76ers-Knicks, Thunder-Spurs on NBA Opening Night will see Celtics afternoon game before them

The 2026-27 NBA season is coming soon, and we now know which teams we will watch on opening night. LeBron James and the Philadelphia 76ers take on the defending champion New York Knicks, while Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs face the 2025 champs, the Oklahoma City Thunder. Before those games tip, though, NBA fans will get a fun afternoon opener as the Boston Celtics and Detroit Pistons go at it in the afternoon.

“Triple-header with Detroit Pistons-Boston Celtics in the afternoon on Oct. 20 — ahead of 76ers-Knicks and Thunder-Spurs,” ESPN insider Shams Charania reported on Tuesday.

The exact times of these games are still TBD.

These three NBA opening night matchups offer, arguably, the three best storylines of the 2026-27 season. First, you have the Celtics and Pistons, two teams vying for the title, but with serious questions after the loss of Jaylen Brown for the C’s and the playoff collapse after a 60-win season for the Pistons.

Next, there is LeBron James and his Philly superteam taking on the defending champion Knicks. Not only was this old rivalry reawakened with James’ entrance into it, but there is also the added wrinkle that LeBron would have likely joined the Knicks this offseason if they hadn’t won the title.

Finally, we get the best grudge match in the West: Spurs vs. Thunder, featuring two of the best players in the league, Victor Wembanyama and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

This is an incredible NBA opening night slate, and if the games are half as good as they appear on paper, we should be in for an exciting and dramataic season ahaead.

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