NBA 2024-25 Season: Schedule, Key Matchups, and Championship Favourites

The 2024-25 NBA season is set to kick off on Tuesday, October 22, with a highly anticipated matchup between the New York Knicks and the reigning champions, the Boston Celtics. The game will take place at the TD Garden in Boston, starting at 6:30 PM local time (23:30 GMT).

Throughout the regular season, each of the 30 NBA teams will compete in 82 games over a span of seven months. The top six teams from both the Eastern and Western Conferences will secure automatic berths to the playoffs, while the next four teams ranked 7-10 in each conference will participate in a play-in tournament to vie for the final two playoff spots.

In the Eastern Conference, the Boston Celtics are favored to reclaim their title, with the New York Knicks and the Philadelphia 76ers seen as the primary challengers. In the Western Conference, the Oklahoma City Thunder are the frontrunners, closely followed by the Denver Nuggets, Dallas Mavericks, Minnesota Timberwolves, and Phoenix Suns.

Key dates on the 2024-25 NBA calendar include the NBA Mexico Game on November 2, the commencement of the Emirates NBA Cup on November 12, the Emirates NBA Championship on December 17, and the NBA Paris Games on January 23 and 25, 2025. The NBA trade deadline is set for February 6, 2025, and the All-Star Game will be hosted in San Francisco, California, on February 14, 2025. The regular season will conclude on April 13, 2025, followed by the start of the NBA playoffs on April 19.

This season will also feature several compelling storylines, including the potential historic moment of LeBron James and his son Bronny James becoming the first father-son duo to play in the NBA. Additionally, the MVP race is expected to be intense, with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Oklahoma City Thunder and Luka Doncic of the Dallas Mavericks as the primary candidates.