Nba 2024-25 Season

What is the NBA schedule?

The NBA is one of the most physically demanding sports in the world. With the regular season usually taking place between October and April, each of the thirty teams that make up both the Eastern and Western conferences play 82 games before the postseason begins.

With teams playing games every three days, teams need to balance their rosters and ensure that they reach their peaks by the time the playoffs start.

The road to an NBA Championship can be arduous, and there are many obstacles that need to be overcome. 

From the outside the NBA schedule can be difficult to get your head around, but on this page we will tell you everything you need to know.

When does the NBA regular season start?

Ever since the inauguration of the NBA back in 1949, the season has always begun in October. With the NFL season starting in September, the NBA has its own niche carved out in the sporting calendar and for four months, two of America’s greatest sports run alongside each other. 

And when does it finish?

It’s important to remember when looking at the NBA schedule that there are two key elements. The regular season ends in April, with the postseason starting shortly afterwards.

Out of all thirty teams that make up the NBA, only sixteen teams will compete in the playoffs. For those fourteen teams that fall short of the playoffs, their season will end at the conclusion of the regular season.

Why 82 games?

Ever since 1967, the NBA has played 82 games and while there are some that are worried that the workload is too much, the NBA hierarchy seem happy with the amount of games that are played. 

Within the NBA there are two conferences, the Western Conference and the Eastern Conference and within each conference, there are three divisions. Each of these individual divisions comprises five teams.

Each team within an individual division will play the other four times, which means that 16 of the 82 games are made up of interdivisional play. 

The remaining 66 games are made up of playing fellow conference and divisional rivals and fixtures against the opposing conference. The different rival division and conference matchups are regularly rotated to ensure that the same teams don’t play each other too regularly.

What is the best NBA regular season record?

Winning games in the NBA is never easy and understandably winning all 82 games in a season has never been done before.

The best record that has ever been recorded in the NBA was achieved by the Golden State Warriors back in the 2015/2016 season when they achieved a record of 73-9.

With an ever increasing focus on rest and load management, it will take something special for the Warriors record ever to be topped.

Does the NBA have a preseason?

The NBA has a preseason which is known as the Summer League. Taking place throughout July, the Summer League is a chance for NBA roster players, rookie recruits and lower level G League players to play for precious roster spots and gain form and fitness before the NBA season officially begins.

When does the NBA Postseason start?

Although every team wants to try to top their respective conferences, championships can’t be won in the regular season, and in order to be crowned NBA champions, a team will need to come through the NBA postseason.

Starting shortly after the regular season, the postseason contains four different rounds and runs from April to June.

The NBA Play-in

Introduced in 2022, the NBA Play-in is a new format introduced into the NBA postseason. Only the first six teams in each conference are guaranteed a spot in the postseason, with the teams that finish in positions 7-10 needing to reach the postseason by virtue of qualifying through the Play-in.

With the Play-in just starting days after the conclusion of the regular season, the first match is between the teams who finish seventh and eighth, the winners of that match will be assured of their postseason place. The loser of the match between the seventh and eighth ranked teams will play against the winner of the teams that finish 9th and 10th.

Whoever wins that final matchup will take up the last places that are available in the postseason.

What needs to happen to advance in the NBA postseason?

Whereas in some of the most popular sports on the planet, knockout games are often decided by the outcome of just one game, the NBA is different, with each round of the postseason being determined by the best of seven games.

Teams will alternate between hosting two games at home before then travelling to the other team’s home court. The higher-ranked team will always have the right to host the deciding game at home should the series be tied at 3-3.

In order to reach the NBA Finals, teams need to be crowned as Conference Champions; in order to do this, a team will need to advance through three rounds.

When do the NBA Finals take place?

The NBA Finals take place between May and June. With the Super Bowl taking place in February, all eyes in America and the sporting world are on the NBA Finals, with millions tuning in to watch the action all over the world.

What is the new NBA in-season tournament?

There has been criticism that the length of the regular season can sometimes lead to a lack of excitement, in order to create more meaningful games in the 2023/2024 season a new NBA in season tournament was launched.

With each of the thirty NBA teams competing, teams within each conference division need to advance through their individual groups before the top eight teams compete in the knockout rounds.

Unlike the NBA postseason, the in-season tournament knock out matches consist of just one match with the winners of each knockout tie advancing to the next stage of the competition. 

The 2023 final was held in Las Vegas with the LA Lakers beating out the Indiana Pacers. Each of the victorious players from the Lakers earned a winning bonus of $500,000. Although the in-season tournament earned its fair share of criticism, the NBA plans to continue with the tournament for this season.