LOS ANGELES -- Opening Night and Christmas Day are two of the biggest days not just in the NBA but in sports. And your Los Angeles Lakers headline both days at Crypto.com Arena, according to ESPN's Shams Charania.
The Luka Dončić and LeBron James-led Lakers will kick-start the regular season against Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors as the 11-time All-Star enters his 17th season. On Christmas Day, the Lakers will take on the new-look Houston Rockets with Kevin Durant now leading the pack.
This will be the 26th straight year the Lakers will play on Christmas Day, having appeared in a total of 51 games on the holiday with a 25-26 record.
But the excitement doesn’t stop there. Fans will also be treated to a number of other must-see matchups to headline the two days:
Opening Night (NBC on Oct. 21):
Houston Rockets at Oklahoma City Thunder
Christmas Day (on ESPN and ABC):
Dallas Mavericks at Golden State Warriors
Minnesota Timberwolves at Denver Nuggets
Cleveland Cavaliers at New York Knicks
San Antonio Spurs at Oklahoma City Thunder
With such a packed schedule and the 82-game slate to be released soon, the start of the season will bring plenty of drama and must-watch moments across the league. Christmas Day will be especially busy, with the NBA going head-to-head against the NFL—an all-in-all great thing for us sports fans who’ll be enjoying the action from home