With matchups almost ready, the NBA released its playoff schedule on Thursday afternoon.
There will be daytime games.
With 16 teams playing in three arenas within the bubble, the NBA will host all-day matches during the first round of the playoffs, with games starting as early as 1 p.m. ET during the week. Instead of reserving weekday games for prime time, the opening round will have more of a March Madness vibe than the traditional NBA post-season roster.
Rocky Mountain matchup in Florida
The peak games Monday with the Utah Jazz facing the Denver Nuggets at 1:30 PM ET. They will be followed by the Brooklyn Nets versus the Toronto Raptors and the Boston Celtics versus the Philadelphia 76ers with the Dallas Mavericks and Los Angeles Clippers closing the schedule on Monday with a 9pm ET tip.
The Lakers’ opponent remains TBD
All pairings are set except for no. 1 / no. 8 matchups in the West. The Los Angeles Lakers seeded will face the number 8 seed starting Tuesday at 9 p.m. ET. The seed no. 8 will be determined by a play-in series scheduled for this weekend.
The Memphis Grizzlies grabbed a spot in the play-in series last Thursday. They will face the Portland Trail Blazers or the Phoenix Suns depending on the outcome of Portland’s Thursday night game against the Nets.
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