an emotional contest.
As for Brooklyn, Boston figures to be one of the teams standing in its way in the Eastern Conference if it is going to make a deep run with Irving and eventually a healthy Durant. Winning the regular-season games will help it build confidence before a potential championship run in 2020-21.
Nov. 27: Los Angeles Lakers vs. New Orleans Pelicans
6 of 10
The New Orleans Pelicans and Los Angeles Lakers both missed the playoffs last season but were intricately linked to each other and drove many of the headlines before the postseason.
Anthony Davis requested a trade in January through agent Rich Paul, who is also the agent for LeBron James. The Davis-to-the-Lakers talk reached a point that even Giannis Antetokounmpo joked that James was tampering by picking the Kentucky product for his roster for the All-Star Game.
Both the Lakers and Pelicans struggled down the stretch with lackluster chemistry, especially in Los Angeles.
The Lakers eventually traded for Davis this offseason, and he will surely not be welcomed back to New Orleans with open arms after he essentially forced his way out before his contract expired.
There are a number of other intriguing angles outside of Davis’ return that put this matchup firmly on the list, including the chance for Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram and Josh Hart to show what the Lakers are missing out on.
No. 1 overall pick Zion Williamson will also have the opportunity to measure himself against arguably the best big man in the league in Davis and one of the best players in league history in James.
Dec. 11: Los Angeles Clippers vs. Toronto Raptors
7 of 10
It takes a special situation for a player to leave a team after just one season—when he had the chance to return—and still be welcomed back as a conquering hero.
Kawhi Leonard's return to face the Toronto Raptors is a special situation.
Leonard will receive a warm welcome during his first game back in Toronto even in a Los Angeles Clippers jersey after leading the Raptors to their first NBA championship in franchise history.
He provided memories that will last a lifetime by stunning the Philadelphia 76ers with a Game 7 buzzer-beater, defeating Giannis Antetokounmpo in the Eastern Conference Finals and preventing the Golden State Warriors from three-peating.
He may have chosen the Clippers as his new home, but he will always be a legend in Toronto.
His return is appointment-viewing for NBA fans.
Dec. 25: Milwaukee Bucks vs. Philadelphia 76ers
8 of 10
The position of King in the East is open after LeBron James departed for the Western Conference in the summer of 2018 and Kawhi Leonard did the same this summer.
Giannis Antetokounmpo is the most logical choice as the reigning league MVP and arguably the NBA's brightest young star. He led the Milwaukee Bucks to the best record in the league last season before they lost to Leonard's Toronto Raptors in the Eastern Conference Finals, and he may have to face the Philadelphia 76ers deep in the playoffs this time around.
Philadelphia also lost to Leonard in the 2019 playoffs but is on the short list of Finals contenders following his departure to the West.
This matchup represents a potential Eastern Conference Finals preview between Antetokounmpo and a team that is well oriented to stop him with Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons, Al Horford, Tobias Harris and Josh Richardson all as big bodies who can clog the lane and stop his penetration.
Jan. 9: Houston Rockets vs. Oklahoma City Thunder
9 of 10
Players returning to their former homes will be a defining theme of the 2019-20 season, but nobody will receive a warmer welcome than Russell Westbrook when his Houston Rockets travel to face the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Thunder general manager Sam Presti called Westbrook "the most important player" in Oklahoma City history after trading him to Houston in a statement that wasn't hyperbole.
Westbrook's rookie season was also the franchise's first in OKC, and he proceeded to win a league MVP, reach the NBA Finals and play in four Western Conference Finals all while serving as a pillar in the community.
The fans will greet him with a hero's welcome when Houston comes to town.
From a basketball perspective, this matchup gives the new-look Thunder the opportunity to test themselves against some of the best the West has to offer and provides a memorable moment in a season that won't be defined by a championship race.
Jan. 27: Houston Rockets vs. Utah Jazz
10 of 10
The Utah Jazz continue to run into a familiar roadblock: the Houston Rockets.
Houston eliminated Donovan Mitchell's team in the last two playoffs, but Utah responded this offseason by adding Mike Conley Jr. and Bojan Bogdanovic to a roster that already included Rudy Gobert and Joe Ingles.
That gives it a facilitator in Conley and someone in Bogdanovic who can take advantage of the openings playing alongside the other four with his outside shooting.
The Jazz need to figure out a way to get past Houston if they are going to be considered as realistic contenders, and that may be more difficult this season after the Rockets added Russell Westbrook.
Westbrook, who had a notable confrontation with a Utah fan last season, and James Harden matching up against Mitchell and Conley is one of the best backcourt showdowns in the league, and positioning in what figures to be a tight Western Conference race will be on the line.
