ESPN and ABC Announce Their 2010-11 NBA Schedule

ESPN with 75 games and ABC with an additional 15 give the combo a total of 90 games this season. Lots of games. Here’s the press release.

ABC & ESPN 2010-11 NBA Schedule

90-Game Flexible Schedule; Five Christmas Day Games Including Heat/Lakers Blockbuster

ESPN’s multiplatform coverage of the 2010-11 NBA regular season will include 90 games, highlighted by 15 exclusive broadcasts on ABC – the home of The Finals – and 75 ESPN telecasts. All 90 games will feature flexible scheduling providing viewers with the best possible matchups throughout the season. All games will be available in high definition, with all ESPN telecasts also available via ESPN3.com and nearly all on ESPN Mobile TV. ESPN Radio will broadcast 26 games, while ESPN Deportes (ESPN’s Spanish-language U.S. sports network) will televise 22 games. For the first time, select games will also be available on ESPN 3D.

Opening Week on ESPN

ESPN’s coverage will open with a doubleheader on Wednesday, Oct. 27 – the Chicago Bulls and All-Star Derrick Rose and free agent acquisition Carlos Boozer visiting defending NBA scoring leader Kevin Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder at 8 p.m. ET, followed by the L.A. Clippers, with the anticipated debut of Blake Griffin, hosting the Portland Trail Blazers and Brandon Roy at 10:30 p.m.  Opening week action will continue with a second doubleheader on Friday, Oct. 29 – the home opener for the Miami Heat and its new core of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh against the Orlando Magic and 2010 NBA Defensive Player of the Year Dwight Howard at 8 p.m., followed by the defending NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers and Finals MVP Kobe Bryant visiting the Phoenix Suns and two-time league MVP Steve Nash at 10:30 p.m. 

ESPN’s opening week games will also be available via ESPN3.com and ESPN Mobile TV. NBA Shootaround will preview both doubleheaders at 7:30 p.m.  ESPN Deportes will televise the Friday doubleheader. 

Additionally, ESPN Radio will broadcast the Opening Night showdown between Miami and the defending Eastern Conference champion Boston Celtics, with All-Stars Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Rajon Rondo, on Tuesday, Oct. 26, with coverage beginning at 6:30 p.m.

ESPN & ABC Combine for Five Christmas Day Games

The networks will collectively present five Christmas Day games highlighted by a blockbuster doubleheader on ABC featuring the Lakers vs. Heat – the first matchup between the two teams this season – Saturday, Dec. 25, at 5 p.m., preceded by the Celtics visiting the Magic – the past two Eastern Conference champions – at 2:30 p.m. The NBA Countdown pregame show will preview the action at 2 p.m. ESPN Radio will broadcast the Heat/Lakers matchup with coverage beginning at 4:15 p.m.

ESPN will televise three Christmas Day games including the New York Knicks and offseason acquisition Amar’e Stoudemire hosting the Bulls and Rose at 12 p.m. ESPN will also televise an evening doubleheader featuring a pair of the NBA’s elite forwards when the Denver Nuggets and Carmelo Anthony face the Thunder and Durant at 8 p.m., and a new-look Golden State Warriors, with the addition of David Lee joining breakout performer Stephen Curry, hosting the Trail Blazers at 10:30 p.m.  

ESPN & ABC Showcase NBA’s Elite Teams

ABC and ESPN will combine to showcase some the top teams in the league, including 16 appearances by the Lakers (the maximum allowed across both networks), 15 by Miami and the Eastern Conference champion Boston Celtics, and 13 by the Orlando Magic.

ABC schedule highlights:

• 15 exclusive broadcasts;
• flexible schedule allowing for the best possible matchups throughout the season;
• blockbuster Christmas Day doubleheader – Miami at the Lakers at 5 p.m., following Boston at Orlando at 2:30 p.m. with coverage beginning with NBA Countdown at 2 p.m.;
• five NBA Sunday doubleheaders – Jan. 30, Feb. 13, March 6 and April 3 and 10;
• six appearances by the Lakers, five appearances by the Celtics, Heat and Magic, and multiple appearances by the Bulls, Thunder, Suns and San Antonio Spurs;
• Finals rematch between the Celtics and Lakers Sunday, Jan. 30, at 3:30 p.m.;
• Eastern Conference Finals rematch – Orlando at Boston (Dec. 25 at 2:30 p.m. and Sunday, Feb. 6, at 2:30 p.m.);
• 2009 NBA Finals rematch between the Lakers and Magic Sunday, Feb. 13, at 3:30 p.m.;
• rematch of the 2009 Western Conference Finals – Nuggets at Lakers – Sunday, April 3, at 3:30 p.m.;
• two games featuring the emerging Oklahoma City Thunder – hosting Miami Sunday, Jan. 30, at 1 p.m. and the Lakers Sunday, Feb. 27, at 2:30 p.m.;
• a potential Eastern Conference Finals preview when Boston visits Miami Sunday, April 30, at 3:30 p.m.;
• NBA Countdown will preview all games/doubleheaders 30 minutes prior to broadcast start times.

ESPN schedule highlights:

• 75-game flexible schedule allowing for the best possible games throughout the season;
• 31 doubleheaders;
• 10 appearances – the most permitted – by the Celtics, Heat, Lakers, Mavericks, Nuggets and Suns;
• nine appearances by the Bulls, Spurs, Thunder and Trail Blazers; eight appearances by the Utah Jazz, Knicks and Magic; six appearances by the Warriors; and four appearance by the Atlanta Hawks, Clippers and Milwaukee Bucks;
• opening week doubleheaders Wednesday, Oct. 27 – Chicago at Oklahoma City at 8 p.m., followed by Portland at the Clippers at 10:30 p.m. – and Friday, Oct. 29 – Orlando at Miami, the Heat’s home opener, at 8 p.m. and the Lakers at Phoenix at 10:30 p.m.;
• the Heat will make their first appearance of the season at Madison Square Garden against the Knicks Friday, Dec. 17, at 7 p.m., and the Lakers will make their only appearance of the season at MSG Friday, Feb. 11, at 8 p.m.;
• three Christmas games – Chicago at New York at 12 p.m. and an evening doubleheader (Denver at Oklahoma City at 8 p.m.; Portland at Golden State at 10:30 p.m.);
• Western Conference Finals rematch when the Lakers visit the Suns Wednesday, Jan. 5, at 10:30 p.m.;
• for the first time, ESPN will televise a game on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day when the Memphis Grizzlies host the Bulls and Rose (who played college basketball at the University of Memphis) Monday, Jan. 17, at 1 p.m.  The National Civil Rights Museum is located in Memphis.

Record-Setting 2010 Finals

ESPN enters the 2010-11 regular season on the heels of a record-setting 2010 Finals. The Finals – which the Lakers won 4-3 over the Celtics – averaged 18.1 million viewers to become the most-viewed ever on ABC. The decisive Game 7 was the highest-rated (15.6 rating) and most-viewed (28.2 million viewers) NBA game since The Finals Game 6 in 1998. Additionally, visits to ESPN.com’s NBA section were up 24% and online video starts spiked 19% during The Finals. On mobile devices, visits to the ESPN.com NBA section were up 64% during The Finals.

The schedules are after the break.
First, here’s the NBA on ABC sked.

Next, this is the NBA on ESPN schedule.

Finally, here’s the NBA on ESPN Radio schedule.

And that will do it.