NBA releases 2015-16 schedule: Warriors-Pelicans, Cavs-Bulls set for opening night
The NBA officially unveiled its 2015-16 schedule Wednesday, with the defending champion Golden State Warriors and the Anthony Davis-led New Orleans Pelicans set to open the season on Oct. 27.
LeBron James' Cavaliers, meanwhile, begin their quest to end Cleveland's long title drought with an Eastern Conference semifinal rematch against the Chicago Bulls.
Related: The 10 most intriguing matchups on the NBA schedule
The majority of teams will open their campaigns the following night, with a 13-game slate on Oct. 28, headlined by a matchup between the top two picks in June's NBA draft as D'Angelo Russell's Los Angeles Lakers host Karl-Anthony Towns' Minnesota Timberwolves.
That game will also mark Kobe Bryant's return to the court for the first time since he was sidelined with a shoulder injury in January. The "Black Mamba" embarks on the 20th - and potentially final - season of his illustrious career.
Despite missing the postseason in each of the last two seasons, the Lakers will remain one of the league's most featured teams on national television.
Breakdown of the national (ESPN, ABC, TNT) TV schedule:
Warriors, Cavs 25 games each
Clippers, Thunder 24 each
Bulls 23
Spurs 21
Lakers 19
— Jeff Zillgitt (@JeffZillgitt) August 12, 2015
The league also announced its usual slate of marquee Christmas Day games, with a Finals rematch between the Cavs and Warriors headlining the holiday quintuple-header.
#NBAXMas 2015 schedule! --
NOP @ MIA
CHI @ OKC
CLE @ GSW
SAS @ HOU
LAL @ LAC
#NBAschedule pic.twitter.com/qrW9V3cXqU
— NBA (@NBA) August 12, 2015
The Martin Luther King Jr. Day schedule, which like Christmas is always one of the league's strongest, features the Warriors' first trip to Cleveland since winning the NBA title in Game 6, and the Los Angeles Clippers hosting the Houston Rockets, the team they blew a 3-1 lead against in the Western Conference semifinals.
Other highly anticipated matchups include DeAndre Jordan's Clippers squaring off with the Dallas Mavericks, the team he spurned, on Oct. 29, as well as Jordan's first trip to Dallas on Nov. 11.
Also on Nov. 11, LaMarcus Aldridge and his San Antonio Spurs will make their first trip to Portland since Aldridge left the Trail Blazers to sign with the five-time champions.
The full 2015-16 regular-season schedule can be viewed at NBA.com.
The Toronto Raptors and Orlando Magic will lock horns in London on Jan. 14, as the league continues its initiative aimed at growing the game internationally.
Another major component of next season's schedule is how much more player-friendly it is as far as opportunities for rest and recuperation go. The league office has made a point of reducing the number of four games in five nights.
NBA announces instances where a team plays four games in five nights reduced from 70 in 2014-15 season to 27 in 2015-16 season.
— Rick Bonnell (@rick_bonnell) August 12, 2015
In addition, the league announced players will enjoy a week-long All-Star break for the second consecutive season. Furthermore, the team average for back-to-back games has been cut from 19.3 last season to 17.8 this season.
NBA senior vice president of operations Kiki VanDeWeghe called it the best schedule he's seen, adding the league was ''very, very mindful of player rest and recuperation, and the idea of putting the best product on the floor each and every night.''
The regular season will wrap up April 13, with the playoffs set to tip off April 16.
- With files from The Associated Press