NBA’s Opening Day Features Knicks vs. Celtics, Timberwolves vs. Lakers
The NBA's 2024-25 season will tip off with the New York Knicks facing the Boston Celtics in Boston, while the Minnesota Timberwolves will go head-to-head with the Los Angeles Lakers in L.A., according to The Athletic's Shams Charania.
These games are scheduled for Tuesday, October 22, and will be broadcast on TNT.
In addition, the Celtics will be presented with their championship rings from the 2023-24 season on opening night, as per Charania's report.
Boston enters the season following a dominant campaign where they secured the top spot in the Eastern Conference with a 64-18 record and won the NBA title. The Knicks, on the other hand, recorded 50 wins for the first time since the 2012-13 season, finishing second in the East.
The Celtics have retained their key players, including point guard Derrick White and star forward Jayson Tatum, who recently signed the largest contract extension in NBA history. Tatum, White, and Jrue Holiday were also part of the U.S. team that won the gold medal at the Paris Olympics.
During the offseason, the Knicks acquired Mikal Bridges from the Brooklyn Nets, trading four first-round picks and veteran Bojan Bogdanovic in the deal.
In their previous encounters last season, the Celtics won four out of five games against the Knicks.
On the West Coast, the Timberwolves, who reached the Western Conference Finals last season, will visit the Lakers. Last season marked the first time the Timberwolves won a playoff series since the 2003-04 campaign. Meanwhile, LeBron James, fresh off an MVP performance in the Olympic tournament where he led the U.S. to gold, aims to lead the Lakers back to success after a 47-35 season that ended in a first-round playoff loss to the Denver Nuggets for the second straight year.
The Lakers lost three of their four regular-season matchups against Minnesota in the 2023-24 season.
In other news, Golden State Warriors legend Klay Thompson is set to make his first appearance in the Bay Area as a member of the Dallas Mavericks on November 12, according to Charania.
